We first saw (and more importantly heard) Trinnov’s WaveForming technology at last year’s CEDIA Expo, and were blown away by how well the system was able to reproduce bass frequencies. It wasn’t just the depth of the bass response that improved but the bass uniformity, impact, clarity, and detail. And no matter where I sat in the demo theater, the results were the same.
But at last year’s Expo, WaveForming was still limited in its availability and projects were being approved by the company on a case by case basis. Now any owner of one of the company’s Altitude line of A/V processors can gain access to WaveForming technology at no additional charge by contacting their Trinnov dealer for a free upgrade. In addition to the upgrade for existing customers, Trinnov says that WaveForming will be a default feature of all future Altitude A/V processors moving forward.
WaveForming’s fundamental concept is that it uses advanced proprietary software to drive multiple subwoofers in the front and back of a room. The front subwoofers transmit the bass while the rear subwoofers absorb or cancel out that bass. This prevents the bass frequencies from bouncing off the walls, floor and ceiling, generally wreaking havoc on the sound.
Unrestricted bass frequency propagation through a room typically causes room modes and standing waves which lead to greatly uneven bass frequencies in different parts of the listening room. Sitting in the sweet spot, you might get decent bass response but moving one seat to the left or right may lead to exaggerated boomy bass or virtually no bass at all, depending on where and how the bass waves interact with each other in your specific room. This uneven bass response is virtually eliminated by WaveForming.
While the initial system we heard at CEDIA Expo used a whopping 24 subwoofers – twelve in the front and twelve in the rear – the company also demonstrated that the technology can work with as few as five subwoofers: three along the front wall and two along the rear wall. Also, this year Trinnov showed a newer version of WaveForming (cylindrical WaveForming) that can get great results with as few as four subwoofers, as long as the listening room dimensions and ceiling reflectivity can be managed. Cylindrical WaveForming allows for Subwoofers to be placed on the floor while the alternate method – “Spherical WaveForming” – requires that subwoofers be mounted on or inside the walls.
Spherical WaveForming is still the preferred method for best results, however it can lead to higher equipment and installation costs. Also, while Spherical WaveForming works well with acoustically transparent projection screens, it’s not as conducive to home theaters that use a large flat panel screen like an OLED, MiniLED or MicroLED TV. With cylindrical WaveForming’s floor level subwoofer placement, the screen won’t block the subwoofers.
The company tells us that it took more than seven years of research and development to bring WaveForming to market, culminating in an 18-month Early Access Program which allowed Trinnov to gather real world results and feedback in actual customer home theaters, with a number of different speakers and subwoofers. With that program drawing to a close, the company feels the technology is ready for more wide-scale public use.
According to Trinnov Audio’s CEO Arnaud Laborie, “Far more spaces are compatible with WaveForming than many people imagine. If you have at least four subwoofers, WaveForming will improve your audio experience. Trinnov is eager to see this technology applied in private spaces of all types and sizes.”
In support of the software’s public release, the company has also released free design tools and tutorials to support WaveForming implementations. The tools listed below are just a few of the resources available to the public, to custom installers, and to any current or prospective customer on the company’s WaveForming Resources page.
WaveForming Tools and Resources
- WaveForming Subwoofer Placement Guidelines – in-depth design guidelines to validate equipment positioning or verify whether an existing system is compatible with WaveForming.
- WaveForming Design Tool – web-based software to assist in subwoofer placement for new installations.
- Trinnov Audio – WaveForming Guidelines Explained – a comprehensive on-demand webinar explaining the technology and guidelines for WaveForming implementations.
Trinnov recommends that current Altitude owners with compatible audio systems contact their dealer to enable WaveForming on their existing system and schedule calibration services. If your system isn’t current compatible, it may only take a nominal additional investment to bring it up to spec.
If you’re going to CEDIA Expo in Denver, Colorado in September, be sure to check out WaveForming in person. Expo attendees can experience WaveForming in the Trinnov Booth, #2938. Trinnov is teaming up with Perlisten, Barco, Officina Acustica, madVR and Kaleidescape for a 33-channel home theater system. That system will feature thirteen surround speakers, fourteen powered subwoofers and six height channel speakers, all from high-end speaker maker Perlisten, for a fully immersive surround experience. The visuals should be equally impressive with madVR video processing and Barco’s Nerthus projector which is rated at a whopping 32,000 lumens. Be sure to bring a pair of sunglasses.
The Bottom Line
A little over a year after its first public demonstration, Trinnov’s WaveForming tech is now rolling out to potentially thousands of customers worldwide. From what we’ve heard so far both at CEDIA Expo and at Trinnov’s US headquarters in Connecticut, the technology is capable of delivering some of the finest bass response we’ve heard in a home theater system. In fact, we’ve rarely heard anything approaching it in commercial theaters. The cost of entry is still high as Trinnov’s “entry level” Altitude 16 processor alone sells for $19,500 (MSRP) and you still have to add sources, speakers, at least four subwoofers, a display (projector/screen or flat panel) and the cost of installation. But if you’ve got the resources and you’re in the market for a custom home theater, you might want to ask your favorite custom installer about Trinnov WaveForming.
Related Reading:
CEDIA Expo’s Sickest Demo Features 43 Speakers and Over 125,000 Watts of Power
Trinnov Brings WaveForming Technology to More Affordable Home Theater Systems
