Effect of Compression Type and Number of Channels on Speech Perception in Quiet in Listeners with Different Audiogram Configurations
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Abstract
Background and Aim: The flexibility to control the gain in different frequency regions by setting compression parameters in a larger number of compression channels in hearing aids will be advantageous to individuals with a sloping audiogram. The objective of the study was to compare the aided speech identification scores and speech quality ratings in quiet for three aided conditions (i.e. 4-channel, 8-channel, and 16-channel), with syllabic and dual compression, at two input levels (60 dB SPL and 80 dB SPL) in individuals with flat, gently sloping, and steeply sloping sensorineural hearing loss.
Methods: The participants were 36 native speakers of Kannada adults with sensorineural hearing loss. In a repeated-measures design, aided speech identification score for sentences in quiet and speech quality ratings were obtained at two input levels (60 dB SPL and 80 dB SPL) with three hearing aids (having 4-, 8-, & 16- channels), programmed for dual and syllabic compression settings.
Results: The results revealed that there was no significant difference in the aided speech identification scores and speech quality ratings, in different aided conditions, in the three groups.
Conclusion: There was no additional perceptual benefit in quiet with an increase in the number of channels (from 4 to 16) in hearing aids, either in syllabic or dual compression, at conversation speech level or loud speech level, in individuals with different audiogram configurations.
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[2] Souza PE. Effects of compression on speech acoustics, intelligibility, and sound quality. Trends Amplif. 2002;6(4):131-65. [DOI:10.1177/108471380200600402]
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[7] Hickson LMH. Compression amplification in hearing aids. Am J Audiol. 1994;3(3):51-65. [DOI:10.1044/1059-0889.0303.51]
[8] Keidser G, Grant F. The preferred number of channels (one,two, or four) in NAL-NL1 prescribed Wide Dynamic Range Compression (WDRC) devices. Ear Hear. 2001;22(6):516-27. [DOI:10.1097/00003446-200112000-00007]
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[14] Crain TR, Yund EW. The effect of multichannel compression on vowel and stop-consonant discrimination in normal-hearing and hearing-impaired subjects. Ear Hear. 1995;16(5):529-43. [DOI:10.1097/00003446-199510000-00010]
[15] Gatehouse S, Naylor G, Elberling C. Linear and nonlinear hearing aid fittings--1. Patterns of benefit. Int J Audiol. 2006;45(3):130-52. [DOI:10.1080/14992020500429518]
[16] Hansen M. Effects of multi-channel compression time constants on subjectively perceived sound quality and speech intelligibility. Ear Hear. 2002;23(4):369-80. [DOI:10.1097/00003446-200208000-00012]
[17] Neuman AC, Bakke MH, Mackersie C, Hellman Sh, Levitt H. The effect of compression ratio and release time on the categorical rating of sound quality. J Acoust Soc Am. 1998;103(5):2273. [DOI:10.1121/1.422745]
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[19] Alexander JM, Masterson K. Effects of WDRC release time and number of channels on output SNR and speech recognition. Ear Hear. 2015;36(2):e35-49. [DOI:10.1097/AUD.0000000000000115]
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[22] Chen Y, Wong LLN, Kuehnel V, Qian J, Voss SC, Shangqiguo W. Can dual compression offer better Mandarin speech intelligibility and sound quality than fast-acting compression? Trends Hear. 2021;25. [DOI:10.1177/2331216521997610]
[23] Maxwell DL, Satake E. Research and statistical methods in communication sciences and disorders. Boston: Thomson/Delmar Learning; 2006. https://books.google.com/books?id=O75rAAAAMAAJ&dq
[24] Stephens D. Audiological terms. In: Martini A, Mazzoli M, Stephens D, Read A, editors. Definitions, protocols & guidelines in genetic hearing impairment. London: Whurr Publishers Ltd; 2001.p. 12-5.
[25] American National Standards Institute. Maximum permissible ambient noise levels for audiometric rooms [Internet]. 1999 [Updated 2013 November 26]. Available from: https://webstore.ansi.org/standards/asa/ansiasas31999r2013
[26] Geetha Ch, Kumar KSS, Manjula P, Pavan M. Development and standardization of the sentence identification test in the Kannada language. J Hear Sci. 2014;4(1):18-26. [DOI:10.17430/890267]
[27] Mascarenhas KE, Yathiraj A. High frequency- Kannada speech identification test [MSc. thesis]. Mysore: University of Mysore; 2002.
[28] Boike KT, Souza PE. Effect of compression ratio on speech recognition and speech-quality ratings with wide dynamic range compression amplification. J Speech Lang Hear Res. 2000;43(2):456-68. [DOI:10.1044/jslhr.4302.456]
[29] Smith ZM, Delgutte B, Oxenham AJ. Chimaeric sounds reveal dichotomies in auditory perception. Nature. 2002;416(6876):87-90. [DOI:10.1038/416087a]
[30] Udhayakumar R, Devi N. Comparison of temporal and envelope cues in hearing aids: Use of Malayalam language chimeric sentences and two compression strategies. J Hear Sci. 2020;10(1):33-40. [DOI:10.17430/JHS.2020.10.1.4]
[31] Salorio-Corbetto M, Baer T, Stone MA, Moore BCJ. Effect of the number of amplitude-compression channels and compression speed on speech recognition by listeners with mild to moderate sensorineural hearing loss. J Acoust Soc Am. 2020;147(3):1344. [DOI:10.1121/10.0000804]
[32] Gatehouse S, Naylor G, Elberling C. Linear and nonlinear hearing aid fittings - 2. Patterns of candidature. Int J Audiol. 2006;45(3):153-71. [DOI:10.1080/14992020500429484]
[33] Shetty HN, Raju S. Effect of compression release time of a hearing aid on sentence recognition and the quality judgment of speech. Noise Health. 2019;21(103):232-41. https://www.noiseandhealth.org/text.asp?2019/21/103/232/295357
[34] Cox RM, Xu J. Short and long compression release times: Speech understanding, real-world preferences, and association with cognitive ability. J Am Acad Audiol. 2010;21(02):121-38. [DOI:10.3766/jaaa.21.2.6]
[35] Moore BCJ, Füllgrabe Ch, Stone MA. Effect of spatial separation, extended bandwidth, and compression speed on intelligibility in a competing-speech task. J Acoust Soc Am. 2010;128(1):360. [DOI:10.1121/1.3436533]
[36] Ibrahim I, Parsa V, Macpherson E, Cheesman M. Evaluation of speech intelligibility and sound localization abilities with hearing aids using binaural wireless technology. Audiol Res. 2013;3(1):1-9. [DOI:10.4081/audiores.2013.e1]
[37] Wiggins IM, Seeber BU. Linking dynamic-range compression across the ears can improve speech intelligibility in spatially separated noise. J Acoust Soc Am. 2013;133(2):1004. [DOI:10.1121/1.4773862]
[2] Souza PE. Effects of compression on speech acoustics, intelligibility, and sound quality. Trends Amplif. 2002;6(4):131-65. [DOI:10.1177/108471380200600402]
[3] Villchur E. Signal processing to improve speech intelligibility in perceptive deafness. J Acoust Soc Am. 1973;53(6):1646. [DOI:10.1121/1.1913514]
[4] Moore BCJ, Glasberg BR. A comparison of two-channel and single-channel compression hearing aids. Audiology. 1986;25(4-5):210-26. [DOI:10.3109/00206098609078387]
[5] Souza PE, Turner CW. Multichannel compression, temporal cues, and audibility. J Speech Lang Hear Res. 1998;41(2):315-26. [DOI:10.1044/jslhr.4102.315]
[6] Kam AC, Wong LL. Comparison of performance with wide dynamic range compression and linear amplification. J Am Acad Audiol. 1999;10(8):445-57. [DOI:10.1055/s-0042-1748518]
[7] Hickson LMH. Compression amplification in hearing aids. Am J Audiol. 1994;3(3):51-65. [DOI:10.1044/1059-0889.0303.51]
[8] Keidser G, Grant F. The preferred number of channels (one,two, or four) in NAL-NL1 prescribed Wide Dynamic Range Compression (WDRC) devices. Ear Hear. 2001;22(6):516-27. [DOI:10.1097/00003446-200112000-00007]
[9] Bustamante DK, Braida LD. Multiband compression limiting for hearing-impaired listeners. J Rehabil Res Dev. 1987;24(4):149-60. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Louis-Braida-2/publication/19726711
[10] Moore BCJ. How much do we gain by gain control in hearing aids? Acta Otolaryngol. 1990;109(Suppl 469):250-6. [DOI:10.1080/00016489.1990.12088437]
[11] Nábĕlek IV. Performance of hearing-impaired listeners under various types of amplitude compression. J Acoust Soc Am. 1983;74(3):776. [DOI:10.1121/1.389865]
[12] Yund EW, Buckles KM. Multichannel compression hearing aids: Effect of number of channels on speech discrimination in noise. J Acoust Soc Am. 1995;97(2):1206. [DOI:10.1121/1.413093]
[13] Yund EW, Buckles KM. Enhanced speech perception at low signal-to-noise ratios with multichannel compression hearing aids. J Acoust Soc Am. 1995;97(2):1224. [DOI:10.1121/1.412232]
[14] Crain TR, Yund EW. The effect of multichannel compression on vowel and stop-consonant discrimination in normal-hearing and hearing-impaired subjects. Ear Hear. 1995;16(5):529-43. [DOI:10.1097/00003446-199510000-00010]
[15] Gatehouse S, Naylor G, Elberling C. Linear and nonlinear hearing aid fittings--1. Patterns of benefit. Int J Audiol. 2006;45(3):130-52. [DOI:10.1080/14992020500429518]
[16] Hansen M. Effects of multi-channel compression time constants on subjectively perceived sound quality and speech intelligibility. Ear Hear. 2002;23(4):369-80. [DOI:10.1097/00003446-200208000-00012]
[17] Neuman AC, Bakke MH, Mackersie C, Hellman Sh, Levitt H. The effect of compression ratio and release time on the categorical rating of sound quality. J Acoust Soc Am. 1998;103(5):2273. [DOI:10.1121/1.422745]
[18] Shi LF, Doherty KA. Subjective and objective effects of fast and slow compression on the perception of reverberant speech in listeners with hearing loss. J Speech Lang Hear Res. 2008;51(5):1328-40. [DOI:10.1044/1092-4388(2008/07-0196)]
[19] Alexander JM, Masterson K. Effects of WDRC release time and number of channels on output SNR and speech recognition. Ear Hear. 2015;36(2):e35-49. [DOI:10.1097/AUD.0000000000000115]
[20] Reinhart PN, Souza PE. Intelligibility and clarity of reverberant speech: Effects of wide dynamic range compression release time and working memory. J Speech Lang Hear Res. 2016;59(6):1543-54. [DOI:10.1044/2016_JSLHR-H-15-0371]
[21] Kowalewski B, Zaar J, Fereczkowski M, MacDonald EN, Strelcyk O, May T, et al. Effects of slow- and fast-acting compression on hearing-impaired listeners’ consonant-vowel identification in interrupted noise. Trends Hear. 2018; 22. [DOI:10.1177/2331216518800870]
[22] Chen Y, Wong LLN, Kuehnel V, Qian J, Voss SC, Shangqiguo W. Can dual compression offer better Mandarin speech intelligibility and sound quality than fast-acting compression? Trends Hear. 2021;25. [DOI:10.1177/2331216521997610]
[23] Maxwell DL, Satake E. Research and statistical methods in communication sciences and disorders. Boston: Thomson/Delmar Learning; 2006. https://books.google.com/books?id=O75rAAAAMAAJ&dq
[24] Stephens D. Audiological terms. In: Martini A, Mazzoli M, Stephens D, Read A, editors. Definitions, protocols & guidelines in genetic hearing impairment. London: Whurr Publishers Ltd; 2001.p. 12-5.
[25] American National Standards Institute. Maximum permissible ambient noise levels for audiometric rooms [Internet]. 1999 [Updated 2013 November 26]. Available from: https://webstore.ansi.org/standards/asa/ansiasas31999r2013
[26] Geetha Ch, Kumar KSS, Manjula P, Pavan M. Development and standardization of the sentence identification test in the Kannada language. J Hear Sci. 2014;4(1):18-26. [DOI:10.17430/890267]
[27] Mascarenhas KE, Yathiraj A. High frequency- Kannada speech identification test [MSc. thesis]. Mysore: University of Mysore; 2002.
[28] Boike KT, Souza PE. Effect of compression ratio on speech recognition and speech-quality ratings with wide dynamic range compression amplification. J Speech Lang Hear Res. 2000;43(2):456-68. [DOI:10.1044/jslhr.4302.456]
[29] Smith ZM, Delgutte B, Oxenham AJ. Chimaeric sounds reveal dichotomies in auditory perception. Nature. 2002;416(6876):87-90. [DOI:10.1038/416087a]
[30] Udhayakumar R, Devi N. Comparison of temporal and envelope cues in hearing aids: Use of Malayalam language chimeric sentences and two compression strategies. J Hear Sci. 2020;10(1):33-40. [DOI:10.17430/JHS.2020.10.1.4]
[31] Salorio-Corbetto M, Baer T, Stone MA, Moore BCJ. Effect of the number of amplitude-compression channels and compression speed on speech recognition by listeners with mild to moderate sensorineural hearing loss. J Acoust Soc Am. 2020;147(3):1344. [DOI:10.1121/10.0000804]
[32] Gatehouse S, Naylor G, Elberling C. Linear and nonlinear hearing aid fittings - 2. Patterns of candidature. Int J Audiol. 2006;45(3):153-71. [DOI:10.1080/14992020500429484]
[33] Shetty HN, Raju S. Effect of compression release time of a hearing aid on sentence recognition and the quality judgment of speech. Noise Health. 2019;21(103):232-41. https://www.noiseandhealth.org/text.asp?2019/21/103/232/295357
[34] Cox RM, Xu J. Short and long compression release times: Speech understanding, real-world preferences, and association with cognitive ability. J Am Acad Audiol. 2010;21(02):121-38. [DOI:10.3766/jaaa.21.2.6]
[35] Moore BCJ, Füllgrabe Ch, Stone MA. Effect of spatial separation, extended bandwidth, and compression speed on intelligibility in a competing-speech task. J Acoust Soc Am. 2010;128(1):360. [DOI:10.1121/1.3436533]
[36] Ibrahim I, Parsa V, Macpherson E, Cheesman M. Evaluation of speech intelligibility and sound localization abilities with hearing aids using binaural wireless technology. Audiol Res. 2013;3(1):1-9. [DOI:10.4081/audiores.2013.e1]
[37] Wiggins IM, Seeber BU. Linking dynamic-range compression across the ears can improve speech intelligibility in spatially separated noise. J Acoust Soc Am. 2013;133(2):1004. [DOI:10.1121/1.4773862]
| Files | ||
| Issue | Vol 31 No 3 (2022) | |
| Section | Research Article(s) | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.18502/avr.v31i3.9872 | |
| Keywords | ||
| Multichannel compression syllabic compression dual compression audiogram configuration speech identification score speech quality rating | ||
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How to Cite
1.
Narayanan SE, Manjula P. Effect of Compression Type and Number of Channels on Speech Perception in Quiet in Listeners with Different Audiogram Configurations. Aud Vestib Res. 2022;31(3):218-231.
