A3D
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- For the military aircraft, see A3D Skywarrior.
A3D (Aureal 3-Dimensional) is a technology developed by Aureal Semiconductor that delivers sound with a holophonic effect (three-dimensional sound) through headphones, two or even four speakers. Many modern sound cards and PC games used to support this feature, but this number has stopped growing due to Aureal's demise.
A3D differs from the various forms of discrete positional audio in that it only requires two speakers, while surround sound typically requires more than four. It is sometimes less convincing than surround sound but is intentionally better in interactive environments. For example, PC games in which sounds often move from one speaker to another favour A3D, while pre-recorded video favours surround sound.
A3D uses a low detail subset of the actual in-game 3D world data to accurately calculate sound reflections (A3D 2.0 can perform up to 60 first-order reflections). EAX 1.0, the competitor at the time, simulated the environment with an adjustable reverb -- it didn't calculate any actual reflections off of the 3D surfaces.
Creative Labs sued Aureal for patent infringement in March of 1998[1], and Aureal won the lawsuit in December of 1999. However, the battle used up the last of Aureal's cash reserves, forcing them into bankruptcy; Creative then purchased Aureal's assets in September of 2000 and added the A3D engine to their already considerable list of gaming technology. A3D technology is making its way into Creative Labs' newer EAX incarnations.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Aureal And Creative Engage In Legal Skirmish (1998-03-05). Retrieved on 1999-08-29. (through Internet Archive)
[edit] External links
- A Gamer's Guide to 3D Sound and Reverb Engines
- 3D Audio Revolution - A legacy web site featuring news about Aureal and its A3D technology
This article was originally based on material from the Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, which is licensed under the GFDL.
