Current acoustic measurements are too coarse to explain how listeners distinguish violins by maker

Evidence

There is still much work to be done on timbre to understand it more fully. While there are results and ideas that indicate what acoustic aspects of different instruments contribute to the perception of their timbre differences, such differences are far too coarse to explain how the experienced listeners are able to tell apart the timbre differences between, for example, violins made by different makers. — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1521

Categorization

• QUESTION: What acoustic parameters, if any, could eventually account for fine-grained maker-level timbre discrimination?
• DEFINE: Clarifies the open boundary of timbre research—how far psycho-acoustics can currently explain perception.
• XREF: connects to: Current acoustic models cannot explain how experts distinguish fine timbre differences between instruments; Frequency-domain analysis may hide the very properties that make violins great — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 1780; What a listener hears differs from an instrument’s raw output — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1082 (+17 more)

Broader Connections

• Current acoustic models cannot explain how experts distinguish fine timbre differences between instruments #corroborates (0.90)
• Frequency-domain analysis may hide the very properties that make violins great #complicates (0.90) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 1780
• Timbre perception research remains too coarse to explain fine discriminations like distinguishing violin makers. #corroborates (0.90) — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1547
• Violin quality differences hide in time-domain impulse responses that Fourier analysis erases #corroborates (0.90) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 1783
• What a listener hears differs from an instrument’s raw output #complicates (0.80) — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1082
• Blind listening tests cannot distinguish Strads from modern violins #complicates (0.80) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 1789
• Renowned violinists cannot reliably distinguish Stradivarius violins from modern ones by listening #complicates (0.80)
• Violin body tone is dominated by just two low-frequency resonances #qualifies (0.80)
• A violin’s transient response to changes distinguishes great instruments from mediocre ones #expands (0.80) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 1781
• Listener position matters because violin radiation direction varies with frequency #complicates (0.70) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1131
• Technical audio decisions need measurement science separate from artistic opinion #complicates (0.70) — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1956
• Violin timbre changes with direction as high frequencies become increasingly directional #qualifies (0.70) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 1785
• An instrument’s upper partial strength determines how dissonant the same interval sounds #complicates (0.70) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 2352
• Large reverberant venues may compromise listeners’ ability to discern timbral qualities #qualifies (0.70)
• Instrument timbre determines how dissonant the same two-note interval sounds #complicates (0.70)