Re: Robust method of fundamental frequency estimation.

[Eckard Blumschein <Eckard.Blumschein@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Alain de Cheveigne' <Alain.de.Cheveigne@xxxxxx> wrote:

> pitch perception models
> (http://cognition.ens.fr/Audition/adc/pdf/2005_pitch_SHAR.pdf) might
> be of use.

Thank you, Alain. Admittedly, I did not look into the original posting and the
many replies to it, except Dan's, before I replied to him. Meanwhile I read your
book chapter quoted above and pondered about the possible reason why it is so
difficult to correctly estimate the fundamental frequency at low tones. You seem
to still admit a variety of quite different models. I strive for sorting out
inappropriate ones. Dan's frequency analysis of A0 on a piano again convincingly
demonstrates that at least in this case, pitch cannot be perceived from any
frequency out of the spectral pattern. Obviously, the fundamental frequency is
to be seen as the distances between the spectral peaks. I conclude, there are at
least two lower frequency limitations:

Audibility of pure tones is known to depend on SPL.

I expect an additional lower frequency limit for recognition of fundamental
frequency to depend on the critical bandwidth.

So you might wonder why cochlear frequency analysis is not more acute? Well this
is understandable to those like me who have minimal knowledge in signal
processing: In order to reach high accuracy in subsequent time domain, one has
to have enough bandwidth.
Please check and, if they turn out correct, then consider these arguments within
the next edition of the book.

Sincerely,
Eckard Blumschein