[LAU] more than 4 channels for listening? Really?

[Fernando Lopez-Lezcano]

On Sun, 2010-02-28 at 12:08 +0100, Jörn Nettingsmeier wrote:
> On 02/26/2010 11:27 AM, fons at kokkinizita.net wrote:
> > On Fri, Feb 26, 2010 at 11:06:42AM +0100, Florian Faber wrote:
> >
> >>> I am thinking about adding a 5.1-to-ambisonics mixer/panner to move the
> >>> specialized channels with their defined positions to virtual sources in my
> >>> ambisonics surrounding. Don't know if that works out...
> >>
> >> 5.1 is not about proper physical modelling of sound sources, but more
> >> about producing a 'sound experience'. This can mean, for example, that
> >> the audio engineer creates a 2.0 mix and puts some ambience on the rear
> >> channels. It will be a completely different beast and in my experience
> >> it sounds worse than a pure 5.1 playback.
> >
> > Nothing magical will happen if you pan the 5.0 signals into
> > a 3rd or higher order AMB system. The results is just five
> > virtual speakers reproducing 5.0.
> 
> i have a vague hope that something magical will indeed happen: 

If does :-)

> the 
> sources will be less focused on the speakers, but a lot better for all 
> other positions (which is what matters), and i think there's a chance 
> that the perceived sweet spot is a lot larger than for discrete 
> playback. it sure is in my subjective perception - i'm putting together 
> some listening tests to get other people's opinion about this and see if 
> it makes sense.

In our last summer concert which I helped organize, and the winter
concert a couple of weeks ago which I organized I played a couple of
"oldies", 4 channel pieces by John Chowning using an 8 speaker ring and
4 virtual speakers rendered through 3rd order ambisonics. 

The highly subjective non-scientific impression is that it does sound
better than just 4 speakers. If the decoder is properly calibrated then
your 4 virtual speakers will be in the exact right position which helps.
Plus the sources are "diffuse" as you imagine. 

The summer concert was done outdoors in the backyard of our building
(ie: no real room to interfere with the spatialization cues) and some
people claimed it was the best rendering of Turenas they had ever
heard[*]

-- Fernando

[*] this may also have to do with the fact that we open the grounds at
7pm for picnic'ing and the concert starts at 8pm - with proper amounts
of cheese, bread and wine by 8pm _everything_ sounds _much_ better :-).