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Beyond
Stereo
To more closely approach
"being at the concert," you need five or more speakers and multichannel
DVD-A, SACD, or DTS-CD - same as for movie DVDs. But speaker placements
and microphone techniques are evolving toward sonic "reality." See Robin
Miller's article DTS music for home theater, technical
papers (pdf) for Audio Engineering Society and Society of Motion Picture
& Television Engineers. These pages explore and demystify recording
and playing surround sound in studio, home theater, car, or PC.
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Why
Surround in 4.1/5.1/6.1/7.1?
Two-speaker stereo
suffers poor "imaging" caused by each ear hearing sound not only from
its own speaker, but also "crosstalk" from the speaker intended for the
other ear. Think of watching a 3D movie without glasses - each eye sees
both images, destroying the illusion. Also, ambience and sounds that should
be around and behind are confined instead to 60° in front - only 1/6 of
the total panorama. What's better? And what about all the OTHER sound
of being at a concert that is all around and behind you?.
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Surround
5.1 is positioned to replace stereo in the home, as it has in the cinema.
Record-breaking sales of DVD players and movies with multichannel sound
bode well for 5.1's popular acceptance. Broadening the reproduction soundscape
to the entire 360° horizontal plane gives much pleasure by enveloping the
listener with natural sound. However for music, typically re-releases from
multi-miked sessions, there is potential for greater satisfaction. Comparison
with a superior technology would measure how acceptable the 5.1 compromise
is. |
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Enter
Panor-ambiophonics. Turning stereo "inside-out" using two closely-spaced
speaker pairs front and back and 4-channel recordings, "PanAmbio" is twin
Ambiophonic systems (visit ambiophonics.org for more). For
a single listener, PanAmbio is superior to 5.1 in accurate 360° localization,
spatial impression, and envelopment - a benchmark of excellence and an alternative
for high-quality listening in studio, home theater, car, or amusement ride.
With PanAmbio, acoustics, both recording and playback, are critical because
subtleties can be discerned. PanAmbio's capabilities are also useful for
monitoring for stereo and 5.1 surround production. |
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For
a quick RealAudio
"AM radio-quality" demonstration (or download .wma file
for higher quality using Windows Media Player) of how Ambio (front only)
expands the stereo stage to 120°, sit back (typically 5ft or 1.5m; for a
laptop 3ft or 1m) so your PC speakers are 20° apart and you are centered
between them. Streaming fidelity will be what you'd expect for dial-up data
rate, but accurate localization AND spaciousness will be six times wider
than your speakers! With a second pair of speakers in back, accurate 360°
PanAmbio reproduction would encircle you. Pro evaluation DTS-CDs below have
full fidelity from 24bit masters - including significant energy at 15Hz
to exercise subwoofers. |
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