The relation between the human frequency following response and the low pitch of complex tones

Abstract

The objective of this study was to examine the relation between the value of the low pitch of complex tones and the f0 of the frequency following response (FFR). Mean pitch matches between a series of six‐component complex tones and comparison pure tones were obtained for four normal hearing subjects with extensive musical training. FFRs were recorded in response to the complex stimuli which were most divergent in pitch for each subject and to pure tone signals of equal pitch. The FFR records were analyzed for frequency composition. The f0 of the FFRs elicited by complex tones did not covary with frequency or pitch shift; the fundamental remained much closer to 200 Hz (the frequency with the period of the stimulus waveform). The f0 of the FFR to pure tones with pitch equal to the complex tones also approximated the stimulus waveform. It was suggested that the output of the neural mechanisms reflected in the FFR does not vary in a manner consistent with shift in low pitch of complex stimuli. [Work supported by NIH.]