This article was taken from the December 2012 issue of Wired magazine. Be the first to read Wired's articles in print before they're posted online, and get your hands on loads of additional content by <span class="s1">subscribing online.
Like many people who go to clubs, David Gunness hated "the smear of sound" that results when loud music is pushed hard though a sound system. But Gunness, a guitarist with a degree in audio acoustic engineering, was able to do something about it, using a combination of mathematics and computer technology. "Usually, where very loud music is concerned, bad things go on with the sound before you hear it," says Gunness, the co-owner of US-based loudspeaker manufacturer Fulcrum Acoustic. "Music exits the source and by the time it leaves the speaker it's been taken apart and mixed up, creating distortion. This is inevitable when you create the degree of force required for high decibels."
To ease the pain, Gunness devised a technique for anticipating and nullifying the way in which the sound will be mixed up. Using predictive algorithms (unique for each location) and proprietary software, he sends precisely the opposite distortion to the speaker. The two sound waves hit simultaneously, with Gunness's distortion having a neutralising effect. That way, just before beats ram across the dancefloor, the sound is corrected and put back together pristinely. This happens 48,000 times per second, in 20-microsecond intervals. "Think of it like a camera lens that puts an image out of focus," Gunness explains. "If you add a second lens that does the opposite, you will have a net focused image."
The typical cost is $750,000 (£460,000) for a nightclub setup, but you then get patrons who are more likely to stayfor another round.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
