Masking depends on acoustic relationships between masker and signal, not on subjective noise.

Evidence

Noise is often referred to as any unwanted sound. However, this definition is not terribly useful in the field of psychoacoustics because it is not associated with an acoustic characterization. This chapter will demonstrate that the acoustic representation of sound is an essential determinant in the ability of that sound to produce masking. Realistically, any sound can be a “noise” and can produce masking, but the amount of masking produced by that sound depends on the relationship between the masking sound (the masker) and the sound being detected (the signal). — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 405

Categorization

• DEFINE: Clarifies that ‘noise’ in psychoacoustics means any sound defined acoustically, not ‘unwanted sound’.