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Topic: Binaural music releases? (Read 4262 times) previous topic - next topic
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Binaural music releases?

Apart from the Pearl Jam album: Are there more high-quality 3D audio or binaural music releases to enjoy with headphones?

Whether originally produced that way, or even better, rare binaural editions of classic songs or albums (if any).

No matter technology used: ambisonic mics, HATS, dummy heads, VST plug-ins, etc.

All genres welcome!  :)

Re: Binaural music releases?

Reply #1
David Chesky has a few releases


Re: Binaural music releases?

Reply #3
I bought the Zenph "Re-Performance" CD of Art Tatum and it seems they offered regular stereo and Binaural tracks on all their releases. I don't think they're going any more. The link on Discogs takes you to the Steinway Pianos website.
https://youtu.be/ygJPSzWMfjQ

Re: Binaural music releases?

Reply #4
I bought the Zenph "Re-Performance" CD of Art Tatum and it seems they offered regular stereo and Binaural tracks on all their releases. I don't think they're going any more.
Sadly, that can be said of probably practically all labels nowadays, as the then-novelty seems to have just worn off.

Edit: strike through (sigh! again)
• The older, the lossier
• Listen to the music, not the media it's on.

Re: Binaural music releases?

Reply #5
It is not the novelty that wore off, it simply became apparent binaural recordings don't work. Everyones ears are different, so a binaural recording will only work with people whose ears are close enough to the ears the recording was made with.

Apparently, my ears are non-standard enough that I've never found a binaural recording that works for me. Everything always seems to happen behind my head. Also, the illusion (which I havent witnessed yet) falls flat on its face when you turn your head even only a little bit.

So: looks like a great idea, but does not work in practice.
Music: sounds arranged such that they construct feelings.

Re: Binaural music releases?

Reply #6
Great points!

OTOH, since the OP isn’t particular about genres, here’s a wealth of binaural tracks for streaming (just click the green play button on the far left of each track).

Even if they aren’t full albums, they should quench your thirst for binaural audio (some sound great on my Sennheiser HD 580 headphones, others just plain weird, as they're not all music tracks) though I highly doubt they'll deliver on the sensation promised in the page title.

To the admins: Hopefully it doesn't penalize TOS #9, as clicking on the download button results in a “forbidden” error, which leads me to believe it is probably okay-ish?
• The older, the lossier
• Listen to the music, not the media it's on.

Re: Binaural music releases?

Reply #7
It is not the novelty that wore off, it simply became apparent binaural recordings don't work. Everyones ears are different, so a binaural recording will only work with people whose ears are close enough to the ears the recording was made with.

Apparently, my ears are non-standard enough that I've never found a binaural recording that works for me. Everything always seems to happen behind my head. Also, the illusion (which I havent witnessed yet) falls flat on its face when you turn your head even only a little bit.

So: looks like a great idea, but does not work in practice.

You have a good point: As most binaural recordings seem to be made with HATS or dummy head systems (which have "mean-shaped" pinnae, AFAIK), they actually impose their pinna filtering on those recordings, and as the mics are actually placed well inside the simulated ear canals (in the "eardrums" or so), the best binaural hearing experience should be on IEM's (no pinna interaction, and closer to eardrums) rather than on regular on-ear or over-ear headphones (which mess a lot with our pinnae). Even so, when sometimes I hear those "binaural artifacts" on over-ear headphones, I feel them as way more tolerable than the common exaggeratedly-wide stereo effect when listening to regular music recordings on headphones. Maybe my ears are closer to "mean" than yours.

By the way, thanks to everyone for your recommendations!  :D

Re: Binaural music releases?

Reply #8
Also, the illusion (which I havent witnessed yet) falls flat on its face when you turn your head even only a little bit.

That's where pure Ambisonic recordings have an advantage. The binaural sound is generated dynamically based on the position of your head, but you need something like a VR headset for that. There are a few of those on YouTube.
Unfortunately the playback is currently broken on YouTube through the normal web player.

Re: Binaural music releases?

Reply #9
Here's an interesting one on Blu-ray if you are into classical music:
https://www.hdvdarts.com/titles/vespro-della-beata-vergine.html

Besides the video it features three lossless sound tracks:

DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
DTS-HD Master Audio Binaural
Proverb for Paranoids: "If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about answers."
-T. Pynchon (Gravity's Rainbow)