Effects of removing the “spectral dominance region” upon noise repetition pitch

Abstract

The results of the present study indicate that the spectral dominance region is neither essential for accurate matching of co‐phasic repetition pitch (RP +) nor the sole determinant of matches for antiphasic repetition pitch (RP −). Listeners matched sinusoids to RP + and RP − at delays (t) corresponding to repetition frequencies (1/t) from 110 to 196 Hz. Stimuli were presented as broadband, low‐pass filtered from the seventh spectral peak, high‐pass filtered from the seventh peak, and notch filtered between the third and seventh peaks. Filtering slopes were 196 dB/oct with rejected components replaced by complementary Gaussian noise. Filtering had little effect upon pitch matching to 1/t Hz for RP +. Depending upon filtering conditions, matches for RP − deviated from 1/t Hz by about 5% to 10%. It is suggested that RP is based upon both the spacing of stimulation maxima (1/t Hz for RP + and RP −) and the loci of stimulation (which correspond to integral multiples of 1/t Hz only for RP +). Pitches heard with RP − correspond to resolution of conflicts between loci and spacing, with different compromise pitches found for different spectral ranges.