Of course I have used head phones, they simply give me two sources of sound, directly in each ear. In fact I prefer the sound from speakers in a room.
Yes absolutely! Unfortunately all sensory input isn’t good. For example dog poo, just the thought of it can bring me to retching. My wartime experience has affected me greatly, I can see, smell, hear, even feel in my memories. I can taste the explosions, the dust, diesel, and grit all left their mark. In a way you are blessed.
Every system does not create a good soundstage for me, and every recording is different in it’s presentation and atmosphere. It’s cool to hear Mingus’ band where the instruments pop out of the nothing as the song develops, on the other hand it’s depressing to hear Segovia sound like he’s behind a curtain somewhere in the woods.
I agree that the younger generation doesn’t hear worse. Maybe its that they don’t know how to hear? They spend little time outside and are focused on their phones when they are outside. For example I know who’s rooster is crowing by the direction and distance of the sound. Kids today live in such an artificial environment they can’t do that simple task. Dynamic range is another thing kids don’t understand, all of their music is super compressed.
Hardware absolutely affects the result. I have two very different sets of loudspeakers for that reason alone. My Econowaves produce a clear exact stereo image that can be between the speakers or enveloping depending on the recording. My other set produces a more vague image but it’s great for surround sound in action movies.
What you say is reinforced by aphantasia research, because I don't remember events as a sensual experiences but as just thoughts I'm pretty much immune to PTSD. That's the good side, I guess the bad side is I can't picture the faces of my parents or hear a tune in my head.
Have you listened to any loudspeakers Siegfried Linquist designed? He has a very well reasoned take on what is required to make a good stereo image.
https://www.linkwitzlab.com/Sound_field/Field_control.htm
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https://www.linkwitzlab.com/Sound_field/Field_control.htm
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Creating a believable Auditory Scene using two loudspeakers in a reverberant room
- An Auditory Scene is created in the listener’s mind from cues in the direct sound streams coming from the loudspeakers and from reflected, reverberated and resonant sounds in the room.
- For believability the loudspeakers must not be localizable in the aural scene and attention to the listening room must have receded beyond the aural horizon.
- The loudspeakers must have a polar response, such that on-axis and off-axis frequency responses are identical and may only differ in level. Omni, dipole, cardioid or other frequency independent radiation patterns are required.
- First order room reflections must be delayed by >6 ms compared to the direct sound reaching the listener. Floor reflection should be minimized by the loudspeaker’s directivity.
- The loudspeaker and listener equilateral triangle is preferably set up symmetrical to room boundaries or large reflecting surfaces.
- The high frequency acoustic center of each loudspeaker should be at ear height.
- The direct-to-reverberant sound level ratio for sounds above the Schroeder frequency should be greater than –6 dB at the listening position. An omni directional loudspeaker typically requires a close listening distance and/or a dead room. A dipole loudspeaker allows for a 1.7 times larger distance under identical room conditions, or for a 3 times longer reverberation time. It also provides some control over the first lateral reflection and coupling to room modes.
- Under these conditions the direct sound from the speakers dominates the auditory scene. Spatial properties of source location, spread and distance are derived from cues imbedded in the mix of the recording and cues from the recording venue. Reflections from the listening room are delayed and are copies of the direct sound at a lower level. The room reverberated sound has the same timbre as the direct sound. A listener automatically withdraws attention from the room and falls for the aural illusion, which is delivered by cues in the direct sound streams from the two loudspeakers and is produced in his mind.