Meyer Sound has unveiled Mapp 3D, an upgraded version of its audio system design software that is compatible with both Mac and Windows platforms and uses local processing, so works without internet connection. It is available for free download now.
The software is designed to provide highly accurate, 3D renderings of predicted sound system performance within detailed, wire-frame venue drawings. It also now offers complete integration with the Galaxy Network Platform and Compass control software for a seamless workflow from initial design through on-site tuning. Meyer Sound says comprehensive processing parameters for complex systems can be optimised using Mapp 3D predictions, with the resulting processor settings pushed directly into multiple Galaxy processors with the click of a mouse. The system is also designed for easy import of SketchUp (SKP) and AutoCAD (DXF) files.
In addition to traditional calibration test signal sources, Mapp 3D supports M-Noise, an emerging industry standard to determine the maximum linear SPL for music.
“The detail in the renderings is spectacular and the flexibility of the user interface is unprecedented, but what really sets Mapp 3D apart is the extreme accuracy of the predictions,” said Perrin Meyer, director of emerging technologies at Meyer Sound. “What you measure with Mapp 3D’s virtual microphones is precisely what you will see in measurements from real microphones.”
Mapp 3D offers multiple views and fingertip control of a free-rotation tool, to enable audience areas to be defined quickly. Line arrays can be quickly configured and automatically splayed for uniform coverage, and multiple system options can be evaluated simultaneously.
In addition, system designers can perform virtual system optimisation in the design phase. Mapp 3D includes virtual Galaxy signal processors, allowing the designer to add and configure processors, view prediction results and later synchronise these settings directly to the hardware processors on site. Complete output processing functions of all Galaxy processor models are available, and a copy and paste feature can be used to replicate settings in one or more other processing channels.
Mapp 3D includes precise sensitivity data for all Meyer Sound loudspeakers, so it can display predictions as real-world SPL as well as attenuation. The inclusion of sensitivity coupled with M-Noise compatibility is intended to provide highly accurate predictions of system headroom.
Mapp 3D loudspeaker performance is based on more than 65,000 three-dimensional measurement points, taken in 1/48th-octave resolution in the Meyer Sound anechoic chamber. The company also says Mapp 3D predictions are accurate across the full bandwidth of all loudspeakers, including as low as 12.5Hz for the very low-frequency control (VLFC) element.
“When working with predictions in Mapp 3D, you can be confident that your virtual loudspeakers will behave exactly as the physical models tested in the anechoic chamber, as will the loudspeakers in the final installed system,” said Todd Meier, director of product management at Meyer Sound. “In addition, self-powering eliminates variables associated with external powering, such as amplifier type, amplifier output configuration and loudspeaker cable length – all of which add complexity and introduce a potential for error in other proprietary prediction tools.”
An array of options is available for design and performance analysis. System designers can insert simple 3D geometry to reveal array behaviour outside the audience area. Layers can be turned on and off to speed workflow. Meyer Sound says prediction planes are quickly created from imported drawings with a Snapping tool, and multiple prediction planes in large venues with symmetrical sections can be created quickly using linear and angular extrusion in combination with the Mirror and Align tools.
