The Franssen effect and the localization plausibility hypothesis

Abstract

The Franssen effect is obtained with two loudspeakers in a room. If a sine tone is abruptly turned on at the left loudspeaker, then slowly faded off while the right loudspeaker is slowly faded on, a listener will judge that the tone continues to come from the left loudspeaker, even though the left loudspeaker is not sounding at all. Our own studies of localization of sound in rooms have led to a principle of localization called the “plausibility hypothesis.” One of the predictions of this hypothesis is that in an anechoic room the Franssen effect should fail [B. Rakerd and W. M. Hartmann, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 78, 524–533 (1985)]. Experimental studies are reported using the Franssen stimulus both in an ordinary room and in an anechoic room. The results of the experiment support the prediction. [Work supported by the National Institutes of Health.]