What a listener hears differs from an instrument’s raw output

Evidence

This model provides a framework within which the acoustics of musi­ cal instruments can be usefully discussed, reviewed and understood. Notice that the “output” relates to the actual output from the instrument, which is not that which the listener hears since it is modified by the acoustics of the environment in which the instrument is being played. — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1082

Categorization

• DEFINE: The environment acts as a modifier distinguishing instrument output from perceived sound — foundational for psychoacoustics.
• XREF: connects to: Every acoustic instrument reduces to a source feeding a modifier that yields an output — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1056