A Perceptual Evaluation of an Immersive System for Automotive Environment

Immersive audio systems enhance the listening experience by creating spatially rich and realistic soundscapes. The increasing interest in these systems has paved the way for their adoption across various fields, ranging from gaming and virtual reality to automotive environments. While headphones are traditionally used for binaural signal reproduction, loudspeaker-based systems are emerging as alternatives for specific scenarios. However, the use of loudspeakers introduces the phenomenon of crosstalk, and crosstalk cancellation (CTC) techniques are specifically required when loudspeakers are used for binaural reproduction. In this paper, a four-channel loudspeaker system, arranged in a car simulator, is employed for the binaural reproduction, applying a multiband crosstalk cancellation algorithm. The system has been perceptually evaluated through listening tests, in comparison with other existing CTC approaches. The results demonstrate the strong performance of the implemented system.