[Unit] Testing like a Lazy Pro
A lot of people have heard of unit testing. Many developers have added unit testing to their procedures. But not so many have tried test-driven development and understand how to build a rock solid test bed, that eventually allows you to throw your code away and replace it with whatever is more readable, more scalable, less resource intensive or better performing. The ‘lazy tester, lazy developer’ pattern is a fun way to explore this important topic.
Marcel Roth
Principal Software Engineer
Spitfire Audio
Hello! I’m a Principal Software Engineer at Spitfire Audio with over 18 years of experience in DSP-focused companies across Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK. I studied Signal Processing at the Technical University of Berlin, where I completed my master’s thesis on recognizing musical instruments using a Hidden Markov Model.
Throughout my career, I’ve worked on a range of projects, including developing a parameterized convolution reverb at a small company called zplane.development. My journey in DSP has sparked a strong interest in test-driven development and other agile methodologies. But I’m still my happiest, when applying those skills to the audio buffer.
In my spare time, I play bass with the Cherry Pit Collective.
Dino Pollano
Software Engineer
Spitfire Audio
Fuelled by an obsession with guitars, synths, and music gear—and a budget that couldn’t quite keep up—I decided to learn how to make my own. This journey led me through a degree in Music and Audio Technology at Bournemouth University, then Sound and Music Computing at QMUL. Along the way, I had a stint building programmable guitar pedals (OWL) and eurorack modules for Rebel Technology and kicked off a career at Spitfire Audio, contributing to projects like LABS, BBC Symphony Orchestra, and AIR Convolution Reverb. My time at QMUL sparked an intense curiosity about DSP, leading to a brief internship at L-ISA/L-Acoustics. Rebel Technology introduced me to the wild world of DIY audio electronics, and to this day, I love working with soldering, small-signal electronics, and embedded systems.