LyraXR

Inspiration

This project draws inspiration from synesthesia—a neurological condition where stimulating one sense triggers experiences in another, such as seeing colors when hearing music. We used this concept to explore sound visualization, creating a fresh, experimental interface for composing music in mixed reality.

What it does

LyraXR lets you compose and perform music visually in mixed reality. Its core feature is a node-based spatial sequencer and sampler that allows you to connect up to 15 types of instrument nodes, import custom audio samples, and sculpt a unique visual soundscape. The app also features five virtual controllers, ranging from keyboards to drum pads.

How we built it

We built LyraXR by reviving LyraVR, a PC VR project from 2017 (Unity 5.3). Bringing this legacy codebase into Unity 6.1 was a significant undertaking, as we had to modernize the entire architecture to support passthrough and today's XR interactions.

Challenges we ran into

Porting the project from Unity 5.3 presented several challenges, but the most significant was scale. The original project was scaled up 6x to work around Unity 5’s physics limitations with small colliders. However, Mixed Reality passthrough requires a strict 1:1 scale to align properly with the real world. As a result, we had to methodically rescale and test every individual object and UI element to ensure they looked and behaved correctly in the new environment.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Migrating the codebase to Unity 6.1: successfully modernizing the project from a legacy version.
Optimizing for low-latency audio: achieving responsive, near real-time sound triggering on standalone Quest hardware.

What's next for LyraXR

Advanced Hand Tracking: Deepening the integration of hand gestures for more tactile and precise Mixed Reality interactions.
Expanded Content: Adding a wider variety of instrument samples, nodes, and new virtual controllers.
Multiplayer: Exploring co-location and shared spatial anchors to enable collaborative "jam sessions" in the same physical space.