Ventriloquist?

[Tomorrow]

Okay, this is gonna sound like a dumb question....because that's what it is. Nothing new for me.

AverageJoe and I were munching down some bacon and eggs yesterday and were discussing speaker performance. (It doesn't get much better than that! ) We got to talking about soundstage and speaker effects...such as the below deck scene in Master And Commander where you can hear footsteps on the ship's deck above the actors (who were stowing gear and loading cannons, etc). So just how does a speaker, even in DD 5.1, make you think you're hearing footsteps over your head when your speakers are at ear level?? Auditory illusion?

 

[silversurfer]

Okay, this is gonna sound like a dumb question....because that's what it is. Nothing new for me.

AverageJoe and I were munching down some bacon and eggs yesterday and were discussing speaker performance. (It doesn't get much better than that! ) We got to talking about soundstage and speaker effects...such as the below deck scene in Master And Commander where you can hear footsteps on the ship's deck above the actors (who were stowing gear and loading cannons, etc). So just how does a speaker, even in DD 5.1, make you think you're hearing footsteps over your head when your speakers are at ear level?? Auditory illusion?

If the surrounds are mounted at the recommended 3' above ear level, that effect is easy to do.

Also...your mind has a lot to do with the perception.

 

[j_garcia]

There is a blend of the rear and front speakers together as the person walking on the deck passes over. That is most likely a foley created sound, but it must have been done in such a way that it was actually done and recorded in a similar fashion to how it would actually have been in the real world (like they went to a soundstage that had some kind of deck or someone's home with a deck literally). The way it was recorded and mastered on the soundtrack gives the illusion of it being above your head. My surrounds are at ear level and it still sounds like it is coming from my roof.