Talking with Dolby about "Immersed"

I very much appreciated the conversation Justin, Drew and myself had with Ben Givarz and Greg “Stryke” Chin from Dolby. It’s been such a privilege to work with Justin, Drew and Morten on “Immersed.” We’re not only talking about the Grammy® win, for which we are immensely grateful, but about all the creativity, artistry, community and focus that it took to get us there.

Justin Gray’s Grammy®-winning album Immersed was composed, recorded, produced, mixed, and mastered all with Dolby Atmos® in mind, from the very beginning. In this conversation, guest host Ben Givarz is joined by Gray, co-producer Drew Jurecka, immersive mastering engineer Michael Romanowski, and Dolby’s Greg “Stryke” Chin to discuss how the team built a 360-degree musical experience featuring 38 artists from around the world, where every performance, microphone placement, production choice, and mix decision was designed to put the listener at the center of the music. Together, they explore how Immersed reimagines what an album can be when space is treated not as an afterthought, but as a core part of the composition itself.

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DENON - Meet the Makers

Denon came over to the studio to talk about the art of deep listening. We aligned on the “belief that sound shaped with care in the studio deserves to be heard on systems shaped with equal care.”

Thank you to Denon for featuring me in their series, to Sarah Jones for spearheading this collaboration and to Zach Griffin for his excellent videography skills.

Meet the Makers, episode one
Michael Romanowski

Great sound doesn’t happen by accident.

It’s shaped—deliberately and painstakingly—by creators who think deeply about how sound will be experienced, not just produced.

That idea sits at the center of Meet the Makers, Denon’s new video series exploring the craft behind the soundtracks of our lives—from music and film to television and games—and the people responsible for shaping them.

It’s also the perspective behind Denon’s Sound Made Better philosophy—the belief that sound shaped with care in the studio deserves to be heard on systems shaped with equal care. Every circuit, component, and tuning decision is made with the same intention: to reveal the emotion and detail creators worked so hard to capture.

Meet Michael Romanowski

In the first episode of Meet the Makers, we introduce you to Michael Romanowski, a six-time GRAMMY® Award–winning mastering engineer and the owner of Coast Mastering in Berkeley, California. His credits span albums by artists including Alicia Keys, Lady Gaga, Too $hort, George Strait, and Tom Petty, as well as major film soundtracks such as Star Wars and Dune.

Mastering is often described as the final step in the recording process, but Romanowski views it as something more fundamental. His role is about translation—preserving a recording’s emotion, balance, and intent across a range of real-world listening environments.

In the episode, Romanowski reflects on the details that shape how sound is experienced: dynamics, space, contrast, and depth. He talks about the difference between solitary listening and sound that fills a room, and how a great system can invite discovery—encouraging listeners to notice relationships and textures that might otherwise go unheard. It’s not about spectacle or volume, but about clarity, space, and engagement.

Across music, film, and gaming, the creators featured in Meet the Makers share a common belief: Nuance matters. And when you hear it, you feel it.

Sound Made Better is Denon’s commitment to carrying that care forward—through systems engineered, tuned, and refined with the same obsessive attention to detail that defines the creative process itself.

Experience sound as it was meant to be heard with Denon.

SONY 1000X The Collection

I had the privilege of tuning the Sony 1000X the Collection headphones alongside Randy Merrill (Sterling Sound), Chris Gehringer (Sterling Sound), and Mike Piacentini (Battery Studios)

Here are a few behind the scenes photos from our Tokyo trip.

You can read more about the headphones HERE and HERE.