The future of Surround Sound

https://www.barco.com/en/News/Post/2011/10/20/Auro-3D-sound-from-all-around

Way back in 1923 when sound was first introduced to movies it was recorded optically on the side of the film and was obviously not really hifi. Then in the 1940 the first multitrack sound movie (Fantasia) was released. 1953 Ampex released their magnetic surround soundtrack system for film. Skip forward to 1976 and Ray Dolby introduced the “Dolby Pro Logic” system to cinemas which was widely adopted and became the new standard for surround cinema sound. George Lucas introduced the THX standard in 1983 as Lucas wanted to ensure that the sound of the third Star Wars movie would be reproduced in cinemas the way it was intended.

The technology of surround sound continued to evolve along with the hardware. Speakers systems and amplifiers all got bigger and more powerful as the demands of surround sound grew. Those huge lifelike explosions all place huge demands on the sound system to ensure they have that ground shaking realism. Then in 1992, Batman, the first all digital surround sound movie was released in Dolby Digital 5.1 and with the dynamic range of CD the demands on these system was huge.

Dolby AC-3 or Dolby Digital as it became known was a true 6 channel surround sound and unlike Dolby Pro Logic which was a stereo track encoded with surround information, the channels were completely separate and the sound quality improved to an incredible level. During this time Sony produced its Sony Dynamic Digital Sound, DTS (Digital Theater Sound) along with some other notable offerings. DTS offered improved sound as the soundtracks were less compressed at the expense of requiring more space on the media. These days you can walk past a modern cinema and feel the building shake as the explosions occur.

As the technology has been further developed there have been lossless systems such as DTS HD Master and Dolby TrueHD and now Dolby Atmos. Dolby Atmos is a 7.1 surround sound system but with four extra speakers in the ceiling to help with dimensional sound.

THX have also released their THX Ultra 2 standard with the eye watering specifications every component in the chain from video and audio through to room treatment must meet to receive the coveted endorsement of THX.

Most, if not all of this technology finds its way into the home on the domestic market and only the size of your wallet decides how big and far you will go with your home surround sound. Surround sound is now found in cars, computer games and handheld devices. Surround sound has become big business. The number of channels in digital surround sound can go as high as 22.2 which has been developed by NHK Science and Technical Research Laboratories and comprises of several physical layers of speakers around the cinema (NHK, 2014). This makes you wonder just where will it go from here and where will it all end.

DTS have been working on a new type of surround sound that can work on stereo headphones and without the extra individual speakers usually required for typical surround sound. This new system DTS Headphone:X is aimed at people on the go and if it can be perfected, you may not need the huge speaker systems anymore, just a pair of good headphones. How many times have you recently been on public transport and seen how many people are streaming video. This is where DTS want to take their new headphone surround product.

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Is this where it will end? Not at all. Wilfired Van Baelen has released Auro 3D which is a surround sound system where the main speakers are close to the level of your ears and a second set or row thirty degrees higher in a 13.1 configuration (Rijkers, 2015). As stated by Mr Baelen, this creates a truly lifelike sound that makes the brain believe you are there!

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Is that the pinnacle of surround sound? No. Binaural and transaural are the some of the latest developments where the sound is recorded with microphones in the same locations as our ears in a way similar to how we hear. This is still not the end of the line for surround sound. As computing power increases, software developers and audio engineers are finding new ways of immersing us in a sound that feels so lifelike that you could almost believe you were right there on the actual scene. That is the ultimate goal of the surround sound fraternity and where it may possibly end. Maybe.

References:

NHK STRL | Science & Technology Research Laboratories. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.nhk.or.jp/strl/vision/r1/r1-1-6-e.htm

Rijkers, T. (2015). Auro Technologies Showcases Immersive Audio for 2015 CEDIA EXPO. [online] Auro-3D. Available at: https://www.auro-3d.com/press/2015/10/auro-technologies-showcases-immersive-audio-for-2015-cedia-expo/ [Accessed 15 Jun. 2018].