Re-panning of directional signals and its impact on localization

For multichannel audio reproduction systems, it is crucial to set up the speakers correctly according to the multichannel format´s specification. Especially, the predefined angle of every speaker with respect to the listening position must be strictly kept to avoid spatial distortions of virtual sources, the so called phantom sources. In a normal living room environment, a specification compliant setup is usually not possible. This means, the resulting audio scene may differ heavily from the originally intended scene, i.e., the phantom sources´ positions change. To mitigate these spatial distortions, we propose a re-panning method of directional signals. The method groups pairs of adjacent loudspeakers into segments, analyses the direction of arrivals (DOAs) within each segment by means of a direct-ambience decomposition and re-renders the direct components with respect to the actual reproduction setup. The re-panning method was perceptually evaluated by means of a localization listening test.