Abstract
The use of a large number of amplitude-compression channels in hearing aids has potential advantages, such as the
ability to compensate for variations in loudness recruitment across frequency and provide appropriate frequency-
response shaping. However, sound quality and speech intelligibility could be adversely affected due to reduction of
spectro-temporal contrast and distortion, especially when fast-acting compression is used. This study assessed the
effect of the number of channels and compression speed on speech recognition when the multichannel processing
was used solely to implement amplitude compression, and not for frequency-response shaping. Computer-simulated
hearing aids were used. The frequency-dependent insertion gains for speech with a level of 65 dB sound pressure
level were applied using a single filter before the signal was filtered into compression channels. Fast-acting (attack,
10 ms; release, 100 ms) or slow-acting (attack, 50 ms; release, 3000 ms) compression using 3, 6, 12, and 22 channels
was applied subsequently. Using a sentence recognition task with speech in two- and eight-talker babble at three dif-
ferent signal-to-babble ratios (SBRs), 20 adults with sensorineural hearing loss were tested. The number of channels
and compression speed had no significant effect on speech recognition, regardless of babble type or SBR.
ability to compensate for variations in loudness recruitment across frequency and provide appropriate frequency-
response shaping. However, sound quality and speech intelligibility could be adversely affected due to reduction of
spectro-temporal contrast and distortion, especially when fast-acting compression is used. This study assessed the
effect of the number of channels and compression speed on speech recognition when the multichannel processing
was used solely to implement amplitude compression, and not for frequency-response shaping. Computer-simulated
hearing aids were used. The frequency-dependent insertion gains for speech with a level of 65 dB sound pressure
level were applied using a single filter before the signal was filtered into compression channels. Fast-acting (attack,
10 ms; release, 100 ms) or slow-acting (attack, 50 ms; release, 3000 ms) compression using 3, 6, 12, and 22 channels
was applied subsequently. Using a sentence recognition task with speech in two- and eight-talker babble at three dif-
ferent signal-to-babble ratios (SBRs), 20 adults with sensorineural hearing loss were tested. The number of channels
and compression speed had no significant effect on speech recognition, regardless of babble type or SBR.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America |
| Volume | 147 |
| Early online date | 2 Mar 2020 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2020 |
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Manchester Centre for Audiology and Deafness (ManCAD)
Munro, K. (PI), Millman, R. (PI), Lamb, W. (Support team), Dawes, P. (PI), Plack, C. (PI), Stone, M. (PI), Kluk-De Kort, K. (PI), Moore, D. (PI), Morton, C. (PI), Prendergast, G. (PI), Couth, S. (PI), Schlittenlacher, J. (PI), Chilton, H. (PI), Visram, A. (Researcher), Dillon, H. (PI), Guest, H. (Researcher), Heinrich, A. (PI), Jackson, I. (Researcher), Littlejohn, J. (Researcher), Jones, L. (PI), Lough, M. (Researcher), Morgan, R. (Researcher), Perugia, E. (Researcher), Roughley, A. (Researcher), Whiston, H. (Researcher), Wright, C. (Support team), Saunders, G. (PI), Kelly, C. (PI), Cross, H. (Researcher), Loughran, M. (Researcher) & Hoseinabadi, R. (PI)
Project: Research