Dennis Busch of Acoustic Spaces has earned a TEC Award nomination for his design and integration of Brainworx Studio Europe in Germany. The studio features a PMC-equipped Dolby Atmos control room built to the highest professional standards to support audio plugin development, testing and content creation.
Located in Langenfeld, North Rhine-Westphalia, the studio was commissioned by Brainworx which, together with Plugin Alliance, became part of Native Instruments in 2023. Now serving as the company’s headquarters, the new studio showcases Busch’s transformation of a former corporate conference hall into a fully isolated, room-within-a-room studio environment.
“As Brainworx places the highest value on the quality of its products, it was essential to build a professional studio that meets the highest acoustic and technical standards,” says Busch, who oversaw the complete design, construction, acoustic modelling, furniture integration and system commissioning. “The studio plays a crucial role in ensuring that the company’s products are developed and tested in an environment that reflects real-world, high-end production conditions.”
The PMC 7.6.4 Dolby Atmos system, supplied by German distributor ES Pro Audio with the assistance of PMC’s Dan Zimbelman and Maurice Batiste, consists of a main stereo pair of PMC MB2 XBD twin-cabinet, 3-way reference loudspeakers driven by an analogue Burmester 911 MKII stereo amplifier; a MB2-C central monitor; four ci65 2-way in-wall mounted speakers as surround channels and four mounted in-ceiling for overheads, all powered by Linea Research 88 C6 8-channel amplifiers; and three-per-side PMC8-2 SUB active subwoofers.
All surround and ceiling speakers were mounted at precisely calculated locations and fully integrated into the construction, enhancing aesthetics and ensuring minimal SBIR (speaker boundary interference response and phase accuracy). “This kind of integration leaves no room for error – all speaker positions had to be fixed during construction, with no possibility of adjustments afterward,” says Busch. “The calculated angle of the Atmos top speakers gave the multi angled ceiling its look. Form follows function.”
Acoustic simulations and system modelling were carried out using REDI Acoustics’ NIRO (non-cuboid iterative room optimiser) and TORA (treatment optimisation for room acoustics) software. Seventy-two concealed Helmholtz and slot resonators provide broadband control, ensuring exceptional neutrality and low-end response. Atmos management and calibration are handled by Trinnov’s Altitude 24, with David Ziegler of Dolby working alongside Busch for final system commissioning.
The configuration has been designed to reflect the acoustic energy flow within the space, from the main monitors in the front wall to the back of the room, culminating in a broad diffuser array. “As with all of my studio designs, it was essential to achieve a flat response and RT60 that remains as uniform as possible across the frequency spectrum, from deep bass to the high end,” continues Busch. “This acoustic design strategy enables exceptional stereo image precision, ideal depth perception and a highly realistic three-dimensional sound field – in both stereo and Dolby Atmos formats.”
Rounding off Busch’s design, a multi-zone Philips HUE lighting system provides dynamic colour control to highlight the room’s architecture. Natural daylight is provided by integrating transparent RPG diffusers in front of exterior windows to promote a healthy working environment. Busch also designed cooling systems for the flush-mounted subwoofers, carefully concealed ventilation and integrated furniture.
While the studio primarily supports plugin development and testing, it also serves as a creative hub for marketing content, product showcases and educational workshops in collaboration with sound design schools. The facility is also available for professional producers to rent, offering access to one of Europe’s most advanced Atmos production environments.
The TEC Awards take place on 22 January 2026 during the NAMM tradeshow in Anaheim.
www.acoustic-spaces.de/en/brainworx-studio
