Episode 121 Ceri Thomas (IMMERSV)
Announcement
We’re excited to announce the fifth instalment of the Immersive Audio Podcast Masterclass series. As always, the sessions are designed to enhance your practical learning experience and are delivered by world-class experts.
We proudly present our guests for this session: the Professor of Audio Technology at Chalmers University of Technology – Jens Ahrens, the sound designer and co-founder of DELTA Soundworks – Ana Monte, and the technical lead and co-founder of DELTA Soundworks – Daniel Deboy.
This masterclass will focus on “Spatial Audio – Practical Master Guide”, the first Acoucou Courseware programme where technology meets art. This free course blends the technical intricacies of spatial audio with the creative skills needed to craft compelling content. With extensive cross-references to other engineering modules where learners gain a broad understanding of how everything connects.
🔗 https://spatial-audio.acoucou.org/
We’ll cover the structure of the course, history of spatial audio and evolution of sound aesthetics, psychoacoustics of stereophony, and different applications of spatial audio and delivery formats. Please sign up with the link below.
We’re looking forward to seeing you there!
Summary
In this episode of the Immersive Audio Podcast, Oliver Kadel and Monica Bolles are joined by the immersive audio workflow engineer Ceri Thomas from LA, US. Ceri shares his personal and professional journey that led him to working with Dolby and Apple at a pivotal moment when spatial audio began to enter the mainstream. He also discusses his latest consultancy venture, IMMERSV. This week’s hot topic was about the critical balance between quality and mass adoption of immersive audio in music.
Ceri Thomas is a leader in immersive audio and workflow innovation whose career spans film, VR, music, and product development. Beginning in London during a period of rapid change in post-production, he enabled creative teams to work without technical barriers as the industry transitioned from tape to disk, RADAR to Pro Tools, and analogue to audio-over-IP.
At Soundelux, Danetracks, and Todd-AO, he was deeply involved in the early rollout of theatrical Dolby Atmos, exploring its potential and limitations. He later joined Wylie Stateman’s Twenty Four Seven Sound, creating collaborative technical infrastructure and building an “Immersive Lab” for early-stage Atmos editorial, which led to Dolby recruiting him for its VR audio initiative.
At Dolby, he worked to make VR audio tools more accessible and then spearheaded the global adoption of Dolby Atmos for music, establishing delivery standards, room design guidelines, and integrating Atmos into top studios worldwide. His collaborations include projects with Manny Marroquin, Josh Gudwin, John McBride, Ann Mincieli, and George Massenburg.
In 2022, Ceri joined Apple Music as Spatial Audio Technology Lead, where he built the Spatial Audio QC process, redefined listening room and studio configurations, produced documentation for creation and broadcast workflows, and advised on immersive audio specifications internationally. In 2025, he founded IMMERSV, an independent consultancy working with consumer electronics manufacturers, DSPs, and broadcasters to deliver studio design, product development input, and workflow solutions for immersive audio.
Show Notes
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Immersive Audio Podcast Masterclass
How to access the content from our Immersive Audio Podcast Masterclass series? Head out to our Patreon. The sessions are designed to enhance your practical learning experience and are delivered by world-class experts. The livestream contains video demonstrations and spatial audio playback with live Q&A. Keep up to date with our upcoming events, announcements and industry news by subscribing to our newsletter.
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Credits
This episode was produced by Oliver Kadel and Emma Rees and included music by Rhythm Scott.
