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Aural Masking
Definition: Aural masking is a phenomenon where the perception of one sound is made less distinct due to the presence of another sound. This occurs when the louder or more dominant sound obscures or diminishes the perception of a quieter or less prominent sound.
Key Points:
- Frequency Dependence: Masking is often frequency-dependent, meaning that a sound at a certain frequency can mask another sound at a different frequency.
- Types of Masking:
- Simultaneous Masking: Occurs when the masking sound and the masked sound are present at the same time.
- Temporal Masking: Involves the masking sound preceding or following the masked sound by a short duration.
- Applications: Aural masking is important in fields such as psychoacoustics, hearing tests, and audio engineering. It helps in understanding how sounds interact and is used in designing hearing tests and audio processing systems to account for masking effects.