Late-arriving reflections within the fusion zone are audible but merge into one directional image

Evidence

Some people have mistakenly taken this to mean that the delayed sound is masked—it isn’t. Within the precedence effect fusion interval, there is no masking; all of the reflected (delayed) sounds are audible, making their contributions to timbre and loudness, but the early reflections simply are not heard as spatially separate events. They are perceived as coming from the direction of the first sound—this, and only this, is the essence of the “fusion.” The widely held belief that there is a “Haas fusion zone,” approximately the first 20 ms after the direct sound, within which everything gets innocently combined, is simply untrue. — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 840 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Early reflected sound localizes sources while late sound becomes directionless — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 2471; A 30-40 ms delay separates fusion from echo in the precedence effect; The precedence effect suppresses spatial identity of reflections, not their audibility — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 840 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Both room reverberation and program reverberation extend the temporal fusion zone #expands (0.85)
• The precedence effect suppresses spatial identity of reflections, not their audibility #expands (0.80) — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 840