Measurement of Complete Nonlinear Distortion in Audio Amplifiers via the Parallel Wiener-Hammerstein Model

Parolo G. Measurement of Complete Nonlinear Distortion in Audio Amplifiers via the Parallel Wiener-Hammerstein Model. J Audio Eng Soc. 2026;74(5):304-325. doi:10.17743/jaes.2022.0262

@article{Parolo2026_23143,
  author = {Parolo, Giuseppe},
  title = {{Measurement of Complete Nonlinear Distortion in Audio Amplifiers via the Parallel Wiener-Hammerstein Model}},
  journal = {Journal of the Audio Engineering Society},
  volume = {74},
  number = {5},
  pages = {304--325},
  year = {2026},
  month = may,
  publisher = {Audio Engineering Society},
  doi = {10.17743/jaes.2022.0262},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.17743/jaes.2022.0262}
}

TY  - JOUR
TI  - Measurement of Complete Nonlinear Distortion in Audio Amplifiers via the Parallel Wiener-Hammerstein Model
AU  - Parolo, Giuseppe
T2  - Journal of the Audio Engineering Society
J2  - J. Audio Eng. Soc.
VL  - 74
IS  - 5
SP  - 304
EP  - 325
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/12
DO  - 10.17743/jaes.2022.0262
UR  - https://doi.org/10.17743/jaes.2022.0262
PB  - Audio Engineering Society
LA  - en
AB  - The characterization of nonlinear distortion in electronic devices, such as audio amplifiers, is traditionally based on the measurement of spectral components generated by the device and absent from the input signal. However, analysis based on nonlinear system models reveals the existence of additional distortion contributions that coincide with the fundamental frequencies and are therefore neglected by conventional metrics. This work develops an accurate and low-complexity measurement procedure to estimate these “hidden” components based on one of the most general block-oriented nonlinear models, namely the parallel Wiener–Hammerstein model. The procedure enables both the computation of more representative nonlinear distortion metrics, accounting for all distortion contributions, and the analysis of the phenomenon in the time domain. Finally, the study discusses the practical limitations of the method and presents its validation through both numerical simulations and experimental applications on real-world audio amplifiers.
ER  -