Louder playback is unconsciously rated as better quality in audio listening tests

Evidence

The non-linear processing in the ear causes sound with different sound pressure levels to be perceived differently. The loudness differences between the samples may cause undesired effects if the loudness itself is not studied. Thus, when conducting a listening test, the effect of the level of presentation of the signals should be taken into account. For example, if the audio quality provided by different loudspeakers is tested, and if one loudspeaker delivers slightly but noticeably higher SPL to the listener, it quite probably will be rated to provide the best quality of the tested items. — Ville Pulkki, Matti Karjalainen, Communication Acoustics- An…, 866

Categorization

Category: Causal Relationships

• SEED: Angle for an essay: how louder is systematically mistaken for better across audio, hifi, live performances, and even speech preferences — a perceptual bias with broad design implications.
• CANDY: A fun, quotable fact: in blind speaker tests, the louder speaker almost always wins, regardless of actual fidelity.

Related

• Louder playback can bias listeners into rating a device better (similarity 0.93)
• Uncontrolled loudness differences confound audio quality listening-test results (similarity 0.92)
• Louder sounds are perceived as having more bass and bias subjective comparisons. (similarity 0.87)
• Perceived loudspeaker sound quality depends only on amplitude responses (similarity 0.86)
• Monophonic listening is the most demanding test of loudspeaker sound quality (similarity 0.86)
• Subjective experience dictates which measurements matter in audio research (similarity 0.85)
• Sound power alone cannot predict listener preference for loudspeakers (similarity 0.85)
• Flattening sound power via bass-shy or treble-hot designs harms perceived quality (similarity 0.85)
• Audible resonances drove low sound-quality ratings in early blind tests (similarity 0.84)
• Loudspeaker evaluation must be done in mono because multichannel adds forgiveness (similarity 0.84)
• Spatial richness in multichannel sound inhibits perception of loudspeaker resonances (similarity 0.84)
• Mono listening produces stronger and more consistent loudspeaker quality opinions than stereo (similarity 0.84)
• Modern loudspeakers have converged so far that choice among them is statistically a tie. (similarity 0.83)
• Subjective tests have no right answers because each listener’s perception is unique (similarity 0.83)
• Speaker cables and devices show near-zero audible differences in blind tests (similarity 0.83)

Broader Connections

• Loudness growth with intensity requires experimental quantification, not intuition #expands (0.75) — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 705
• Subjective experience dictates which measurements matter in audio research #expands (0.75) — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1049