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Hearing

Hearing

When we hear a sound, our nervous system is detecting sound waves—pressure waves of mechanical energy traveling through a medium. The frequency of the wave is perceived as pitch, while the amplitude is perceived as loudness.

Auditory Pathway

Auditory Pathway

Auditory pathways constitute the complex neural circuits responsible for transmitting and interpreting auditory information from the peripheral auditory system to the brain. Sound waves are initially captured by the outer ear, funneled through the ear canal, and reach the tympanic membrane (eardrum). These vibrations are transmitted via the middle ear's ossicles to the inner ear's cochlea.
When viewed cross-sectionally, the cochlea reveals the scala vestibuli and scala tympani flanking...

The Cochlea

The Cochlea

The cochlea is a coiled structure in the inner ear that contains hair cells—the sensory receptors of the auditory system. Sound waves are transmitted to the cochlea by small bones attached to the eardrum called the ossicles, which vibrate the oval window that leads to the inner ear. This causes fluid in the chambers of the cochlea to move, vibrating the basilar membrane.

Perceiving Loudness, Pitch, and Location

Perceiving Loudness, Pitch, and Location

The human brain perceives pitch through two primary mechanisms reflected in place theory and frequency theory. Each mechanism describes how sound waves are interpreted as specific pitches by the brain, offering insights into the intricate processes of auditory perception.
Place theory, or place coding, suggests that different pitches are heard because various sound waves activate specific locations along the cochlea's basilar membrane. The brain determines the pitch of a sound by...

Auditory Perception

Auditory Perception

The auditory system is essential for sound perception, utilizing various critical structures. When sound waves enter the outer ear, they travel through the ear canal and cause the eardrum to vibrate. These vibrations are then transmitted to the middle ear, where three tiny bones – the malleus, incus, and stapes – amplify the sound. This amplification is crucial, as it ensures that the sound vibrations are strong enough to be conveyed to the inner ear. These vibrations then reach the...

Hair Cells

Hair Cells

Hair cells are the sensory receptors of the auditory system—they transduce mechanical sound waves into electrical energy that the nervous system can understand. Hair cells are located in the organ of Corti within the cochlea of the inner ear, between the basilar and tectorial membranes. The actual sensory receptors are called inner hair cells. The outer hair cells serve other functions, such as sound amplification in the cochlea, and are not discussed in detail here.

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 6, 2026

Cochlear Implant Surgery and Electrically-evoked Auditory Brainstem Response Recordings in C57BL/6 Mice

Cochlear Implant Surgery and Electrically-evoked Auditory Brainstem Response Recordings in C57BL/6 Mice

Published on: January 9, 2019

Abnormal Auditory Gain in Hyperacusis: Investigation with a Computational Model.

Peter U Diehl¹, Roland Schaette²

¹Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience , Berlin , Germany.

Frontiers in Neurology

|August 4, 2015

Summary

Hyperacusis, a disorder of loudness perception, may stem from increased neuronal gain in the central auditory system. This gain increase, particularly in high frequencies, explains reduced loudness discomfort levels in patients.

Keywords:

auditory system computational model gain hyperacusis tinnitus

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Last Updated: Apr 6, 2026

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Published on: March 8, 2017

Area of Science:

Auditory Neuroscience
Computational Auditory Modeling
Psychoacoustics

Background:

Hyperacusis involves abnormal loudness perception, with decreased loudness discomfort levels (LDLs) and steeper loudness growth.
A potential mechanism is increased neuronal response gain in the auditory system.
Hyperacusis often co-occurs with tinnitus, suggesting shared underlying mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate candidate mechanisms for hyperacusis using a computational model of the auditory system.
To evaluate the effects of different gain mechanisms on loudness perception.
To compare model predictions with loudness discomfort levels of hyperacusis patients.

Main Methods:

A computational model of the auditory system was developed and tuned to normal loudness perception.
Various gain mechanisms were simulated to assess their impact on equal-loudness contours.
Model results were compared to loudness discomfort levels (LDLs) of hyperacusis patients with normal hearing thresholds.

Main Results:

Increased non-linear gain in the central auditory system best explained hyperacusis.
Both general and high-frequency-specific gain increases provided good fits to patient LDLs.
The necessary gain increase occurred after subtracting spontaneous auditory nerve activity, differing from tinnitus theories.

Conclusions:

Hyperacusis is likely caused by increased central auditory gain, potentially affecting all frequencies or specifically high frequencies.
This mechanism differs from current theories of tinnitus generation.
Hyperacusis and tinnitus may arise from distinct alterations in central auditory neuronal processing.