tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34251229.post116659251101533060..comments2023-04-10T05:37:03.480-07:00Comments on DIY Stereo Boundary Mics: Depth Perception and the waveRob D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/11023542829582569718noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34251229.post-1166978457955509992006-12-24T08:40:00.000-08:002006-12-24T08:40:00.000-08:00Hi Mike--This is a heck of an ambitious study. Let...Hi Mike--<BR/><BR/>This is a heck of an ambitious study. Let it be known that everything that is confusing in it can be traced to my bad advice. <BR/><BR/>Here are some crude building blocks as best as I can tell, quickly:<BR/><BR/>(1) Assuming the difference will be attributed to the mic rig, can one be sure that we can identify one recording as better at portraying a sense of "distance" compared to another? (This at least assumes same place, same mics, same sound impulse)<BR/><BR/>(2) If so, can we still discern the difference when two recording levels are used?<BR/><BR/>As recording level is increased (without over-modulation), one's sense of "reach" into space also increases. Playback loudness is very much connected to the amount of distance one can hear in a recording, because things in the distance are inherently quieter and quieter.<BR/><BR/>Lets assume we can tell that one rig works better because we can hear the reverb "tail" for a longer period of time before it dissolves into a constant field of background drones at the barn.<BR/><BR/>To test if we can discern this between two rigs would require having the two rigs as close as possible to each other, the same mics and the exact same stimulus. Why? Because a louder impulse will produce an echo that remains above the masking of the background sounds longer.<BR/><BR/>In short, this test is a very tall order. We'd need a very large, extremely quiet location and perfectly repeatable impulses. Ideally, we like the reverb tail to blend into the self noise of the mics, and not into any background sounds, but short of that, not a loud factory next door. At this level of subtlety, I bet we could hear things in the recordings that the sonograms won't show. <BR/><BR/>Sorry about the wild reverb tail chase, Mike. We still learned something and most important, have justified going camping in order to perform some critical research. Rob D.Rob D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/11023542829582569718noreply@blogger.com