Caractérisation du timbre des sons complexes.
II. Analyses acoustiques et quantification psychophysique

Abstract
A timbre space represents the mental organization of sound events at equal pitch, loudness, and duration. The geometric distance between two timbres corresponds to their degree of perceived dissimilarity. The dimensions of such a three-dimensional space, established by Krumhansl [1] for a set of 21 synthesized sounds, were investigated with respect to their acoustic characteristics. Several acoustical parameters based on the temporal and frequency properties of the sounds were calculated. The high degree of correlation of several parameters with the perceptual axes lend support to previous interpretations of the qualitative character of two perceptual dimensions and their semantic attributes. The perceptual dimensions "brightness" and "rapidity of attack" turn out to be quantitatively explainable by the center of gravity of the sound spectrum (CGS) and the rise time on a logarithmic scale (LTM), respectively. The third dimension, initially called "spectral flux" corresponds partially to the standard deviation of the time-averaged harmonic amplitudes from a spectral envelope (IRR). A new verbal descritor, "spectral fine structure" seems to fit better with the results of acoustic analyses.