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But our hearing is binaural.

One does not establish a logical hierarchy simply by the number of instances.

Stereo simply doesn't work the same way as binaural.

In real listening, when we hear an instrument playing or a singer singing in a concert hall, we get the direct sound from the instrument or singing plus reflected sound from various directions delayed by varying amounts of time and differing in frequency content compared to the direct sound.

Stereo reproduction provides direct sounds and recorded reflected sound from two or more locations creating a phantom image located between the speakers as a rule. The sound of a single performer reaches our ears from each speaker from a different direction and travels around our head to reach the ear shadowed by our head. The sound from the different speakers is mixed by the time it reaches our ears. This is not what would happen live, where the sound of the performer originates from a single source. I illustrate using a single instrument or performer for simplicity.

Binaural recording mimics the way we hear. When recorded, sound is mediated by our head and ear structures the same as if the person were sitting there, and when played back through high quality headphones, the sound mimics the way hear a live performance. Stereo does not.

No useful purpose is served by confusing stereophonic and binaural reproduction.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binaural_recording

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stereophonic_sound
____________________________________________________
"Opposition brings concord. Out of discord comes the fairest harmony."
------Heraclitus of Ephesis (fl. 504-500 BC), trans. Wheelwright.


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  • But our hearing is binaural. - Pat D 18:29:20 04/22/07 (0)

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