'Binaural' stereo? - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

Tractorfan · 21st Feb 2016, 12:51 pm

Hi,
This morning I listened to an experimental radio play without words called 'The Revenge' on BBC iPlayer which was first broadcast in 1974 and was recorded in 'binaural stereo'. The continuity announcer advised how best to listen to it, preferably on stereo headphones, or through correctly positioned loudspeakers.
The term 'binaural' disappeared years later, and we had to make do with good old fashioned stereo.

So, was it just a phase (pun intended) and a fancy word for stereo, or was/is it a technology all its own?
I suppose I could just google it, but it's more fun to spark a discussion on our beloved forum!
Cheers,

21st Feb 2016, 1:32 pm

The idea was to record something using a dummy head with a microphone in each ear and reproducing it via headphones. About 30 years ago Radio 3 did this for a walk around an oil rig.

Ted Kendall · 21st Feb 2016, 1:35 pm

The essential difference between binaural and conventional stereo is that the former is generally recorded with a "dummy head" - usually two omni-directional microphones separated by a baffle - and intended to be reproduced through headphones, when it can give an uncannily realistic "immersion" effect. Dummy head recordings usually don't work as well on speakers as other stereo techniques, though. To elucidate these would take a lot of space, but the key concepts are the Blumlein crossed pair, the Decca tree and the Bell Labs wavefront theory.

paulsherwin · 21st Feb 2016, 2:45 pm

The Wikipedia article is a good introduction to the subject: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binaural_recording

21st Feb 2016, 12:51 pm	#1
Tractorfan Dekatron Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: St. Frajou, l'Isle en Dodon, Haute Garonne, France.(Previously: Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, UK.) Posts: 3,184	'Binaural' stereo? Hi, This morning I listened to an experimental radio play without words called 'The Revenge' on BBC iPlayer which was first broadcast in 1974 and was recorded in 'binaural stereo'. The continuity announcer advised how best to listen to it, preferably on stereo headphones, or through correctly positioned loudspeakers. The term 'binaural' disappeared years later, and we had to make do with good old fashioned stereo. So, was it just a phase (pun intended) and a fancy word for stereo, or was/is it a technology all its own? I suppose I could just google it, but it's more fun to spark a discussion on our beloved forum! Cheers, __________________ "Hello?, Yes, I'm on the train, I might lose the signal soon as we're just going into a tunn..."

21st Feb 2016, 1:32 pm	#2
Guest Guest Posts: n/a	Re: 'Binaural' stereo? The idea was to record something using a dummy head with a microphone in each ear and reproducing it via headphones. About 30 years ago Radio 3 did this for a walk around an oil rig.

21st Feb 2016, 1:35 pm	#3
Ted Kendall Dekatron Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Kington, Herefordshire, UK. Posts: 3,675	Re: 'Binaural' stereo? The essential difference between binaural and conventional stereo is that the former is generally recorded with a "dummy head" - usually two omni-directional microphones separated by a baffle - and intended to be reproduced through headphones, when it can give an uncannily realistic "immersion" effect. Dummy head recordings usually don't work as well on speakers as other stereo techniques, though. To elucidate these would take a lot of space, but the key concepts are the Blumlein crossed pair, the Decca tree and the Bell Labs wavefront theory. Last edited by Ted Kendall; 21st Feb 2016 at 1:59 pm.

21st Feb 2016, 2:45 pm	#4
paulsherwin Moderator Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Oxford, UK Posts: 27,970	Re: 'Binaural' stereo? The Wikipedia article is a good introduction to the subject: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binaural_recording