Relation between Loudness and Duration of Tonal Pulses. II. Response of Normal Ears to Sounds with Noise Sensation

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Abstract
Investigations of threshold change as a function of various durations of a tonal pulse indicate a reduced rate of threshold change and a shortened time threshold for noise as compared with normal values for a 1000‐cps pure tone. This result is explained by the increased loudness level of low noise intensities, and supports the concept of a direct relationship between loudness and time threshold. However, this relationship is modified as the frequency distribution of the test tone changes noticeably with shortening of pulse duration. For tonal pulses shorter than click pitch, the threshold change shows an increased rate in a frequency dependent range of duration. This may be due to an increased energy spread along the frequency axis. However, a further decrease of tonal pulse duration produces a smaller rate of threshold change than has been found for any other duration ranges of pure tones between 250 and 4000 cps; this rate of threshold change is similar to that found for noise. The perceived changes, caused by the energy spread, may limit the direct relationship between time threshold and loudness in the case of very short signal durations.

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