NRG Acoustics HJ-17: Multichannel audio

  • By nrg acoustics
  • 14 Aug, 2017
NRG Acoustics HJ-17: Multichannel audio

Multi channel audio is a technique for enriching the sound reproduction high-quality of any audio source with additional audio channels from audio speakers that surround the audience (surround channels), providing sound from the 360 radius in the horizontal plane (2D) compared with "screen channels" (centre, [front] left, and [front] right) coming from only on the listener's frontward arc.

Multichannel audio is characterized by a listener position or sweet spot in which the audio effects work most effectively, and features a limited or frontward perspective of the sound field with the listener as of this location. The procedure improves the belief of sound spatialization by taking advantage of sound localization; a listener's capability to know the location or origin of a detected sound in direction and distance. This typically is achieved through the use of multiple discrete audio channels routed to an array of loudspeakers.

There are various multichannel surround sound based models and techniques, differing in reproduction and recording techniques as well as the amount and positioning of extra channels.


NRG Acoustics SG-4: Domains of application

Though cinema and soundtracks characterize the major uses of surround techniques, its scope of use is broader than that as surround sound permits creation of an audio-environment for all variations of functions. Multichannel surround sound techniques could be used to reproduce contents as various as music, conversation, natural or synthetic sounds for cinema, television, broadcasting, or computing devices. With regard to music material for instance, an active performance may also use multichannel techniques in the context of an open-air concert, of a musical theatre or for transmissions; for a film specific techniques are tailored to movie theatre, or even to residence (e.g. home cinema systems).

The narrative place is also a content that may be enhanced through multichannel solutions. This applies mainly to cinema narratives, as an example the speech of the characters of a film, but may also be utilized on plays for theatre, to a conference, or to integrate voice-based comments in an archeological site or monument. For example, an exhibit might be enhanced with topical ambient sound of water, wild birds, train or machine sounds. Applicable natural sounds could also be used in informative applications.

NRG Acoustics A-70 - Some other fields of application include video gaming units, personal computers and other platforms.

In such applications, the content would typically be fabricated noise produced by the computer system in interaction with its user. Significant work has also been done using multichannel for enhanced situation awareness in military and general public safety applications.