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2. Re: Surround Sound / Wildlife Recordings

Subject: 2. Re: Surround Sound / Wildlife Recordings
From: "Rob Danielson" danielson_audio
Date: Wed Sep 1, 2010 11:49 pm ((PDT))
At 4:13 AM +0000 9/2/10, leese_martin wrote:
>\--- In
><naturerecordists%40yahoogroups.com>=
m,
>Rob Danielson <> wrote:
>>
>>  Thanks for the tips, Charles.
>>
>>  I couldn't get my core audio card connected to
>>  Java Ambisonics Player, but this app started out
>>  looking very promising. The good news is Video
>>  Lan Player played the DTS format quick as pie!
>>
>>  I'll run quickly through some of my responses.
>>
>>  A. Instantly--- I'm aware that my "head" is doing
>>  something unusual to create space in the
>>  recording. I need more practice processing the
>>  "cues" provided by the array.
>>
>>  B. I would characterize the new mental effort as
>>  a "tightness--" like my brain is struggling to
>>  use very fine differences to infer a larger
>>  wholeness. I don't feel enveloped in air-- but I
>>  do sense a potential space. I feel compelled to
>>  keep my head very still. There's a sense of a
>>  lurking open-ness that extends mostly towards
>>  sounds I attend to.
>
>The problems you encountered may be caused
>by the fact that you were listening to the
>DTS versions, and these use four speakers.
>Ambisonics reproduced using only four
>speakers is on the boarder of stability;
>large rooms can be particularly difficult.
>Using six (or more) speakers creates a
>soundfield that is much more stable. Also
>note that your four speakers (the
>centre-front channel being silent) should
>have been arranged in a square. If that
>was not the case then you screwed up and
>might like to try again.

Hi Martin--
Thanks for your interest in improving my listening experience. I
reall would like ti get set-up where I can play ambi work I run
across easily and effectively.

I noticed the square layout recommendation. I'm set-up/calibrated for
Message: 5.
Subject: 1 as per http://tinyurl.com/34qsegr and I'm mixing with that
everyday. Unfortunately, its quite a chore to move and re-move the
speakers. The recordists I exchange work with use the 5.1 layout for
4 channel work. Its a big convenience to use a layout that is
compatible with stereo. The studio is sound treated, the imagery
shouldn't have much trouble asserting itself.

>
>The disadvantage of using six speakers is
>that you will need to download the B-Format
>versions and to use a decoder.

Maybe someone has a decoder working in Reaper and they can send me a
template? Or can help me through the set-up directions for Ambisonic
Player on Mac 10.4.11?


>Two apartments ago, I was using four
>speakers arranged in a square. Everything
>worked great until I decided to rearrange
>my furniture. In the new arrangement, the
>listener was rotated 90 degrees relative to
>before and, in this orientation, the
>soundfield refused to "jell". I believe
>the problem was because my room treatment
>(six foot tall bookcases filled with books)
>had become left/right asymmetrical. (My
>work around was to put my furniture back to
>how it used to be.)

Sounds quite believable.  If such asymmetry becomes glaring, it could
also be a tip-off that the speakers are too close to reflective
surfaces. I've noticed in setting up mixing and listening rooms that
when I can get the distance from any speaker to any reflective
surface to be greater than the distance from the speaker to the
listener, there are a lot fewer issues to address. Unfortunately, if
a room has an 8 foot ceiling, this means the layout circle can only
be about 8' in diameter.
>
>If an opportunity arises then please try
>again with more speakers, but you will need
>to use a decoder. Somebody has already
>posted a link to the decoder page in the
>Ambisonia.com Wiki, but I will repeat it
>below:
><http://www.ambisonia.com/wiki/index.php/Playback_Software>http://www.ambi=
sonia.com/wiki/index.php/Playback_Software
>
>Most of these decoders (players) are free.

I'm assuming that opportunities are already plentiful!   Rob D.



>
>Regards,
>Martin
>
>


--









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