Revision 7T · Full Tutorial Edition · Updated 1 September 2026
PWR-074 · SELF GUIDED full tutorial
Judge whether a second comfortable tone moved up or down
Pitch discrimination asks whether a second tone is higher or lower than the first. In this exact task, the learner hears balanced 20-, 10- and 5-Hz upward and downward pairs, commits U or D before feedback, keeps direction errors separate and retests unfamiliar base frequencies. The result is a profile for this tone pack, not a hearing threshold or pitch-memory score. Matched upward/downward evidence prevents a habitual ‘higher’ response from looking like fine discrimination.
What you will produceThe learner completes two 18-pair higher/lower sets and reports correct responses by 20-, 10- and 5-Hz difference, upward/downward direction, base frequency, confidence and symptoms.
Full step-by-step individual tutorial · TLU-PWR-074
The learner completes two 18-pair higher/lower sets and reports correct responses by 20-, 10- and 5-Hz difference, upward/downward direction, base frequency, confidence and symptoms.
Practise the supplied higher/lower tone-pair pack at one comfortable locked playback setting.
Score upward and downward answers separately at 20, 10 and 5 Hz, then compare the new-base Set B.
Keep usual hearing devices and communication supports in place and record their settings with the U/D sheet.
Qualified help is required for
Clinical assessment, diagnosis or treatment related to pitch discrimination.
Interpreting a home U/D pack as a hearing assessment or changing care because one frequency-difference cell changed.
Changing a prescribed hearing-device programme or designing clinical pitch testing, especially when hearing changed suddenly.
Never do this from the page alone
Treat correct U/D answers as an audiogram, auditory-processing diagnosis, absolute pitch or proof of speech/music improvement.
Raise volume, add repeated plays or discard a downward error to make a small difference appear reliable.
Continue tone pairs through ear pain, rising tinnitus, fullness, dizziness, distortion or marked listening fatigue.
2 · Get ready
Gather what you need and check the starting conditions
What you need
An exact higher/lower pair recipe for a helper using a tone generator or audio editor: every sine tone lasts 500 ms with 20 ms fades and the two tones are separated by 250 ms. Concealed Set A pairs, in Hz with answer: 500/520 U, 620/610 D, 740/745 U, 800/780 D, 920/930 U, 1040/1035 D, 600/580 D, 720/730 U, 840/835 D, 900/920 U, 1020/1010 D, 540/545 U, 700/720 U, 820/810 D, 940/945 U, 1000/980 D, 520/530 U, 640/635 D. Set B: 550/530 D, 670/680 U, 790/785 D, 850/870 U, 970/960 D, 1090/1095 U, 650/670 U, 770/760 D, 890/895 U, 950/930 D, 1070/1080 U, 590/585 D, 750/730 D, 870/880 U, 990/985 D, 1050/1070 U, 570/560 D, 690/695 U. Each set has three U and three D examples at 20, 10 and 5 Hz differences.
Same playback device and headphones/speakers.
The folded U/D keys above and a trial sheet grouped by 20, 10 and 5 Hz differences; this supplied fixture uses only the question ‘is the second tone higher or lower?’
Trial record for base tone, interval, answer, confidence and symptoms.
Before you start
Use only the supplied question ‘is the second tone higher or lower?’; a same/different task would require another fixture and score.
Set and lock a comfortable level; never increase it for small differences.
Use the same device/audio path and quiet seated setting.
Hearing loss, tinnitus or sudden change belongs with an audiologist.
3 · The method
Follow these steps in order
Choose one question
Write ‘is the second tone higher or lower?’ above the sheet and use only U or D for all 18 trials.
Why: Changing the question would make the supplied U/D key unusable.
Check: Every scored row has exactly one U or D response.
Verify easy anchors
Before Set A, play one unscored 500/600-Hz upward pair and one 600/500-Hz downward pair at the locked level.
Why: The two anchors confirm U/D labels and playback without revealing a scored file.
Check: The learner calls the anchors U then D without replay or discomfort.
Start with a large interval
Begin where difference is obvious rather than at the finest pair.
Why: Easy trials establish the task before threshold-like testing.
Check: The first trials are correct without replay.
Conceal upward and downward order
Use Set A's printed order so U and D cannot be guessed from an alternating sequence; filenames and key remain hidden until all responses are committed.
Why: Balanced random order reduces response bias.
Check: The completed block has nine U and nine D keyed rows.
Answer before feedback
Play each pair once under the fixed rule, answer and rate confidence, then check.
Check: No key or repeated tone precedes the answer.
Step interval by rule
Run every supplied pair once in its concealed order, then group results by 20, 10 and 5 Hz after the block; do not skip a hard pair, repeat a miss or adapt volume.
Why: Fixed balanced evidence at all three differences is interpretable without a home staircase pretending to be an audiometric threshold.
Check: All 18 pairs remain in the record and each difference has three upward and three downward trials.
Retest unfamiliar base tones
After delay, use new base frequencies with matched interval sizes.
Why: This tests relational discrimination beyond memorised tones.
Check: Base tones are new and level is unchanged.
Pair upward and downward reversals
For each tested interval, include a matched upward pair and downward pair with the same base-frequency region at separate concealed positions. Score the interval as stable only when both directions are identified under the declared rule.
Why: A learner who always chooses higher can score well in an upward-heavy set without reliably hearing the relation.
Check: Each interval has direction-balanced evidence, and a one-direction success is labelled asymmetric rather than passed.
Describe the neighbouring pattern
For each set, place the U and D counts for 20, 10 and 5 Hz side by side. Describe whether errors increase as differences shrink and flag a one-direction asymmetry; do not choose a pass cutoff or publish the smallest correct pair as a threshold.
Why: Neighbouring counts show gradual task difficulty without inventing a clinical rule from six trials per difference.
Check: All six direction-by-difference counts remain visible and any claimed pattern can be checked from them.
4 · Worked example
See the whole method used once
Scenario
Malik answers whether the second tone is higher or lower in the 18 concealed Set A pairs.
Walkthrough
He locks device and volume and verifies obvious upward and downward anchors.
He starts with large intervals, then the file interleaves smaller upward/downward pairs.
He answers once before feedback and records confidence.
He groups results into six cells: U and D at 20, 10 and 5 Hz, without selecting a pass cutoff.
At the delayed retest, new base tones test the same interval sizes.
Malik is correct on the three upward 5-Hz pairs but misses two of the three matched downward 5-Hz pairs, so 5 Hz is labelled direction-asymmetric rather than his pitch threshold.
Result
Malik’s six-cell U/D pattern improves partly on new base tones. The 5-Hz direction asymmetry remains visible, so he does not call 5 Hz a threshold. Nothing here establishes hearing as a whole, absolute pitch or clinical change.
5 · Right and wrong
Compare correct or safer execution with the common wrong version
Right and wrong comparison
Moment
Right / safer
Wrong / riskier
Why it matters
Question
Use U or D for every supplied pair.
Switch some rows to same/different even though no same pairs exist.
The tasks have different answers and chance rates.
Order
Balance and randomise directions.
Use a predictable up-down sequence.
Sequence guessing inflates accuracy.
Level
Lock a comfortable level.
Make subtle tones louder.
Level changes audibility and safety.
Threshold
Use repeated trials near each interval.
Call one correct tiny difference the threshold.
Lucky guesses occur.
Memory
Use new base tones to test relation.
Call discrimination pitch memory.
Comparing two immediate tones differs from remembering one later.
Interval evidence
Require matched upward and downward trials around the provisional level.
Accept a small interval after several upward trials and no downward reversal.
Direction imbalance can reward one response habit instead of pitch comparison.
6 · Common mistakes
Spot the error and apply the correction
Common mistakes and corrections
Mistake
Fix
Switch some rows to same/different even though the supplied pack has no same pairs.
Use only U or D; build and score a separate balanced fixture if same/different is later studied.
Use a predictable up-down sequence.
Balance and randomise directions.
Make subtle tones louder.
Lock a comfortable level.
Call one correct tiny difference the threshold.
Use repeated trials near each interval.
Call discrimination pitch memory.
Use new base tones to test relation.
The base tone rises across the whole file, allowing the learner to predict that the next answer is higher.
Shuffle base-frequency regions and directions independently while keeping the declared interval sizes balanced.
7 · Practice
Turn the steps into a usable skill
First session
A helper generates the exact 18 Set A and 18 Set B tone pairs, hides neutral filenames and keeps the U/D keys folded.
Write the higher/lower question, lock the audio chain and comfortable level, and complete one obvious U and D anchor.
Run all 18 concealed Set A pairs once each with answer and confidence committed before feedback.
Group the results by 20, 10 and 5 Hz and by U/D, keeping every miss and any response bias.
After at least 48 hours, run Set B's new base frequencies at the same level and compare each balanced difference without publishing a threshold.
Repeat plan
Run Set A once, wait at least 48 hours, then run Set B once. A later helper-built pack may add one smaller difference only after two fresh base-frequency sets show a coherent neighbouring pattern; keep U/D balance, level and one-play rule unchanged.
Progress when
Accuracy improves across repeated nearby intervals.
Higher/lower response bias falls.
Performance transfers to unfamiliar base tones at the same interval.
Do not progress when
Volume or device changes.
Ear symptoms or listening fatigue appears.
The learner merges memory, naming or musical skill into the score.
8 · Check the result
Measure what changed
Higher/lower accuracy pattern across declared frequency difference, direction and base tone
How: For each set, report correct out of three upward and correct out of three downward at 20, 10 and 5 Hz; retain each base pair, answer, confidence, level and symptom entry. Compare Set A with new-base Set B without turning any one cell into an audiometric threshold.
Good result: Both 18-pair keys reproduce, U and D results remain separate at 20, 10 and 5 Hz, and any Set B change occurs without extra plays, volume increase or symptoms. The counts describe this tone pack and are not an audiometric pass threshold.
This does not prove: Use a calibrated just-noticeable difference with declared carrier, harmonic structure, level and procedure; keep naming, memory and discrimination separate.
Self-check
Can you demonstrate “Verify easy anchors”? The unscored 500/600 and 600/500 pairs are called U then D without replay.
Can you demonstrate “Conceal upward and downward order”? The completed sheet contains nine keyed U rows and nine keyed D rows.
Can you demonstrate “Retest unfamiliar base tones”? Base tones are new and level is unchanged.
Can you show that the provisional interval works in both upward and downward directions at unfamiliar base frequencies?
9 · Stop, adapt or get help
Keep the safety boundary practical
Stop and get help
Stop for ear pain, tinnitus increase, fullness, dizziness or sound distortion.
Seek urgent assessment for sudden hearing loss or severe vertigo.
Use an audiologist when pitch difficulty is new, asymmetric or functionally important.
Accessibility and adaptations
Use speech, symbols or switches for answers with no speed requirement.
Extend inter-pair rest while preserving within-pair timing.
Use hearing devices in their ordinary setting and record that configuration.
10 · Evidence and limits
Why these instructions are here
primary research
Primary research supports pitch-discrimination learning with specificity to pitch and harmonic resolvability.
Use a calibrated just-noticeable difference with declared carrier, harmonic structure, level and procedure; keep naming, memory and discrimination separate.
Unsupported claim: Hear every frequency perfectly.
Unsupported claim: Develop perfect pitch by discrimination drills.
Unsupported claim: Superior pitch means superior musician.
Tone-pair discrimination does not establish absolute pitch, pitch memory, musical superiority or clinical hearing status.
Progress is saved only in this browser on this device.
Step-by-step learner mode
Each activity includes its success check, a nearby accessible alternative and an “I’m stuck” correction path. Alternatives preserve the target where possible; when they change the task, Titan labels them as related rather than equivalent.
01
Choose one question
Write ‘is the second tone higher or lower?’ above the sheet and use only U or D for all 18 trials.
Why this step exists
Changing the question would make the supplied U/D key unusable.
Success check
Every scored row has exactly one U or D response.
I’m stuck on this step
Reset: Re-read this authored instruction — “Write ‘is the second tone higher or lower?’ above the sheet and use only U or D for all 18 trials.” — and its success check, then attempt only this step.
Possible snag: The result from “Write ‘is the second tone higher or lower?’ above the sheet and use only U or D for all 18 trials.” does not yet meet this declared check: Every scored row has exactly one U or D response.
Correction: Return to the start of “Choose one question”, reduce complexity or pace, and repeat only the part needed to satisfy: “Every scored row has exactly one U or D response.”
Stop / get help: Stop for ear pain, tinnitus increase, fullness, dizziness or sound distortion.
02
Verify easy anchors
Before Set A, play one unscored 500/600-Hz upward pair and one 600/500-Hz downward pair at the locked level.
Why this step exists
The two anchors confirm U/D labels and playback without revealing a scored file.
Success check
The learner calls the anchors U then D without replay or discomfort.
I’m stuck on this step
Reset: Re-read this authored instruction — “Before Set A, play one unscored 500/600-Hz upward pair and one 600/500-Hz downward pair at the locked level.” — and its success check, then attempt only this step.
Possible snag: Make subtle tones louder.
Correction: Lock a comfortable level.
Stop / get help: Stop for ear pain, tinnitus increase, fullness, dizziness or sound distortion.
03
Start with a large interval
Begin where difference is obvious rather than at the finest pair.
Why this step exists
Easy trials establish the task before threshold-like testing.
Success check
The first trials are correct without replay.
I’m stuck on this step
Reset: Re-read this authored instruction — “Begin where difference is obvious rather than at the finest pair.” — and its success check, then attempt only this step.
Possible snag: The result from “Begin where difference is obvious rather than at the finest pair.” does not yet meet this declared check: The first trials are correct without replay.
Correction: Return to the start of “Start with a large interval”, reduce complexity or pace, and repeat only the part needed to satisfy: “The first trials are correct without replay.”
Stop / get help: Stop for ear pain, tinnitus increase, fullness, dizziness or sound distortion.
04
Conceal upward and downward order
Use Set A's printed order so U and D cannot be guessed from an alternating sequence; filenames and key remain hidden until all responses are committed.
Why this step exists
Balanced random order reduces response bias.
Success check
The completed block has nine U and nine D keyed rows.
I’m stuck on this step
Reset: Re-read this authored instruction — “Use Set A's printed order so U and D cannot be guessed from an alternating sequence; filenames and key remain hidden until all responses are committed.” — and its success check, then attempt only this step.
Possible snag: Use a predictable up-down sequence.
Correction: Balance and randomise directions.
Stop / get help: Stop for ear pain, tinnitus increase, fullness, dizziness or sound distortion.
05
Answer before feedback
Play each pair once under the fixed rule, answer and rate confidence, then check.
Why this step exists
Committed answers preserve discrimination data.
Success check
No key or repeated tone precedes the answer.
I’m stuck on this step
Reset: Re-read this authored instruction — “Play each pair once under the fixed rule, answer and rate confidence, then check.” — and its success check, then attempt only this step.
Possible snag: The result from “Play each pair once under the fixed rule, answer and rate confidence, then check.” does not yet meet this declared check: No key or repeated tone precedes the answer.
Correction: Return to the start of “Answer before feedback”, reduce complexity or pace, and repeat only the part needed to satisfy: “No key or repeated tone precedes the answer.”
Stop / get help: Stop for ear pain, tinnitus increase, fullness, dizziness or sound distortion.
06
Step interval by rule
Run every supplied pair once in its concealed order, then group results by 20, 10 and 5 Hz after the block; do not skip a hard pair, repeat a miss or adapt volume.
Why this step exists
Fixed balanced evidence at all three differences is interpretable without a home staircase pretending to be an audiometric threshold.
Success check
All 18 pairs remain in the record and each difference has three upward and three downward trials.
I’m stuck on this step
Reset: Re-read this authored instruction — “Run every supplied pair once in its concealed order, then group results by 20, 10 and 5 Hz after the block; do not skip a hard pair, repeat a miss or adapt volume.” — and its success check, then attempt only this step.
Possible snag: The result from “Run every supplied pair once in its concealed order, then group results by 20, 10 and 5 Hz after the block; do not skip a hard pair, repeat a miss or adapt volume.” does not yet meet this declared check: All 18 pairs remain in the record and each difference has three upward and three downward trials.
Correction: Return to the start of “Step interval by rule”, reduce complexity or pace, and repeat only the part needed to satisfy: “All 18 pairs remain in the record and each difference has three upward and three downward trials.”
Stop / get help: Stop for ear pain, tinnitus increase, fullness, dizziness or sound distortion.
07
Retest unfamiliar base tones
After delay, use new base frequencies with matched interval sizes.
Why this step exists
This tests relational discrimination beyond memorised tones.
Success check
Base tones are new and level is unchanged.
I’m stuck on this step
Reset: Re-read this authored instruction — “After delay, use new base frequencies with matched interval sizes.” — and its success check, then attempt only this step.
Possible snag: Call discrimination pitch memory.
Correction: Use new base tones to test relation.
Stop / get help: Stop for ear pain, tinnitus increase, fullness, dizziness or sound distortion.
08
Pair upward and downward reversals
For each tested interval, include a matched upward pair and downward pair with the same base-frequency region at separate concealed positions. Score the interval as stable only when both directions are identified under the declared rule.
Why this step exists
A learner who always chooses higher can score well in an upward-heavy set without reliably hearing the relation.
Success check
Each interval has direction-balanced evidence, and a one-direction success is labelled asymmetric rather than passed.
I’m stuck on this step
Reset: Re-read this authored instruction — “For each tested interval, include a matched upward pair and downward pair with the same base-frequency region at separate concealed positions. Score the interval as stable only when both directions are identified under the declared rule.” — and its success check, then attempt only this step.
Possible snag: Switch some rows to same/different even though the supplied pack has no same pairs.
Correction: Use only U or D; build and score a separate balanced fixture if same/different is later studied.
Possible snag: The base tone rises across the whole file, allowing the learner to predict that the next answer is higher.
Correction: Shuffle base-frequency regions and directions independently while keeping the declared interval sizes balanced.
Stop / get help: Stop for ear pain, tinnitus increase, fullness, dizziness or sound distortion.
09
Describe the neighbouring pattern
For each set, place the U and D counts for 20, 10 and 5 Hz side by side. Describe whether errors increase as differences shrink and flag a one-direction asymmetry; do not choose a pass cutoff or publish the smallest correct pair as a threshold.
Why this step exists
Neighbouring counts show gradual task difficulty without inventing a clinical rule from six trials per difference.
Success check
All six direction-by-difference counts remain visible and any claimed pattern can be checked from them.
I’m stuck on this step
Reset: Re-read this authored instruction — “For each set, place the U and D counts for 20, 10 and 5 Hz side by side. Describe whether errors increase as differences shrink and flag a one-direction asymmetry; do not choose a pass cutoff or publish the smallest correct pair as a threshold.” — and its success check, then attempt only this step.
Possible snag: Call one correct tiny difference the threshold.
Correction: Use repeated trials near each interval.
Stop / get help: Stop for ear pain, tinnitus increase, fullness, dizziness or sound distortion.
Correct versus incorrect execution
These accessible process diagrams are built from the tutorial’s own right/wrong teaching. They are not anatomical illustrations and do not add technique beyond the canonical tutorial.
Question — The tasks have different answers and chance rates.
Correct / safer
Use U or D for every supplied pair.
Wrong / riskier
Switch some rows to same/different even though no same pairs exist.
Order — Sequence guessing inflates accuracy.
Correct / safer
Balance and randomise directions.
Wrong / riskier
Use a predictable up-down sequence.
Level — Level changes audibility and safety.
Correct / safer
Lock a comfortable level.
Wrong / riskier
Make subtle tones louder.
Threshold — Lucky guesses occur.
Correct / safer
Use repeated trials near each interval.
Wrong / riskier
Call one correct tiny difference the threshold.
Memory — Comparing two immediate tones differs from remembering one later.
Correct / safer
Use new base tones to test relation.
Wrong / riskier
Call discrimination pitch memory.
Interval evidence — Direction imbalance can reward one response habit instead of pitch comparison.
Correct / safer
Require matched upward and downward trials around the provisional level.
Wrong / riskier
Accept a small interval after several upward trials and no downward reversal.
Method-structure checklist
10 of 10 structural checks present
✓ Ordered, Power-specific instructions — present
✓ Every activity has a success check — present
✓ Materials or supplied records are declared — present
✓ Measurement or assessment rule is present — present
✓ Tutorial-specific troubleshooting is present — present
✓ Stopping or escalation boundary is present — present
✓ Every activity has an adjacent alternative — present
✓ Correct-versus-incorrect comparison is present — present
✓ Evidence context is bound to the Power record — present
✓ Planning metadata is present — present
The method-readiness band and presence checklist assess tutorial presentation and are separate from evidence quality for the underlying Power. They are automated editorial aids, not human approval.
Manual editorial sign-off: Pending. This tutorial must not display a human-approved state until an identified editor signs the exact content hash.