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The psychophysics and physiology of comodulation masking release

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Abstract

The ability to detect auditory signals from background noise may be enhanced by the addition of energy in frequency regions well removed from the frequency of the signal. However, it is important that this energy is amplitude-modulated in a coherent way across frequencies, i.e. comodulated. This enhancement of signal detectability is known as comodulation masking release (CMR), and in this review we show that CMR is largest if: (1) the total masker's bandwidth is large, (2) the modulation frequency is low, (3) the modulation depth is high, (4) the envelope is regular and, (5) the masker's spectrum level is high. Possible physiological correlates of CMR have been found at different levels of the auditory pathway. Current hypotheses for the underlying physiological mechanisms, including wide-band inhibition or the disruption of masker modulation envelope response, are discussed.

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Notes

  1. In contrast, Bacon et al. (1997) have obtained a CMR (UM-CM) that is considerably larger (on average approximately 7 dB) for a 2-kHz than for a 0.5-kHz tone-signal when compared at the same bandwidth in ERB. The reason for the different result obtained by Bacon et al. (1997) may be related to the difference in the modulator type. Haggard et al. (1990) and Verhey et al. (1999) used a low-pass noise modulator, whereas the CM masker used by Bacon et al. (1997) was a sinusoidally amplitude-modulated (SAM) noise.

  2. Low-pass noise contains envelope frequencies in a range from zero to the cut-off frequency of the noise, with a mean rate approximately half the cut-off frequency. Multiplying the modulator with the carrier without direct-current shift effectively doubles the mean frequency. The mean modulation frequency for this low-pass modulator is approximately 1.12 times the cut-off frequency of low-pass noise (Verhey et al. 1999).

Abbreviations

ACM:

Across-channel masking

AF CMR :

Across-frequency comodulation masking release

BF:

Best frequency

CB:

Critical band

CD:

Codeviant

CM:

Comodulated

CMR:

Comodulation masking release

DCN:

Dorsal cochlear nucleus

DV:

Deviant

ERB:

Equivalent rectangular bandwidth

FB:

Flanking band

OFM:

On-frequency masker

RF:

Reference

SAM:

Sinusoidal amplitude modulation

UM:

Unmodulated

VCN:

Ventral cochlear nucleus

WBI:

Wide-band inhibition

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Acknowledgements

Supported by the Wellcome Trust. The second author is currently supported by the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique. We thank Ray Meddis for many helpful discussions on the physiological mechanisms of CMR and the selection of appropriate stimuli.

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  1. Centre for the Neural Basis of Hearing, The Physiological Laboratory, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3EG, UK

    Jesko L. Verhey, Daniel Pressnitzer & Ian M. Winter

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  1. Jesko L. Verhey
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  3. Ian M. Winter
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Correspondence to Ian M. Winter.

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Verhey, J.L., Pressnitzer, D. & Winter, I.M. The psychophysics and physiology of comodulation masking release. Exp Brain Res 153, 405–417 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-003-1607-1

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