Genelec brings immersive audio to the Nut Academy Dolby room

This Italian training academy for sound technicians now has a studio Dolby Atmos 7.1.4, with smart active monitors Genelec, that meets immersive audio standards.

For more than fifteen years, the Italian academy Nut Academy It trains technicians and sound designers and electronic music producers based on the principle that “the best way to teach is to put the student in the ideal conditions to learn.”, a premise that has materialized in the investment in the latest technology. With this approach, a study has been built Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 with smart active monitors Genelec.

“The idea of ​​creating a Dolby Atmos studio was born from the need to keep our teaching up to date,” he underlines. Win Acunto, sound engineer and Nut Academy teacher. If you want to work in the field of music production, you definitely have to deal with Atmos. “It is a technical necessity and a creative opportunity in the training of a sound engineer or a music producer.”.

Although there were plans to build a facility that would meet Dolby's specifications, the school had struggled to find the time to launch the study, Although the arrival of the pandemic accelerated this initiative, as restrictions during Italy's lockdown made it impossible to carry out daily in-person teaching.

The school partnered with Midiware, Italian distributor of Genelec's range of professional monitors, and with acoustic consultants Studio Sound Service to design and supply a purpose-built studio for the Nut Academy team to install that met immersive audio standards.

“The study design was originally based on the standards of Dolby Atmos Home Entertainment, but then it was certified for Atmos Music because it fulfilled both - remember Donato Masci, general and technical director of Studio Sound Service-. This expresses the versatility of the project. The room can be used to work on musical content, broadcast and post-production and, at the same time, as a conference room.

Although it was important to meet Dolby standards, Teaching is the main function of the room and this was fundamental in the design of the study. “The Dolby Atmos room can accommodate between ten and fifteen people for Nut Academy classes,” he adds. Giulia Bondielli, partner and acoustic designer at Studio Sound Service-. This required a versatile interior design that was different from that of a traditional mixing room., with sofa and diffuser on the back wall”.

As this expert remembers, “we had to optimize the space to meet all the client's needs and find the right positions for each monitor in the studio, since two side televisions and a projection screen are used for classes”.

Although the design posed several challenges, Team selection was much easier. Genelec monitors had been the school's first choice since Midiware had demonstrated the capabilities of the family The Ones a Nut Academy.

The selection was based on the three-way coaxial monitors 8351 for L-C-R positions, while the models of two way 8340 provide the channels surround y overhead. Finally, and subwoofer 7380 takes care of the low frequencies.

“The most surprising thing is that this listening system simplifies our work in the best possible way,” says Acunto.. Even in more complex contexts typical of the teaching environment, like open listening, the comparison and alternation of several genres in a short time, Genelec The Ones prove to be faithful co-workers”.

The result is something that everyone involved in the project is proud of.. “We are deeply satisfied with the final result because the client is happy with the interior design and the audio solutions that we have found,” Bondielli emphasizes., and also because this study has been completely built by the client following our instructions. This is important because it gives even more value to our design”.