Immersive Saxophone Recording | Behind Immersed: Episode 18

This video explores the recording session with saxophonist Sundar Viswanathan for the song Tapestry from the IMMERSED record. Sundar is a mentor, a friend, and someone I’ve collaborated with on many projects over the years. I’ve come to know his sound deeply, both as a collaborator and as the engineer and producer on several of his projects.

🎧 Listen to IMMERSED: https://justingray.lnk.to/immersed

Sundar’s tone on alto saxophone is something special. It possesses the presence and brilliance of a strong lead voice, cutting and powerful, while also conveying warmth and expressiveness that draw from a wide range of musical influences. In the studio, we’ve worked hard to find microphone combinations that capture both the fullness and nuance in his sound: the brightness, the darkness, the detail, and the body.

For this session, we opted for a Neumann U 67 paired with an RCA 77-DX, a classic combination of ribbon and tube condenser microphones. The 67 delivers clarity and brilliance, while the 77 brings a rich, midrange warmth. The key is balancing them carefully in the mix.

From an immersive standpoint, we also set up a four-channel quad array of DPA 4006 omni microphones, angled inward toward the instrument. This inverse quad height array is something I developed for IMMERSED, and I’ve used it often when I want to integrate room reflections into the mix in a way that pairs seamlessly with the close mics. In the Immersive (Dolby Atmos) mix, it helps the saxophone sound more natural and enveloping, without requiring EQ or artificial reverb.

Of course, this only works with a beautiful-sounding room and an ultra-low noise floor, which the studio at Humber College delivers in spades. Since Sundar is a featured soloist on this song, I’m still placing his sound in the center channel, but the height mics allow that sound to extend naturally into the immersive field, without masking the main layer. The goal isn’t to place the saxophone above the listener or overly localize it. I want the result to feel subtle—supportive rather than distracting—so the immersive presentation remains cohesive while still focusing attention on the core musical narrative.

The immersive mix of this album represents the music exactly as I intended it to be heard. You can experience it over speakers or headphones on supported streaming platforms.

There’s also a dedicated stereo mix and master of the album. It’s not a down-mix, but an entirely separate remix designed to present the music faithfully in two channels. That’s the version featured in the whole YouTube video and on all streaming services.

🔗 Learn more about my studio and work:
🌐 www.justingraysound.com
📷 Instagram: @justingraysound

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