AURORA Electron Devices® — Technical Lexicon

Entry 4.13

Acoustic Materiality

Technical Lexicon of Pattern Conservation in Stereophonic Electroacoustic Reproduction

Lexicon IndexTheory

0. NARRATIVE FORMULATION

“When a perceived source acquires body, scale and presence without being traced back to the loudspeaker.”

1. DEFINITION

Acoustic materiality is the term used within the Lexicon to describe the experience of a sound source perceived as physically consistent, articulated and located within the reproduced space.

2. POSITION WITHIN THE THEORY*

The concept derives from the apparent material quality defined by the theory, but belongs to the interpretative level of the Lexicon and places emphasis on the overall acoustic outcome. It constitutes neither an ontological property of the virtual source, nor an autonomous physical quantity, nor a demonstration of pattern conservation. It is a perceptual translation of possible temporal, spectral, dynamic and spatial coherences and may contribute, together with other attributes, to the integrated outcome designated as presence.

3. RELATIONSHIPS AND OPERATING CONDITIONS

4. PERCEPTUAL TRANSLATION

Materiality does not mean a heavy, warm or emphasised sound. It may also concern light sources and rapid transients, provided that they retain consistency and proportion. Preference for greater density does not coincide with greater materiality in the structural sense.

5. MEASUREMENT, EVIDENCE AND LIMITS

Assessment requires multidimensional descriptors and perceptual controls. Effects of level, frequency response and distortion should be distinguished from more complex coherences. The term remains interpretative until linked to a specific protocol.

6. TRANSLATION WITHIN THE AURORA Electron Devices® TECHNICAL-SCIENTIFIC FRAMEWORK

Within its technical and research documentation, 'AURORA' uses acoustic materiality to describe a sonic outcome investigated through control of power supply, microdynamics, mechanics, transduction and radiation. The description must remain referred to system conditions and not to a single isolated solution.

7. OPERATIONAL SUMMARY

Acoustic materiality = interpretative expression within the Lexicon describing the experience of a source endowed with plausible consistency and location; neither an autonomous physical parameter nor proof of pattern conservation.

Claudio Angelo Chiappini, Theory of Pattern Conservation in Stereophonic Electroacoustic Reproduction — Technical Edition, Version 1.0. ORCID 0009-0007-0742-5780. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.20768488

Zenodo is an external website and applies its own privacy and cookie policies.