Paper on networked performace technologies

This paper is submitted and accepted for publication in the Journal of the Audio Engineering Society

Abstract

This paper documents the challenges encountered during the development of a mobile web-based, real-time distributed reverberation chamber for a live concert setting. Initial efforts focused on leveraging existing open source and commercial solutions, but these proved inadequate due to limitations in network compatibility, audio routing, and mobile device support. WebRTC emerged as the most viable option, offering peer-to-peer communication and firewall traversal capabilities. However, significant obstacles persisted, including network reliability, audio hardware/software ecosystem limitations, and debugging complexity. The project highlights the fragmented nature of real-time audio streaming technologies and the need for more transparent, reliable, and well-documented tools. Despite these challenges, we developed a functional web application prototype using WebRTC, Web Audio API, and custom session description protocol modifications, offering insights into the complexities of deploying real-time audio systems over mobile networks. The paper concludes with reflections on speculative approaches, such as decentralized audio routing and native app development, and calls for improved documentation and standardized debugging tools to support future innovations.