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5.1 Headphones

Started by boki, September 25, 2013, 01:10:53 PM

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boki

Are these worth bothering with?  I can't be arsed with/don't really have the space for a proper surround system.  Thinking more of music and music DVDs rather than gaming or movies.

Slaaaaabs

My experience with "5.1" headphones has been poor. I'm currently using a €20 USB set[nb]http://www.a4tech.com/product.asp?cid=66&scid=67&id=460[/nb] with superb bass and basic but highly customisable software with "Dolby Headphone" settings that work more effectively than anything else I've tried.

NoSleep

Bear in mind you only have two ears.

Mildly Diverting

Have you not visited Devon?

boki

Quote from: NoSleep on September 25, 2013, 03:16:49 PM
Bear in mind you only have two ears.
At all times, not just when I'm wearing headphones.  I'm presuming the way these things work is that they're actually quadrophonic and have a front and back thing in each ear, but as ever I've not researched this in any way.

NoSleep

How does front and back work without a room? It is possible to create 3D sound for headphones (that is heard "out there" rather than between your ears, also distinguishing front and back as well as left and right) based on the fact that all this information is decoded by the brain from the input to our two ears.
I'm not sure how 5.1 gained favour above the solution that Ambisonics achieved with only two speakers; possibly bypassing expensive research costs. However, 5.1 seems a bit clunky in comparison, needing to fit out a room with speakers.

There was Holophonic as well, although you needed to record holophonically to start with (using an "artificial head" stereo mic). Psychic TV's Dreams Less Sweet was recorded in holophonic sound (which only truly works on headphones), but, from my own experience the remasters on CD are less "3D" than the original LP or cassette imprints. The effect is stunning - album starts with a car pulling up behind you, a lone singer walks in a circle about you, you hear the ambience of a cave, then in contrast you have a guard dog, growling threateningly, shoved right up against one of your ears and at another point you are are buried alive in a coffin (the scraping as the coffin is lowered into the ground then hearing dirt falling upon your wooden coffin a couple of inches from your face and ears). Just using normal headphones.

Similar effects can be found with various binaural ASMR vids on YT. If you search for ASMR Sound Sculptures, you'll get virtual haircuts aplenty. The recent 'your head inside a cardboard box' was pretty cool for the 3D headphone experience.

Replies From View

I used to record a good stereo effect with a small microphone on each sleeve, the wires going up my arms to a portable DAT recorder.  Best field recordings I ever made, and incredible binaural effect.  Not exactly like the artificial head thing, but interesting in itself (especially as I'd be wearing headphones whilst recording, giving me a greater hearing range and sense of stereo than usual) and on the plus side I didn't have to carry an artificial head around.

Again, only standard stereo headphones needed.

I will have to check out Psychic TV's Dreams Less Sweet.

olliebean

Is that Psychic TV album available anywhere for less than the 55 quid someone wants for it on Amazon?

Replies From View

Just steal it from somewhere.

NoSleep

You can make a decent stereo field recording just using two cardioid mics. Position them before the ensemble etc that you wish to record, thus:



The heads are positioned on the same axis and set at an angle of 90° to one another; one directed to the left and the other to the right of the ensemble. They're sent to two channels (left and right, simple). I was taught that by Michael Gerzon who I met at various free improvisation gigs that he had been invited to record using that same set-up; a really friendly, chatty and informative guy. Incidentally, he used the same mics as pictured above (AKG 451). He told me he preferred the results from this configuration, even to those achievable with Ambisonics and its Sound Field Microphone which he had help research and develop.

It makes a nice recording, with no phase issues between the channels (due to sharing the same axis), but it doesn't give the same "outside your head" experience with headphones that a holophonic recording does, because the holophonic "artificial head" mic emulates the human head and bone structure, thus collecting information similar to what your ears receive (and your brain translates).

Replies From View

This audio walk was created in 1999 using the "artificial head" set-up, I understand:  http://www.artangel.org.uk//projects/1999/the_missing_voice_case_study_b/about_the_project/about_the_project

I remember enjoying it a lot when I first did the walk in 2002.  Whitechapel Library - the start of the walk - was still there then, and it all worked very well.  I don't know what it must be like nowadays without the library, or indeed just listening to it from the website without doing the walk.

Joy Nktonga

Quote from: olliebean on September 26, 2013, 08:37:25 AM
Is that Psychic TV album available anywhere for less than the 55 quid someone wants for it on Amazon?

Discogs has a few. I've just grabbed an '82 UK vinyl for £20 and there's still more at similar prices. I wanted to try one of the earlier CD pressings from '92 and '96 as they don't appear to be remasters but they're too much to buy as well as a vinyl copy. Thank you NoSleep for the tip.