George Graves wrote:
In article ,
"Peter Larsen" wrote:
George Graves wrote:
Funny thing about imaging. It has to exist in the recording. Often,
in modern recordings, especially commercial pop/rock recordings it's
not. It also doesn't exist in multimiked/multi-channel classical
recordings or in most commercial jazz recordings. True stereo (the
only way to get real image specificity, image height and imaging
front-to-back layering) just isn't done that much, commercially
Yes, height information! - it is probably an illusion, but it is
when the image leaves the monofilament between the loudspeakers and
happen above and outside them and you hear the room behind you that
you got stereo right and then you sit and wonder what 5.1 is all
about 
Of course the Carlson bins made it happen all the time ...
Kind regards
Peter Larsen
To be honest, all stereo is an illusion. but I'm continually amazed
at what an impressive illusion is possible with just a couple of
good, well placed microphones. Image height is captured, One can
close their eyes and pick out, in space, each instrument in the
ensemble even when many instruments are playing together. One can
hear that the brasses are behind the woodwinds, and the triangle
"floats" over the left side of the orchestra, just like it does in
the concert hall. Sure it's an illusion, but it can be a damned good
one!
No, image height is not "captured." Neither the ears nor the microphones
have any mechanism to detect height. It is strictly a pinna effect wherein
certain frequencies seem to sound above where they should be. At the live
event you don't hear this because your eyes override the effect. On
playback, it often sems like the horns are higher than the rest of the
instruments.
Someone made a test record that was supposed to test your system's height
imaging ability. The test tone was supposed to rise up and go over the top
and back down to the other speaker. Something like that. If your speakers
couldn't do it you weren't doing it right.
I was never real concerned about it.
Another great one is a flamenco recording where the foot stomping is heard
unmistakably to be coming from the floor of your listening room. I have
heard it many times, but I know it is a psychoacoustic effect. Still,
enjoyable.
If you have some stereo test records with outdoor scenes, you hear the birds
as coming from above. Same for airplanes. Trains stay level, but it sure is
hard to get them to pass in a straight line as they go off into the
distance.
Gary