Limit‐cycle‐oscillator models of spontaneous otoacoustic emissions have been used to provide qualitative descriptions of the interactions of spontaneous emissions with external tones and their response to aspirin administration. The parameters of several classes of such models are estimated from data on the relaxation dynamics of spontaneous emissions, associated with the onset of, and recovery from, suppression by external tones. Aspirin administration is used to control the emission levels, with the relaxation time being observed to increase with decreasing emission level. The models considered include a modified Van der Pol oscillator, with the possibility of linear passive damping in the limit of large displacements, and an oscillator with nonlinear time‐delayed elasticity. [Work supported by NIDCD.]