Sneak Preview: Sennheiser Ambeo Smart Surround 3D recording headset
The one where we test Sennheiser's unreleased 3D audio recording headphones in a quaint little restaurant in Lisbon, Portugal with the help of the Blogfather, mrbrown. It sounds like a dream, but we assure you it's real. Read on.
Back at CES 2016, Sennheiser unveiled the Ambeo branding for their foray into a 3D surround sound ecosystem. The Ambeo VR Mic was the first professional product to be released under this new sub-brand. During CES 2017, Sennheiser showed off the Ambeo Smart Surround headset, a consumer-level product catered for the smartphone generation of content creators. With a fast-growing VR and 360-degree video trend, this seemed to be a smart move. But with neither release date nor pricing available, it didn’t seem like we’d actually see the headset till later in the year.
So, I was quite pleasantly surprised that Sennheiser actually brought out working units for the media to try, not during the actual IFA in Berlin that’s happening later this year in September, but right now at the IFA Global Press Conference in Lisbon, Portugal. What geek in his right mind would say no to exclusive play time with an unreleased product, am I right? So anyway, let’s get on with the show.
The Ambeo Smart Surround headset looks like a pair of wired over-the-ear sport earbuds. It has a soft silicon loop to keep it in place over your ears. The one thing that immediately stood out is the rather large integrated remote along the wire. Besides the usual volume, play/stop/call buttons, it also controls the built-in mic on the headset. There’s probably some audio processor in there that drives the mics, which is why it seems so big, but the construction feels very lightweight and flimsy. The initial release will only be available for Apple devices via Lightning connector, but we’re told that an Android version via USB-C will be released as the second wave.
The middle three buttons are labeled for Volume Down, Stop/Play/Pick up call, and Volume Up respectively. The metallic switch on the right turns the surround mic on/off, indicated by the red light next to it. The unmarked rocker buttons of the far right supposedly increases or reduces ambient noise filtering through the headphones.
Anyway, on to the mics. The Ambeo Smart Surround has a pair of high-quality stereo mics embedded behind the mesh covering on each ear bud. This turns an otherwise average-sounding headset into a binaural recorder to lust after.
Close up on one side of the earbuds. The mic is housed under the top mesh area. Strangely, there is an additional hole at the side. We think it's for ambient noise cancelling, but the Sennheiser rep present couldn't confirm it.
I did a very quick test with the help of the blogfather beyond borders , mrbrown, at an outdoor location, during a dinner party with background music playing, people talking and generally having a very busy ambient surrounding. I recorded the video on an iPhone 6 Plus with the standard camera app, while wearing the Ambeo Smart Surround headset myself.
Besides the ability to capture surround audio with relatively zero effort, the volume, levels and quality of audio picked up by the Ambeo Smart Surround were astounding. As I was wearing the headset and without a directional mic, it managed to boost and hold on to the presence of the main vocal source as it moved around me while balancing ambient noise.
Now, I’ve only done a very simple test on a product that’s probably still a few tweaks away from being retail ready, but I’m already blown away. Today, even entry-level smartphones are capable of Full HD video recording, with 360-degree and VR videos becoming increasingly accessible to the common consumer. However, audio always seem to be an afterthought. As you can hear in the video, the difference between the recorded audio from the Ambeo Smart Surround and the iPhone’s internal speakers was night and day.
Sennheiser’s solution is simple and elegant. Instead of providing you with a surround sound mic attachment for your smartphone or camera, the Ambeo Smart Surround headset essentially turns you into a giant, walking 3D mic. And because of that, the videos you shoot will have an immersive audio track that’s always centered on your perspective, so your viewers will truly be in your shoes. And that’s something.
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