Nx Head Tracker for Headphones

Now $99

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Also available: Nx Virtual Mix Room + Nx Head Tracker

This small Bluetooth device latches on to your headphones and tracks your head movements in order to augment the immersive spatial audio experience created by Nx technology.

Pair the Nx Head Tracker with the Nx Virtual Mix Room or Abbey Road Studio 3 plugin in order to recreate on headphones the spatial acoustics of a high-end room, improving your headphone mixing and recording experience.

Use the Nx Head Tracker along with the Nx 3D audio apps to experience the music, movies and games you love in 3D audio – on your computer, tablet or mobile device, using any set of headphones.

Augments the realism of Nx software for immersive 3D audio
Tracks your head movements in 360 degrees (full sphere)
Use it with the Nx Virtual Mix Room or Abbey Road Studio 3 plugin to make better mixing decisions on headphones
Use with the Nx 3D audio apps to experience 3D audio on any headphones
Up to 6 users can use 6 Nx Head Trackers simultaneously
Requires Bluetooth 4.0 BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy)
30-day money back guarantee

User Guide

Jun 23, 2016

3D Audio on Headphones: How Does It Work?

Learn why listening to three-dimensional sound in the real world and listening on headphones are two different experiences – and how you can bridge the gap.

Jul 01, 2019

Mixing Rush and Dream Theater with Waves Nx: Richard Chycki

Richard Chycki is the go-to mixing and recording engineer for Rush, Alice Cooper, Dream Theater and Aerosmith. We’ve asked him how he integrates the Nx Virtual Mix Room plugin into his mixing and recording workflows.

Jul 04, 2019

Mixing on Headphones with Nx: Devin Townsend

“Nx has been a lifesaver”, says musician and producer Devin Townsend about using the Nx Virtual Mix Room plugin to produce and mix his latest and most ambitious album Empath. Find out why.

Jun 20, 2019

Sound Design on Headphones with Nx Virtual Mix Room

“Nx gives me a new perspective on my mixes: I can hear how they’ll sound in different environments, and it reveals problems I wasn’t aware of.” Learn how sound designer Graham Reznick uses Nx for spatial monitoring on headphones.

Jan 30, 2017

Nx Wins Hispasonic’s 2016 Product of the Year Award

The Nx Virtual Mix Room plugin has won the 2016 Product of the Year award from Hispasonic, the leading Spanish-language music, sound and technology magazine.

Dave Darlington Composer, Recording, Mixing & Mastering Engineer

Avicii, David Guetta, Sting, Oz

“I love using Nx while mixing in headphones. It gives me a clear, detailed image of my panning and depth of field, while allowing me to move freely in front of my screen. I feel like I’m right inside the mix. I’ll never go back to boring two-dimensional headphone mixes.”

Jordan Rudess Keyboardist, Composer

Dream Theater

“Nx is scary cool! I couldn’t believe all this was happening inside my headphones. I am blown away!”

Neil Citron Guitarist, Producer, Engineer

Steve Vai, Steve Lukather, Larry Carlton

“I’ve often used headphones to reference reverb levels, guitar spreads etc., but never mixed anything on headphones from start to finish. With Nx, I’ve now mixed drums using only headphones, to great results. I can mix quietly and hear great detail, while still feeling like I’m in a real physical environment and not closed away. The mix sounds the same as if I were using speakers. I would urge everyone to try this and save your ears while getting it done well.”

Gil Norton Producer

Foo Fighters, Pixies, Stornoway

“Nx takes flat two-dimensional sound and turns it into an amazing three-dimensional sound experience. I love it.”

Russ Long Producer, Recording & Mix Engineer

Wilco, Dolly Parton, Amy Grant, Miley Cyrus

“I used the Nx plugin and Nx Head Tracker with vocalists recording in my studio, without telling them what it was. They said it was like taking the headphones off – like they were part of the mix rather than listening to a previously recorded mix – which made it easier for them to sing in tune.”

Drew Lavyne Mastering Engineer

Red Hot Chili Peppers, The White Stripes, Moby

“I got the Nx Virtual Mix Room plugin and Nx Head Tracker up and running and the results are amazing. During sessions, the feeling of being in a live room is light years beyond regular headphone monitoring. Fantastic product.”

Mads Mikkelsen FOH Engineer

King Diamond, Die Antwoord, Jacob Dinesen, Babymetal

“When touring with bands I often have to mix the audio for online videos, and I’m never afforded the luxury of having a studio to sit and mix at. All of my work has to be done using my laptop with a pair of headphones, sitting in the production office or on the tour bus. With Nx, I finally have a natural and adaptable work environment on the road where I can create studio-level mixes. ”

German A. Tarazona Llano FOH & Monitor Engineer

J Balvin, Jarabe De Palo, Doctor Krapula, Alex Campos

“When I listen to live recordings for virtual soundcheck, Nx gives me the perfect simulation of a real control room, which lets me improve the quality of the in-ear mixes I’m preparing. With the head tracking function, I feel like I’m in the sweet spot of a real room as my head moves left and right. The plugin is very accurate: it’s like having my own mix room while I’m on tour.”

Stanley Soares Producer, FOH & Studio Engineer

Sepultura, Motörhead, Heaven and Hell, Saxon

“As a live sound engineer I am always on the road. With the Nx plugin and head tracker I feel comfortable to mix my live recorded tracks on headphones anywhere I go, feeling like I am in front of speakers in a studio control room.”

Steve Booke Guitarist, Composer

The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Real World, Mind of Mencia

“The Nx plugin and Nx Head Tracker have proven to be an invaluable tool in my studio. I have a home studio and sometimes have to mix/track on my headphones late at night. Nx gives me an amazing “virtual speaker” experience that allows me to work practically as I would with my speakers blasting! It’s a great innovation that should be a staple in any and every studio, large and small. ”

David Stagl FOH & Studio Engineer

“I’ve really been digging the Nx plugin and the Nx Head Tracker. I can’t go back to listening on headphones without Nx. When I can’t work in my studio, using Nx is the way to go.”

Technical Specifications

Mac:
OSX 10.9.5 - 10.14

Windows:
Windows 8.1 64-bit
Windows 10 64-bit

Please Note: Windows 7 is not supported (no BLE support)

Bluetooth compatibility:
Bluetooth 4.0 or higher, with BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) compatibility

Please Note: Not all Bluetooth systems have BLE. If you do not have BLE, you can use a BT 4.0 USB (dongle) adapter. Suggested adapters:

IOGEAR GBU521 Bluetooth 4.0 USB Micro Adapter
Plugable USB Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy Micro Adapter

These adapters have been proven to work with the Nx Head Tracker on both Mac and Windows, although they do not officially declare support for Mac.

Important notes for Windows 10 users:
In certain scenarios, due to BLE issues with Windows 10, users may experience issues when attempting to:

Pair devices: The head tracker may not pair, disconnect, or fail to transmit tracking data. You can usually solve this by restarting the head tracker and pairing again.
Rename devices: Renaming may fail, or the head tracker may revert to the default name.
Update firmware: See more below.

We plan to release a hotfix for the head tracker application addressing these issues by the second quarter of 2020.

Firmware Updates:
Until further notice, Nx Head Tracker firmware updates are not supported or recommended on Windows 10 machines.

Nx Head Trackers are shipped fully functional with the factory firmware, so firmware updates are not truly necessary at this point.

If you wish to update anyway: until we can resume support for Windows 10, you may update the Nx Head Tracker on a supported macOS system with the WavesHeadTracker installed. However, you should know that this available update only improves issues related to excessive battery consumption after manual shutdown of the device. To avoid this battery consumption issue, simply do not shut down the Nx Head Tracker manually; it will shut down automatically 3 minutes after disconnecting or quitting the application.

In rare cases, a failed firmware update may render head trackers unusable. In such cases, please contact technical support. If found necessary, Waves will replace your head tracker.

Why Head Tracking Matters

When you hear sounds in the real world, your physical head movements help your brain create a sense of 3D audio depth. Your brain remembers where the sound used to be and where it is now, and combines this with its knowledge that the head (and not the external object) has moved. It then uses this information to locate the external sound source and construct a 3D “audio scene.”

However, when you listen to sound on headphones, the audio scene constantly shifts with your head, and your experience of 3D auditory space is gone.

By tracking your head movements and adjusting the audio to the direction and orientation of your head, the Nx Head Tracker (combined with Nx software) helps reconstruct the realistic three-dimensional experience of sounds coming at you from external sources in the real world.

Nx Head Tracker, Webcam – or the Best of Both Worlds?

There are several ways you can track your head movements to enhance the Nx experience:

With the Nx Head Tracker
Using your computer’s camera
Using both simultaneously (what we call “sensor fusion” – see table below)*

Using the Nx Head Tracker has several advantages over using your webcam:

Speed and accuracy: The Nx Head Tracker is faster and more accurate, providing a smoother tracking experience.
Freedom of movement: With a webcam, you must face your computer’s camera at all times. With the Nx Head Tracker you are free to move around.
Full 360° tracking: A webcam can track your head movements in ±30 degrees only. The Nx Head Tracker will track them in full 360 degrees.
Multiple users: With a webcam, only one user can use Nx software at a time; with the Nx Head Tracker, several users (each with his or her own Nx Head Tracker) can experience Nx simultaneously on the same audio source.

Here’s a more detailed comparison between the different options:

	Head Tracker	Webcam	Sensor Fusion*
For Use With	Both stationary and mobile devices	Stationary devices only (desktop or laptop)	Stationary devices only (desktop or laptop)
CPU Consumption	Low	High	High (slightly higher than webcam alone)
Tracking Angle	360° (full sphere)	60° (+/-30°)	360° (full sphere)
Tracking Speed (Refresh Rate)	50 frames per second (fps)	Up to 30 fps in good lighting conditions	Up to 80 fps
Lighting	Does not require lighting	Sensitive to lighting conditions	Minimally sensitive to lighting conditions (will not work in complete darkness, but will work even under poor lighting)
Distance from Your Device	Approx. 10-20 feet, depending on Bluetooth range	3-6 feet, depending on lens field-of-view angle	3-6 feet (same as webcam)
Tracking Orientation and Position	3 degrees of freedom: orientation only (yaw/pitch/roll)	6 degrees of freedom: orientation (yaw/pitch/roll) + position ( XYZ)	6 degrees of freedom: orientation (yaw/pitch/roll) + position ( XYZ)
Multiple Users	Allows up to 6 users, each with his own Nx Head Tracker, to experience Nx simultaneously on the same audio source. (Separate headphone outputs needed; number of users depends on the available Bluetooth hardware.)	Only one user at a time	Only one user at a time can use the “sensor fusion” option; additional users can use Nx Head Tracker devices in order to experience Nx simultaneously on the same audio source. If you have one webcam and one Nx Head Tracker, you can either choose the “sensor fusion” option for a single user, or assign the webcam to one user and the Nx Head Tracker to the other.

* Available with the Nx Virtual Mix Room plugin only; currently not available with the Nx application for 3D audio.

If you are not satisfied with the Nx Head Tracker for any reason, you may return it within 30 days in excellent condition and get your money back.