Applications of binaural processing to surround sound reproduction in large spaces

This paper presents a method for evaluating the performance of multi-channel sound reproduction systems serving large audience areas. The technique, based on the synthesis of binaural cues, emulates the pressures at the listener´s ears corresponding to those produced by a real sound field thus, in theory, allowing the assessment of the imaging produced by holographic sound systems to be carried out simply by using a pair of headphones. Preliminary results obtained by applying this method to a simple surround sound system are presented and discussed