Alexandra "Ally" Schoepel’s dedication to audio and music along with her Conservatory education got her started on a successful career path. Just after graduation, Ally first worked for Line 6, the POD people. Most recently, Ally has joined the product development team at SRS Labs, a company that is at the cutting edge of 5.1 surround sound technology. We recently caught up with Ally at her home in California.
What got you interested in audio?
My mother used to teach piano when I was very young, so I had music around me often. I enjoyed tinkering on the piano - but I had a greater passion for saxophone and bass. I decided to pick up sax in elementary school, after trying piano, which was way too heavy to lift. When the Apple IIGS came out in 1987, I started getting into MIDI and composing. That was my entry into developing my home studio along with a really cheap CASIO - four whole MIDI channels!! From there, well, the list goes on and on.
Tell us about what you do for SRS.
I am involved in product development from an engineering standpoint. With my degree in electrical engineering and personal background in music and audio, I help develop and build SRS software products for the professional and consumer market. I most recently worked with other engineers on the VST and TDM plug-ins for Circle Surround.
Tell us how the Circle Surround Encoder and Decoder work?
In my own words, Circle Surround is a matrix encoded surround system that transmits up to 6.1 channels onto two channels (stereo). Encoding is based on phase and level relationships. By creating phase disparities between the input channels and then mixing this into a two-channel output, one is able to encode multiple channels. Circle Surround encoding has many benefits for massive two channel infrastructures (FM radio, TV, CD Audio) and for low-bandwidth restrictions (satellite TV and Radio, internet). Decoding requires complex manipulations to rebuild the separate channels based on the phase and level relationships to ensure proper separation. There are important decisions and tradeoffs when choosing how to implement the decoder in real-time. In the end, what matters most is how it sounds. One of the many great things about it is that the encoded two-channel stream can be played on any stereo or mono playback system as well as surround capable systems.
What kinds of audio projects do you work on for your own enjoyment?
I enjoy composing, techno dance stuff, but also performing every once in a while just for fun. I like to collect gear and work with music on computers. I am in the process of going into a full virtual studio so I can take my composing wherever the muse leads me. I also enjoy music theory, studying, and mimicking composition styles for education. A few years ago, after attending CRAS, I had the opportunity to compose a variety of pieces for comedy stage shows in Hollywood. I also engineering the sound and recordings used during the live show. I still play bass, saxophone, and even piano for relaxation.
Where do you see the future of Surround going?
Many think that the capabilities of surround are limited to the number of speakers you have. This may sound silly, but surround can also work with the number of speakers you don't have. Surround technology will continue looking more at HOW we hear as opposed to WHAT we hear. I've seen some truly amazing things done in surround with only two speakers. Possibly one day we will have advanced audio technology that will analyze and pragmatically work with its environment and the listener to replicate sound the way the mixer intended it. That is one of the exciting things about SRS's technologies and other virtualization technologies in audio.
What got you interested in audio?
My mother used to teach piano when I was very young, so I had music around me often. I enjoyed tinkering on the piano - but I had a greater passion for saxophone and bass. I decided to pick up sax in elementary school, after trying piano, which was way too heavy to lift. When the Apple IIGS came out in 1987, I started getting into MIDI and composing. That was my entry into developing my home studio along with a really cheap CASIO - four whole MIDI channels!! From there, well, the list goes on and on.
Tell us about what you do for SRS.
I am involved in product development from an engineering standpoint. With my degree in electrical engineering and personal background in music and audio, I help develop and build SRS software products for the professional and consumer market. I most recently worked with other engineers on the VST and TDM plug-ins for Circle Surround.
Tell us how the Circle Surround Encoder and Decoder work?
In my own words, Circle Surround is a matrix encoded surround system that transmits up to 6.1 channels onto two channels (stereo). Encoding is based on phase and level relationships. By creating phase disparities between the input channels and then mixing this into a two-channel output, one is able to encode multiple channels. Circle Surround encoding has many benefits for massive two channel infrastructures (FM radio, TV, CD Audio) and for low-bandwidth restrictions (satellite TV and Radio, internet). Decoding requires complex manipulations to rebuild the separate channels based on the phase and level relationships to ensure proper separation. There are important decisions and tradeoffs when choosing how to implement the decoder in real-time. In the end, what matters most is how it sounds. One of the many great things about it is that the encoded two-channel stream can be played on any stereo or mono playback system as well as surround capable systems.
What kinds of audio projects do you work on for your own enjoyment?
I enjoy composing, techno dance stuff, but also performing every once in a while just for fun. I like to collect gear and work with music on computers. I am in the process of going into a full virtual studio so I can take my composing wherever the muse leads me. I also enjoy music theory, studying, and mimicking composition styles for education. A few years ago, after attending CRAS, I had the opportunity to compose a variety of pieces for comedy stage shows in Hollywood. I also engineering the sound and recordings used during the live show. I still play bass, saxophone, and even piano for relaxation.
Where do you see the future of Surround going?
Many think that the capabilities of surround are limited to the number of speakers you have. This may sound silly, but surround can also work with the number of speakers you don't have. Surround technology will continue looking more at HOW we hear as opposed to WHAT we hear. I've seen some truly amazing things done in surround with only two speakers. Possibly one day we will have advanced audio technology that will analyze and pragmatically work with its environment and the listener to replicate sound the way the mixer intended it. That is one of the exciting things about SRS's technologies and other virtualization technologies in audio.
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