Don’t worry it’ll come with time. I’m 50 now and down to 14khz. That’s probably why I like that treble turned up a little. Seriously though I hope you continue to hear great for years to come.
For me, tinnitus started gradually in my late 50s, no doubt due to things like mowing the lawn, using power tools and hearing live music w/o hearing protection through my 40s or so. I’m one of the very lucky ones whose tinnitus is not note-like (no repeating phantom discreet noises–just the equivalent of white noise from the mids on up). I’m grateful it’s not worse. It hasn’t stopped me from (careful) enjoyment of headphone audio.
I’ve learned that I can’t do anything to improve my tinnitus, but I can definitely do things to make it worse. Things like too much volume, even briefly; headphone overuse (more than 1-2X/wk); closed headphones vs open-back, etc. As others have indicated here, tinnitus levels are definitely linked to lack of sleep, stress, and other issues that reduce one’s equilibrium overall.
What keeps me going is a lifelong love of music, whether live or recorded. I refuse to let tinnitus (or other things like migraine, another big problem for me) deflect from my enjoyment of music. So far, I’ve been able to make it work.
I’m sorry to hear that you suffer from Tinnitus. It must be a great hindrance. Especially as a music lover. I know that if I overdo it on a volume front I get intermittent ringing for a while. That is a scary situation, and is enough of a warning for me to be very careful.
It’s great news that you don’t let It spoil your music or get you down too much. Thanks for sharing your story. Here’s to you enjoying many more years of music.
As stated above I have tinnitus and hearing drops off at a little over 12K give or take a few thousand cycles…
I was over at that other headphone site and started reading the original 64Ears reviews. Lots of hype about venting and reducing sonic fatigue. Being a natural skeptic I decided to try it and see for myself.
I bought a pair of their earlier IEMs (U4SE) and use both ADEL and APEX modules. It worked for me, I can listen for hours without exacerbating my tinnitus. Placebo effect? after months of listening and same result I doubt it.
My one suggestion to everyone, turn it down. and if you’re scuba diving learn to equalize and do it often, barotrauma is no fun…
Just read through this, and it is nice to know that I am not alone. I have a low level hiss in my right ear, that is way more apparent when tired, or stressed. Also, when I have a headache it is more noticeable. I like to listen loud, and did not have the best gear when I started, so I know that contributed, as well as my car stereo phase in high school. I also have noticed, that the better the gear (less distortion) the louder and longer I can listen without fatigue and ringing. This in turn has caused me to chase after better gear, and if only my bank account could keep up. My new excuse, for purchasing better more expensive gear, is that I am helping my hearing in the long run, which is true.
I’m surprised this isnt a more frequented post. I’ve had ringing in my ears since.my twenties, since well before getting into headphones. My dad and brother have had it their whole lives also. It gets temporarily worse if I crunch ice or hard candy or something similar.
It’s not really an issue , and doesn’t hamper getting to sleep or anything. It’s just there, part of the background noise.
But if I suddenly snap, you’ll all know the reason!!
Hahaha. Good one!
What’s funny is that Wikipedia lists Sterling Archer on their list of prominent people with Tinnitus.
I like a lot of others that have commented acquired tinnitus brought on by loud noise in their youth. I played in numerous rock and blues bands back in my high school and the college days and as a “kid” you always think you know better. My father would always tell me to protect my ears, well I didn’t and today I have this little high pitched singing that is just there. No cure, you just learn to adapt and live with it. I sure wish I would have listen to my parents. Oh well !
I’ve had tinnitus for as long as I can remember, way before I started listening to music. Although I mostly listen to headphones, they do not mask the ringing as much as speakers do. Maybe that’s just because with headphones I listen at lower volumes. The exception is tape hiss, which completely masks the ringing. Classical or jazz (acoustic music generally) doesn’t exacerbate it, but pop and rock definitely do. Thankfully, I listen almost exclusively to classical these days.
Hello and welcome. Mine might be a very different case to yours. But, the only time I’ve ever had ringing is when I overdo it on the volume. I’m in no way saying this is what has happened to you, though this is generally the cause. As you suffer from Tinnitus then you’re obviously far more susceptible to volume change. I also find that Pop and certain types of Rock can be more fatigueing than other music genres. Though that is of course over generalizing things. Enjoy and I hope you’re Tinnitus doesn’t stop you enjoying your music.
No ringing either, but I’ve sinus issues. So I have to mind my eustachian tubes, I can feel the pressure in them when it builds over a certain level. A hot steamy shower usually helps relieve it.
Hearing wise I’m up to 17k reliably 18/19/20 depending on the day lol
I still enjoy HD 800 SDR, but it’s fatiguing on solid state, haven’t heard a DT 880 or any beyer in a while tho so hard to say what I’d think of them now.
Not only do my ears ring, but my nose runs and my feet smell.
My ears ring some of the time. I’ve been quite careful about protecting them from loud noises (I always wear earplugs at concerts and am careful with headphone volume) but I get a lot of headaches, and if I take Ibuprofen, my ears ring for a few days/weeks, depending on how much I take.
I have some tinnitus, but at my age that isn’t unusual from what I’ve been told. There’s a high frequency but low volume tinnitus that I can’t even remember when it started. I rarely even notice it until I listen for it, which I avoid doing. I feel like it has always been there. IIRC I measured it at around 15.5khz. It definitely increases in volume with stress, illness, lack of sleep, dizziness, etc.
A couple of months ago I got sick (not the 'Rona) and also developed additional tinnitus at a lower frequency and a much higher volume(!). I also didn’t enjoy listening to music on headphones as it kinda tickled by inner ear. When it didn’t go away after a few days I made an appointment to see an ENT about it. I couldn’t get in for two weeks and by that time it had gone from a constant to an every few days or so. The ENT said my sinuses were inflamed and that is likely the cause. I am now on two nasal sprays - one antihistamine and one corticosteroid. I am back to the constant, higher frequency, but much lower volume tinnitus now. I have a followup appointment later this week.
This happened when I was in the middle of evaluating the Hifiman Sundara and all of my blogging about headphones had to stop for awhile. I’m finding it difficult to get motivated back into that but I have been able to start listening to music through headphones again, thank god!
Oh and the ENT said I should pop my ears “every 30 minutes”. That’s hard to stick to but I try to do it when I think of it.
this is my issue too, for the most part. when I’m in sinus hell, it’s loud AF. Doc gave me some similar type of meds but I found that the Mucinex nasal spray sometimes works better for me.
I am wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience or has any tips. I’ve had tinnitus for about 20 years now due to a medical issue. For the most part, I’ve been able to forget about it. White noise at bed helps.
Listening to headphones, however, makes me hear the tinnitus more often and louder, and can often compete with, say, Bach’s Cello Suites. I am pretty sure I am not listening too loud (though I’m getting a sound meter to check), and the tinnitus starts right away when I start listening to music. I don’t have this problem with speakers.
I think/hope what is happening is that my headphones (the Clears) have essentially no depth to their sound stage, so it concentrates my listening on the surface of my head, where I also hear the tinnitus.
I’ve found the opposite to be true with the Clear. They cause the least tinnitus and fatigue of anything I own. Per my own testing, volume alone does not cause issues for me. I think it follows more from neural fatigue or challenges in processing certain frequencies.
First, what is your signal chain? Amp, DAC, and music source as compressed or uncompressed?
Second, I find that genres with a lot of treble or complex/distorted treble cause issues. This includes strings, brass, and rock guitar. In contrast, simple piano and vocals rarely cause problems. I sometimes test and control the treble by turning the high end down with an equalizer (e.g., Schiit Loki). Alternatively, you might subscribe to Tidal – they smooth and cut the treble by default.