Development and Initial Validation of a Multichannel Audio Quality Expert System

Abstract

The basic audio quality of 5.1 multichannel audio reproduction was evaluated subjectively under different technical conditions. The resulting database of subjective responses was used to develop a multichannel audio quality expert system. There are three aims of this development: 1) to predict audio quality as a function of individual channel bandwidth; 2) to predict audio quality as a function of selected down-mix algorithms; and 3) to find the optimum band-limitation algorithm or down-mix algorithm for a given total transmission bandwidth of a multichannel audio signal. Results indicate a close correspondence between predicted and actual quality ratings. It is intended that the final version of the quality expert system will be suitable as a decision-making aid for broadcasters and codec designers.