String-instrument inharmonicity is testable as contributing to sound quality

Evidence

It is well known that string instruments usually produce slightly inharmonic spectra. The question is now whether this is a physical fact which can not be avoided or whether the inharmonicity adds to the sound quality of tones in a musical context. In order to address this question, experiments were performed in which strictly harmonic spectra as well as slightly inharmonic spectra of the strings of an electric guitar were synthesized. The temporal envelope of the simulated guitar sounds was chosen in accordance with measurements on solid body guitars. In particular for the lower strings of the guitar (E2, A2) the inharmonic spectra produce audible beats. — Professor Dr.-Ing. Hugo Fastl, Professor Dr.-Ing. Eberhard, Psychoacoustics- Facts and Models, 2044

Categorization

Category: Factual Claims

• QUESTION: Whether perceived inharmonicity improves timbre is left as an empirical finding to resolve in the following figure; worth chasing the actual preference outcome.

Related

• String instruments naturally produce inharmonic partial spectra. (similarity 0.93)
• String instrument inharmonicity may be not merely unavoidable but perceptually desirable (similarity 0.93)
• Slightly inharmonic spectra are musically preferred over strictly harmonic ones (similarity 0.92)
• Guitar-string inharmonicity creates audible beats on low strings. (similarity 0.88)
• Inharmonic strings would sound like chimes regardless of frets or fingering (similarity 0.88)
• The inharmonicity of real strings is a desirable feature, not a defect (similarity 0.87)
• Harmonic versus inharmonic spectra of a note are plainly perceptible to a listener (similarity 0.86)
• String stiffness raises the frequency of a piano’s higher modes relative to the fundamental. (similarity 0.83)
• A string’s stiffness raises its higher-frequency modes above the ideal values (similarity 0.83)
• Slightly mistuned piano strings produce richer, longer-lasting sound (similarity 0.82)
• String stiffness makes higher frequencies travel faster, changing timbre (similarity 0.82)
• Most vibrating objects produce inharmonic partials, unlike the ideal string (similarity 0.82)
• Real strings’ slightly mistuned partials are a loved feature, not a flaw. (similarity 0.81)
• Harmonic content alone produces recognizable, describable timbre qualities (similarity 0.81)
• Natural inharmonicity makes partial phases cycle continuously, so the ear ignores them (similarity 0.81)

Broader Connections

• The inharmonicity of real strings is a desirable feature, not a defect #qualifies (0.85) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 762
• Measurable and audible sound qualities can be shown to correlate reliably #corroborates (0.85) — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1957
• String stiffness raises component mode frequencies above the harmonic series, creating inharmonicity #expands (0.80) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1090