A Quick Introduction to Modern Music Technology

Did you know that the first audio recording of music was created in 1860? In 160 years, music and audio production has seen five distinct eras. We are currently in the era of "The Modern Home Studio".

Groundbreaking innovations in computing hardware, audio hardware, digital instruments, soundcards and production software has made music production much more accessible for the past decade. This led to the evolution of electronic music into the mainstream and is largely responsible for the music that's charting today.

Virtual Reality (VR) business, Alivein Tech, are now taking the era of the 'Modern Homestudio' one dimension further.

Alivein Tech's products allow anyone with a laptop or VR headset to create electronic music. Multi-user interactions allow for groups of aspiring musicians to come together and jam remotely.

Alivein Tech have been working with our ACE IT team to refine their immersive music studio experience.

Creating innovative software

Alivein Tech founder, Jim Simons, is a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and sound recording expert. He has over 25 years' experience in creating sound production software and musical instruments. He decided to create Alivein Tech after performing market research on existing VR apps and games.

Jim found ACE IT through South Bank Innovation's Startup Bootcamp in June 2019. In January 2020, he came back to the ACE IT programme with a prototype product in need of user testing before taking the software to market.

User testing on ACE IT

ACE IT is a partnership between two London Universities - London South Bank University and London College of Communication, UAL. Both schools offer qualifications in Music and Sound Production. This means the ACE IT programme can access a large pool of music production experts. These student and staff experts can help review software, hardware and concepts for start-ups developing sound-related products within the Immersive Tech industry.

This knowledge-exchange also benefits students, who gain first-hand experience of working with start-ups in their industry.

Alivein Tech matched with LSBU's Dr Adam Parkinson, Senior Lecturer in Music and Sound Design. Adam designed and ran the user testing for the Alivein Tech project, using students from his course to road-test the software.

The impact of Alivein Tech's User Testing

The students tested AliveinTech's Tranzient software.

Their feedback resulted in six new features being added to the software, along with the addition of seven new features added to the software tutorial.

This enabled Alivein Tech to update their software, creating a better and more user-friendly product.

Challenges of the project 

Lockdown initially affected working conditions, however the South Bank Innovation team were able to respond quickly, digitising services so that meetings could be held remotely.

COVID-19 has had additional impacts for the business - it has greatly limited Alivein Tech's ability to network and promote their product. They also struggle to hold product demonstrations, as sharing VR headsets is now restricted.

"Not only was the product improvement support great, but we also benefitted by meeting other founders through the ACE IT project. This has enabled us to share learning and collaborate on common challenges."

Do you have an immersive tech idea, prototype, or product that could benefit from:

• Consultation from industry influencers
• Validation from target users, or
• R&D support from academics and expert students?

Find out how ACE IT can support you and apply for the ACE IT 2021 Cohort at www.immersivetech.co.uk

Find out more about Alivein Tech via their website or connect with Jim Simons via Linkedin.