Free-field release from masking

Free-field release from masking was studied as a function of the spatial separation of a signal and masker in a two-interval, forced-choice (2IFC) adaptive paradigm. The signal was a 250-ms train of clicks (100/s) generated by filtering 50-microseconds pulses with a TDH-49 speaker (0.9 to 9.0 kHz). The masker was continuous broadband (0.7 to 11 kHz) white noise presented at a level of 44 dBA measured at the position of the subject's head. In experiment I, masked and absolute thresholds were measured for 36 signal source locations (10 degree increments) along the horizontal plane as a function of seven masking source locations (30 degree increments). In experiment II, both absolute and masked thresholds were measured for seven signal locations along three vertical planes located at azimuthal rotations of 0 degrees (median vertical plane), 45 degrees, and 90 degrees. In experiment III, monaural absolute and masked thresholds were measured for various signal-masker configurations. Masking-level differences (MLDs) were computed relative to the condition where the signal and mask were in front of the subjects after using absolute thresholds to account for differences in the signal's sound-pressure level (SPL) due to direction. Maximum MLDs were 15 dB along the horizontal plane, 8 dB along the vertical, and 9 dB under monaural conditions.     

Masking of short stimuli by noises with spiked spectra: I. Compressive nonlinearity of cochlea and evaluation of frequency resolution

A psychoacoustic method for measuring masking thresholds based on the application of single-type stimuli and maskers intended for revealing compressive nonlinearity of displacements of the cochlea basila membrane and evaluation of the frequency resolution of hearing in a narrow frequency range near the central frequency of the stimulus is considered. High-frequency pulses with an envelope in the form of a Gaussian function with a sinusoidal filling with the frequency band corresponding to the width of the critical hearing band have been used as stimuli (referred to as compact). Noises with a spike structure of the amplitude spectrum with a limited frequency band width served as maskers. With the central frequencies of stimuli and maskers being equal, a band noise with the central frequency corresponding with a spike of an indented spectrum was called an on_(rip)-frequency masker, while that with the central frequency corresponding to a dip in an indented spectrum was called an off_(rip)-frequency masker. The central frequencies and frequency bands of the stimuli and maskers were 4 kHz and 1000 Hz, respectively. The spike (dip) frequencies of an indented amplitude spectrum of a masker were 1000 Hz. In the case of successive and simultaneous masking, the dependences of the thresholds of off_(rip)-frequency masking of compact stimuli on the masker level revealed compressive nonlinearity of basila membrane displacements. However, threshold on_(rip)/off_(rip)-frequency masking differences visualized it much better. The estimates of the frequency resolution obtained under conditions of simultaneous masking of compact stimuli during variations in the frequency of spikes of indented masker spectra of low and medium levels corresponded to the width of the critical hearing band measured using a classical method of tone masking by a pair of narrow-band noise maskers. Within the spike frequency range of 500–2000 Hz, the steepness of the dependence of off_(rip)-masking of compact stimuli on the spike frequency decreased with an increase in masker levels that pointed to an effect of compressive properties of basila membrane displacements on this parameter.     

The effect of broadband noise on the human brainstem auditory evoked response. II. Frequency specificity

A series of experiments evaluated the effects of broadband noise (ipsilateral) on wave V of the brainstem auditory evoked response (BAER) elicited by tone bursts or clicks in the presence of high-pass masking noise. Experiment 1 used 1000- and 4000-Hz, 60-dB nHL tone bursts in the presence of broadband noise. With increasing noise level, wave V latency shift was greater for the 1000-Hz tone bursts, while amplitude decrements were similar for both tone-burst frequencies. Experiment 2 varied high-pass masker cutoff frequency and the level of subtotal masking in the presence of 50-dB nHL clicks. The effects of subtotal masking on wave V (increase in latency and decrease in amplitude) increased with increasing derived-band frequency. Experiment 3 covaried high-pass masker cutoff frequency and subtotal masking level for 1000- and 4000-Hz tone-burst stimuli. The effect of subtotal masking on wave V latency was reduced for both tone-burst frequencies when the response-generating region of the cochlear partition was limited by high-pass maskers. The results of these three experiments suggest that most of the wave V latency shift associated with increasing levels of broadband noise is mediated by a place mechanism when the stimulus is a moderate intensity (60 dB nHL), low-frequency (1000 Hz) tone burst. However, the interpretation of the latency shifts produced by broadband noise for 4000-Hz tone-burst stimuli is made more complex by multiple technical factors discussed herein.     

Effects of forward and simultaneous masking on intensity discrimination

Experiments on intensity discrimination determine the size of the smallest detectable increment added to a fixed pedestal. This paper examines the effects of a masker which either precedes the pedestal (forward masking) or is simultaneous with the pedestal. The increment and pedestal were 1-kHz tones masked in forward masking by pure tones and in simultaneous masking by a broadband noise. Simultaneous masking by the broadband noise eliminates the "near miss" to Weber's law, and thus degrades intensity discrimination at high pedestal levels. Forward masking by the pure tone also degrades intensity discrimination, which may, in part, be explained by the elimination of the near miss. However, the effect on intensity discrimination in some cases is greater in forward than in simultaneous masking, suggesting that some additional process (e.g., adaptation) is involved.     

Level discrimination of sinusoids as a function of duration and level for fixed-level, roving-level, and across-frequency conditions

The ability of listeners to detect level differences between two sinusoidal stimuli in a two-interval forced-choice procedure was measured as a function of duration and level in three conditions: (1) the pedestal was fixed in level and the stimuli in the two intervals had the same frequency of either 1 or 2 kHz (fixed-level condition); (2) the pedestal was roved in level over a 20-dB range from trial to trial, but the stimuli still had the same frequency of either 1 or 2 kHz (roving-level condition); and (3) the pedestal was roved in level over a 20-dB range and the two stimuli differed in frequency, such that one was around 1 kHz while the other was around 2 kHz (across-frequency condition). In the fixed-level conditions, difference limens decreased (improved) with both increasing duration and level, as found in previous studies. In the roving-level conditions, difference limens increased and the dependence on duration and level decreased. Difference limens in the across-frequency conditions were generally highest and showed very little dependence on either stimulus duration or level. The results may be understood in terms of different internal noise components with additive variances: In the fixed-level conditions, sensation noise, which is dependent on stimulus attributes such as duration and level, is dominant. In more difficult conditions, where trace-memory and/or across-channel comparisons are required, a more central, stimulus-independent noise dominates.     

Auditory brain stem responses from human infants: pure-tone masking profiles for clicks and filtered clicks

The effects of simultaneous pure-tone maskers on ABR wave V latency and amplitude were examined in three-month-old infants as a means of delineating the frequency specificity of these responses in the immature auditory system. Masking profiles at two intensities (60 and 40 dBn HL) were obtained for click, as well as 4000- and 1000-Hz filtered-click stimuli. Infant profiles, obtained by measuring both latency and amplitude shifts as a result of the discrete-frequency maskers, were compared to adult data obtained under an identical masking paradigm. Both latency and amplitude analyses showed masking profiles for infants which reveal greater low-frequency contribution to responses than found in adult profiles. Additionally, the infant profiles reveal clear differences in the degree of high-frequency spread of masking when comparisons are made to the adult data.     

Stimulus factors influencing spatial release from speech-on-speech masking

This study examined spatial release from masking (SRM) when a target talker was masked by competing talkers or by other types of sounds. The focus was on the role of interaural time differences (ITDs) and time-varying interaural level differences (ILDs) under conditions varying in the strength of informational masking (IM). In the first experiment, a target talker was masked by two other talkers that were either colocated with the target or were symmetrically spatially separated from the target with the stimuli presented through loudspeakers. The sounds were filtered into different frequency regions to restrict the available interaural cues. The largest SRM occurred for the broadband condition followed by a low-pass condition. However, even the highest frequency bandpass-filtered condition (3-6 kHz) yielded a significant SRM. In the second experiment the stimuli were presented via earphones. The listeners identified the speech of a target talker masked by one or two other talkers or noises when the maskers were colocated with the target or were perceptually separated by ITDs. The results revealed a complex pattern of masking in which the factors affecting performance in colocated and spatially separated conditions are to a large degree independent.     

Effects of masker-spectral variability and masker fringes in children and adults

This study examined the degree to which masker-spectral variability contributes to children's susceptibility to informational masking. Listeners were younger children (5-7 years), older children (8-10 years), and adults (19-34 years). Masked thresholds were measured using a 2IFC, adaptive procedure for a 300-ms, 1000-Hz signal presented simultaneously with (1) broadband noise, (2) a random-frequency ten-tone complex, or (3) a fixed-frequency ten-tone complex. Maskers were presented at an overall level of 60 dB SPL. Thresholds were similar across age for the noise condition. Thresholds for most children were higher than for most adults, however, for both ten-tone conditions. The average difference in threshold between random and fixed ten-tone conditions was comparable across age, suggesting a similar effect of reducing masker-spectral variability in children and adults. Children appear more likely to be susceptible to informational masking than adults, however, both with and in the absence of masker-spectral variability. The addition of a masker fringe (delayed onset of signal relative to masker) provided a release from masking for fixed and random ten-tone conditions in all age groups, suggesting at least part of the masking observed for both ten-tone maskers was informational.     

Frequency specificity of chirp-evoked auditory brainstem responses

This study examines the usefulness of the upward chirp stimulus developed by Dau et al. [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 107, 1530-1540 (2000)] for retrieving frequency-specific information. The chirp was designed to produce simultaneous displacement maxima along the cochlear partition by compensating for frequency-dependent traveling-time differences. In the first experiment, auditory brainstem responses (ABR) elicited by the click and the broadband chirp were obtained in the presence of high-pass masking noise, with cutoff frequencies of 0.5, 1, 2, 4, and 8 kHz. Results revealed a larger wave-V amplitude for chirp than for click stimulation in all masking conditions. Wave-V amplitude for the chirp increased continuously with increasing high-pass cutoff frequency while it remains nearly constant for the click for cutoff frequencies greater than 1 kHz. The same two stimuli were tested in the presence of a notched-noise masker with one-octave wide spectral notches corresponding to the cutoff frequencies used in the first experiment. The recordings were compared with derived responses, calculated offline, from the high-pass masking conditions. No significant difference in response amplitude between click and chirp stimulation was found for the notched-noise responses as well as for the derived responses. In the second experiment, responses were obtained using narrow-band stimuli. A low-frequency chirp and a 250-Hz tone pulse with comparable duration and magnitude spectrum were used as stimuli. The narrow-band chirp elicited a larger response amplitude than the tone pulse at low and medium stimulation levels. Overall, the results of the present study further demonstrate the importance of considering peripheral processing for the formation of ABR. The chirp might be of particular interest for assessing low-frequency information.     

Vibrotactile masking: effects of stimulus onset asynchrony and stimulus frequency

Vibrotactile thresholds for the detection of a 50-ms vibratory stimulus on the thenar eminence of the hand were measured in the presence of and in the absence of a 700-ms suprathreshold vibratory masking stimulus. When thresholds were measured in the presence of the masking stimulus, stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) was varied so that backward, simultaneous, and forward masking could be measured. The amount of masking, expressed as threshold shift, was greatest when the test stimulus was presented near the onset or offset of the masking stimulus. For both backward and forward masking, the amount of masking decreased as a function of increasing stimulus onset asynchrony. Comparisons were made of the amounts of masking measured when the test and masking stimuli were both sinusoids, and when the test stimulus was a sinusoid and the masking stimulus was noise. In all conditions, the masked threshold decreased approximately 4.0 dB when SOA was increased from 100 to 650 ms with reference to the onset of the 700-ms masking stimulus. More simultaneous masking was observed when sinusoidal test stimuli were detected in the presence of noise than when they were detected in the presence of sinusoidal maskers of the same frequency. The functions were essentially identical for detection of a low-frequency (20 Hz) test stimulus mediated by a non-Pacinian channel and detection of a high-frequency (250 Hz) test stimulus mediated by the Pacinian channel.     

Relations among some psychoacoustic parameters in normal and cochlearly impaired listeners

Frequency resolution (viz., masking by low-pass-filtered noise and broadband noise) and temporal resolution (viz., masking by interrupted noise) were compared with hearing thresholds and acoustic reflex thresholds for four normally hearing and 13 cochlearly impaired subjects. Two models, one for frequency resolution (model I) and one for temporal resolution (model II), were introduced, and these provided a means of predicting individual frequency and temporal resolution from hearing thresholds for both normal-hearing and hearing-impaired listeners. Model I is based on the assumption that the upward spread of masking increases in cochlearly impaired hearing with an amount proportional to the hearing threshold in dB HL. Model II is based on the assumption that the poststimulatory masked thresholds return to the level of the hearing threshold within a duration of 200 ms, independent of the level of the masker and the amount of cochlear hearing loss. Model parameters were determined from results from other studies. Although some discrepancies between measured and predicted values were observed, the model predictions generally agree with measurements. Thus, to a first-order approximation, it seems possible to predict individual frequency and temporal resolution of cochlearly hearing-impaired listeners solely on the basis of their hearing thresholds.     

A computational model of human auditory signal processing and perception

A model of computational auditory signal-processing and perception that accounts for various aspects of simultaneous and nonsimultaneous masking in human listeners is presented. The model is based on the modulation filterbank model described by Dau et al. [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 102, 2892 (1997)] but includes major changes at the peripheral and more central stages of processing. The model contains outer- and middle-ear transformations, a nonlinear basilar-membrane processing stage, a hair-cell transduction stage, a squaring expansion, an adaptation stage, a 150-Hz lowpass modulation filter, a bandpass modulation filterbank, a constant-variance internal noise, and an optimal detector stage. The model was evaluated in experimental conditions that reflect, to a different degree, effects of compression as well as spectral and temporal resolution in auditory processing. The experiments include intensity discrimination with pure tones and broadband noise, tone-in-noise detection, spectral masking with narrow-band signals and maskers, forward masking with tone signals and tone or noise maskers, and amplitude-modulation detection with narrow- and wideband noise carriers. The model can account for most of the key properties of the data and is more powerful than the original model. The model might be useful as a front end in technical applications.     

Tonal masking and frequency selectivity for the monaural and binaural hearing systems

A series of masking experiments was performed with the aim of comparing frequency selectivity for the monaural and binaural systems. The masking stimulus used in this study combined a sinusoid, which was gated simultaneously with the signal, with a continuous broadband noise. Signal frequency was fixed at 500 Hz. In one condition, the tonal masker and noise were interaurally in phase and the signal was phase reversed. In a second condition, noise, tonal masker, and signal were presented to one ear alone. Signal thresholds were obtained as a function of masker frequency for these two conditions. After making an appropriate selection of noise levels, masking functions for the monaural and binaural system conditions were found to agree closely except for a region about their tips where the binaural condition was more detectable. Two possible interpretations of these results are discussed. Either the monaural and binaural systems contain filters each which have similarly shaped skirts, or the frequency selectivity observed under both diotic and dichotic conditions (for large frequency separations of masker and signal) reflect the operation of a common peripheral filter.     

Effects of non-simultaneous masking on the binaural masking level difference

The present study sought to clarify the role of non-simultaneous masking in the binaural masking level difference for maskers that fluctuate in level. In the first experiment the signal was a brief 500-Hz tone, and the masker was a bandpass noise (100-2000 Hz), with the initial and final 200-ms bursts presented at 40-dB spectrum level and the inter-burst gap presented at 20-dB spectrum level. Temporal windows were fitted to thresholds measured for a range of gap durations and signal positions within the gap. In the second experiment, individual differences in out of phase (NoSπ) thresholds were compared for a brief signal in a gapped bandpass masker, a brief signal in a steady bandpass masker, and a long signal in a narrowband (50-Hz-wide) noise masker. The third experiment measured brief tone detection thresholds in forward, simultaneous, and backward masking conditions for a 50- and for a 1900-Hz-wide noise masker centered on the 500-Hz signal frequency. Results are consistent with comparable temporal resolution in the in phase (NoSo) and NoSπ conditions and no effect of temporal resolution on individual observers' ability to utilize binaural cues in narrowband noise. The large masking release observed for a narrowband noise masker may be due to binaural masking release from non-simultaneous, informational masking.     

Pitch shift of pure and complex tones induced by masking noise

Psychoacoustic experiments were performed to measure the pitch-shift effects of pure and complex tones resulting from the addition of a masking noise to the tonal stimuli. Harmonic residue tones with either two or three harmonics and a fundamental frequency of 200 Hz were chosen as test tones. The pitch shifts of virtual and spectral pitches of the residue tones were measured as a function of the intensity of a low-pass noise with 600-Hz cutoff frequency. The SPL of this noise varied between 30 and 70 dB. In another experiment, the pitch shifts of single pure tones corresponding to the frequencies and SPLs of the harmonics of the residue tones were measured using the same masking noise. The results from five subjects for the harmonic residue tones show only a weak dependence of pitch shift on masking noise intensity. This dependence exists for both spectral and virtual pitches. In the case of single pure tones, pitch shift depends more distinctly on noise intensity. Pitch shifts of up to 5% were found in the range of noise intensity investigated. The magnitude of pitch shift shows pronounced interindividual differences, but the direction of the shift effect is always the same. In all cases pitch increases with higher masking noise levels.     

Temporal integration, frequency resolution, and off-frequency listening in normal-hearing and cochlear-impaired listeners

Temporal integration for a 1000-Hz signal was determined for normal-hearing and cochlear hearing-impaired listeners in quiet and in masking noise of variable bandwidth. Critical ratio and 3-dB critical band measures of frequency resolution were derived from the masking data. Temporal integration for the normal-hearing listeners was markedly reduced in narrow-band noise, when contrasted with temporal integration in quiet or in wideband noise. The effect of noise bandwidth on temporal integration was smaller for the hearing-impaired group. Hearing-impaired subjects showed both reduced temporal integration and reduced frequency resolution for the 200-ms signal. However, a direct relation between temporal integration and frequency resolution was not indicated. Frequency resolution for the normal-hearing listeners did not differ from that of the hearing-impaired listeners for the 20-ms signal. It was suggested that some of the frequency resolution and temporal integration differences between normal-hearing and hearing-impaired listeners could be accounted for by off-frequency listening.     

Detection of a temporal gap in low-frequency narrow-band signals by normal-hearing and hearing-impaired listeners

Temporal processing ability in the hearing impaired was investigated in a 2IFC gap-detection paradigm. The stimuli were digitally constructed 50-Hz-wide bands of noise centered at 250, 500, and 1000 Hz. On each trial, two 400-ms noise samples were paired, shaped at onset and offset, filtered, and presented in the quiet with and without a temporal gap. A modified up-down procedure with trial-by-trial feedback was used to establish threshold of detection of the gap. Approximately 4 h of practice preceded data collection; final estimate of threshold was the average of six listening blocks. There were 10 listeners, 19-25 years old. Five had normal hearing; five had a moderate congenital sensorineural hearing loss with relatively flat audiometric configuration. Near threshold (5 dB SL), all listeners performed similarly. At 15 and 25 dB SL, the normal-hearing group performed better than the hearing-impaired group. At 78 dB SPL, equal to the average intensity of the 5-dB SL condition for the hearing impaired, the normal-hearing group continued to improve and demonstrated a frequency effect not seen in the other conditions. Substantial individual differences were found in both groups, though intralistener variability was as small as expected for these narrow-bandwidth signals.     

Comparisons of frequency selectivity in simultaneous and forward masking for subjects with unilateral cochlear impairments

Two experiments are described in which frequency selectivity was estimated, in simultaneous and forward masking, for each ear of subjects with moderate (25-60 dB HL) unilateral cochlear hearing losses. In both experiments, the signal level was fixed for a given ear and type of masking (simultaneous or forward), and the masker level was varied to determine threshold, using an adaptive, two-alternative forced-choice procedure. In experiment I, the masker was a noise with a spectral notch centered at the signal frequency (either 1.0 or 1.5 kHz); threshold was determined as a function of notch width. Signal levels were chosen so that the noise level required at threshold for a notch width of zero was similar for the normal and impaired ear of each subject in both simultaneous and forward masking. The function relating threshold to notch width had a steeper slope for the normal ear than for the impaired ear of each subject. For the normal ears, these functions were steeper in forward masking than in simultaneous masking. This difference was interpreted as resulting from suppression. For the impaired ears, significant differences in the same direction were observed for three of the five subjects, but the differences were smaller. In experiment II, psychophysical tuning curves (PTCs) were determined in the presence of a fixed notched noise centered at the signal frequency (1.0 kHz). For the normal ears, the PTCs were sharper in forward masking than in simultaneous masking. For the impaired ears, the PTCs were similar in simultaneous and forward masking, but those in forward masking tended to be sharper at masker frequencies far removed from the signal frequency. Overall, the results suggest that suppression is reduced, but not completely absent in cases of moderate cochlear hearing loss.     

Binaural masking experiments using noise maskers with frequency-dependent interaural phase differences. II: Influence of frequency and interaural-phase uncertainty

This study investigates whether binaural signal detection is improved by the listener's previous knowledge about the interaural phase relations of masker and test signal. Binaural masked thresholds were measured for a 500-ms dichotic noise masker that had an interaural phase difference of 0 below 500 Hz and of pi above 500 Hz. The thresholds for two difference 20-ms test signals were determined within the same measurement using an interleaved adaptive 3-interval forced-choice (3IFC) procedure. In each 3IFC trial, both signals could occur with equal probability (uncertainty). The two signals differed in frequency and interaural phase in such a way that one signal always had a frequency above the masker edge frequency (500 Hz) and no interaural phase difference (So), whereas the other signal frequency was below 500 Hz and the interaural phase difference was pi (S pi). The frequencies of a signal pair remained fixed during the whole 3IFC track. These two signals thus lead to two different binaural conditions, i.e., NoS pi for the low-frequency signal and N pi So for the high-frequency signal. For comparison, binaural masked thresholds were measured with the same masker for fixed signal frequency and phase. The binaural masking level differences (BMLDs) resulting from the two experimental conditions show no significant difference. This indicates that the binaural system is able to apply different internal transformations or processing strategies simultaneously in different critical bands and even within the same critical band.