Differences in binaural interaction at low and high frequencies

Differences in the acoustic signals received by both ears form the major basis of our ability to localize sound sources. They can also help in detecting a signal against a background of interfering (masking) sounds. A quantitative measure for this 'binaural advantage' is the Binaural Masking Level Difference (BMLD). In our contribution we investigate the specific influence of the frequency content of the masker on the BMLD. In particular, we want to understand better which properties of the hearing system cause the marked decrease of the binaural advantage at frequencies above 1 kHz.