What influence does the directivity of a sound source have on the perceived distance impression in a room? We propose different directivity pattern designs able to modify the auditory source distance. The idea is accompanied with a comprehensive experimental study investigating the audio effect and its behavior by auralization of directional sound source and room using a 24-channel loudspeaker ring inside an anechoic chamber. In addition to the proposed directivity designs, the study covers influence of auralized room, source-to-receiver distance, signal, and single-channel reverberation. Moreover, simple room acoustical measures perform well in predicting the new effect.