Delayed loudspeakers preserve direct-sound localization in public venues.

Evidence

In an anechoic chamber it can occur when listening to a single loudspeaker, especially on the frontal axis, in which case front-back reversals are also frequent occurrences. This phenomenon is so strong that it need not be a “blind” situation. I have experienced looking at a loudspeaker in front of me, knowing that it was the only loudspeaker in the anechoic chamber, and hearing the sound in my head or behind me. It is very disconcerting. Interestingly, a demonstration of four-loudspeaker Ambisonic recordings played in an anechoic chamber yielded an auditory impression that was almost totally within the head. This was a great disappointment to the gathered enthusiasts, all of whom anticipated an approximation of perfection. It suggested that, psychoacoustically, something fundamentally important was not being captured, or communicated to the ears. An identical setup in a normally reflective room sounded far more realistic, even though the room reflections were a substantial corruption of the encoded sounds arriving at the ears. — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 737 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Consider a loud note played from stage. Direct sound reaches the audience first, followed shortly by sound that has bounced once off a wall or ceiling. This early sound is clearly directional, and we use it to determine the location of the source. Sound arriving later from the same note has traveled farther, bouncing many times off back and side walls and ceilings and diffracting off statuary, balconies, and so on, and is nearly omnidirectional. In a rather reverberant hall with a T60 of 3 seconds, the sound will have traveled a kilometer before its last remnants reach the audience’s ears. The late sound has spread uniformly throughout the space and is moreover propagating every which way, equally. — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 2471 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Strong direct sound without supporting reflections causes in-head localization in loudspeaker listening — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 737; Direct sound determines localization, loudness, and perceived spectrum quality — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 1546; First-arriving direct sound dominates localization and loudspeaker images are built from mono and double-mono (+6 more)

Related

• First-arriving direct sound dominates localization and loudspeaker images are built from mono and double-mono (similarity 0.92)
• Strong direct sound without supporting reflections causes in-head localization in loudspeaker listening (similarity 0.92)
• A delayed sound can be 10 dB louder and still lose the localization battle (similarity 0.90)
• Direct sound determines localization, loudness, and perceived spectrum quality (similarity 0.89)
• The first-arriving direct sound perceptually dominates despite carrying less energy (similarity 0.89)
• Early reflected sound localizes sources while late sound becomes directionless (similarity 0.88)
• Ear localizes to first-arriving sound unless delayed signal exceeds 12 dB louder (similarity 0.88)
• Sound is localized to the first arriving acoustic source despite delayed reinforcement (similarity 0.87)
• The first arriving sound wave dominates perceived localization regardless of level (similarity 0.86)
• Reflected sound anchors external source localization while its absence pulls sound into the head (similarity 0.85)
• Room boundary reflections are the second loudest sounds a listener hears (similarity 0.84)
• Loudspeaker directivity and early reflections affect sound quality and imaging (similarity 0.84)
• Earlier-arriving sound from a less loud source dominates perceived location. (similarity 0.84)
• Direct sound governs perceived quality in rooms, not room curves (similarity 0.83)
• The sound arriving first dominates perceived direction beyond 673 microseconds of delay (similarity 0.83)

Broader Connections

• First-arriving direct sound dominates localization and loudspeaker images are built from mono and double-mono #corroborates (0.90)
• Strong direct sound without supporting reflections causes in-head localization in loudspeaker listening #corroborates (0.85) — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 737
• Early reflected sound localizes sources while late sound becomes directionless #corroborates (0.85) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 2471
• The first arriving sound wave dominates perceived localization regardless of level #corroborates (0.82) — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 1564
• Direct sound determines localization, loudness, and perceived spectrum quality #expands (0.75) — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 1546
• Late-arriving room sound becomes omnidirectional and uniformly distributed #expands (0.72)