AudioDoctor Posted May 15, 2020 Share Posted May 15, 2020 I have had a low grade case of tinnitus for a while now, I know why and if you think it's important, I'll share. It isn't loud rock concerts though. Recently, due to some unhappy circumstances, I have had the funds to do a pretty serious system upgrade, and at the same time have switched to headphones for the time being as my primary means of listening to and enjoying music when I want to listen to it, not have it as background music. So what's the problem? My new, amazing, and ridiculously expensive headphone system aggravates my Tinnitus to the point of being extremely irritating and preventing me from listening. Nothing has changed recently that would cause this, so either the culprit is some new health problem that I yet to see any other symptoms for, wax build up in my left ear, which has been a problem in the past, or the new headphone system... If I turn the music off, the ringing will eventually calm down. sphinxsix 1 No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 16, 2020 Author Share Posted May 16, 2020 2 minutes ago, GregWormald said: My tinnitus is also elevated by headphone listening--so I rarely do it any more. Digital sources also seem to elevate it more than analog. I have had some relief by using a technique found online--finger whacking on the bottom of the skull. (Sorry, can't remember what it's called. A youtube search should find something, there are lots of treatment videos.) I am a bit hesitant to google "finger whacking". Ha. I'll give it a look, thanks Man. I wish I could go to a Dr and let them check for wax build up, but I just don't think that's it. No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 16, 2020 Author Share Posted May 16, 2020 43 minutes ago, bobflood said: Sounds like something from a SNL skit. Seriously, Headphone listening can be very dangerous from a hearing loss point of view. I rarely use mine anymore. The tendency is to listen at too high a level for way too long. The proximity to the eardrum makes any high frequency transients potentially damaging. If you are getting tinnitus after headphone listening, your body is trying to tell you something (like please stop). I normally listen at -50 to -60db, it really doesn't seem too loud at all. However, if I have to I will go back to speaker listening and say goodbye to my wonderful headphone system... In fact, in the lower right you can see my volume setting in Roon/HQPlayer -55db No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 16, 2020 Author Share Posted May 16, 2020 23 minutes ago, Rexp said: Does vinyl cause same problem? I'll have to hook up my vinyl to my headphone system to find out, I have not done that yet. No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 16, 2020 Author Share Posted May 16, 2020 I found a Dr friend willing to take a look at my ear in person... I have no idea how the clinic expected to do that via a video visit... No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 17, 2020 Author Share Posted May 17, 2020 Well, the ringing ear has even less wax in it than the non ringing ear, so that wasn't it... shit. No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 17, 2020 Author Share Posted May 17, 2020 28 minutes ago, bobflood said: Lay off the headphones until it stops! You could be risking permanent hearing loss. Consider taking a magnesium supplement daily. I have taken one for years and it slowly has gotten rid of the high pitch ringing I used to have. Also, I had to be on an IV antibiotic for three months several years ago for a severe staph infection and my doctor said then that the ringing could have been related to that treatment. Have you been on one for anything? Some antibiotics but not others may cause it. Please see a specialist if it worsens. I don't mean to sound draconian but this is serious stuff. yeah, there is no headphone listening at the moment... That makes me very sad. My friend was able to get me in to see an ENT this coming week, so we'll get to the bottom of this. There has been zero trauma, zero medication changes, nothing at all that would have precipitated this. Which is exactly why I had a small hope it was just wax build up, as that was a problem in the past. No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 17, 2020 Author Share Posted May 17, 2020 39 minutes ago, bobflood said: Good luck. Thanks. No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 17, 2020 Author Share Posted May 17, 2020 6 hours ago, bobbmd said: Have you considered trying a noise canceling headphone like the Bose products? I have not, would that have any effect on noise not coming from outside the ear? No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 17, 2020 Author Share Posted May 17, 2020 58 minutes ago, The Computer Audiophile said: -55 can be extremely low in HQP on my systems. Same, which is why I just ignored it... No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 17, 2020 Author Share Posted May 17, 2020 1 hour ago, davide256 said: I've had tinnitus for several years. Two things aggravate it 1) fatigue, either from a long day or 6 hr plus listening session 2) high frequency distortion products. volume levels have never been a cause, but bright/distorting headphones are. The least fatiguing (aggravating) good headphone I've ever listened to are the Mr Speakers Ether Flow, light on the head, crystalline clear in the highs and neutral in sound signature. I have Susvara headphones, and a very high quality SET amp. Bright and distorting is not what I would call either of them. Both are incredibly clear at all frequencies. I also take breaks in-between albums to do other things, get water, decide what to listen to next, etc... No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 17, 2020 Author Share Posted May 17, 2020 Just now, bobflood said: Of course. I just wish that more people would measure actual SPL because there is so much potential for permanent hearing loss with headphones. And, don't get me started on IEMs! Both put high frequency energy so very close to the eardrum. I got religion about this after reading some medical literature about people who suffered permanent hearing loss and/or tinnitus after just one exposure to high energy high frequency sound via headphones. One was an Air Traffic Controller who got a blast when a piece of equipment malfunctioned and she became virtually deaf in that ear and had tinnitus as well. We all tend to think that it is long term exposure to high SPL (the Rock Concert effect) that will degrade our hearing but even one time can do it. This hobby is not much fun if you are partially deaf. Do you have a recommendation of SPL meters? No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 17, 2020 Author Share Posted May 17, 2020 It sure is a good thing my room is dead silent then... No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 18, 2020 Author Share Posted May 18, 2020 Do you think its possible that the new Headphones, Amp, and DAC are capable of producing higher frequencies than my previous system was capable of, and that it is that which is causing the tinnitus to flare up? I am trying to figure out the mechanism here that caused the tinnitus to act up without any other changes that I am aware of other than a new listening set up. And even that didn't happen immediately, it took perhaps a month to aggravate. No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 18, 2020 Author Share Posted May 18, 2020 4 hours ago, 4est said: This might sound crazy, but I had a HDD on an iMac on my desk that induced tinnitus. It was barely audible, and the tinnitus subsided after replacing the drive. I am not suggesting that that is what is happening here, but in that there may be other factors at play. Interesting... I do have external spinning drives here on my desk... I should start looking farther and wider for the culprit. I really am not keen on getting rid of this equipment. No electron left behind. Link to comment
Popular Post AudioDoctor Posted May 18, 2020 Author Popular Post Share Posted May 18, 2020 I am seeing the ENT on Thursday morning. Having been a Physician here in town still has its perks. Audiophile Neuroscience and The Computer Audiophile 1 1 No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 18, 2020 Author Share Posted May 18, 2020 17 minutes ago, bobflood said: I remember that you said that you were a battlefield doc. If you were exposed to extremely load noise from say nearby gunfire and/or concussive energy from an explosion, then remember to tell the ENT that. I have read that sometimes these incidents can cause problems later in life. And, Thank You for Your Service. Please let us know what the outcome of your visit is to the extent that you are comfortable. Yep, that's what caused the initial tinnitus that I have been dealing with ever since. What led to the sudden massive increase though, I have no idea. I have some guesses, but right now I don't know for sure. I appreciate the sentiment of thanking me, but I really don't need it and don't really feel comfortable accepting it. No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 19, 2020 Author Share Posted May 19, 2020 1 hour ago, Audiophile Neuroscience said: "inside earphones" What about my outside earphones? 😉 Audiophile Neuroscience 1 No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 19, 2020 Author Share Posted May 19, 2020 9 hours ago, bluesman said: There’s a popular misconception that if tests are unrevealing, they were unnecessary. This is simply wrong. This is absolutely true. Ruling things out is just as important as ruling things in... Audiophile Neuroscience 1 No electron left behind. Link to comment
Popular Post AudioDoctor Posted May 21, 2020 Author Popular Post Share Posted May 21, 2020 Well, I can't get an MRI because I may have metal fragments too close to my head... I am scheduled for an X-ray to check, but this was todays result condensed down to a few sentences. My hearing was normal in both ears at my last hearing test in 2018. "Moderate high-frequency hearing loss starting has 6000-8000 hertz on the left. Normal hearing on the right" typos are not mine... ha. Doc thinks I have an ear infection. I am started on steroids. The Computer Audiophile and Audiophile Neuroscience 2 No electron left behind. Link to comment
Popular Post AudioDoctor Posted May 21, 2020 Author Popular Post Share Posted May 21, 2020 If he's right, it's good news. Not only can I turn the speakers on and keep the volume down, but it means my hearing is likely to return to normal. The Computer Audiophile, ripples, fas42 and 4 others 6 1 No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 22, 2020 Author Share Posted May 22, 2020 5 hours ago, The Computer Audiophile said: Huh? Phase shift... No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 24, 2020 Author Share Posted May 24, 2020 1 minute ago, bobflood said: Any relief yet? Have a good Memorial Day weekend. Perhaps a bit. Thanks for asking. No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 26, 2020 Author Share Posted May 26, 2020 3 minutes ago, bobbmd said: I wasn’t being a jokester if you are on steroids then the anti-inflamatory effects of thc/cbd might be be beneficial and safer BUT I do hope this getting better best wishes as always BTW- I am seeing my first patients since March 9th-these specialists are just itching to restart elective procedures especially ophthalmologists and orthos have to make the payments on the Porsche somehow... 😉 No electron left behind. Link to comment
AudioDoctor Posted May 27, 2020 Author Share Posted May 27, 2020 1 hour ago, Rexp said: When I see most doctors here in Malaysia, their eyes light up as expats are regarded as wealthy. Does that make them bad people? No, I was making a joke. No electron left behind. Link to comment
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