The binaural performance of a cross-talk cancellation system with matched or mismatched setup and playback acoustics.
Cross-talk cancellation is a method for synthesizing virtual auditory space using loudspeakers. One implementation is the "Optimal Source Distribution" technique [T. Takeuchi and P. Nelson, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 112, 2786-2797 (2002)], in which the audio bandwidth is split across three pairs of loudspeakers, placed at azimuths of +/-90 degrees, +/-15 degrees, and +/-3 degrees, conveying low, mid, and high frequencies, respectively. A computational simulation of this system was developed and verified against measurements made on an acoustic system using a manikin. Both the acoustic system and the simulation gave a wideband average cancellation of almost 25 dB. The simulation showed that when there was a mismatch between the head-related transfer functions used to set up the system and those of the final listener, the cancellation was reduced to an average of 13 dB. Moreover, in this case the binaural interaural time differences and interaural level differences delivered by the simulation of the optimal source distribution (OSD) system often differed from the target values. It is concluded that only when the OSD system is set up with "matched" head-related transfer functions can it deliver accurate binaural cues.
Akeroyd
Michael A
MA
MRC Institute of Hearing Research (Scottish Section), Glasgow Royal Infirmary, Alexandra Parade, Glasgow G31 2ER, United Kingdom. maa@ihr.gla.ac.uk
Chambers
John
J
Bullock
David
D
Palmer
Alan R
AR
Summerfield
A Quentin
AQ
Nelson
Philip A
PA
Gatehouse
Stuart
S
D003198:Computer Simulation; D004007:Dichotic Listening Tests; D006801:Humans; D008348:Manikins; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D010470:Perceptual Masking; D011571:Psychoacoustics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013018:Sound Spectrography; D013061:Speech Acoustics; D013067:Speech Perception