Can Tectonic loudspeakers create a stereo or surround image for nearly every seat?

Absolutely—and in most cases, much better than with traditional loudspeakers.

First, please consider that in most cases, while most traditional loudspeaker systems may in fact be “wired” in stereo, they are not intended to be utilized in stereo. Most sound systems have a singular loudspeaker (or array) designed to cover a seating area. Much care has to be taken minimize overlap and interaction between the loudspeakers, as well as the room. Unless a system has been designed with “stereo shading” loudspeakers (loudspeakers that cover all seating areas from from the left and the right) it is effectively a mono sound system. If you “pan” a particular channel to one side or the other, you are effectively “removing” the sound from the opposite side. The only place where true stereo happens is in the center-most position.

Enter the DML: The panels can produce highly directional sounds, including stereo and surround imaging.  This is true for listeners far off axis, including positions on the outside of a stereo outside panel. There are no sweet spots where a listener needs to sit to hear differential acoustic information coming from the panels to create a stereo image. All seats receive stereo directional cues.

There is a relatively small component of pistonic energy that is produced by a DML, right at the beginning of the panel’s excitation. This gives the ear just the cue it requires to locate the source and, with two speakers, to create a stable stereo or surround image. When the remaining energy arrives it does not conflict with the initial component because the remainder is the diffuse output, containing none of the echoes or interference that a conventional speaker produces.

Additionally, since the panels have little drop off (i.e. long throw) and stable wide coverage, the distance from any given panel does not adversely affect the imaging capability.  This means that a person sitting in the corner of a venue, either in the front or in the back, can hear stereo and surround events.