Vintage hi-fi loudness buttons compensated imperfectly for low-level hearing loss

Evidence

Gallun et al. ( 2013 ) found that the effect of hearing loss on separated thresholds was stronger when one target level was used for all listeners (50 dB SPL) compared to when a sensation level (SL) of 40 dB was used (equivalent to a range of 47–72 dB SPL). They speculated that a broadband increase in gain was not sufficient to combat the non-flat hearing losses of their subjects. — Dijk, Pim van, Physiology, Psychoacoustics and…, 1721 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

Category: Causal Relationships

Related

• Broadband gain fails to compensate for non-flat hearing-loss audiograms (similarity 0.88)
• Flat-gain amplification fails for frequency-dependent hearing losses (similarity 0.86)
• Fixed presentation levels overestimate hearing-loss effects that sensation-level compensation removes (similarity 0.84)
• 1970s hi-fi loudness controls compensated for low-level hearing loss but were flawed (similarity 0.84)
• Hearing aid gain is capped by loudness discomfort before full audibility restoration is achieved. (similarity 0.82)
• Standard hearing-aid gain prescriptions may under-amplify high frequencies at low presentation levels. (similarity 0.82)
• Hearing aids restore loudness sensitivity but cannot restore damaged frequency selectivity. (similarity 0.82)
• Bilateral hearing aids use reduced gain due to loudness summation (similarity 0.81)
• Simulated hearing loss isolates audibility from other hearing-loss effects (similarity 0.81)
• Hearing loss squeezes the full loudness range into a much smaller dynamic range (similarity 0.81)
• The 1970s loudness button wrongly assumed a flat frequency response (similarity 0.81)
• Hearing aids cannot deliver speech-in-noise gains that users can perceive or value (similarity 0.81)
• Amplification only compensates for elevated thresholds, not other perceptual deficits from hearing loss. (similarity 0.80)
• Hearing damage widens acoustic filter bandwidth, impairing speech separation and sensitivity (similarity 0.80)
• Audibility is the greatest factor in hearing-loss communication difficulty (similarity 0.80)

Broader Connections

• 1970s hi-fi loudness controls compensated for low-level hearing loss but were flawed #corroborates (0.95)
• Broadband gain fails to compensate for non-flat hearing-loss audiograms #expands (0.85) — Dijk, Pim van, Physiology, Psychoacoustics and…, 1721
• Hearing aids must preserve adequate signal-to-noise ratio across varied scenarios #qualifies (0.72)