Sennheiser Says Recording Headset Will Work With Lightning-Based Devices at Launch

Sennheiser announced a binaural recording headset said to create a three-dimensional experience in which the listener is “inside the soundscape,” hearing the direction of sounds and natural spatial characteristics of an event as they were recorded. Two omnidirectional microphones positioned in the ear pieces of the headset work with an analog-to-digital converter, mic preamp and Apogee’s Soft Limit software to capture “immersive 3D audio” that places the listener in the exact original sound field of a recording, said the company. When used with a Lightning-based iOS device, a consumer can use the device's camera, along with the headset, to “record, experience and relive the same balance of three dimensional sound and 180° visual perspective that we as human beings are accustomed to in our perception of the world,” said CEO Andreas Sennheiser. The microphones capture differences in timing, volume and timbre that occur as sounds from different directions reach each ear, and once captured, the 3D sound files can be experienced through any pair of stereo headphones, said the company. Price and availability weren’t given. An Android version is due later this year. A Sennheiser Ambeo VR condenser microphone is sold by retailers including B&H Photo for $1,649.