Subjective diffuseness of music signals convolved with binaural impulse responses

The spatial impression of sound in a hall can be quantified using sound field factors such as the interaural cross-correlation coefficient (IACC) calculated from binaural impulse response (BIR), henceforth denoted by IACC_IR. The subjective diffuseness for the listener is a spatial attribute which depends on factors associated both with the source signal and with the actual sound field, and is quantified using the IACC of the signal received by the listener, henceforth denoted by IACC_SR. Therefore, the subjective diffuseness in a given hall may change with the music. The aims of this study are to estimate the IACC_SR from the IACC_IR and the factors, which is obtained from autocorrelation function (ACF) of music signal, and to evaluate the subjective diffuseness by these factors. First, the relationship between the IACC_IR and IACC_SR was investigated. Second, subjective diffuseness was measured by a psycho-acoustical experiment. As a result, the IACC_SR could be estimated from the IACC_IR of the BIR and the effective duration (τ_e) from the ACF of music signal. It was found that the effects of BIRs on subjective diffuseness could be evaluated by IACC_IR for almost all subjects, while the effects of music signals could be evaluated by the τ_e and the width of the peak at τ=0 (W_?(0)) of the ACF.