Áudio imersivo: da estereofonia ao ambisonics

Abstract

This undergraduate thesis investigates immersive audio recording and sound diffusion techniques through the study of Ambisonics technology. The research aims to understand the evolution of sound capture, processing, and reproduction technologies. Since the beginning of phonographic recording, the pursuit of expanding human auditory perception within physical space has driven audio engineering toward the research and development of systems more complex than those associated with monophonic and stereophonic sound diffusion. Currently, this trajectory is manifested in immersive sound diffusion, also referred to as three-dimensional (3D) audio. Technologies based on the Ambisonics protocol propose a fundamental shift: rather than encoding signals directly for specific loudspeakers, the sound field is represented through spatial axes, taking into account mathematical models associated with a three-dimensional spherical space. The results of this research indicate that Ambisonics technology fundamentally differs from traditional multichannel systems because it is based on the vector-based encoding of coordinates within a virtual spherical field, rather than on the distribution of sound energy among fixed loudspeakers. This characteristic enables its application in areas such as cinema, virtual reality gaming, electroacoustic music, and contemporary composition.