Abstract
A perceptual model was developed to evaluate the spatial quality of automotive audio systems by adapting the Quality Evaluation of Spatial Transmission and Reproduction by an Artificial Listener (QESTRAL) model of spatial quality developed for domestic audio systems. The QESTRAL model was modified to use a combination of existing and newly created metrics, based on—in order of importance—the interaural cross-correlation (IACC), reproduced source angle, scene width, level, entropy, and spectral rolloff. The resulting model predicts the overall spatial quality of 2-and 5-channel automotive audio systems with a cross-validation R 2 of 0.85 and root-mean-square error (RMSE) of 11.03%. The performance of the modified model improved considerably for automotive applications compared to that of the original model, which had a prediction R 2 of 0.72 and RMSE of 29.39%. Modifying the model for automotive audio systems did not invalidate its use for domestic audio systems, which were predicted with an R 2 of 0.77 and RMSE of 11.90%.