The intelligibility of re-inforced speech

Great progress has been made in the development of sound re-inforcement systems but relatively little is known about the factors governing the success or failure of such systems when installed.

In the recently developed delayed sound re-inforcement system the illusion can be maintained that the sound is coming from the talker and not from the loudspeakers by introducing an appropriate delay into the re-inforcement circuit. In addition to a more natural quality, such a system can also furnish a higher intelligibility of speech than a straight reinforcement system.

This is, however, not always the case as such a system can also have a lower intelligibility than a straight system. Using the recently determined integration characteristics of the hearing mechanism as basis, some light is thrown on the factors governing the intelligibility of re-inforced speech.