Meta’s XR Audio SDK has received a significant upgrade with the introduction of Acoustic Ray Tracing at its core.
The function accurately replicates the process by which sound waves travel through a virtual environment to reach your eardrum. This simulation encompasses various acoustical phenomena, including reflections, reverb, occlusion, obstruction, and diffraction.
Meta isn’t the leading company behind a real-time rendering SDK featuring ray tracing capabilities? Since 2018, Valve’s Steam Audio has already featured innovative audio ray tracing capabilities. In fact, the Oculus Audio SDK, precursor to the Meta XR Audio SDK, was already equipped with this feature as far back as 2019.
While Steam Audio and Oculus Audio SDK were initially designed for PC or high-end console use, Meta asserts that its Acoustic Ray Tracing technology can efficiently operate on lower-powered chipsets like those found in its Quest headsets, handling “intricately complex geometry” with ease.
“When creating immersive VR experiences, whether you’re designing a winding cave, a vibrant cityscape, or a detailed indoor environment, Meta’s expertise enables seamless handling of even the most complex scenes without sacrificing efficiency.”
“Through diffraction, sound waves can circumnavigate obstacles, while occlusion determines how objects impede sound propagation. Meanwhile, obstruction models the dynamic effects on sound as it traverses diverse materials.”
“For instance, customers experience immersive gameplay as they’re able to pinpoint the location of their opponents through sound cues – footsteps echoing down corridors and across rooms – allowing for stealthy play and strategic ambushes, even without direct line of sight.”
With Steam Audio, developers assign sonic properties to each virtual item, much like identifying objects as metallic, brick-like, carpeted, glassy, or woody – a profound shift in how sounds are absorbed and projected.
Meta’s forthcoming release, Batman: Arkham Shadow, a Quest 3 exclusive developed by Camouflaj, is poised to be the company’s first flagship title to harness the power of its novel Acoustic Ray Tracing technology.
Meta’s Quest virtual reality (VR) headset has just received a significant upgrade: enhanced spatial audio capabilities. The new feature promises to deliver an even more immersive experience for users by making sound feel eerily real.
Meta upgrades Quest’s audio spatialization with enhanced HRTF model, making immersion more lifelike. Particulars right here:
The Oculus Audio SDK saw minimal updates post-2019, prompting several third-party developers to migrate to Steam Audio instead. Since Meta’s claim that their new XR Audio SDK boasts primary HRTF spatialization quality, audio sources in applications using this technology should simulate a more realistic and immersive experience, as if sounds are emanating directly from digital objects themselves. As Meta’s newly optimized audio propagation simulation achieves exceptional performance, it’s probable that VR developers will revisit the company’s solution, ultimately leading Quest users to experience more immersive and realistic audio in virtual environments via their headsets?
