Chris J Dixon wrote:


Locating the direction of a typical sound source involves time of
arrival differences at each ear - plus moving the head to bring
them towards zero.

I did a final year project during which subjects with an ear
defender over one ear were repeatedly asked to select which
speaker in a semicircular array around them was the source of a
low level click.

Despite the literature showing claims of some ability to do this,
my tests indicated otherwise. This may well have been due to a
learning process and/or the actual sound levels.


** Sounds like a neat test of I don't know what. Maybe refraction effects of the head and face provide a degree of localisation, but as you found SFA.

With both ears exposed, I would expect people with good hearing to do the job easily - provided the room was large or approaching anechoic.




..... Phil