What is good sound?

Posted on 24/11/2011 09:20:00

The perception of what constitutes good sound varies a great deal from person to person. But according to Lars Baekgaard, a Widex electronics engineer and a self declared audio geek, there are some very definite parameters that must be met to ensure proper sound quality. “These include bandwidth and the degree of noise that is present in the sound. It is also important that there is no distortion, and that no noises are generated which were not present in the original sound picture. So yes, good sound is largely a matter of taste, but not entirely”, says Lars.

Such considerations are taken into account every time Widex chooses components and signal processing methods, and when, during development, we listen to the hearing aids to make sure that the sound is exactly as we want. So how do you choose the right components?” We measure them and listen to them, to make sure they are the best,” says Lars.

Another challenge in achieving good sound is the size of modern hearing aids – the smaller the space, the smaller the various components have to be. “We should really look upon a hearing aid as a device of compromises because there will always be a limit to the level at which such a tiny speaker can play,” Lars explains. When choosing speakers for hearing aids, in addition to considering the tiny amount of space available, we also have to ensure that they do not use too much power, because minimal battery consumption is vital for today’s consumers.

Choosing the right components and engineering our own signal processing methods are essential elements in the development of a new hearing aid, but the development process also has a more subjective side – namely the slightly softer parameters that we choose according to our own individual taste and which help us to round out the sound, making it clearer and more pleasant. The result is what we call the Widex Sound.