Blue Ripple Sound

What Blue Ripple Sound does

Blue Ripple Sound Limited is a UK-based spatial audio software company that has specialized exclusively in Higher Order Ambisonics (HOA) since its founding in 2008. Its products are built on a proprietary mathematical framework that encodes 3D sound scenes into B-Format multichannel streams and decodes them for arbitrary speaker layouts or binaural headphone playback. The portfolio spans two parallel VST2/AAX plugin ranges for professional studios: O3A (third order, 16-channel) plugins covering panning, decoding, upmixing, manipulation, reverb, and binaural rendering, and the recently introduced O7A (seventh order, 64-channel) range targeted at research applications and high-end studios. For real-time playback, the Rapture3D OpenAL audio engine ships in Game, User (£35 perpetual), and Advanced editions with HOA decoding, HRTF binaural processing, custom speaker layouts, and ASIO/Core Audio support; the Rapture3D Universal SDK (C/C++ plus Unity C# scripts) brings the same engine into Unity game and VR projects across Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Linux. The company sells exclusively through its own website with perpetual one-time licenses, supported by free entry-point products (O3A Core, RAMBL reference code, O3A Head Tracker) that lower adoption friction.

The company serves five primary use-case segments: filmmakers and post-production professionals producing immersive 3D soundtracks; musicians and producers creating 3D mixes for concerts and immersive releases; sound artists working on installations and immersive art; game developers implementing 3D audio via OpenAL or Unity; and VR developers needing binaural rendering and head tracking. Following the 2023 launches of O3A Spatial Audio (export to Dolby Atmos and Apple Spatial Audio object formats) and the O7A research range, Blue Ripple Sound has extended its addressable market into mainstream immersive-audio delivery and academic audio research. Revenue is generated through à la carte perpetual license sales of plugin libraries and Rapture3D editions, with no disclosed subscription, enterprise, or partnership channels; the company is privately held, bootstrapped, and operates with 11-50 employees from a single London registered office.

Name

Blue Ripple Sound

Legal name

Blue Ripple Sound Limited

Website

https://blueripplesound.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Blue Ripple Sound is a UK-based specialist in Higher Order Ambisonics, selling perpetual-license VST/AAX plugins (O3A, O7A) and the Rapture3D audio engine to filmmakers, musicians, sound artists, game developers, and VR studios for immersive 3D audio production and playback.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Spatial Audio Software

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132)

akta.pro primary industry

Audio Plugins & Virtual Instruments (VST/AU/AAX) (MPAIAIAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Creator Tools & Production (Overlays, Alerts, Encoding, Editing, Audio) (MPAFAEAC)

Keywords

• Spatial audio software
• Ambisonic audio plugins
• 3D audio engine
• HOA audio processing
• Binaural audio rendering

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Software Licenses - Perpetual: Blue Ripple Sound sells perpetual software licenses with one-time fees. Customers purchase products directly from the website and receive license keys for activation. Pricing varies by edition (e.g., Rapture3D User at £35). VAT is included in prices where applicable.
2. Free and Trial Products: The company offers free products (O3A Core plugins, RAMBL reference software, O3A Head Tracker) to provide entry points and demonstrate capabilities. Trial licenses allow assessment of functionality before purchase.
3. Rapture3D Editions: Different editions of Rapture3D (Game, User, Advanced, Universal) are sold at different price points to target different market segments from individual gamers to professional studios.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Blue Ripple Sound develops and sells Higher Order Ambisonics (HOA) software for professional 3D audio production, gaming, and virtual reality. Its offerings include O3A and O7A VST2/AAX plugin libraries for DAW-based studio workflows, the Rapture3D OpenAL audio engine (Game, User, and Advanced editions) for PC gaming, and the Rapture3D Universal SDK for game/VR developers integrating ambisonic mixes into Unity-based engines. The company also provides free reference and head-tracking utilities.

Product overview

Blue Ripple Sound is a specialist in spatial audio technology built on Higher Order Ambisonics (HOA). Its product portfolio consists of two main ambisonic plugin ranges (O3A for third order and O7A for seventh order), the Rapture3D audio engine (available in Game, User, and Advanced editions for OpenAL-based PC gaming, plus a Universal SDK for Unity game engine integration), and a free O3A Head Tracker plugin for EDTracker hardware. The O3A/Core library is free and covers fundamental panning, encoding, decoding, and metering; additional paid libraries (O3A Decoding, Manipulators, Upmixers, Music, Reverb, Spatial Audio, View) extend into advanced decoders (Dolby Atmos, Auro-3D, IMAX, binaural HRTF, custom layouts), B-Format manipulation, upmixing, reverb, VR video sync, and object-based Spatial Audio export. Rapture3D Universal brings studio-quality ambisonic mixes into real-time game and VR engines. The company also provides free reference software (RAMBL) and informational resources on ambisonic techniques.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• O3A Plugins

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

AI capability3 records

Feature6 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Dear Reality (Sennheiser): Dear Reality, owned by Sennheiser, develops spatial audio plugins (dearVR) for DAWs in pro audio and game audio workflows. It is the most direct competitor to Blue Ripple Sound in spatial audio plugin tooling for professional studios.
• Dirac Research: Dirac builds spatial audio and room/speaker correction solutions used in headphones, automotive, and consumer audio. Comparable to Blue Ripple Sound on the spatial/binaural rendering axis (e.g., Amber HRTF), but with broader consumer and licensing footprint.
• Sound Particles: Sound Particles develops spatial audio software for sound design in film, games, and music, with both DAW plugins and a standalone engine. Targets overlapping customers (filmmakers, game audio engineers, music producers) with a different but comparable immersive audio workflow.
• Flux:: Sound and Picture Development: Flux:: produces Spat Revolution, an immersive audio panning and decoding plug-in suite for object-based and immersive formats (Atmos, Auro-3D). Directly comparable to Blue Ripple Sound's O3A/O7A plugin ranges in addressing pro spatial audio production.
• IEM Plugins: IEM Plugins provides open-source VST plugins for Higher Order Ambisonics, including encoders, decoders, and the StereoEncoder plugin. The closest academic/practitioner peer to Blue Ripple Sound's O3A/O7A plugins and the most direct competitor on ambisonic workflows.

Broad incumbents

• Steinberg (Cubase / Nuendo): Steinberg's Cubase and Nuendo DAWs include built-in immersive audio and VST3 hosting that competes with or hosts specialist spatial audio plugins like Blue Ripple Sound's O3A/O7A ranges. A broad incumbent shaping plugin format standards (VST3) relevant to the company's roadmap.
• Avid (Pro Tools / AAX Host): Avid's Pro Tools (and Pro Tools Ultimate since v2023.6) hosts O7A plugins via AAX and Dolby Atmos workflows. A broad incumbent DAW/platform that controls the host environment on which Blue Ripple Sound's plugins depend.
• Meta (Spatial Audio / Presence Platform): Meta (via acquisitions like Two Big Ears and Dysonics) provides spatial audio SDKs and tools for VR/AR on Quest headsets, competing with Rapture3D Universal in the VR game-audio market and with broader platform reach.
• Dolby (Atmos Production Tools): Dolby offers Atmos production tooling (Dolby Atmos Production Suite, Atmos Renderer, integrated DAW support) used by professional studios targeting Atmos deliverables. Broad incumbent in the same immersive audio category that Blue Ripple Sound's O3A Spatial Audio plugin interoperates with.

Emerging players

• NUGEN Audio: NUGEN Audio develops audio production plugins including spatial and immersive tools used in music, film/broadcast post-production. Comparable as a smaller specialist plugin maker serving overlapping pro audio customers, but with broader adjacency beyond pure spatial audio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/blueripplesound
• Facebookfacebook.com/blueripplesound

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Blue Ripple Sound