Exploring Rendering Variability in Next-Generation Audio Reproduction

Hirvonen T, Williams P, Souza Blanes E, Kwon Y, Jo W. Exploring Rendering Variability in Next-Generation Audio Reproduction. In: Convention Paper. Audio Engineering Society; 2026. Paper 10269. Available from: https://aes.org/publications/elibrary-page/?id=23211

@inproceedings{Hirvonen2026_23211,
  author = {Hirvonen, Toni and Williams, Phill and Souza Blanes, Ema and Kwon, Yongmin and Jo, Wonbeen},
  title = {{Exploring Rendering Variability in Next-Generation Audio Reproduction}},
  note = {Paper 10269},
  year = {2026},
  month = may,
  publisher = {Audio Engineering Society},
  url = {https://aes.org/publications/elibrary-page/?id=23211}
}

TY  - CPAPER
TI  - Exploring Rendering Variability in Next-Generation Audio Reproduction
AU  - Hirvonen, Toni
AU  - Williams, Phill
AU  - Souza Blanes, Ema
AU  - Kwon, Yongmin
AU  - Jo, Wonbeen
M1  - Paper 10269
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/28
UR  - https://aes.org/publications/elibrary-page/?id=23211
PB  - Audio Engineering Society
LA  - en
AB  - This study evaluates three Next-Generation Audio (NGA) rendering systems through listening tests using real-life audio content. The testing paradigm prioritized subjective preference over adherence to a ground-truth reference. Participants assessed perceptual spatial audio attributes in both 5.1 and 7.1.4 loudspeaker setups. The findings suggest that strict adherence to the rendering algorithm used during content creation is not mandatory in terms of listener preference. While not advocating disregarding artistic intent without consideration, this study proposes that such flexibility in reproduction can be an acceptable compromise.
ER  -