Echo loudness decays nonlinearly so level peaks misrepresent perceived peaks

Evidence

Instead of using the level as shown in Fig. 16.52 part (a), it may be more meaningful to use total loudness versus time functions as shown in part (b). Although the decaying curve is more rounded if loudness is used, the stronger echos are seen in the loudness function as well. If the loudness of the echos is only a tenth of the initial value, the echos may be ignored in speech perception. The loudness-time function outlined in Fig. 16.52b indicates also that the initial peak in the level-time function does not produce the highest peak in the loudness-time function. The echos and reverberation contribute strongly to perceived loudness. — Professor Dr.-Ing. Hugo Fastl, Professor Dr.-Ing. Eberhard, Psychoacoustics- Facts and Models, 2064

Categorization

• XREF: Ties to loudness models where total loudness integrates specific loudness across critical bands — the rounded decay and shifted peak contradict naive level-time assumptions.