Holographic Audio

[nina]

A few months ago I downloaded this free app on my iphone called Naturespace, and only yesterday tried it out. I was completely blown away. Basically you listen with headphones, close your eyes, and enjoy. Entire "spaces" are created for you through holographic sound. It's like virtual reality of sound. This free app comes with 5 different spaces. There is a little description that comes with each of them. Rain Into Water Focus on the vertical; water is falling into the lake, but also hitting leaves and foliage above and behind you. Next, examine the width of the shoreline as the water drips along the edge of the lake. The water into the lake is constant, the dripping onto the leaves from above and the splashy little fish are sporadic. Crickets are entirely behind and above as the land slopes down to the water. Summer Mountain Valley Focus on the rhythmic interaction of the crickets as they shift in and out of synchronicity. Visualize their positions. Notice the altitude of the distant birds. Next, observe the river in front of you. Initiate freeform creative visualization by imagining the feel of the warm morning sunlight as you wander. Ocean Waves Focus on the motion of a singular wave, as it approaches from the right and washes leftward. See how long you can follow the wave after it passes by. Imagine the feel of the sand on your bare feet. Riverwind Dreaming Focus on the height of the wind in the trees, in contrast to the height of the waterflow. Examine the pathways of the water's slow motions left and right. Focus on the natural sounds, divert attention from the tonalities, which are there to stimulate the subconscious. Stress is washed away by the water and wind. Night at Lake Unkown Focus on the amount of available light. Is it pitch black, or is it lit by moonlight? Next, consider the air temperature, is it cool, or warm? How about the water? Estimate the distance of the loon. This track was created to induce a sense of night. Useful for jet lag and circadian rhythm re-balancing. I was laying in bed listening to the river wind one and couldn't believe it. I could actually feel the wind on my face and body (and kept getting crazy chills and goosebumps up my spine that felt amazing), and literally feel the cool water splash onto my legs. This audio makes you hallucinate. I could see the wind blowing through the trees high above me, and follow the river as it goes around bends and you actually follow the river as though you are floating down it on a raft or canoe. After awhile I noticed that I had the urge to dry my legs off, because they kept getting sprayed with cool water, then I realized it was just hallucinations. Then I started listening to the ocean waves one...which is pretty dramatic. You actually feel like you are in the middle of the ocean (near the beach but not standing on the beach like the app suggests) and I almost got a sense of drowning after awhile. Like being constantly battered by these waves, I couldn't listen to it for very long, even though it was beautiful and quite fun. But I think they need to adjust the distance of the waves a little bit so you don't feel like you are drowning. They have another one called Thunderspace that is apparently like the ultimate most amazing thunderstorm from the reviews I've read. I guess you really feel like you are in the middle of the storm. But it's $9.99 and I definitely can't be spending that much on an iphone app. Might try to see if I can download it though. These are just the "natural spaces" they also have "journeys" which I will definitely be checking out. If anyone else knows of some great holographic audio please share...because I am officially hooked!!! Anyways here is the website: http://www.naturespace.com/index.php And a little info from the site about holographic audio... Everyone knows what we mean when we say “the sounds of nature.” Rain and thunder, birds, wind, water, crickets etc.. But it isn’t enough to just re-create the sound. All these sounds take place in unique and interesting spaces. We can hear these spaces. The sound waves that are created by the wildlife in the space bounce and reflect off all the other objects in the space. This is known as reverberation. We can detect whether we are in an open field or a canyon based on the direction, amount and type of echoes we hear. That is also why we can’t accurately recreate the space using speakers indoors; we can hear the sound reflecting off the walls so we know that we are inside. A 10x19x8 ft. indoor forest is simply not realistic enough; we can all tell the difference. Through the use of headphones, however, we can eliminate the problem of sound bouncing off the walls. The sound goes right to your ears. The accurate reproduction of spatial information generates activity in the brain that does not occur with conventional stereo recordings. Our Journeys and Natural Spaces stimulate not only your conscious mind, but your subconscious; the part of you that is responsible for dreaming, memory, and... your heartbeat and breathing. Our intent is not to bring you just the sound of a loon, but the re-creation in your mind of the space that the loon was in, as the sound of the loon’s call cascades across the shoreline of the lake and reflects off the trees on the other side and back again. Not just the sound of wings flapping, but the re-creation in your mind of the bird passing from the right, to directly overhead and slightly behind you, to the left and then forward across the lake. The human ear-brain mechanism can accurately interpret these sounds with vivid accuracy. Our recording techniques can accurately capture them. With a good pair of headphones and closed eyes, the final re-creation at the listener’s brain can impart a true sensation of being transported. We refer to it as the “being there” experience. Because human beings are so visually dominant, we can’t help but visualize the soundscape. Sometimes this synesthesia goes even further, where the sound of a winter forest wind on a bitterly cold day creates a sense of chill in the room, the summer crickets recall the feel of the sun on your face. The thoughts that come to you, the feelings and memories that are stirred, the place you create in your mind based on our auditory stimulus... it is you... it is your creation... and you are the only one that can create it. In the eyes of the mind, you are what you see. And because you are making it, it transcends the word re-creation. It becomes a truly unique and personal creation involving the deepest parts of your mind.

[panta-rei]

Interesting, indeed. I'll look at the app. Once I replace my headphones.

[Specialis Sapientia]

Yes, it is quite amazing I have listened to it before on Youtube. *goes looking..* It's called "holophonics" Thunderstorm

[Invader]

I'm impressed. Even to leave this coming right out through the speakers is great ambiance. I'll be trying this for real tonight when things quiet down around the house and I can use the headphones in peace.

[nina]

Yeah you really do NEED headphones...the effect is completely lost with speakers. I mean, the audio is still very nice, but the whole "spatial" effect is lost unless you listen with headphones. I'm just using my earbuds and it sounds amazing.

[Adam]

I've just downloaded this! I have the Shure SE530 earbuds so I cannot wait to try this out on them For those unfamiliar with the SE530s read this http://reviews.cnet.com/headphones/s...in;contentBody

[nina]

I've just downloaded this! I have the Shure SE530 earbuds so I cannot wait to try this out on them For those unfamiliar with the SE530s read this http://reviews.cnet.com/headphones/s...in;contentBody Awesome, let us know what you think of it. Also there's a setting for Earbud Optimization, but I find that the audio sounds better with this option turned off.

[Adam]

These are amazing!!! Although it made me fall to sleep so I didn't get too into it. I will try again when I'm not so tired.

[nina]

These are amazing!!! Although it made me fall to sleep so I didn't get too into it. I will try again when I'm not so tired. I know what you mean. This audio does something to my mind...something that no other audio has done before, and I've listened to binaural beats, hemi-sync, and various meditation/theta brainwave/etc mp3s. This audio makes me hallucinate (in a good way). It also puts me into a very deep trance/meditative state. Especially the ocean waves. It's like every time the waves wash over me, they take a bit of my wakefulness with them, and I fall into a deeper level. I actually had a really powerful OBE while listening to the wave track. And when I say, OBE...I am NOT talking about the pseudo-OBEs that happen during sleep paralysis/WILDs. I would say this is the first authentic OBE I've ever had. Kinda crazy. I ponied up the 10 bucks and got Thundergod. Wow...amazing... I'm really surprised more people aren't talking about this...

[Adam]

What's Thundergod? What is your favourite one on nature space?

[nina]

What's Thundergod? What is your favourite one on nature space? I'm not sure which is my favorite. I loved the Riverwind Dreaming because I was awed by the fact that I could feel the wind on my face and the sprinkles of water on my legs. Plus the sound of running water is the most pleasant sound to me in existence. But the Ocean Waves is the one that gave me an OBE and puts me into that meditative/trance state. The others are nice, but the night one tends to put me to sleep, and I don't like the crickets very much in the meadow one. Thundergod is a similar app from the same company, but unlike Naturespace, it actually costs money. $9.99 to be exact. It has a series of thunderstorms. I love thunderstorms...so I love this app. There is a very dramatic storm with loud thunder...another one with more rolling thunder...then a more tropical rain one with subtle thunder, and then 2 which are variations on rain. It really does feel like there is a storm all around you, and clouds moving over your head. You feel the thunder shake your room. It's so magical. *bows down to Thor, the Thunder God*

[Adam]

I'm not sure which is my favorite. I loved the Riverwind Dreaming because I was awed by the fact that I could feel the wind on my face and the sprinkles of water on my legs. Plus the sound of running water is the most pleasant sound to me in existence. But the Ocean Waves is the one that gave me an OBE and puts me into that meditative/trance state. The others are nice, but the night one tends to put me to sleep, and I don't like the crickets very much in the meadow one. Thundergod is a similar app from the same company, but unlike Naturespace, it actually costs money. $9.99 to be exact. It has a series of thunderstorms. I love thunderstorms...so I love this app. There is a very dramatic storm with loud thunder...another one with more rolling thunder...then a more tropical rain one with subtle thunder, and then 2 which are variations on rain. It really does feel like there is a storm all around you, and clouds moving over your head. You feel the thunder shake your room. It's so magical. *bows down to Thor, the Thunder God* I love the rain, the sound of the rain hitting the window, running down the gutter, gives me goose bumps just thinking about it now! Also love the sound of the ocean, which is pretty much the main reason I live on the seafront here. I also LOVE thunderstorms! My mum is petrified of them, and hides away, but I love them. I might give this other one a try then if it's only $9.99

[Umbrasquall]

This is also a good one. I posted this a long (like years) ago I believe. So I know this type of technology has existed for a long time. I wonder why it's not so mainstream yet.

[Kanano]

Damn, needs headphones. Mine, (both pairs) don't work anymore. I rarely go walking with my cd player anymore so I didn't bother to replace them. I'm bookmarking this topic so I can try it later.

[dreamnoob]

A few months ago I downloaded this free app on my iphone called Naturespace, and only yesterday tried it out. what program, itunes? appstore? EDIT: am downloading as we speak..

[Shift]

These are so awesome. Does anyone know of any others? As much as I like them, I don't really have the cash to be spending money on music atm

[nina]

These are so awesome. Does anyone know of any others? As much as I like them, I don't really have the cash to be spending money on music atm Naturespace is free.

[Shift]

I thought it was $4 per track? I also don't have an iphone- this would just be for my laptop and itunes

[tommo]

Yeah there's only one free 6 minute one on their site. Damn I need an iPhone lol. Guess I'll try to find some more free ones. HOLY SHIT!!!! haha! This is the craziest thing I've ever heard. http://gprime.net/flash.php/soundimmersion Just close your eyes. After not too long you will suddenly feel like this guy is actually shaking a matchbox around you. CRAZY!