The four you can see
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Considering dimensions in spatial reproduction of sound, the logical step from Mono after Stereo is again a double number : Quadrophonic (4 channels) (also called 'quadriphonic'). But in which direction ? The logical step from mono (1 point) to stereo (2 points) was a horizontal division into left and right, because we have two ears, which are positioned at the same height, to detect the direction. So a soundsource can be percepted, caused by time / phase difference, as coming from left, right or in between. The musically, historical choice, taken in the 20th century, to define the next step from 2 to 4 soundsources as : L/R Front and L/R Rear, is an tragic, unscientific and academic mistake. It's doomed to stay an effect. And development seems to have stopped, stuck in the 'surround' business. It is sometimes even called "3-D" sound, which is, according to the dimension rules, just incorrect. Dimensionally seen, stereo is an X coordinate, a horizontal line between two points Left and Right. So logical here is, that the next dimension should not be the Z coordinate, but the Y..! Meaning, as within the frame of a picture, the variables Left and Right in combination with Up and Down. This priority also fits with the postioning of our ears, which is directing to the front and more sensitive to the height of sounds. A 4C sound gives a much better reality presentation according to what we see : an image, movie, game or landscape. So for example a movie screen with next, or behind, the four corners of the screen, a speaker. |
| How to realise this concept with soft- and hardware ? |
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A 4C-soundtrack for this reproduction should be produced with 4 different, so discrete, tracks to the speakers. So for a realtime performance a mixer should have 4 master output channels, instead of 2. As the final stage of real 3-D representation, the nr of these 4 channels must be doubled again to add the 4 Back tracks to make 8C. The binary order 1 - 2 - 4 - 8 channels provides that next dimension. More is not necessary in a room. Each corner a speaker. Sam Samshuijzen. 1995. The detailed publication in Dutch can be found here |
