Stereo System
Who doesn't love the feeling that the musicians are right there in the room with them as they listen to their favorite music on their audio equipment? Good stereo equipment can give the effect that you're in a soundstage, as the music surrounds you with the most natural and undistorted sounds possible. This is the basic concept of stereophonic sound ... to reproduce the music in such a way as to create a genuine sound through your audio system's electronic components. But how does this happen? How does a stereo work to bring your favorite music to you through the most enjoyable means possible?
History
The term 'stereophonic sound,' otherwise known, of course, as stereo, means to reproduce sound with two or more microphones fed into multiple speakers through separate channels, thereby creating the illusion of giving actual spatial effect to sound. The word 'stereophonic' combines the Greek word 'stereos,' meaning firm or solid, with the Greek word 'phone,' meaning sound or tone. Stereophonic sound creates an almost three-dimension effect, mimicking the natural sounds of life. Stereo sound was invented because early sound in movies came only from one side. This one-sided sound made it difficult to believe the voices were coming from the actors because the sounds were only coming from one side of the theater, rather than appearing to come from the actors themselves.
The earliest known demonstration of stereophonic sound came from Paris in 1881. French inventor Clement Ader used a two-channel audio system at the Paris Opera which he connected from the stage to several rooms at the Paris Electrical Exhibition, allowing listeners to hear the opera's live performance. This transmission came through the speakers into receivers for each ear and was reported as a 'remarkable illusion' by Scientific American. The process was further commercialized in Paris through the early 1930s as a product known as the 'Theatrophone,' a sound distribution system that actually enabled its subscribers to listen to theatrical performances over their area's telephone lines.
In 1931, English electronics engineer Alan Dower Blumlein, considered one of the most important and prolific inventors of his time, worked for the phone company Bell Labs to improve telephone line sound quality. His work on stereophonic sound equipment was used to improve the sound quality in the film industry's early talking pictures. His stereo inventions also were used to help the military develop airplane radar.
How it works
There are many electronic components involved in a stereo system. In rudimentary terms, a stereo produces a multidimensional sound with more than one microphone and more than one speaker. The sound is recorded through multiple microphones. This sound is filtered through each microphone's own specific channels to a device that interprets the sound, such as a preamplifier. The preamplifier helps to minimize distortion, thereby creating a more quality sound. The preamplifier then sends the sound to the amplifier, aptly named because it amplifies the sound. The sounds are then sent to multiple speakers, which must be adjusted accordingly in a room so as to create as full a sound as possible. These multiple sounds coming out of multiple speakers must be produced simultaneously, with no sound lag. The entire process creates more connected audio that produces a more natural and believable sound.
Modern stereo systems
Today's sound equipment ranges from the more conventional turntables to CD players to MP3 players and more. The creations of such inventors as Ader and Blumlein have been highly influential in today's movie-watching and music-listening technologies. Where yesterday's electronics used vacuum tubes that used tremendous amounts of energy and were very bulky, today's electronics use semiconductors. Semiconductors are materials which have an electrical conductivity between conductors such as general metals and nonconductors such as ceramics. The development of this type of technology has had an enormously significant impact on our society. Semiconductors are used in anything that has a microprocessor chip, transistor, and anything computerized, including today's televisions as well as computers, hearing aids, and various other audio devices. Indeed, today's stereo systems are much more advanced and precise, allowing listeners to enjoy a wider array of options. From its use in stereo systems to movies to DVD players and BluRay, stereophonic sound has contributed to every form of audiovisual entertainment we use today.
History
The term 'stereophonic sound,' otherwise known, of course, as stereo, means to reproduce sound with two or more microphones fed into multiple speakers through separate channels, thereby creating the illusion of giving actual spatial effect to sound. The word 'stereophonic' combines the Greek word 'stereos,' meaning firm or solid, with the Greek word 'phone,' meaning sound or tone. Stereophonic sound creates an almost three-dimension effect, mimicking the natural sounds of life. Stereo sound was invented because early sound in movies came only from one side. This one-sided sound made it difficult to believe the voices were coming from the actors because the sounds were only coming from one side of the theater, rather than appearing to come from the actors themselves.
The earliest known demonstration of stereophonic sound came from Paris in 1881. French inventor Clement Ader used a two-channel audio system at the Paris Opera which he connected from the stage to several rooms at the Paris Electrical Exhibition, allowing listeners to hear the opera's live performance. This transmission came through the speakers into receivers for each ear and was reported as a 'remarkable illusion' by Scientific American. The process was further commercialized in Paris through the early 1930s as a product known as the 'Theatrophone,' a sound distribution system that actually enabled its subscribers to listen to theatrical performances over their area's telephone lines.
In 1931, English electronics engineer Alan Dower Blumlein, considered one of the most important and prolific inventors of his time, worked for the phone company Bell Labs to improve telephone line sound quality. His work on stereophonic sound equipment was used to improve the sound quality in the film industry's early talking pictures. His stereo inventions also were used to help the military develop airplane radar.
How it works
There are many electronic components involved in a stereo system. In rudimentary terms, a stereo produces a multidimensional sound with more than one microphone and more than one speaker. The sound is recorded through multiple microphones. This sound is filtered through each microphone's own specific channels to a device that interprets the sound, such as a preamplifier. The preamplifier helps to minimize distortion, thereby creating a more quality sound. The preamplifier then sends the sound to the amplifier, aptly named because it amplifies the sound. The sounds are then sent to multiple speakers, which must be adjusted accordingly in a room so as to create as full a sound as possible. These multiple sounds coming out of multiple speakers must be produced simultaneously, with no sound lag. The entire process creates more connected audio that produces a more natural and believable sound.
Modern stereo systems
Today's sound equipment ranges from the more conventional turntables to CD players to MP3 players and more. The creations of such inventors as Ader and Blumlein have been highly influential in today's movie-watching and music-listening technologies. Where yesterday's electronics used vacuum tubes that used tremendous amounts of energy and were very bulky, today's electronics use semiconductors. Semiconductors are materials which have an electrical conductivity between conductors such as general metals and nonconductors such as ceramics. The development of this type of technology has had an enormously significant impact on our society. Semiconductors are used in anything that has a microprocessor chip, transistor, and anything computerized, including today's televisions as well as computers, hearing aids, and various other audio devices. Indeed, today's stereo systems are much more advanced and precise, allowing listeners to enjoy a wider array of options. From its use in stereo systems to movies to DVD players and BluRay, stereophonic sound has contributed to every form of audiovisual entertainment we use today.