Near Coincident Method

Now, onto the near coincident recording techniques. While the coincident techniques offer excellent interchannel phase and timing characteristics, many people prefer the sound of a slight interchannel delay. The O.R.T.F , named after the Office de Radiodiffusion-Television Francaise and N.O.S adopted by the Nederlandsche Omroep Stichting address this concern.

The typical spacing of 17 cm to 30 cm is intended to simulate the perceived inter-ear delay time. This fairly small distance results in substantially coincident sound at low frequencies and an increase in interchannel delay and phase characteristics that are natural to the human ear. Otherwise these techniques differ little from the coincident methods already described. The slightly "phasey" sound of these methods can be quite pleasing to the ear and offer good localization and an excellent (although slightly exaggerated) sense of depth.

The O.R.T.F. method employs two cardioid microphones with a 17 cm spacing at 110 degrees is the most popular of these two methods. The N.O.S. technique uses two cardioid microphones with an included angle of 90 degrees and a 30 cm spacing. The Faulkner method uses two bidirectional microphones, facing forward with a spacing of 20 cm. This method offers most of the coherence of the coincident methods with the "openness", or sense of space, created by the time and phase differences resulting from the space between the microphones.