TY - JOUR
T1 - Discriminability of narrow-band sounds in the absence of level cues
AU - Kidd, Gerald
AU - Uchanski, Rosalie M.
AU - Mason, Christine R.
AU - Deliwala, Phalauni S.
PY - 1993/2
Y1 - 1993/2
N2 - Several experiments are described in which the task of the observer was to detect an intensity increment to the center tone of a narrow-band, multitone complex. The sound-pressure levels of the stimuli were equated, then randomized, so that listeners could not detect the signal by using level cues. The primary experimental variables were the number of tones in the masker spectrum, the level of the center tone or “pedestal” relative to the other tones, the center frequency and the sound-pressure level. Both “random-phase” and “fixed-phase” conditions (referring to whether the pattern of starting phases of the nonsignal tones was chosen randomly on every presentation or was held constant throughout each trial and block of trials) were tested. Although no simple detection strategy appeared to account for all of the results, the most plausible explanation for performance in most conditions was that the listeners were able to discriminate between sounds based on subtle differences in the amplitude envelopes of the waveforms.
AB - Several experiments are described in which the task of the observer was to detect an intensity increment to the center tone of a narrow-band, multitone complex. The sound-pressure levels of the stimuli were equated, then randomized, so that listeners could not detect the signal by using level cues. The primary experimental variables were the number of tones in the masker spectrum, the level of the center tone or “pedestal” relative to the other tones, the center frequency and the sound-pressure level. Both “random-phase” and “fixed-phase” conditions (referring to whether the pattern of starting phases of the nonsignal tones was chosen randomly on every presentation or was held constant throughout each trial and block of trials) were tested. Although no simple detection strategy appeared to account for all of the results, the most plausible explanation for performance in most conditions was that the listeners were able to discriminate between sounds based on subtle differences in the amplitude envelopes of the waveforms.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0027502192&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1121/1.405551
DO - 10.1121/1.405551
M3 - Article
C2 - 8445114
AN - SCOPUS:0027502192
SN - 0001-4966
VL - 93
SP - 1028
EP - 1037
JO - Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
JF - Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
IS - 2
ER -