Audio specialist Beyerdynamic has come up with an entirely new type of spatially-aware surround sound headphones. The most impressive feature of the new Headzone cans is the patented Headtracking function which reacts when you move your head, and automatically adapts the sound to suit your head's position.
The practical upshot of this is that when you turn your head to the side whilst watching a movie, the actor's voices will continue to come from the front of the room.
"Normal headphones move the sources of sound along with you," says Beyerdynamic, "which keeps you from having a natural surround feeling - the sound pattern seems less credible than with a real 5.1 loudspeaker set. But, that's not the way it is with the Headzone system from Beyerdynamic. Thanks to its Headtracking system, the invisible loudspeakers stay where they belong."
Beyerdynamic DT 880: special version
The headphone itself is a special version of the Beyerdynamic DT 880. It constantly transmits its position to the Headtracking receiver via ultrasound. Then, it passes on the data to the processor for analysis where it is made part of the current calculation. The outcome is apparently a stable and "absolutely astounding space sound that makes you immediately forget that you're wearing headphones at all".
This is just one of the millions of products that'll be on display at IFA in Berlin later this week. Tech.co.uk will be there to report on all the key news.
