Low-frequency maskers mask high-frequency signals more than the reverse, and this worsens with intensity.

Evidence

Across all levels tested, more masking was produced when the masker was lower in frequency than the signal than the reverse. • Intensity affected frequency selectivity. Increasing the intensity of the masker led to more masking and produced greater upward spread of masking. The frequency selectivity of the ear was worse at high levels compared with low. The level-dependent nature of auditory frequency selectivity has been replicated on numerous occasions (e.g., Lutfi & Patterson, 1984; Rosen, Baker, & Darling, 1998). — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 470

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the classic ‘upward spread of masking’ phenomenon well documented in audiology; pairs with cochlear mechanics where low-frequency basilar membrane traveling waves travel farther apically.