The effect of sound level on perception of reproduced soundscapes

Abstract

a b s t r a c tThe aim of this work was to investigate the perception of soundscape reproduced by an ambisonic reproduction system on a horizontal plane, how the experience of space affected the perception of soundscape reproduction, and how the sound level adjustment on soundscape reproduction affected the perception of soundscape compared with actual conditions. There were three experiments conducted: a soundwalk in situ in Manchester (United Kingdom) city centre, listening tests in Salford (United Kingdom), and listening tests in Bandung (Indonesia). The listening tests used material recorded from four locations on the soundwalk route in Manchester. The Salford listening tests were performed at the in-situ measured sound level, and the participants were asked to adjust the sound level to the level that represents actual locations. The listening test in Bandung was conducted to understand the effect of participants who never come to the actual location to the perception of soundscape and the sound level adjustment. The listening tests in Bandung were conducted at the in situ sound level, at 9.5 dB below the in situ sound level (based on the preference sound level from the experiment in Salford), and the participants were also requested to adjust the sound level to the level that represents the actual space (to examine the consistency with the experiment in Salford). In each case, soundscape perception was measured on 19 semantic differential scales. Analysis of the semantic differential results showed that the ambisonic reproduction produced a similar subjective experience to the in situ soundwalk when the reproduction sound level was 9.5 dB lower than the actual sound level in situ. Reproduction at the actual sound level in situ produced a different dimensional space. The study shows that the sound level adjustment of soundscape reproduction in laboratory experiment produces more ecologically valid results compared to the reproduction at the actual sound level in situ.

Spatial Audio for Soundscape Design: Recording and Reproduction

“…Boren et al [28] captured the acoustic environment in different parts of New York with an ambisonic microphone. Davies et al [22] also used a FOA ambisonics microphone to record urban areas in Manchester, UK.…”

“…Perceptual accuracy is the basis of auralization [18], and is largely influenced by the spatial properties of sounds such as source distance, source location, and reverberation [19,20]. Several laboratory experiments on ecological validation of the reproduction systems have been conducted based on the psycholinguistic measure, such as semantic differential method [16,21,22]. Those studies compared the subjective responses of verbal descriptors on soundscape among in situ acoustic environments and the reproduced acoustic environments created by different techniques in laboratory conditions to explore the ecological validity of reproduction systems.…”

The Validation of Acoustic Environment Simulator to Determine the Relationship between Sound Objects and Soundscape

“…Laboratory experiments can be carried out with acoustic environment recordings or a simulated acoustic environment. Experiments using acoustic environment reproduction have been validated [8] [13], but not the simulated acoustic environment. A method to validate an acoustic environment has been developed using semantic scales, which has been implemented for experiments in different conditions: in situ [13,14], in the laboratory using binaural reproduction [7,9], in the laboratory with a threedimensional ambisonic system [8,15], and in the laboratory with a two-dimensional ambisonic system [13].…”

“…Later, our previous study has shown that the dimension of Spatiality is not reliable [13]. The laboratory experiments were conducted using different reproduction systems.…”

“…In the experiment using a binaural system two soundscape dimensions were distinguished (Calmness and Vibrancy) [9]. In the reproduction using a three-dimensional ambisonic system four soundscape dimensions were classified (Relaxation/Calmness, Dynamics/ Vibrancy, Communication, and Spatiality) [8] and in the experiment using a two-dimensional ambisonic system three soundscape dimensions were established (Relaxation/Calmness, Dynamics/Vibrancy, and Communication) [13].…”