Extended perceptual spaces for pitched and percussive timbres

Abstract

A series of listening tests attempted to better isolate higher-order perceptual dimensions of timbre by building on past findings showing that spectral centroid and rise time represent principal acoustic correlates of the primary timbral dimensions. Listeners with varying levels of musical training rated the timbral similarity of three sets of pitched and percussive instrument sounds that were equated for centroid and rise time using signal processing techniques. Multidimensional scaling analyses yielded two- and three-dimensional perceptual spaces for the three stimulus sets. Several aspects of the spectral fine structure of the timbres correlated with the dimensions of these spaces, but the nature of the acoustic correlate varied somewhat depending on the stimulus set in which the timbre was presented. The results suggest that additional perceptual dimensions of timbre exist, but that their precise acoustic correlates are context dependent and therefore less perceptually ‘‘primary’’ than centroid and rise time. [This research was funded by Air Force Office of Scientific Research Grant No. F49620-99-1-0293.]