Hate to triple-post but there's no way to delete your own posts on this forum.
So I've gotten around to trying Bacch DSP, just the intro edition with no mics or measurements.
I know I said Mac only was a deal-breaker, but Bacch support kindly and promptly suggested Dante virtual soundcard as a solution. Using this I've been able to transmit all digital input from my Windows machine through ethernet to a Mac mini with minimal latency.
Buying a whole separate machine does seem excessive, but with the difference Bacch can make it's worth it.
The customer experience was exceptional. Upon purchasing Bacch I was immediately advised to book an interactive walkthrough session. Being somewhat technical and stubborn I ignored this initially and tried to setup things myself. I got quite far but unfortunately my complete unfamiliarity with Macs made me hit a wall so I scheduled the appointment.
The next day I get into a Zoom call with Edgar Choueiri himself and he remotes in to my Mac to assist me with the setup. This process went very smoothly and Edgar was very friendly and explained basically every feature of Bacch DSP and how it functions. He then took me through some of the binaural demos that ship with Bacch that being frankly honest were good, but not amazing.
Afterwards he answered all my outstanding questions.
(If you were curious, Theoretica use Genelec 8351s in their labs, big surprise )
So taking his advice to reduce the angle of my speakers (they were 42 degrees relative to me) and also reduce the distance to ultra nearfield levels in the process (you want as much direct sound as possible with Bacch) I proceeded to listen to my own library of mostly prog and classic rock and I was completely stunned. I was hearing instruments panned 180 degrees and a new sense of space from the reverb of the recording rather than my room. I haven't even tried finding any binaural tracks yet, it seems a good stereophonic recording has enough spacial cues regardless.
I am fully aware this isn't even Bacch at its full potential either. While the Genelec 8341 I use are certainly competent, they cannot completely account for my bare side walls. I left these untreated on purpose to try and breathe life and envelopment into recordings, but with Bacch this has a destructive effect. Of course I also haven't accounted for my own HRTF or room-response with the mics that Theoretica provide with the Audiophile edition, so that's certainly on my list for the future.
Overall I highly recommend that anyone with the willingness to use a Mac and fiddle around with some setup to get the intro edition of Bacch4mac. While you do pay up front, Edgar assured me that they would refund no questions asked within 14 days of having had the demo (so 15 days since I actually made the purchase).
The only caveat here really is that if you do have a reflective room and speakers with poor directivity or a long listening distance, the effect may not be so good unless you invest in room treatment and the Audiophile edition microphones. But once again, this is why you have a free evaluation period.
UPDATE 12/04/2022: Hate to gush but Bacch really deserves it. The effect is even more pronounced in video games and chamber music. Not only are you getting unheard-of levels of panning and depth but also reverb and spatial information completely absent from regular stereo (I've been A/B ing it constantly and Bacch is like lifting a veil). I even experienced height staging when Morgott was raining his swords down in Elden Ring.
Absolutely mind-blowing tech that hardly anyone seems to have experienced.
So I've gotten around to trying Bacch DSP, just the intro edition with no mics or measurements.
I know I said Mac only was a deal-breaker, but Bacch support kindly and promptly suggested Dante virtual soundcard as a solution. Using this I've been able to transmit all digital input from my Windows machine through ethernet to a Mac mini with minimal latency.
Buying a whole separate machine does seem excessive, but with the difference Bacch can make it's worth it.
The customer experience was exceptional. Upon purchasing Bacch I was immediately advised to book an interactive walkthrough session. Being somewhat technical and stubborn I ignored this initially and tried to setup things myself. I got quite far but unfortunately my complete unfamiliarity with Macs made me hit a wall so I scheduled the appointment.
The next day I get into a Zoom call with Edgar Choueiri himself and he remotes in to my Mac to assist me with the setup. This process went very smoothly and Edgar was very friendly and explained basically every feature of Bacch DSP and how it functions. He then took me through some of the binaural demos that ship with Bacch that being frankly honest were good, but not amazing.
Afterwards he answered all my outstanding questions.
(If you were curious, Theoretica use Genelec 8351s in their labs, big surprise )
So taking his advice to reduce the angle of my speakers (they were 42 degrees relative to me) and also reduce the distance to ultra nearfield levels in the process (you want as much direct sound as possible with Bacch) I proceeded to listen to my own library of mostly prog and classic rock and I was completely stunned. I was hearing instruments panned 180 degrees and a new sense of space from the reverb of the recording rather than my room. I haven't even tried finding any binaural tracks yet, it seems a good stereophonic recording has enough spacial cues regardless.
I am fully aware this isn't even Bacch at its full potential either. While the Genelec 8341 I use are certainly competent, they cannot completely account for my bare side walls. I left these untreated on purpose to try and breathe life and envelopment into recordings, but with Bacch this has a destructive effect. Of course I also haven't accounted for my own HRTF or room-response with the mics that Theoretica provide with the Audiophile edition, so that's certainly on my list for the future.
Overall I highly recommend that anyone with the willingness to use a Mac and fiddle around with some setup to get the intro edition of Bacch4mac. While you do pay up front, Edgar assured me that they would refund no questions asked within 14 days of having had the demo (so 15 days since I actually made the purchase).
The only caveat here really is that if you do have a reflective room and speakers with poor directivity or a long listening distance, the effect may not be so good unless you invest in room treatment and the Audiophile edition microphones. But once again, this is why you have a free evaluation period.
UPDATE 12/04/2022: Hate to gush but Bacch really deserves it. The effect is even more pronounced in video games and chamber music. Not only are you getting unheard-of levels of panning and depth but also reverb and spatial information completely absent from regular stereo (I've been A/B ing it constantly and Bacch is like lifting a veil). I even experienced height staging when Morgott was raining his swords down in Elden Ring.
Absolutely mind-blowing tech that hardly anyone seems to have experienced.
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