science

Sound Retrieval System

Sound Retrieval System is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Sound Retrieval System rather than just read about it. In short: Sound Retrieval System (SRS) is a patented psychoacoustic 3D audio processing technology originally invented by Arnold Klayman in the early 1980s. The SRS technology applies head-related transfer functions (HRTFs) to create an immersive 3D soundfield using only two speakers, widening the "sweet spot", creating a more spacious sense of ambience, and producing strong localization cues for discrete instruments within a…

Key takeaways

Sound Retrieval System belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Sound Retrieval System to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Sound Retrieval System from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Sound Retrieval System (SRS) is a patented psychoacoustic 3D audio processing technology originally invented by Arnold Klayman in the early 1980s. The SRS technology applies head-related transfer functions (HRTFs) to create an immersive 3D soundfield using only two speakers, widening the "sweet spot", creating a more spacious sense of ambience, and producing strong localization cues for discrete instruments within an audio mix. SRS is not a Dolby matrix surround decoder but works with normal stereo recordings.

History

Initially Hughes Aircraft, for whom Klayman was doing acoustic consulting at the time, offered a standalone SRS audio processor, as well as licensing the technology to Sony and Thomson (RCA) for inclusion in their products. In the early 1990s, Hughes sold off its non-aerospace-related holdings, and a group of entrepreneurs formed SRS Labs to acquire the SRS technology. Many TV sets employ built-in SRS to make their built-in audio systems soundstages "bigger". An article in the November 1994 issue of Consumers Digest magazine tested several SRS-equipped sets from Sony and other manufacturers and concluded that the circuit was essentially a gimmick in these products due to their small, close-set speakers and low-wattage amplifiers. SRS is not a panacea for audio systems that are marginal to begin with; it works best with full-range, high-fidelity sound reproduction. The company (publicly traded on NASDAQ under the symbol SRSL after a 1996 IPO) since developed or acquired several additional audio technologies, including SRS Headphone, TruSurround XT, TruBass ("psychoacoustic bass enhancement to enable deeper, natural bass of audio source material to be perceived over small speaker drivers"), FOCUS ("sound-image elevation used in combination with SRS to create a large sound image", originally conceived for in-car listening), SRS Virtual Surround, Circle Surround, SRS Wow (an audio-enhancement suite made up of SRS 3D "wide stereo imaging and nonfatiguing headphone listening mode", Focus and TruBass) and SRS Wow HD, Dialog Clarity, and VIP, most using psychoacoustic principles similar to those employed by the SRS technology. SRS or one of its derivatives is offered in products from a wide range of professional and consumer audio manufacturers as well as in SRS's own small stable of products. The company derives most of its revenue from licensing its technologies, which it does in both silicon and software form. SRS Wow was implemented in many devices such as music players, and in software such as Microsoft's Windows Media Player for playing sound on a computer. In 2012 DTS, Inc. acquired the business of SRS Labs, including over 1,000 audio patents and trademarks. The original SRS patents are US 4866774 , US 4748669 and US 4841572 , which expired between 2006 and 2008. Patents may apply in other countries.

See also SRS Labs DSEE DTS (sound system) QSound

References

External links Wayback Machine archives of SRS Web site for many dates. URL of former SRS Labs official site, redirects to DTS

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Sound Retrieval System

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Sound Retrieval System claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Sound Retrieval System before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Sound Retrieval System ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Sound Retrieval System

In research: Sound Retrieval System appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Sound Retrieval System in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Sound Retrieval System is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Acoustics, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Sound Retrieval System outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Sound Retrieval System in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Sound Retrieval System means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Sound Retrieval System out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Sound Retrieval System in simple terms?

Why does Sound Retrieval System matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Sound Retrieval System?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Sound Retrieval System.