SHORT AND SWEET

The role of head movements and signal spectrum in an auditory front/back illusion

W Owen Brimijoin

MRC Institute of Hearing Research (Scottish Section), Glasgow Royal Infirmary, 16 Alexandra Parade, Glasgow G31 2ER, UK

owen@ihr.gla.ac.uk

Michael A Akeroyd

MRC Institute of Hearing Research (Scottish Section), Glasgow Royal Infirmary, 16 Alexandra Parade, Glasgow G31 2ER, UK

maa@ihr.gla.ac.uk

 
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Abstract. We used a dynamic auditory spatial illusion to investigate the role of self-motion and acoustics in shaping our spatial percept of the environment. Using motion capture, we smoothly moved a sound source around listeners as a function of their own head movements. A lowpass filtered sound behind a listener that moved in the direction it would have moved if it had been located in the front was perceived as statically located in front. The contrariwise effect occurred if the sound was in front but moved as if it were behind. The illusion was strongest for sounds lowpass filtered at 500 Hz and weakened as a function of increasing lowpass cut-off frequency. The signals with the most high frequency energy were often associated with an unstable location percept that flickered from front to back as self-motion cues and spectral cues for location came into conflict with one another.


Cite as: Brimijoin W O, Akeroyd M A, 2012, "The role of head movements and signal spectrum in an auditory front/back illusion" i-Perception 3(3) 179–181
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DOI: 10.1068/i7173sas

ISSN: 2041-6695 (electronic only)

Copyright: Copyright is retained by the author(s) of this article. This open-access article is distributed under a Creative Commons Licence, which permits noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction, provided the original author(s) and source are credited and no alterations are made.
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