Brands:ZYLIA PRO, ZYLIA 6DoF for VR/AR/Game Audio, ZYLIA Volumetric Audio Recording | ZYLIA – Redefining Spatial Audio Capture for the Modern Creator Founded with a passion for true 3D sound capture, ZYLIA is a pioneering audio technology company dedicated to transforming how sound is recorded, analyzed, and experienced. At the heart of our innovation lies a simple insight: sound is inherently spatial. Yet traditional microphones capture only a fraction of the richness present in real acoustic environments. ZYLIA’s mission is to bridge that gap by delivering intuitive tools that capture complete, immersive audio with exceptional accuracy—empowering creators, engineers, and researchers worldwide. At the core of ZYLIA’s product ecosystem is the ZYLIA ZM-1, a compact spherical microphone designed for full 3D audio capture in a single take. Featuring a unique 19-capsule array and advanced DSP algorithms, the ZM-1 records sound from all directions simultaneously, preserving spatial information that traditional microphones cannot capture. This approach allows users to freely reposition virtual microphones during post-production, making the ZM-1 a powerful tool for music recording, sound design, research, and immersive audio production. For demanding outdoor and industrial environments, ZYLIA offers the ZM-1 Weatherproof, a ruggedized version of the spherical microphone engineered for reliable operation in changing weather conditions. This solution enables high-quality spatial audio capture for field recording, environmental monitoring, outdoor events, and research applications where durability and precision must go hand in hand. Beyond recording, ZYLIA provides advanced tools for spatial audio processing and analysis. ZYLIA 6DoF enables six-degrees-of-freedom audio rendering, allowing sound to dynamically respond to listener movement and position. This technology is particularly valuable for VR, AR, XR, and immersive installations, where realistic spatial perception is essential to the user experience. ZYLIA’s expertise in acoustics is further reflected in the ZYLIA Speaker Measurement Software (ZYLIA SMS). Designed for fast and intuitive loudspeaker calibration in immersive studios, ZYLIA SMS delivers accurate measurements and AI-powered acoustic analysis. By capturing full sound radiation patterns quickly and reliably, the software addresses the complexities of immersive audio, offering an automated and intelligent solution for creating truly translatable mixes. Complementing this ecosystem is the ZYLIA Beamformer, a powerful software tool that enables sound source separation and directional audio extraction from Ambisonics recordings up to 7th order. By virtually steering microphone beams after recording, users gain precise control over focus, noise reduction, and spatial clarity—capabilities valued in post-production, live recording analysis, and research environments. What distinguishes ZYLIA is not only technological innovation, but also a strong focus on accessibility and usability. Our solutions integrate seamlessly into existing workflows, support industry-standard formats, and remain intuitive for both seasoned professionals and newcomers to spatial audio. With users in universities, research institutions, production studios, and technology companies worldwide, ZYLIA continues to push the boundaries of spatial sound—shaping the future of immersive recording and acoustic analysis. ZYLIA — Capture sound in its full spatial dimension.
Yamaha
Yamaha is a world leader in the manufacture and supply of professional audio products and solutions for a wide range of applications. These include installed and live sound reinforcement, immersive and acoustic enhancement, professional conferencing and systems for hospitality, corporate and education facilities. With a worldwide presence, Yamahas subsidiaries and its dealer networks provide comprehensive local services, backed by a global Yamaha support policy. | Brands:Yamaha, Bosendorfer, Steinberg, Line 6, Ampeg | Yamaha Corporation of America is the largest subsidiary of Yamaha Corporation, the world-leading music and sound company based in Hamamatsu, Japan. The Yamaha team is committed to helping everyone progress, express and connect through music and sound. We offer innovative, finely crafted, award-winning products for your entire musical journey including pianos, brass instruments, woodwinds, strings, electronic keyboards, guitars, drums, professional and home audio equipment.
Wave Distro
Wave Distribution | Wave Distribution was established in 1996 by Gil Griffith after spending ten years as VP of Sales for Eventide, which included the ultra-successful launch of the H3000 Ultra-Harmonizer®.Gil’s desire to provide artists, music stores, pro audio resellers, and international audio distributors with only the finest and most interesting audio products available has resulted in Wave Distro shepherding some of the most accomplished brands in the industry – Empirical Labs, Burl Audio, Dangerous Music, Focal Studio Monitors, Kush Audio, MiLab Microphones, and Thermionic Culture, to name a few. Continuing in that tradition, in addition to celebrating 29 years with Empirical Labs, Wave is proud to represent new pro audio stalwarts Serpent Audio, Useful Arts Audio, KickTone, Quagliardi Pro Audio, Strauss Elektroakustik, and Whitestone Audio Instruments. | Distributor of high-end audio signal processing equipment – in the mix since ’96! Featuring Empirical Labs (home of the Distressor), Evolution Acoustics, Quagliardi Audio, Serpent Audio, Useful Arts Audio and Whitestone Audio. Represented by 26 distributors in 23 countries, and dozens of pro audio resellers throughout North America
Universal Audio
Brands:Universal Audio, Apollo Twin, UAD Powered Plug-Ins, Apollo Audio Interfaces, Arrow Desktop Interface, OX Amp Top Box, UAD-2 DSP Accelerators | Universal Audio is a developer and manufacturer of world-class recording hardware and software. Founded in 1958 by Bill Putnam Sr., Universal Audio has been synonymous with innovative recording products since its inception. UA was re-founded in 1999 by Bill’s sons, James Putnam and Bill Putnam Jr., with two main goals: to faithfully reproduce classic analog recording equipment in the tradition of their father; and to design new digital recording tools in with the sound and spirit of vintage analog technology. To that end, Universal Audio employs the world’s brightest DSP engineers and digital modeling authorities to develop our award-winning UAD Powered Plug-Ins platform. Featuring the most authentic analog emulation plug-ins in the industry, our DSP gurus work with the original hardware manufacturers — using their exact schematics, golden units, and experienced ears — to give UAD plug-ins warmth and harmonics in all the right places, just like analog.
TONE3000
TONE3000 is the world’s largest community for Neural Amp Modeler (NAM) captures and impulse responses (IR’s).
The MIDI Innovation Award Winners
The MIDI Innovation Awards, established in 2021, celebrate groundbreaking advancements in MIDI technology. Organized collaboratively by The MIDI Association, NAMM, and Music Hackspace, the awards highlight innovative products and projects that utilize MIDI 1.0 and 2.0 in novel ways, emphasizing MIDI’s role in fostering musical creativity. This year we had a record number of entries. The 121 entries are presented below. The awards are open to individuals, artists, and companies working with MIDI to develop innovative products or interactive experiences. Categories include: Commercial Hardware Products Commercial Software Products Prototypes and Non-Commercial Hardware Products Prototypes and Non-Commercial Software Products Artistic/Visual Projects or Installations NEW: Best MIDI 2.0 product (across all categories) Winners gain opportunities to present their innovations on a global stage, with prizes such as exhibition spaces at major events like the NAMM Show, and Music China. They also receive support from The MIDI Association for developing MIDI 2.0 prototypes. The MIDI Innovation Awards are also proud to work with partners including Sound On Sound, the world’s leading music technology magazine, contributing prizes and press coverage for the competition.
The MIDI Association
The MIDI Association is the global non-profit 501(c)6 trade organization that connects the companies who develop MIDI products and new MIDI specifications with all the people around the world that create music and art with MIDI.
T.H.E. Company
T.H.E. COMPANY is a manufacturer of professional studio microphones (tube and ribbon), and 500-series mic pres. NEW This year is the SKI B-50 Discreete mic pre in collaboration with Artist – producer – engineer E-A-SKI. The company also offer 3 mic pre- saturation MELCOR plugins ( iLok) , TOM-COM intercom systems, and real guitar amps. T.H.E. Company is the registered trademark owner of Melcor brands. T.H.E. Company Control One tube microphone has been nominated for the 2025 NAMM TEC Awards. You can learn more about T.H.E. Company and see more of our available products at https://www.tomhilbe.com
SPLiCE
Brands:Splice | Splice helps music creators bring their ideas to life. Through a vast, industry-leading catalog of high-quality licensed samples, paired with powerful AI, the platform accelerates deep sound discovery and inspiration. Committed every day to empowering music creators everywhere, Splice also provides affordable access to plugins and DAWs through a rent-to-own gear marketplace. The New York based startup (Co-founded by Steve Martocci and Matt Aimonetti) closed a Series D round in November 2020 and is led by CEO Kakul Srivastava.www.splice.com | The industry’s top sample library—royalty-free for all. Our catalog is stacked with samples from the best artists and producers out there. Yours to flip, chop, and turn into your next banger.
Spatial9 Inc.
Spatial9 is pioneering a new era in music and audio: one where sound doesn’t just play — it listens, responds, adapts, and evolves. Built at the intersection of immersive audio, artificial intelligence, and human-centered design, Spatial9 is the creator of Generative Spatial Audio™, a breakthrough technology that transforms static mixes into living, emotionally adaptive sound experiences. At its core, Spatial9 believes that music is a living art form — and that technology should honor, amplify, and expand that life, not restrict it. Traditional stereo and even modern immersive formats are still “fixed outcomes”: once mixed, the audio cannot evolve. Spatial9 redefines that limitation. Through a combination of spatial audio engines, adaptive sound objects, emotional-context modeling, and artist-intent preservation, Generative Spatial Audio™ enables music that reacts to the listener, the environment, the moment, and the artist’s original creative identity. Spatial9’s technology introduces the concept of living sound objects — spatial audio elements that behave like expressive digital beings. They retain the artistic intent embedded by the creator, but can evolve based on emotion, context, neurodata, or interaction. This allows a single piece of music to unfold differently for each listener, or even differently each time it is heard, without ever losing the fingerprint of its creator. This innovation unlocks entirely new creative possibilities for artists, engineers, and producers. A vocal can subtly shift its position as emotional intensity changes. A synth lead can react to movement or presence. An entire mix can adapt to a listener’s mood, energy, or environment — all without flattening the artistic message. It is music that understands you. For professionals, Spatial9 integrates seamlessly with existing workflows while introducing new generative and object-based capabilities. Its engine supports multiple modern formats — IAMF, ADM, Eclipsa Audio, and object-based Atmos-like pipelines — enabling creators to output to today’s formats while preparing for tomorrow’s platforms. Spatial9 also introduces the Intent Fidelity Score™ (IFS), a new metric that quantifies how well generative systems preserve an artist’s creative identity across adaptive transformations. This establishes a new industry standard for trustworthy, artist-first AI in music. Beyond the studio, the technology opens vast opportunities across media and entertainment. In AR/VR and spatial computing, sound becomes responsive and embodied. In streaming, Generative Spatial Audio™ enables hyper-personalized listening experiences. In gaming and interactive media, audio becomes a dynamic emotional partner to the user. This is more than a new format — it is a new category of creative expression. Led by CEO and founder Luiz Zanardo, Carlos Freitas and Alan Silva, Spatial9 is accelerating the evolution of music creation and listening. The team’s mission is simple but transformative: expand human creativity by making sound adaptive, emotional, and alive. Spatial9 is proud to introduce Generative Spatial Audio™ at NAMM — and to help usher in a future where creators, studios, and listeners experience music not as a product, but as a living, evolving companion.