Listeners normalize room acoustics so a voice stays constant across radically different spaces

Evidence

As discussed in earlier chapters, adaptation to the listening room is a factor in what we are able to hear in perceptions of loudspeaker sound quality. Below the transition/Schroeder frequency, resonances in small rooms have a massive influence on what we hear. They add timbral colorations and are the acoustic “signature” of a small room, not the large spaces we want to hear in recordings. There are also effects at higher frequencies, in the reflection of off-axis sounds related to loudspeaker directivity. Therefore, if comparing loudspeakers, listen to all of them in the same room, taking time to let the listeners adapt to the acoustical setting. Listeners have the ability to adapt to many aspects of room acoustics in multiple-loudspeaker listening comparisons, as long as there are no extreme problems. As shown in Sections 5.4 and 5.5, when comparisons are done in the same room, large differences in rooms make little difference to the relative sound quality ratings. Listeners appear to be able to normalize the effects of different rooms, at least up to a point. — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1098 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

In auditory perceptions, adaptation is at work, allowing us to “normalize” the acoustical environment within which we listen. Imagine a scenario in which you and a colleague are conversing while walking down the street (a “dead” space), you enter a building foyer (a large reverberant space), take the elevator (a tiny space), and walk down a corridor (a distinctive reverberant space) into an open-plan office (a relatively dead, semi-reflective space). While you are conversing, your colleague’s voice is a constant factor in spite of the enormous changes in the acoustical environment. It is the same voice in different acoustical spaces. The same is true of live musical performances in different venues. A Steinway is a Steinway, a Strad is a Strad, but in different rooms. The only relatively constant factor in all of this is the direct sound. — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 810 (#qualifies, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Sitting in a corner amplifies both your voice and your hearing.; Loudspeakers and rooms function together as a single audible system; Listeners perceptually normalize familiar rooms to judge loudspeakers clearly — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1098 (+5 more)

Broader Connections

• Listeners perceptually normalize familiar rooms to judge loudspeakers clearly #corroborates (0.95) — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1098
• Human hearing normalizes wildly different acoustic environments to a constant source #qualifies (0.92) — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 810
• Familiarity with a room enables partial perceptual normalization during listening #complicates (0.88)
• Listeners can perceptually separate loudspeaker timbre from room coloration in comparisons #expands (0.85)
• Auditory streaming explains how listeners separate loudspeaker from room sound #expands (0.80)