51
Views
9
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Original Articles

Perception of spectral changes in multi-tone complexes

&
Pages 459-479 | Received 19 Oct 1990, Published online: 29 May 2007
 

Abstract

Amplitude changes of the spectral components of a complex tone, relative to each other, are usually well perceived, even if the over-all intensity is kept fixed. Three experiments are reported: Experiment 1 dealt with the detectability of amplitude changes in two-tone complexes of fixed frequencies. Experiment 2 examined detection of slope changes in ramp-shaped spectral envelopes of two-and three-tone complexes as a function of spectral spacing. As a control experiment for some conditions a roving intensity level was used. Experiment 3 investigated the detectability of changes in the spectral slope of multi-tone complexes as a function of the number of components. The results of the experiments show that detection of spectral changes in a sound is strongly dependent on the frequency spacing of the components. It is concluded that the auditory system is capable of comparing the relative energy distributions over different critical bands. Within a critical band there exists an optimum frequency separation with respect to the detection of relative amplitude change.

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.