[462429]

...
I demoed the YARRA 3DX at the LA Audio Show using my Smyth A8 as the binauralizer. The sound bar took the analog binaural output from the Symth box and delivered left and right discrete audio signals (minimal crosstalk) to listeners. What's cool about the Smyth box is the ability to "solo" the individual virtual speakers. When asked where sound is coming from, listeners would point over their shoulder — and this was using my PRIR. The YARRA 3DX can internally decode Dolby Digital and APT X HD signals and output a properly binauralized surround sound field. There are digital inputs (HDMI, TOSlink, and USB) and analog I/O — stereo input and headphones out. The binauralizer can be active or turned off, which allows stereo programming to pass through unprocessed.
...

Hello, Dr.AIX, glad to meet you on this thread. However, I'm confused with your description of how you demoed the YARRA 3DX at the LA Audio Show, using your Smyth A8 as the binauralizer. So far I learned Yarra had a stereo mode dedicated to cover a whole room, with a group of listeners, by means of 'widely dispersed stereo field'. And now it seems you managed to 'deliver left and right discrete audio signals with minimal crosstalk to listeners' in that mode. How is that possible? Widely dispersed stereo field and minimal crosstalk at the same time!
I would also ask - what kind of signal is APT X HD?
And finally, what do you mean by stereo programming?

 

[Dr. AIX]

I took the left and right outputs from the Smyth A8 and went into the stereo analog inputs of the YARRA 3DX. With Near Field processing the crosstalk processing is activated and the incoming binaural signals reach your ears. Presto, immersive surround. APT X HD is a very popular audio encoding technology for gaming and computer audio. Any stereo content is stereo programming.

 

[Erik Garci]

How is that possible? Widely dispersed stereo field and minimal crosstalk at the same time!

This FAQ might be helpful.

What happens if I have more than 3 people listening to the immersive surround projections? What do the others hear?
The 3 primary listeners will hear immersive surround and any other will hear enhanced stereo.

 

[Erik Garci]

The binauralizer can be active or turned off, which allows stereo programming to pass through unprocessed.

Does the Yarra 3DX let the user choose to enable/disable the binauralizer for 2-channel input?

If the 2-channel input was already binauralized (by a Realiser for example), the user would choose to disable the soundbar's binauralizer, to avoid double-binauralizing. Otherwise, if it was not already binauralized, and the user wants it to sound like a traditional widely-spaced stereo speaker system, the user would choose to enable the soundbar's binauralizer.

 

[462429]

I took the left and right outputs from the Smyth A8 and went into the stereo analog inputs of the YARRA 3DX. With Near Field processing the crosstalk processing is activated and the incoming binaural signals reach your ears. Presto, immersive surround. APT X HD is a very popular audio encoding technology for gaming and computer audio. Any stereo content is stereo programming.

Thank you very much, Dr. AIX, for your quick and clear answers. So, the Far Field and Near Field processing modes decide how stereo content will be projected - widely dispersed in the first case and narrowly shaped and directed precisely towards the ears in the second. Now this is clear to me. I never heard of Field processing modes for stereo content before. It was always - no processing for stereo at all. Thanks again ...

 

[sander99]

I think Dr. AIX was just describing how he did the demo, I don't think he means that there is no beaming in the far field mode.
@Dr. AIX: I really hope we could get a precise and complete description of all the different modes. It's something I am missing on the Yarra and kickstarter Yarra pages, that seem to be written from a popular marketing perspective (which I can understand is maybe commercially more effective, but I would have liked to see at least a small section where the most important facts are grouped together in a clear and logical fashion).
You can see here how people can get confused about many things. For example confusing far field and near field with beaming or not beaming. (I assume beaming is possible both in near field and far field?). Or confusing beaming or not beaming with binauralizing or not binauralizing. (Binauralizing is of course only possible in combination with beaming, but beaming can be done without binauralizing). Or confusing binauralizing or not binauralizing with having a 'widely dispersed stereo field' or not. (I assume the 'wide dispersion mode' is just a completely seperate mode in which there is no beaming?). Etc.

 

[Erik Garci]

So, the Far Field and Near Field processing modes decide how stereo content will be projected - widely dispersed in the first case and narrowly shaped and directed precisely towards the ears in the second.

My understanding is that the beams are directed precisely towards the ears in either case, regardless of how many channels. If you are listening 3 to 6 feet away, you would choose the near-field mode, and the beams will be directed precisely towards your ears (but less precisely to anyone behind you). If you are listening 10 to 15 feet away, you would choose the far-field mode, and the beams will be directed precisely towards your ears (but less precisely to anyone in front of you).

 

[Erik Garci]

Or confusing beaming or not beaming with binauralizing or not binauralizing. (Binauralizing is of course only possible in combination with beaming, but beaming can be done without binauralizing).

The Yarra 3DX has a headphone output, so technically it might be possible to have binauralizing without beaming. That is, the soundbar would binauralize the input and send it to the headphones, but the soundbar's drivers would be muted and not beaming at all.

 

[sander99]

The Yarra 3DX has a headphone output, so technically it might be possible to have binauralizing without beaming. That is, the soundbar would binauralize the input and send it to the headphones, but the soundbar's drivers would be muted and not beaming at all.

Of course, that's right.

 

[sahmen]

I demoed the YARRA 3DX at the LA Audio Show using my Smyth A8 as the binauralizer. The sound bar took the analog binaural output from the Symth box and delivered left and right discrete audio signals (minimal crosstalk) to listeners. What's cool about the Smyth box is the ability to "solo" the individual virtual speakers. When asked where sound is coming from, listeners would point over their shoulder — and this was using my PRIR. The YARRA 3DX can internally decode Dolby Digital and APT X HD signals and output a properly binauralized surround sound field. There are digital inputs (HDMI, TOSlink, and USB) and analog I/O — stereo input and headphones out. The binauralizer can be active or turned off, which allows stereo programming to pass through unprocessed.
.

I took the left and right outputs from the Smyth A8 and went into the stereo analog inputs of the YARRA 3DX. With Near Field processing the crosstalk processing is activated and the incoming binaural signals reach your ears. Presto, immersive surround. APT X HD is a very popular audio encoding technology for gaming and computer audio. Any stereo content is stereo programming.

Dear @Dr. AIX :

To what extent can one safely assume that this experience is repeatable with the A16 too (i.e. taking the analog binaural output from the A16, including object-based Atmos/DTS-X signals, and delivering them as left and right discrete audio signals to listeners, making them appear as if they are coming from solo individual virtual speakers)? Has anyone ever had the opportunity to attempt this experiment with the Yarra and A16? If one can reasonably expect convincingly similar results from a Yarra/A16 combo, I wouldn't mind springing for a 2nd Yarra before the campaign is over. It would be wonderful to have one Yarra permanently paired with the A16 at one listening station, to enable alternating headphone and non-headphone listening sessions on demand. In my case the 2nd Yarra would be deployed in a second system where it would be assigned only Yarra-exclusive duties. At this point, I am just weighing options, but it would be nice to know what I can expect. Thanks.

My other question is whether there are any conditions under which one might get an AIX-Studio customized PRIR done for the A16 without having to travel to the studio...Or does that sound completely undoable?

 

[462429]

I think Dr. AIX was just describing how he did the demo, I don't think he means that there is no beaming in the far field mode.
@Dr. AIX: I really hope we could get a precise and complete description of all the different modes. It's something I am missing on the Yarra and kickstarter Yarra pages, that seem to be written from a popular marketing perspective (which I can understand is maybe commercially more effective, but I would have liked to see at least a small section where the most important facts are grouped together in a clear and logical fashion).
You can see here how people can get confused about many things. For example confusing far field and near field with beaming or not beaming. (I assume beaming is possible both in near field and far field?). Or confusing beaming or not beaming with binauralizing or not binauralizing. (Binauralizing is of course only possible in combination with beaming, but beaming can be done without binauralizing). Or confusing binauralizing or not binauralizing with having a 'widely dispersed stereo field' or not. (I assume the 'wide dispersion mode' is just a completely seperate mode in which there is no beaming?). Etc.

There is one more confusing thing:
Why would Dr. AIX demonstrate Yarra by means of Realiser A8's binauralised output, where his own PRIR and HPEQ certainly decrease quality for the other listeners, instead of taking Realiser A8's PCM output and apply Yarra's original (reportedly spectacular) binauralising and beamforming capabilities?!?
@sander99, it seems Dr. AIX and the whole Yarra team don't care much about confusion on the side of their potential customers. Maybe they already have big enough number of (non-confused) gamers on their customers list?

 

[Dr. AIX]

There is one more confusing thing:
Why would Dr. AIX demonstrate Yarra by means of Realiser A8's binauralised output, where his own PRIR and HPEQ certainly decrease quality for the other listeners, instead of taking Realiser A8's PCM output and apply Yarra's original (reportedly spectacular) binauralising and beamforming capabilities?!?
@sander99, it seems Dr. AIX and the whole Yarra team don't care much about confusion on the side of their potential customers. Maybe they already have big enough number of (non-confused) gamers on their customers list?

I'm sorry for being absent for the last few days...I've been in the studio working with Michael Jackson's niece Yashi on a VR spoken word/music EPK. We're using the new 8-Ball quad binaural microphone from Hear360...very cool. As soon as I get some rough mixes, I'll pass them along.

As for the recent questions, the reason that I inserted my Smyth A8 in the signal flow from my Blu-ray player HDMI output to the YARRA 3DX was to be able to demonstrate the solo function. I've found soloing the individual channels of a 5.1 surround mix very convincing. I start with the left front, then move to the center front, followed by the right front. Everyone hears the sound in front of them. But when I solo the right surround channel and the sound appears to come from over the listener's right shoulder, the demonstration is taken to a whole new level. The number of times the person turns to look to the spot where the sound appears to come from or smiles broadly is quite high.

The use of my own PRIR and HPEQ has not been a problem. I've demoed both ways and like building up to having all channels turned on.

I've tried to post updates, give in person demos, and answer every and all questions. If there's still confusion, I'll try to clear it up. However, on May 1, 2018 the Indiegogo InDemand campaign will end and preorders will no longer be available at the steep discount. In fact, company management has decided that to end my consultant agreement at the same time. I certainly would have preferred to continue to interact with the backer community until the units are delivered but my time with the company will be over after Monday. If anyone on this forum would like to secure a discounted YARRA 3DX, now is the time to do it.

I believe in the technology, the person behind the device has been a close friend for a very long time (over 35 years), and the value of the YARRA 3DX sound bar is very high - especially at the discounted price. When used in conjunction with the new Smyth Realiser, I think the end result will be a rare combination of immersive audio without headphones.

 

[sander99]

@Dr. AIX:
Could you just quickly confirm or negate the follwing assumptions:
I assume beaming without internal binauralisation by the Yarra is possible both in near field and far field?
I assume the 'wide dispersion mode'/'widely dispersed stereo mode' is just a completely seperate mode in which there is no beaming? (Usefull if there are more than 3 users.)
If there are more than 3 users, can there be beams for 3 users and 'widely dispersed stereo' for the others, or only 'widely dispersed stereo' for all users?

 

[Dr. AIX]

@Dr. AIX:
Could you just quickly confirm or negate the follwing assumptions:
I assume beaming without internal binauralisation by the Yarra is possible both in near field and far field?
I assume the 'wide dispersion mode'/'widely dispersed stereo mode' is just a completely seperate mode in which there is no beaming? (Usefull if there are more than 3 users.)
If there are more than 3 users, can there be beams for 3 users and 'widely dispersed stereo' for the others, or only 'widely dispersed stereo' for all users?

The near field and far field modes are just two of seven different modes of operation. As I did at the show, you can send already binauralized two-channel information into and beam to near or far fields. The wide dispersion mode for stereo models a large sound field...regular stereo music sound quite a bit larger than it would from the array. I play stereo programming with Near Field Mode all the time. If more than 3 locations are being beamed anyone outside of those locations gets regular stereo. I hope this helps.

 

[sander99]

The near field and far field modes are just two of seven different modes of operation. As I did at the show, you can send already binauralized two-channel information into and beam to near or far fields. The wide dispersion mode for stereo models a large sound field...regular stereo music sound quite a bit larger than it would from the array. I play stereo programming with Near Field Mode all the time. If more than 3 locations are being beamed anyone outside of those locations gets regular stereo. I hope this helps.

Yes, thank you.