Subjective evaluations of recent productions of television with stereophonic sound

A series of subjective tests were conducted to assess the improvement given by stereophonic sound with television in comparison to the conventional monophonic equivalent. The test material consisted of extracts from eight, recently produced, television stereo programs. They represented the wide range of BBC television program output and, since some types of program were new to television stereo, their production by this means was obviously experimental. Both technically and nontechnically qualified people took part in the tests but, with a few exceptions, they returned similar subjective responses. The tests showed a marked preference for the stereo presentation. Of the eight program extracts, five gained an average of two subjective grades of improvement. These items fell into the categories of music, sport and science fiction. The remaining program only benefitted marginally from stereo. The subjects' criticisms have suggested some modification of production techniques and it can be expected that as these are refined, viewers' enjoyment of television programs will be further enhanced by the television stereo presentation.