<p>In Sweden, about 10% of the adult population experienceshearing problems that cause them difficulties in everydaycommunication, and approximately 60 000 people are providedwith hearing aids each year. Despite the fact that modernhearing aids can facilitate speech communication in a widerange of listening environments, many hearing-aid users aredissatisfied with their hearing aids. It is likely that theclinical methods used for individual fitting of the hearingaids are not optimal.</p><p>The current study investigates prescriptive methods fornonlinear, wide dynamic range compression (WDRC) hearinginstruments. The goal is to draw general conclusions about thepreferences of hearing aid users. Therefore, the prescriptionsare evaluated using well-established models of loudness andspeech intelligibility.</p><p>Current methods differed considerably in prescribed gain.Evaluations in a laboratory test, with 20 hearing-impairedlisteners, showed that these differences led to largedifferences in perceived and calculated loudness, but only tominor differences in measured and predicted speech recognitionscores. The difference in loudness was explored in a studywhere 21 first-time hearing-aid users compared twoprescriptions. One method led to normal and the other toless-than-normal overall calculated loudness (according to theloudness model of Moore and Glasberg (1997)). The prescriptionthat led to less-than-normal overall loudness was clearlypreferred in field and in laboratory tests.</p><p>Preferred overall loudness was then quantified.Hearing-impaired participants with mild to moderate hearingloss preferred considerably less-than-normal overall calculatedloudness in both eld and laboratory tests. There were nosignificant differences between inexperienced and experiencedhearing aid users. Normal-hearing participants, on the otherhand, preferred close-to-normal overall calculated loudness. Inaddition, a potential problem with the loudness model wasencountered: despite the fact that the hearing-impairedlisteners were provided with less than normal overallcalculated loudness, they rated loudness higher than thenormal-hearing listeners.</p><p>The results refute the most commonly adopted rationale forprescriptive methods for WDRC hearing aids - that overallloudness should be restored to normal. Hearing-impairedlisteners with mild to moderate hearing loss preferredconsiderably less than normal overall loudness. This should betaken into account when deriving new prescriptive methods, andwhen providing clients with hearing aids.</p><p><b>Key words:</b>hearing impairment, hearing aid, nonlinear,WDRC, hearing aid experience, prescription, loudness, loudnessmodel, speech intelligibility, preference.</p>

Under en längre tid har fenomenet ”loudness war” varit föremål för omfattande diskussioner. Trots detta finns en begränsad mängd information angående musikproduktionsstudenters syn på stark musik, inom olika genrer ur ett kvalitativt perspektiv. Denna uppsats undersöker loudness och loudness war utifrån ett industriellt techno-perspektiv samt musikproduktionsstudenters uppfattning om stark musik vid användning av hörlurar. Metoderna som tillämpades var lyssningstester och enkäter. Där fick studenter uttryckte sina åsikter om ämnet och angav den föredragna ljudstyrkan enligt deras bedömning. Resultaten från undersökningen visade att den mest komprimerade versionen var föredragen. Dock så visade studenterna även en preferens för mindre komprimerade versioner. Studien har bidragit med ny insikt gällande loudness inom industriell techno samt skillnader i ljudupplevelsen mellan mer och mindre komprimerade musikstycken.

In order to investigate what work methods professional audio engineers use to comply with the EBU R 128 recommendation in live TV broadcasts, an interview study was conducted. The purpose of the study was to provide novice and professional engineers with information about what work methods to use when trying to comply with the current loudness standards in live situations. Furthermore, the study may also contribute with new perspectives to the already existing production guidelines developed by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Five professional audio engineers from the TV broadcasting industry were interviewed. The subjects in this study suggest another way of measuring the loudness of live broadcasted music shows. Instead of measuring the whole program, the subjects argue that loudness measurements of the dialogue may be a more appropriate measurement method. Furthermore, a widening of the tolerance window of the EBU R 128 recommendation is suggested for music shows. The current tolerance window of  1 LU needs to be expanded to  1.5-2 LU, according to the subjects in this study and for music shows in particular.

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This study explores the effects of manipulating vocal loudness and speech rate on voice onset time (VOT) in normal hearing children and two children with cochlear implants (CIs). 15 normal hearing participants and two participants with CIs produced all six stop consonants in the phrase “It’s a Cod again” while speaking normally, softly, loudly, slowly, and quickly. Consonants were grouped into voiced and voiceless categories for comparison. Results indicated that the group of normal hearing children produced longer VOTs for voiceless stops than voiced across all conditions. When speaking loudly or quickly, VOT values were shorter than at normal levels. When speaking softly or slowly, VOT values were longer than at normal levels. The two children with CIs performed in a similar manner to the normal hearing group; however, VOTs produced by the six-year old participant were consistently longer than those of the normal hearing group across all conditions. / Speech-Language Pathology

This study explored the physiological adjustments made by the speech mechanism when sustained maximum phonations and sentences differing in vocal loudness were produced by typically developing children and children with cerebral palsy (CP). Respiratory adjustments (lung volume initiation, termination and excursions), chest wall muscular amplitude adjustments (intercostal, obliques), vocal fold adjustments (speed quotient), fundamental frequency of selected vowel nuclei and area of mouth opening were calculated. A total of eight children (4 typically developing children, 4 children with CP) were studied. Results indicated that overall typically developing children adjusted lung volume initiation, lung volume excursion, intercostal and oblique muscle activity, speed quotient, fundamental frequency, and area of mouth opening to meet vocal loudness targets. In contrast, children with CP primarily adjusted intercostal and oblique muscle activity, speed quotient, and fundamental frequency to meet vocal loudness targets. / Speech-Language Pathology

La consommation de musique live durant les concerts peut avoir des conséquences graves pour les individus et la société dans son ensemble. Cette thèse explore les motivations des consommateurs à s’exposer à des niveaux sonores extrêmes. Nous nous concentrons plus précisément sur le cas du métal, un genre qui place la puissance sonore au coeur de son identité collective. Nous analysons comment les amateurs du genre valorisent des niveaux sonores potentiellement délétères. Nous utilisons un paradigme sémiotique afin d’interpréter les données issues d’un travail ethnographique multi-méthodes et identifions quatre registres de valorisation : épistémique et transformatif, politique, spirituel, et esthétique. Cette approche dégage le sens profond et riche de la consommation de la puissance sonore et contribue ainsi à expliquer la résistance de certains consommateurs aux politiques de santé publiques promouvant la protection de soi. Notre analyse mitige également l’absolutisme des recommandations émises par la psychologie des comportements de santé du consommateur, un courant de recherche que nous analysons dans notre section théorique. / The consumption of live music during concerts can have dire consequences for individuals and society alike. This dissertation explores consumers’ motivations to expose themselves to extreme sound levels. Focusing on metal – i.e. a genre that places loudness at the heart of its collective identity – we discuss how music enthusiasts come to valorize potentially deleterious sonic stimuli. We use a semiotic framework to interpret our multi-method ethnography and identify four areas of valorization with respect to loudness: epistemic and self-transformative, political, spiritual, and aesthetic. This approach paints loudness consumption as a deeply meaningful process. In doing so, it helps to understand consumers’ resistances to the public policies that advocate self-protection from harmful sound levels. It also casts doubt about the absolutism that shrouds the recommendations issued from consumer health psychology, a research stream we review in our theoretical section.

Actors often receive training to develop effective strategies for using the voice on stage. Arthur Lessac developed a training approach that concentrated on three energies: structural action, tonal action, and consonant action. Together, these energies help to create a more resonant voice, which is characterized by a fuller sound that carries well over noise and distance. In Lessac-Based Resonant Voice Therapy, voice clinicians help clients achieve a resonant voice through structural posturing and awareness of tonal changes. However, LBRVT does not include the third component of Lessac's approach: consonant action. This study examines the effect that increased consonant energy has on the speaking voice--particularly regarding loudness. Audio samples were collected from eight actor participants who read a monologue using three distinct styles: normal articulation, poor articulation (elicited using a bite block), and over-articulation (elicited using a Lessac-based training intervention). Participants learned about the "consonant orchestra," practiced producing each sound in a consonant cluster word list, and practiced linking the consonants in short phrases. Twenty graduate students of speech-language pathology listened to speech samples from the different conditions, and made comparative judgments regarding articulation, loudness, and projection. Group results showed that the over-articulation condition was selected as having the greatest articulation, loudness, and projection in comparison to the other conditions, although vocal intensity (dB SPL) was not statistically different. These findings indicate that articulation treatment may be beneficial for increasing perceived vocal loudness.

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