IRCAM HEar
Introduction
HEar allows faithful reproduction of a stereo or surround mix with a pair of conventional stereo headphones. It relies on proven technology to model the various phenomena that occur when playing back audio material through a loudspeaker system.
This allows monitoring a full surround mix in situations when a surround-capable environment is not available or practical. Another typical use of HEar is doing precise checking of a mix, which is convenient with headphones as these provide a ‘surgical’ and very detailed, microscope-like rendering of the audio.
It can also prove very useful in a project studio context, and whenever noise isolation is a concern, as it helps achieving a more realistic sound environment.