Numerical vibrational acoustics and sound quality assessment of pipa strings

Abstract

This study harmonizes subjective auditory and psychological elements related to plucked strings with objective physical attributes through spectrum analysis and numerical simulation, confirming the congruity between objective assessment systems and subjective perceptions in evaluating pipa string sound quality. The research combines experimental investigation of plucked pipa string vibrations with detailed numerical simulations of vibrational acoustic fields using a specified 3 N input force. Results demonstrate that as frequency increases (from A4: 440 Hz to E6: 1320 Hz), more pronounced vibrations emerge along the pipa body, leading to heightened overall sound pressure within the vibrational acoustic fields. The sound pressure distribution analysis reveals that the rosewood pipa exhibits significantly lower standard deviations of 41.8% and 41.9% compared to the tung wood pipa, and 24.6% and 32.2% lower than the white wood pipa at 440 Hz and 1320 Hz, respectively, highlighting the rosewood pipa’s superior sound pressure uniformity. Additionally, an assessment of the A4 signal’s Power Spectral Density (PSD) distribution underscores even spectral energy dispersion in the rosewood pipa’s A4 sound signal, with minor resonance peaks in higher-order overtones beyond 5000 Hz, further substantiating the superior sound quality of the rosewood pipa, in line with expert reviews.