Upmixing: A Practical Path To Mainstream Live Immersive Audio

Live immersive audio faces a chicken-and-egg problem. Rental companies and venues are understandably cautious about investing in spatial sound systems, while most touring acts continue to mix in stereo, and artists have little incentive to create immersive live content for systems they cannot rely on encountering from one show to the next.

This session explores how real-time upmixing can help bridge that gap, providing a practical route between the long-term goal of native object-based immersive mixing and the operational reality of stereo live production.

Drawing on lessons learned from major festival and venue deployments — including nine stages at Tomorrowland across 2025 and 2026 — the session examines how real-time upmixing has been used to create immersive experiences from stereo sources with minimal additional complexity, helping venues and rental companies make greater use of immersive loudspeaker systems while remaining compatible with existing touring workflows.

Topics covered include:

• Why supporting stereo content is essential to the wider adoption of live immersive audio.
• The advantages and trade-offs of dedicated hardware versus software-based upmixing in live environments.
• Practical considerations when deploying immersive systems in venues and at festivals.
• How spatial weighting can create a more natural and coherent spatial image.
• When and why specific channels should bypass the upmixing process.
• Where real-time upmixing fits alongside native object-based immersive workflows.

Rather than presenting upmixing as a replacement for native immersive mixing, the session considers where each approach is most appropriate and how they can complement one another.

Attendees will leave with a technically grounded understanding of the opportunities, limitations and deployment considerations surrounding real-time upmixing, together with practical insights that can be applied to real-world live productions.

Who is this session for?

Live sound engineers, rental company technicians, and venue/festival technical and production teams working with stereo touring productions who are evaluating or operating larger loudspeaker systems.

This seminar is free to attend with a show entry badge. Seminars operate on a walk-in basis, so be sure to arrive in good time as seats are first-come-first-served.