Individual Preference in Relation to the Temporal and Spatial Factors of the Sound Field: Factors Affecting Individual Differences in Subjective Preference Judgments
Soichiro Kuroki, Masumi Hamada, Hiroyuki Sakai and Yoichi Ando

Factors affecting individual differences in subjective preferences for various sound fields are discussed. The relations between temporal and spatial factors of sound fields and the individual differences in preferences for those fields were investigated by evaluating several characteristics of the 408 subjects in preference tests that were conducted in a sound simulation room over a period of four years. As the subjective preference for temporal factors is closely related to the effective duration of a sound source, ten different music pieces were used for the preference tests. The results show that, for each music piece, the most-preferred values of temporal factors can be predicted from the effective duration. Preference differences due to musical experiences were investigated by comparing the responses of test subjects with and without extensive musical experience. The experienced subjects preferred smaller values of temporal factors than did the inexperienced subjects did, and all subjects preferred sound fields with smaller IACC.

Key words: subjective preference, individual differences, concert hall, spatial and temporal factors, musical experience