A stationary tone’s frequency alone can shift perceived elevation in the median plane.
Evidence
Broadband signals are generally needed to make spectral cues efficient, since otherwise the cues cannot be decoded. This is a fair assumption, since most natural sounds have a relatively flat spectrum at frequencies where the pinna cues are effective, namely at 4–10 kHz. On the other hand, it has been shown that when a sinusoid is presented in that frequency region, using a static loudspeaker in the median plane, the perceived direction depends significantly on the frequency of the sinusoid. The listener perceives the auditory event as moving in space when the frequency is changed (Blauert, 1996), although the sound source does not move. — Ville Pulkki, Matti Karjalainen, Communication Acoustics- An…, 1452
Categorization
- CANDY: A single tone pitched up or down makes the sound seem to rise or fall in space even though the speaker never moves — a great party-trick fact.
- ADDENDUM: Connects to the Grafting & Growth article’s theme only tenuously; more relevant as a striking perception fact for a sound-design audience.
- XREF: connects to: A fixed pure tone’s perceived direction shifts with its frequency; Changing a tone’s frequency alone can make listeners perceive motion without source movement; Elevation cues involve increased 7-8 kHz and decreased 12 kHz energy — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 745 (+2 more)
Broader Connections
- A fixed pure tone’s perceived direction shifts with its frequency
#corroborates(0.95) - Changing a tone’s frequency alone can make listeners perceive motion without source movement
#expands(0.85) - Sounds in the median plane are localized to fixed directions based on frequency
#expands(0.80) — Professor Dr.-Ing. Hugo Fastl, Professor Dr.-Ing. Eberhard, Psychoacoustics- Facts and Models, 1720 - Elevation cues involve increased 7-8 kHz and decreased 12 kHz energy
#corroborates(0.75) — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 745 - Elevation localization rests on spectral recognition of familiar sounds, not spatial cues.
#contradicts(0.75) — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 748