4. Compact arrays of variable directivity loudspeakers

The spatialization techniques presented in Chapter 2 are concerned with the synthesis of virtual sources, in a given listening area, by an array of loudspeakers distributed around the periphery. This chapter describes a fundamentally different approach, which exploits compact arrays of transducers to emit sound from a given position in the room. Unlike a conventional [E 5 170] loudspeaker, whose emission pattern is fixed at the design stage, compact arrays allow radiation to be adjusted in orientation and spatial pattern