AES News

In December 1988, Delft University professor Guus Berkhout published his article in the AES Journal in which he proposed the concept of Wave Field Synthesis (WFS) as a format for spatial sound reproduction without ‘sweet spot’ limitations. Now, more than twenty years later, Diemer de Vries who was involved in the development and application of the concept from the very beginning, presents a 93-page monograph on the theme.

The principles of WFS are explained once again, with a digestible summary of the underlying mathematics. An explanation is also given of how the necessary steps, from theory (where things are infinitely large or small, having ideal properties) to real-world application, have successfully been made by making ample use of the properties of the human hearing mechanism.

Reproduction in WFS is most effective when dedicated recording techniques are used. A survey of such techniques is given. Special attention is given to the EU-project “CARROUSO” where ten institutes successfully cooperated on WFS-oriented research and development. Due to the results of this project, WFS is now known and recognized worldwide.

An illustrated short description is given of all - as far as known to the author - existing WFS systems in the world. Applications range from high-level audio research via multimedia education to night club entertainment. The monograph ends with a view to the future.

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