Complex-tone pitch tracks the spectral pitch of lower components

Evidence

The pitch of harmonic complex tones depends on level. Figure 5.9 shows the pitch shift of a complex tone with a 200-Hz fundamental frequency as a function of its level. An increasing negative pitch shift shows up with increasing level of the complex tone. Similar behaviour was described in Fig. 5.3 for pure tones at low frequencies. This indicates that the pitch of a complex tone is based on the spectral pitch of its lower components. … One explanation, suggested by the data displayed in Fig. 5.6, is that the fundamental of a complex tone is shifted towards lower frequencies by the second harmonic. — Professor Dr.-Ing. Hugo Fastl, Professor Dr.-Ing. Eberhard, Psychoacoustics- Facts and Models, 706

Categorization

• XREF: Links to pure-tone pitch-level dependence (Fig 5.3) and harmonic interaction (Fig 5.6) discussed elsewhere in this book — the chapter’s own earlier material. — connects to: Spectral line structure predicts pitch strength magnitude.; Pitch perception involves both spectral and temporal representations of sound — Dijk, Pim van, Physiology, Psychoacoustics and…, 4638; Sharp spectral peaks, not narrow gaps, drive strong pitch perception (+4 more)
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Professor Dr.-Ing. Hugo Fastl, Professor Dr.-Ing. Eberhard, Psychoacoustics- Facts and Models, 706

Broader Connections

• Pitch perception involves both spectral and temporal representations of sound #expands (0.80) — Dijk, Pim van, Physiology, Psychoacoustics and…, 4638
• Virtual pitch is extracted from separately perceived spectral pitches by Gestalt-style recognition #corroborates (0.80)
• Pitch may be jointly coded by temporal patterns and their cochlear location #expands (0.80) — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 1338
• Spectral line structure predicts pitch strength magnitude. #corroborates (0.75)
• Sharp spectral peaks, not narrow gaps, drive strong pitch perception #corroborates (0.75)
• Adding higher partials can drop the perceived pitch of a tone #corroborates (0.75) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 2067
• Pitch shift from uniform frequency change depends on overtone structure #complicates (0.75)