Noise thresholds in harmonic series maskers.
Ilse B Labuschagne1, Valter Ciocca1
1School of Audiology and Speech Sciences, The University of British Columbia, 2177 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6T 1Z3, Canada.
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
|May 4, 2021
Summary
Listeners detect noise in speech using spectral cues for resolved harmonics and temporal cues for unresolved harmonics. Higher masker levels generally improve noise detection, with fundamental frequency impacting detection when spectral cues are used.
Area of Science:
- Acoustic Phonetics
- Psychoacoustics
- Speech Perception
Background:
- Noise is crucial for perceiving breathiness and aspiration in speech.
- Previous research shows noise detection in harmonic maskers depends on fundamental frequency (fo) and masker level.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate noise detection thresholds in harmonic maskers.
- Examine the influence of frequency range, fo, and masker level on noise detection.
Main Methods:
- Measured noise detection thresholds across different frequency ranges (in equivalent rectangular bandwidth - ERB units).
- Varied masker fundamental frequency (fo) and overall level (50 and 70 dBA).
Main Results:
- Listeners used spectral cues for resolved components (3-13 ERBs) and temporal cues for unresolved components (23-33 ERBs).
- Lower noise detection thresholds were observed at higher masker levels (70 dBA vs. 50 dBA).
- Masker fo influenced thresholds only when spectral cues were employed.
Conclusions:
- Speech noise perception relies on different cueing strategies depending on harmonic resolvability.
- Masker characteristics significantly modulate the detectability of noise within speech signals.
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