Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions -- AuDSim
1) Why don't I hear any sound when presenting the tone?
Signal levels in AuDSim are controlled by two volume controls; the Window's operating system main volume control and the AudSim monitor level sliders (located at the left side of the audiometer screen).
a) Check that Window's main volume, wave volume, and PC Speaker volume controls are not turned down or muted. (Double click the yellow speaker symbol on the windows taskbar or use the Control Panel to display the volume control dialog)
b) In AuDSim adjust the active channel (right or left) monitor level slider control.
2) Why don't I hear any masking noise?
See 1) above. Also, you must have a soundcard with the proper drivers installed on your computer to generate masking noise. If AuDSim fails to detect a soundcard at start-up you will see the message "No Audio Card Found -- Silent Masking Simulation". In this case you only hear tones presented from the PC's speaker.
3) Why does the volume of tone/masking signals sound the same regardless of the dB level setting?
The software simulation is from the audiologists viewpoint, therefore, the stimulus signals that you hear are at monitored levels not presentation levels.
4) How do I erase a mistakenly placed marker?
If you only want to remark a threshold just click "Mark Threshold" again at the correct dB level.
To clear the marker from the current frequency select "Reset | Reset Current Marker".
5) Why did I get the message "Tone Presentation Too Short Errors = 361" on the printout?
The tone button should stay depressed for at least a second. If you are using very short presentations (as you might if this were a video game instead of practice at hearing testing), then this error message will appear. While an audiologist may have a few such errors, having hundreds or even dozens of errors means that you are not using a proper tone presentation interval.
6) Why does my measured threshold not match the actual threshold?
In the print out you sent, the actual threshold in one case was -20 dB HL. The lowest sound level an audiometer can produce is -10 dB HL, so you correctly marked that at threshold. In the other example, the bone conduction actual threshold at 250 Hz was 60 dB HL, and you marked NR45, meaning no response at 45 dB HL, the loudest that the audiometer can produce. This is correct. In the other example, you marked the threshold as 40 and the actual threshold was 45. This is an error on your part, but can happen occasionally. No patient is perfectly consistent, and sometimes you will measure a threshold 5 dB different from the actual threshold. It would be rare to make a 10 dB error. If you have several errors of this nature, you are probably not testing using the right technique. You should test in handholding mode again to see where your technique is in error.
7) Why can't I get the bone conduction levels as high as for air conduction?
An audiometer has "limits" to its output. The simulator reflects typical output limits. Bone conduction limits are lower than air conduction. A loud bone conduction sound would be felt, so the low frequencies are limited at a fairly low level. Also, more energy is required to "drive" a bone oscillator, and this limits the loudest sound that an audiometer can produce. Mark "no response" if the patient does not hear the sound. This may limit your ability to determine site of lesion. You may be able to tell that the patient's loss is conductive, but be unable to determine if the loss is sensorineural or mixed.
8). How do I tell if the hearing loss is conductive, mixed or sensorineural?
Print the audiogram by clicking on File | Print Audiogram. Review the air and bone conduction thresholds to determine the site of lesion. Because professors may ask the students to determine the type of loss and describe its severity, the answer print out does not specify the type of loss. For help in checking your understanding of this information, use the tutorials on audiogram interpretation found on the Resources page.
9) Why doesn't my threshold match... ?
If you test a masking patient and don't use contralateral masking when needed, then your threshold may be lower than the true threshold. Use of proper contralateral masking causes a central masking effect that shifts threshold a few dB. With masking, the measured thresholds will likely be about 5 dB higher than the actual thresholds.
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