Effect of Compression on Musical Sound Quality in Cochlear Implant Users.
Melanie Gilbert, Patpong Jiradejvong, Charles Limb
PMID 30946137WHAT IT FOUND
Cochlear implant users were less able than normal-hearing listeners to notice added compression in short music clips.
Both groups tended to rate more compressed clips as worse, but implant users detected the changes less strongly.
Key findings
01Cochlear implant users were less sensitive than normal-hearing listeners to added compression in music.
02Both groups rated more compressed clips as poorer in sound quality, but implant users detected the change less strongly.
03Classical clips were rated as least affected by added compression, while country, jazz, and hip-hop clips were rated slightly lower than classical clips; rock clips were not rated significantly different from classical clips.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
Only 7 cochlear implant recipients were tested, so the result may not represent all implant users. The clips were only 5 seconds long and came from commercial recordings, so they may not reflect how people experience whole pieces or real-world music. The implant group used different devices and processing strategies, and 4 participants were bilaterally implanted while 3 were unilaterally implanted. The normal-hearing and implant groups differed in age, although the authors did not see an obvious difference in how they used the rating software. The study tested one ear in implant users and did not examine bilateral or bimodal listening. The study did not test whether altering compression settings improves music quality.
Declared interests
Authors declare no other conflicts of interest. The article is listed as supported by NIH extramural and non-U.S. government research funding.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that changing cochlear implant compression settings will improve music quality. The study measured detection of added compression in 5-second clips in 7 implant users and did not test programming changes or real-world listening.