Torben Poulsen

Temporal integration of loudness, loudness discrimination, and the form of the loudness function

Temporal integration for loudness of 5-kHz tones was measured as a function of level between 2 and 60 dB SL. Absolute thresholds and levels required to produce equal loudness were measured for 2-, 10-, 50-, and 250-ms tones using adaptive, two-interval, two-alternative forced-choice procedures. The procedure for loudness balances was new and employed ten interleaved tracks to obtain concurrent measurements for ten tone pairs. Each track converged at the level required to make the variable stimulus just louder than the fixed stimulus. Thus, the data yield estimates of the just-noticeable difference (jnd) for loudness level and temporal integration for loudness. Results for four listeners show that the amount of temporal integration, defined as the level difference between equally loud short and long tones, varies markedly with level and is largest at moderate levels. The effect of level increases as the duration of the short stimulus decreases and is largest for comparisons between the 2- and 250-ms tones. The loudness-level jnds are also largest at moderate levels and, contrary to traditional jnds for the level of two equal-duration tones, they do not appear to depend on duration. The latter finding indicates that loudness discrimination between stimuli that differ along multiple dimensions is not the same as level discrimination between stimuli that differ only in level. An equal-loudness-ratio model, which assumes that the ratio of loudnesses for a long and short tone at equal SPL is the same at all SPLs, can explain the level dependence of temporal integration and the loudness jnds. It indicates that the loudness function [log(loudness) versus SPL] is flatter at moderate levels than at low and high levels in agreement with earlier findings for 1-kHz tones [M. Florentine et al., J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 99, 1633-1644 (1996)].

Questionnaire investigation of musicians’ use of hearing protectors, self reported hearing disorders, and their experience of their working environment

Musicians in symphony orchestras are exposed to harmful sound levels. Although research shows that industrial workers have a higher propensity to noise-induced hearing loss, musicians can also develop a hearing loss from noise exposure. Furthermore, musicians can suffer from tinnitus, hyperacusis, and distortion, among other hearing disorders, which can affect their work more severely than a hearing loss. This study investigated the use of hearing protectors, the prevalence of self-reported hearing disorders among musicians, and the importance of these hearing disorders to the musicians. The musicians at three Danish symphony orchestras were asked to complete a questionnaire on the topic. Results showed that Danish musicians are aware of the dangers of loud music, yet they rarely use hearing protectors and not always correctly; however, musicians with hearing disorders use hearing protectors more frequently. In addition, the musicians questioned suffered from different hearing disorders. Education is needed to change musicians’ opinion of hearing conservation and hearing protectors. The education must be directed to both the musicians and the administration of the symphony orchestras.

Equivalent Threshold Sound Pressure Levels for Sennheiser HDA 200 Earphone and Etymotic Research ER-2 Insert Earphone in the Frequency Range 125 Hz to 16 kHz

Equivalent Threshold Sound Pressure Levels (ETSPLs) have been determined for the Sennheiser HDA 200 earphone and the Etymotic Research ER-2 insert earphone. Thirty-one young normal-hearing test subjects participated and the thresholds were determined for all recommended frequencies in the frequency range 125 Hz to 16 kHz. The results for the HDA 200 earphone are generally in very good agreement with the results from two other investigations which are available at present. Only at 6 kHz is a 9 dB deviation found and at 8 kHz a 6 dB deviation is found between the three investigations. For ER-2 it has not been possible to find other ETSPL determinations in the literature.

Sound Exposure of Symphony Orchestra Musicians

BACKGROUND Assessment of sound exposure by noise dosimetry can be challenging especially when measuring the exposure of classical orchestra musicians where sound originate from many different instruments. A new measurement method of bilateral sound exposure of classical musicians was developed and used to characterize sound exposure of the left and right ear simultaneously in two different symphony orchestras. OBJECTIVES To measure binaural sound exposure of professional classical musicians and to identify possible exposure risk factors of specific musicians. METHODS Sound exposure was measured with microphones mounted on the musicians ears and recorded digitally. The recorded sound was analysed and the specific sound exposure of the left and the right ear was determined for the musicians. A total of 114 measurements covering 106 h were recorded in two symphony orchestras. RESULTS Sound exposure depends significantly on the specific instrument and the repertoire played by the exposed musician. Concerts, group rehearsals and individual practice were all significant contributors to the sound exposure. The highest L(Aeq) of 86 -98 dB was found among the brass players. High string players were exposed from 82 to 98 dBA and their left ear was exposed 4.6 dB more than the right ear. Percussionists were exposed to high sound peaks >115 dBC but less continuous sound exposure was observed in this group. Musicians were exposed up to L(Aeq8h) of 92 dB and a majority of musicians were exposed to sound levels exceeding L(Aeq8h) of 85 dB. CONCLUSIONS Binaural recording of the individual sound exposure showed that orchestra musicians could be exposed differently to the left and right ear and that they were primarily exposed from their own instruments. Specific repertoires as well as the specific instrument determine the level of exposure.

Loudness of tone pulses in a free field

Investigations of temporal loudness summation of tone pulses have been performed. The investigations comprised equal loudness determinations between pairs of tone pulses with a duration ratio of 1:2, and threshold determinations of the same tone pulses. Pulse duration ranged from 5 to 640 ms. The frequencies were 500, 1000, and 4000 Hz. All pulses were shaped by means of 1/3 octave filters. For 25 normal hearing observers the investigations were performed at the observers threshold, and at 35 and 55 dB SPL. Fitting of the experimental data to a single exponential function yields a time constant (tau) of about 200 ms near and at the threshold, whereas tau is about 100 ms at levels well above threshold. Discrepancies exist, nevertheless, between this single-time-constant model and the experimental data obtained for the pulses of shortest duration. To account for this, a model is proposed comprising a combination of two exponential functions. This yields a short time constant of 5 to 10 ms combined with the longer constant mentioned above.

Influence of session length on judged annoyance

Abstract A laboratory study on the influence of the duration of a listening session on judged annoyance has been performed. Subjects listened under simulated living room conditions to traffic noise and synthetic gunfire noise in sessions lasting either 1, 5, 15 or 30 minutes. Seventy-two subjects participated in the investigation, which was part of a joint CEC project on annoyance due to impulsive noise. The results show that session length does not have a significant effect on judged annoyance. A session length of 5 minutes duration (which has been used previously in many laboratory experiments) is therefore sufficient to obtain a reliable evaluation of judged annoyance.

Hearing Loss in Relation to Sound Exposure of Professional Symphony Orchestra Musicians

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to: (1) estimate the hearing status of classical symphony orchestra musicians and (2) investigate the hypothesis that occupational sound exposure of symphony orchestra musicians leads to elevated hearing thresholds. Design: The study population comprised all the musicians from five symphony orchestras. Questionnaires were filled in by 337 subjects, and 212 subjects performed an audiometric test. For a group of 182 musicians (363 ears) the results of the audiometry was analyzed in relation to the individual exposure, which was estimated on the basis of sound measurements and questionnaire data regarding the exposure time. The mean hearing threshold at the frequencies 3, 4, and 6 kHz, corrected for age and sex, was used as outcome. Results: The musician ears with the highest exposure (29 of 363) had an additional threshold shift of 6.3 dB compared with the 238 ears with lowest exposure. The observed hearing loss of musicians was smaller compared with the noise-induced permanent threshold shift (NIPTS) predicted from ISO1999. A remaining confounding effect of age after ISO7029 age corrections could be observed to explain the difference in observed and predicted NIPTS. However, the observed hearing loss difference between the left and the right ear of musicians was 2.5 dB (95% confidence interval 1.5–3.6), which was similar to the NIPTS predicted from ISO1999. Most of the musicians had better hearing at 3, 4, and 6 kHz for age than expected, however, 29 ears with the highest exposure above 90.4 dBA with a mean exposure time of 41.7 years had significantly elevated hearing thresholds. Trumpet players and the left ear of first violinists had significantly elevated hearing thresholds compared with other musicians. Conclusion: Most of the symphony orchestra musicians had better hearing than expected but they had a work-related risk of developing additional noise-induced hearing loss. The additional NITPS of the left ear compared with the right ear was at the expected level based on the cumulated sound exposure and ISO1999, indicating that performing music may induce hearing loss to the same extent as industrial noise.

Acoustic traffic signal for blind pedestrians

Abstract The development of an acoustic traffic signal for blind pedestrians is described. The WALK and WAIT signals used represent a compromise between many contradictory demands, e.g. easy localisation and detection in a background of traffic noise, minimum annoyance, maximum attenuation into dwellings and simple and reliable construction. The WALK sound consists of 200 ms pulses at a repetition rate of 2·5 Hz. The WAIT sound consists of 400 ms pulses at a repetition rate of 0·5 Hz. Both WALK and WAIT pulses are formed from an 880 Hz sawtooth or square wave signal. A weak attention signal is audible (automatic level control) within a distance of 2–3 m from the traffic light pole. The system has been in use for more than 2 years. Twenty-six blind pedestrians tested the system and found it very useful. A questionnaire investigation showed no adverse reactions from neighbours to the system. The attention system is being standardised in Denmark. The system is prepared for extension with a louder guiding signal which guides the blind across the crossing.

Annoyance of Low Frequency Noise and Traffic Noise

The annoyance of different low frequency noise sources was determined and compared to the annoyance from traffic noise. Twenty-two subjects participated in laboratory listening tests. The sounds were presented by loudspeakers in a listening room and the spectra of the low frequency noises were dominated by the frequency range 10 Hz to 200 Hz. Pure tone hearing thresholds down to 31 Hz were also measured. Eighteen normal hearing subjects and four subjects with special low-frequency problems participated in the tests.

Hearing Aid Measurements with Speech and Noise Signals

An increasing number of hearing aid types include one or more features which are intentionally non-linear. In such devices measurement of frequency response and distortion using sweep tone measurements are typically of little relevance. Five different non-linear hearing aid types were used to evaluate three different broad-band measuring methods. The results revealed that these methods were meaningful in estimating average frequency response obtained with a specific input signal, but none of the three methods used in the study was able to evaluate separately the effects of the most important signal modifications: memoryless non-linearity like peak clipping, time-varying gain from AGC and additive internal noise.