COMPASS: Coding and Multidirectional Parameterization of Ambisonic Sound Scenes

Abstract

Current methods for immersive playback of spatial sound content aim at flexibility in terms of encoding and decoding, abstracting the two from the recording or playback setup. Ambisonics constitutes such a method, that is however signal-independent, and at low spatial resolutions fails to provide appropriate spatialization cues to the listener, with potential severe colouration effects and localization ambiguity. We present a new signal-dependent method for parametric analysis and synthesis of ambisonic sound scenes that takes advantage of the flexibility of Ambisonics as a spatial audio format, while improving reproduction. The proposed approach considers a more general acoustic model than previous proposals, with multiple source signals and a non isotropic ambient component. According to a listening test using headphones, the method is perceived closer to binaural reference sound scenes than ambisonic playback.