The Choice of Compression Speed in Hearing Aids: Theoretical and Practical Considerations and the Role of Individual Differences

Abstract

Compression is used in hearing aids to compensate for the effects of loudness recruitment. This article describes the distinction between, and relative merits of, slow and fast compression systems. A study of Gatehouse and coworkers leads to the following conclusions: (a) The benefit from compression is greatest among individuals who experience a wide range of sound levels within short periods of time, (b) slow compression generally leads to higher listening comfort than fast compression, (c) the benefit from fast compression varies across individuals, and those with high cognitive ability are able to benefit from fast compression to take advantage of temporal dips in a background sound. It is argued that listening in the dips depends on the ability to process the temporal fine structure of sounds. It is proposed that a test of the ability to process temporal fine structure might be useful for selecting compression speed for an individual.

Keywords

hearing aids compression time constants automatic gain control

References

American National Standards Institute (ANSI). ( 2003). ANSI S3.22-2003, Specification of hearing aid characteristics . New York: American National Standards Institute.

Bacon, S.P. , Opie, J.M. , & Montoya, D.Y. (1998). The effects of hearing loss and noise masking on the masking release for speech in temporally complex backgrounds. Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research, 41, 549-563.

Blamey, P.J. (2005). Adaptive dynamic range optimization (ADRO): A digital amplification strategy for hearing aids and cochlear implants. Trends in Amplification, 9, 77-98.

Braida, L.D. , Durlach, N.I. , De Gennaro, S.V. , Peterson, P.M. , & Bustamante, D.K. (1982). Review of recent research on multiband amplitude compression for the hearing impaired. In G. A. Studebaker & F. H. Bess (Eds.), The Vanderbilt hearing-aid report (pp. 133-140). Upper Darby, PA: Monographs in Contemporary Audiology .

Dillon, H. (1996). Compression? Yes, but for low or high frequencies, for low or high intensities, and with what response times? Ear & Hearing, 17, 287-307.

Dreschler, W.A. , Verschuure, H. , Ludvigsen, C. , & Westermann, S. (2001). ICRA noises: Artificial noise signals with speech-like spectral and temporal properties for hearing instrument assessment. Audiology, 40, 148-157.

Drullman, R. , Festen, J.M. , & Plomp, R. (1994). Effect of temporal envelope smearing on speech reception. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 95, 1053-1064.

Duquesnoy, A.J. (1983). Effect of a single interfering noise or speech source on the binaural sentence intelligibility of aged persons. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 74, 739-743.

Fowler, E.P. (1936). A method for the early detection of otosclerosis . Archives of Otolaryngology, 24, 731-741.

10.

Füllgrabe, C. , Berthommier, F. , & Lorenzi, C. (2006). Masking release for consonant features in temporally fluctuating background noise. Hearing Research, 211, 74-84.

11.

Gatehouse, S. , & Noble, W. (2004). The Speech, Spatial and Qualities of Hearing Scale (SSQ). International Journal of Audiology, 43, 85-99.

12.

Gatehouse, S. , Naylor, G. , & Elberling, C. (1999). Aspects of auditory ecology and psychoacoustic function as determinants of benefit from and candidature for non-linear processing in hearing aids. In A. N. Rasmussen , P. A. Osterhammel , T. Anderson , & T. Poulsen (Eds.), Auditory models and non-linear hearing instruments (pp. 221-233). Copenhagen, Denmark: Holmens Trykkeri.

13.

Gatehouse, S. , Naylor, G. , & Elberling, C. (2003). Benefits from hearing aids in relation to the interaction between the user and the environment. International Journal of Audiology, 4(Suppl. 1), S77-S85.

14.

Gatehouse, S. , Naylor, G. , & Elberling, C. (2006a). Linear and nonlinear hearing aid fittings-1. Patterns of benefit. International Journal of Audiology, 45, 130-152.

15.

Gatehouse, S. , Naylor, G. , & Elberling, C. (2006b). Linear and nonlinear hearing aid fittings-2. Patterns of candidature. International Journal of Audiology , 45, 153-171.

16.

Gustafsson, H. Å., & Arlinger, S.D. (1994). Masking of speech by amplitude-modulated noise. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 95, 518-529.

17.

Hickson, L.M.H. (1994). Compression amplification in hearing aids. American Journal of Audiology, 3, 51-65.

18.

Hopkins, K. , & Moore, B.C.J. (2007). Moderate cochlear hearing loss leads to a reduced ability to use temporal fine structure information. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 122, 1055-1068.

19.

Kluender, K.R. , Coady, J.A. , & Kiefte, M. (2003). Sensitivity to change in perception of speech . Speech Communication, 41, 59-69.

20.

Laurence, R.F. , Moore, B.C.J. , & Glasberg, B.R. (1983). A comparison of behind-the-ear high-fidelity linear aids and two-channel compression hearing aids in the laboratory and in everyday life. British Journal of Audiology , 17, 31-48.

21.

Lindemann, E. , & Worrall, T.L. (2000). Continuous frequency dynamic range audio compressor (U.S. Patent No. 609,7824). Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

22.

Lorenzi, C. , Gilbert, G. , Carn, C. , Garnier, S. , & Moore, B.C.J. (2006). Speech perception problems of the hearing impaired reflect inability to use temporal fine structure. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 103, 18866-18869.

23.

Lunner, T. , Hellgren, J. , Arlinger, S. , & Elberling, C. (1997). A digital filterbank hearing aid: Three digital signal processing algorithms-user preference and performance. Ear & Hearing, 18, 373-387.

24.

Lunner, T. , Hellgren, J. , Arlinger, S. , & Elberling, C. (1998). Non-linear signal processing in digital hearing aids. Scandinavian Audiology, 27(Suppl. 49), 40-49.

25.

Moore, B.C.J. (1990). How much do we gain by gain control in hearing aids? Acta Otolaryngologica, (Suppl. 469), 250-256.

26.

Moore, B.C.J. (2004). Testing the concept of softness imperception: Loudness near threshold for hearing-impaired ears. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 115, 3103-3111.

27.

Moore, B.C.J. (2007). Cochlear hearing loss: Physiological, psychological and technical issues (2nd ed.). Chichester, UK: Wiley.

28.

Moore, B.C.J. (2008). The role of temporal fine structure in normal and impaired hearing. In T. Dau (Ed.), International Symposium on Auditory and Audiological Research . Copenhagen, Denmark: Holmens Trykkeri .

29.

Moore, B.C.J. , & Glasberg, B.R. (1988). A comparison of four methods of implementing automatic gain control (AGC) in hearing aids. British Journal of Audiology, 22, 93-104.

30.

Moore, B.C.J. , & Glasberg, B.R. (1993). Simulation of the effects of loudness recruitment and threshold elevation on the intelligibility of speech in quiet and in a background of speech. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 94, 2050-2062.

31.

Moore, B.C.J. , Glasberg, B.R. , & Hopkins, K. (2006). Frequency discrimination of complex tones by hearing-impaired subjects: Evidence for loss of ability to use temporal fine structure information . Hearing Research, 222, 16-27.

32.

Moore, B.C.J. , Glasberg, B.R. , & Stone, M.A. (1991). Optimization of a slow-acting automatic gain control system for use in hearing aids. British Journal of Audiology , 25, 171-182.

33.

Moore, B.C.J. , Peters, R.W. , & Stone, M.A. (1999). Benefits of linear amplification and multi-channel compression for speech comprehension in backgrounds with spectral and temporal dips. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 105, 400-411.

34.

Moore, B.C.J. , Stone, M.A. , & Alcántara, J.I. (2001). Comparison of the electroacoustic characteristics of five hearing aids. British Journal of Audiology , 35, 307-325.

35.

Moore, B.C.J. , Wojtczak, M. , & Vickers, D.A. (1996). Effect of loudness recruitment on the perception of amplitude modulation. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 100, 481-489.

36.

Noordhoek, I.M. , & Drullman, R. (1997). Effect of reducing temporal intensity modulations on sentence intelligibility. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 101, 498-502.

37.

Peters, R.W. , Moore, B.C.J. , & Baer, T. (1998). Speech reception thresholds in noise with and without spectral and temporal dips for hearing-impaired and normally hearing people. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 103, 577-587.

38.

Pick, G. , Evans, E.F. , & Wilson, J.P. (1977). Frequency resolution in patients with hearing loss of cochlear origin. In E. F. Evans & J. P. Wilson (Eds.), Psychophysics and physiology of hearing (pp. 273-281). London: Academic Press.

39.

Plomp, R. (1983). The role of modulation in hearing. In R. Klinke & R. Hartmann (Eds.), Hearing-physiological bases and psychophysics (pp. 270-276). Berlin, Germany: Springer.

40.

Plomp, R. (1988). The negative effect of amplitude compression in multichannel hearing aids in the light of the modulation-transfer function . Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 83, 2322-2327.

41.

Robinson, C.E. , & Huntington, D.A. (1973). The intelligibility of speech processed by delayed long-term averaged compression amplification. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 54, 314.

42.

Smith, Z.M. , Delgutte, B. , & Oxenham, A.J. (2002). Chimaeric sounds reveal dichotomies in auditory perception. Nature, 416, 87-90.

43.

Souza, P.E. (2002). Effects of compression on speech acoustics, intelligibility, and sound quality. Trends in Amplification, 6, 131-165.

44.

Steinberg, J.C. , & Gardner, M.B. (1937). The dependency of hearing impairment on sound intensity. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 9, 11-23.

45.

Stone, M.A. , & Moore, B.C.J. (1992). Syllabic compression: Effective compression ratios for signals modulated at different rates. British Journal of Audiology, 26, 351-361.

46.

Stone, M.A. , & Moore, B.C.J. (2003). Effect of the speed of a single-channel dynamic range compressor on intelligibility in a competing speech task. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 114, 1023-1034.

47.

Stone, M.A. , & Moore, B.C.J. (2004). Side effects of fast-acting dynamic range compression that affect intelligibility in a competing speech task. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 116, 2311-2323.

48.

Stone, M.A. , & Moore, B.C.J. (2007). Quantifying the effects of fast-acting compression on the envelope of speech. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 121, 1654-1664.

49.

Stone, M.A. , & Moore, B.C.J. (2008). Effects of spectrotemporal modulation changes produced by multi-channel compression on intelligibility in a competing-speech task. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 123, 1063-1076.

50.

Stone, M.A. , Moore, B.C.J. , Alcántara, J.I. , & Glasberg, B.R. (1999). Comparison of different forms of compression using wearable digital hearing aids. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 106, 3603-3619.

51.

Tan, C.T. , & Moore, B.C.J. (2004, April). Comparison of two forms of fast-acting compression using physical and subjective measures. Paper presented at the Proceedings of the 18th International Congress on Acoustics , Kyoto, Japan.

52.

van Buuren, R.A. , Festen, J. , & Houtgast, T. (1999). Compression and expansion of the temporal envelope: Evaluation of speech intelligibility and sound quality. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 105, 2903-2913.

53.

Van den Bogaert, T. , Klasen, T.J. , Moonen, M. , Van Deun, L. , & Wouters, J. (2006). Horizontal localization with bilateral hearing aids: Without is better than with. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 119, 515-526.

54.

Verschuure, J. , Maas, A.J.J. , Stikvoort, E. , de Jong, R.M. , Goedegebure, A. , & Dreschler, W.A. (1996). Compression and its effect on the speech signal. Ear & Hearing, 17, 162-175.

55.

Villchur, E. (1974). Simulation of the effect of recruitment on loudness relationships in speech. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 56, 1601-1611.