Objective evaluation of the audibility of transient errors in an adaptive A/D conversion channel

An adaptive analog-to-digital conversion channel for audio, using automatic gain control, generates transient errors that may be audible. Evaluating the audibility of such errors requires subjective evaluation using listening tests. From an electrical circuit design point-of-view this is not feasible, due to design time constraints. This paper investigates the use of the model output variables (MOVs) from the Perceptual Evaluation of Audio Quality (PEAQ) method, for objectively evaluating the transient errors of the conversion channel, in order to optimize the design and reduce design time. The objective method is compared with results from an alternative forced choice listening test. The comparison shows that the objective method can be used to evaluate the audibility of the transient errors; thus the method can be applied when designing the circuit implementing the channel.