A signal processing system is described for a hearing implant system. A band pass filter bank processes an audio input signal to generate band pass signals. An implant signal processor processes the band pass signals to generate electrode stimulation signals. The processing includes: i. monitoring a key feature characteristic of the audio input signal, ii. using an original coding strategy to generate the electrode stimulation signals when the key feature is less than or equal to an initial value, and iii. using a different new coding strategy to generate the electrode stimulation signals when the key feature is greater than or equal to a coding change value. The implant signal processor automatically transitions from the original coding strategy to the new coding strategy over a transition period of time by adaptively changing the original coding strategy to become the new coding strategy.
