Broadband sounds are easier to localize than narrowband sounds

Evidence

This argument can be reversed to show that when the output of an acoustic system, such as a musical instrument, changes slowly, its spectrum occupies a narrow bandwidth, whereas when it changes quickly, it must occupy a larger bandwidth. This can be due to an increase in the number of harmonics present in the spectrum, as would be the case if the waveform becomes sharper or more spiky. … Figure 1.61 shows the effect of an increasing number of harmonics on a square wave. Or, as in the band-pass case described earlier, it would be due to an increase in the bandwidths occupied by the individual partials, or harmonics, of the sound. This would be the case if the envelope of the sound changed more rapidly. Figures 1.62 and 1.63 compare two similar systems—one with a slow and one with a fast rate of amplitude decay, the latter being due to a higher loss of energy from the system. The figures clearly show that in the system that decays more rapidly, there are more harmonics, and there is a higher bandwidth due to the more rapid change in the sound’s envelope. — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 489 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Listeners benefit from but do not fully use broadband spectral information.; Fast-changing acoustic signals necessarily occupy a wider spectral bandwidth. — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 489; Rapid changes in a sound’s amplitude envelope force broader spectral bandwidth

Related

• Fast-changing acoustic signals necessarily occupy a wider spectral bandwidth. (similarity 0.88)
• Listeners benefit from but do not fully use broadband spectral information. (similarity 0.87)
• Faster sound decay broadens spectral peaks in observed spectra (similarity 0.87)
• Rapid changes in a sound’s amplitude envelope force broader spectral bandwidth (similarity 0.87)
• A sound’s time-domain rate of change determines its frequency-domain bandwidth (similarity 0.86)
• Random noise and unpredictable spikes carry maximum information due to flat spectra. (similarity 0.84)
• Broad-spectrum sounds read as louder because auditory bands integrate across the basilar membrane (similarity 0.83)
• Wideband sounds are louder than narrowband sounds at equal dB SPL (similarity 0.82)
• Widening a sound’s bandwidth makes it seem louder at equal total power (similarity 0.81)
• A sound’s bandwidth independently affects how loud it sounds. (similarity 0.81)
• Wider bandwidth increases perceived loudness at equal sound pressure (similarity 0.80)
• Broadband noise yields better intensity discrimination than pure tones by engaging multiple frequency regions (similarity 0.80)
• Broadband sounds decompose into a slow envelope riding a fast temporal fine structure carrier. (similarity 0.80)
• Loudness is not reducible to sound pressure level or signal power (similarity 0.80)
• Widening a sound’s bandwidth beyond one critical band raises perceived loudness at unchanged intensity. (similarity 0.79)

Broader Connections

• Fast-changing acoustic signals necessarily occupy a wider spectral bandwidth. #corroborates (0.75) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 489
• Listeners benefit from but do not fully use broadband spectral information. #expands (0.72)
• Rapid changes in a sound’s amplitude envelope force broader spectral bandwidth #corroborates (0.72)