Blackmagic Announces Spatial Audio Microphone With Apple Technology and iPhone Support

Blackmagic Design has announced the Blackmagic Ambisonic Microphone, a spatial audio microphone built with Apple-licensed technology. It combines 108 digital microphones with an onboard encoder and supports direct recording to iPhone through Blackmagic Camera.

The palm-sized array captures sound from all directions for immersive productions. Its processor converts the signals from 108 MEMS microphones into seventh-order ambisonics in real time, with the product page advertising 64 channels of 32-bit audio. The sensors sit flush in a faceted metal body that can mount on a camera.

The project grew out of Blackmagic's collaboration with Apple on the URSA Cine Immersive camera. 'Apple licensed their array geometry and the ambisonic encoding filters,' CEO Grant Petty said, with Blackmagic handling the engineering and design.

A single USB-C cable carries audio and supplies power. Because the microphone handles the encoding internally and uses USB class-compliant audio, it requires no separate breakout box, encoding software, drivers, or plug-ins.

Connected to the URSA Cine Immersive camera, the microphone records synchronized spatial audio directly into the camera's Apple Immersive files. It can also record to iPhone using the Blackmagic Camera app, or connect to a computer for recording and live mixing with Fairlight Live. A USB-to-SMPTE-2110 converter is planned for broadcast workflows.

Availability is set for December 2026. The release quotes US$1,695 excluding local duties and taxes; Blackmagic's U.S. product page currently lists $1,909. The site's pricing policy includes duties in MSRP but excludes sales tax and shipping.