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Propeller Head Plaza Technical and scientific discussion of amps, cables and other topics. |
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Propeller Head Plaza Technical and scientific discussion of amps, cables and other topics. |
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In Reply to: Also as usual, it all boils down to some... posted by carcass93 on November 12, 2012 at 13:51:08:
...although not commonly used for hi-fi applications, can do soundstaging. Just not with speakers rammed up against the wall.
The different staging and imaging we get from different systems is indeed explained by science, the very science that is purported to have nothing to DO with this "illusion". Sure it's an illusion, as is a hologram or the famous "highway mirage" from heat or the effect of sound changing pitch with the doppler effect.
Soundstage is a function of the following system aspects:
a) Polar and power response of speakers
b) Speaker distances (to back wall, side wall, between speakers and to chair)
c) Speaker toe-in angle
d) Ceiling height
e) Absorbtion properties of wall, floor and roof materials
f) Phase response of speakers, crossover topology, driver polarities
g) which affect - impulse response of speakers, group delay, etc.
h) Chair type (high-back or low-back chair)*
*often overlooked, a chair which goes above ear level affects perceived sound stage versus an armchair or recliner where there is nothing above the shoulders. My theory here is the higher chair back results in reflections which can interfere with sound stage and "confuse" the ear, resulting in a more confused image. When sitting in an office chair with an HVAC unit or fan running, extend your hands outward then move them inward so your fingertips touch behind your head and your thumbs just touch the either side of your neck. Observe the pitch changes in the fan noise, then tell me a high-backed chair will not affect perception of sound in a hi-fi room! ;)
All of these factors will mean that pretty much every stereo in existence could "image" slightly differently.
I feel terribly sorry for someone who does not get a perceived depth of soundstage, the wonder of a black background, the illusion of intrument placement, or that "you're there" sensation on orchestral or live recordings. Or to have speakers, regardless of size, vanish and become mere pieces of furniture and sounds eminate from everywhere else. Or to have recordings with phase-related effects result in sounds beyond the boundary of the side-walls or even above or behind you. Yes, some systems (mine for example) will result in not just speakers vanishing but the damned walls disappearing too. Like you and your chair and system are hovering in an empty space over the grand canyon.
WE COULD MEASURE this stuff and perhaps find corollary between measurements and perception, but nobody does. Polar response of an individual speaker is not useful - we need to observe the constructive and destructive interference created by 100's of iterations of placement and room boundaries/conditions to somehow explain the variations in image - even with the same two speakers.
We have the measuring capabilities. But we are not measuring or interpreting the right things to explain things like soundstage perception.
Those who miss the point of soundstage and iterative speaker placement tests are missing the whole point of stereophonics in my mind. Accurate and detailed sound is only half of it. The stereo image (and the more holographic it seems) is even better than the fidelity! (But would not be as good without the fidelity).
Cheers,
Presto
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