Uneva relies on Genelec sound for its research center

In the Institute of Neurosciences of Castilla y León A soundproof room with variable reverberation has been created that allows to simulate listening thanks to a ring of three meters in diameter that incorporates 24 Monitors Genelec 8020, supplied by Audio-Technica Iberia.

The Acoustic-Auditory Assessment Unit (Uneva) of the University of Salamanca (USAL) Houses cutting-edge research in hearing aid and implant technology. Located in the Institute of Neurosciences of Castilla y León, is considered a pioneering infrastructure for hearing technology in the region. At the heart of the installation is a soundproof room with variable reverberation that allows you to simulate listening in various sound environments thanks to its studio monitors Genelec 8020.

The unit can be used for research based on perception experiments, both with healthy people and those suffering from pathologies, as well as for research in the field of neuroscience Theoretical and computational model development.

It also helps with model research to improve hearing implants., hearing aids and other hearing aids, as well as diagnostic methods for people with problems. In addition, The unit is used to demonstrate whether new sound processing for hearing aids and the new devices themselves are beneficial to users..

The computational models developed in this laboratory serve to simulate how the healthy auditory system works and how the representation of sound in the brain of a listener would be altered when there is a disease or injury..

"This way, We can simulate how sounds are encoded in the healthy ear and how they stop being encoded when there is damage.", explains the teacher Enrique Lopez Poveda, director of Uneva. "And how we have the models that simulate the behavior of the healthy ear, We can use them as a basis to build hearing aids or hearing implants. I mean, You have an algorithm that reproduces the behavior of the healthy ear, and when the ear is impaired, We use that algorithm to reproduce what's failing and rebuild it.".

The variable acoustics room is the central space to carry out this research. People with hearing problems who use hearing aids or cochlear implants have been observed, have little trouble understanding speech when there is no reverberation, But in a reverberant space they have great difficulties. The other significant factor is how noisy the environment is.. So, The room has been set up to test these observations and see how technology can be used to overcome these challenges..

The room itself has been electrically shielded, Soundproofed and equipped with panels that can be opened or closed to adjust reverberation and absorption, allowing testing in realistic environments.

At the heart of this space has been placed a ring of three meters in diameter that incorporates twenty-four monitors 8020, supplied by Audio-Technica Iberia, the local distributor of Genelec, that allows researchers to create and change ambient noise levels in space.

"A typical test is to reproduce a phrase., word or conversation in the presence of other phrases, words or noise from other sources", explains Professor López Poveda. "For example, A phrase is played through one monitor and the listener would have to repeat it while other monitors play ambient noise and other voice sources. If the listener correctly repeats what he has heard, We raise the noise level. The more noise and phrases are used, It is more difficult to correctly understand the main sentence".

It was its reliability, Its neutral sound and its ability to adapt its frequency response to the listening environment led to the selection of the model 8020 for this project. Monitors are a fundamental element of the work carried out at Uneva, as research requires an exceptional level of precision and consistency.

the 8020 It has become a reference for near-field monitoring of 2 Compact tracks, And its small size and curved design enclosure make it perfect for 'transparent' behavior, producing less reflections and diffraction even when many monitors have been installed in close proximity to each other.

The first stage of the project has been the installation of the 24 Monitors, But there are plans to further develop the unit..

"We have created a ring of speakers, but we could add more", says Professor López Poveda. "We could build a sphere, since the design of the ring also allows it to be rotated and hung from the ceiling, for which we have provided hooks in different positions; It's very versatile".

Other articles on Audio-Technica Iberia, Genelec, Institute of Neurosciences of Castilla y León, Acoustic-auditory evaluation unit-Uneva, University of Salamanca