Variable bit quantization for virtual source location information in spatial audio coding

In [1,2,3], Binaural Cue Coding (BCC) was introduced for multi-channel spatial rendering for MPEG 4 - SAC (Spatial Audio Coding) to reduce bitrate of multi-channel audio signal. In [4,5], Virtual Source Location Information (VSLI) was introduced to replace Inter-Channel Level Difference, the most determinant parameter in BCC system. Here, Variable Bit Quantization (VBQ) for VSLI is proposed to reduce bitrate at the quantization block in VSLI-based BCC systems removing statistically invalid range.