This book is informative, with concise explanations of basic principles of physics and technology aiding the reader in understanding how these are related to instrumentation used within audiology and scientific aspects of hearing. A valuable text to have on the shelf as a source of information for those studying or teaching in the field of audiology.
The authors have made considerable effort with the flow of information through the chapters, beginning with the general fundamentals and gradually moving to complex theories and their use, either instrumentally or clinically.
The first few chapters allow the reader to recognise the essential underlying concepts of electricity; direct, alternating current, circuitry and its components. The next few chapters concentrate on signal processing, including analogue to digital, referencing to quantisation, sampling and filtering. The latter chapters describe the functionality of various components found in different hearing aids, integrating this into instrumentation. The additional chapters on amplification, assistive devices and vestibular assessment makes this book more complete, enveloping many of the crucial branches routinely used in the field of audiology.
Each section is well written with clarity and depth explanation. The use of diagrams, some simple but effective, allow better understanding of the various concepts. However, those who have not experienced advanced levels of mathematics, physics and electronics may have difficulty in grasping many of the equations and some of the text.
Assistive components, such as the companion website using PowerPoint and videos, allow better comprehension of the different topics. One improvement would be the inclusion of other standards used in places including the UK, Australia and other countries, as expected readers would be worldwide. Overall, this book is a valuable resource and, at around £100 in the UK, the book represents good value for money.
