Hi all,
I would like to achieve something like sound coming from the left, coming from the bottom, coming from above the head, coming from the right, coming from the front or coming from the back.
For coming from both left and right, it seems it can achieve by spliting into left and right channel and by changing the volume of either left and right can produce a effect of moving from left to right, but how about the other, how can they be achieved?
Or any plugins are recommended?
I got something like random 3D spacializing, but that plugins cannot set the sound to come from only one direction…
Any advice or suggestions are highly appreciated.
The only way to actually make sounds come from above or behind is to use multiple speakers (for example, 8 speakers, one in each corner of a room.)
Binaural recording is a “recording technique” which can provide “hints” for the listener’s brain to interpret 3D localization from 2 channel sound. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binaural_recording
I’ve heard of people producing binaural recordings with some success by mounting a pair of miniature microphones (such as might be obtained from headset or lapel microphones) on the arms of a pair of sunglasses, so that the microphones are positioned within the ears (like “earbuds” the wrong way round). I’ve not tested this method but I would guess that full frequency range “omnidirectional” microphones should be used.
Because stereo recordings may be produced by many different microphone placement techniques (A-B, X-Y, Blunheim pair, Decca Tree, etc), I doubt that there is a generalised way to convert a “normal stereo” recording into a “binaural recording”.
This page on Wikipedia carries links to various types of “3D recording” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D_audio_effect
I assume you’re talking about headphones, since binaural recordings are intended for headphone listening…
You could start by experimenting with [u]Dolby Headphone[/u]. It’s a different concept than binaural recording, but the idea is you feed-in a regular 5.1 or 7.1 soundtrack and Dolby Headphone processes & downmixes to stereo for “enhanced” headphone listening.
Dolby doesn’t actually claim that you will perceive sounds as coming from behind you, but some listeners DO get a good surround effect. The illusion does NOT work for me… I do NOT hear sounds coming from behind. But, I don’t get a good stereo “soundstage” illusion with headphones either. With headphones, I hear hard-panned sounds coming directly from the headphones into my ear, and centered (or off-center) seem to come from somewhere very-near my forehead.
The Dolby Headphone encoder is built-into home theater receivers or built-into DVD/Blu-Ray player software (I have Corel Win DVD.)
So in order to experiment, you’d need something with Dolby Headphone and you’d need to make a 5.1 channel (or 7.1 channel) recording.
I’m not sure how you would make a 2-channel recording with the effect built-in other than playing the surround track through the Dolby Headphone hardware/software while making a 2-channel recording.
One of the main ways we locate sound is by turning our head to get a 2nd triangulation. Usually, we turn our head to look and see where the sound is coming from. Have you ever tried to find a squeak or rattle in your car?
Of course the headphones move when you move your head so you are not just missing that information, but your brain is getting false information. I assume the best solution is [u]Head-Tracking Headphones[/u], but I have not tried them.