At what volume? Normed to which population? Which generation? (As hearing ability has fallen in recent decades with the rise of portable electronics and preferences for louder music.)
It is a statistical mean 
ā¦and it thus follows the usual GauĆ-type distribution curve, meaning that some hear somewhat more and some lessā¦
Yes, but who were the āsomeā involved? This is very important, and by no means an absolute. Statistics and formulas are based on tests of real people. Researchers measure the hearing of 12 or 20 or 4,000 real people with a standard device, standard test procedure, and at a calibrated standard dB to create the Gaussian norms/distributions. Some tested groups (e.g., those born 100 years ago) score way better than the average person today per environmental changes ā and thereby change the formula multiplier.
The formula you cite provides a rough estimate, but thatās all. The chart I shared shows the drop off relative to hearing at age 20, and yes, elderly people canāt hear much above 9kHz. But the changing (non-parallel) curves across 10-year intervals cannot be captured by that formula.
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And some do. Iām 71 and my audiologist tested me no more than 12. So I guess Iām special 
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Yep. Congrats. Most biological performance variables follow a probability distribution ā and very often form a bell curve / Gaussian distribution.
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Well my take on theory and statistics are just a guide and do not represent singular realities. Now ask me in 3 years as getting old aināt for sissies. As stuff happens, daily, weekly
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Health issues in old age is whack-a-mole.
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Has anyone passed 50 or 60 tried comparable hybrid or tribrid IEMs, one that includes ESTs, and the other that does not? Iām curious if one can hear and appreciate the difference when EST drivers are included or not.
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Canāt say with IEMs. Sure as hell can tell with headphones. My Nectar Hive and old STAX deliver a different and extended high end that is not the same as my RAD-0 or planar IEM (Audeze LCDi3-4)
Iām thinking of the low-voltage drivers used in many tribrid IEMs, like the recently discussed on this site the Hisenior Mega5EST.
When it comes to true high-voltage electrostats in IEMs, I am only aware of one such system.
I am over 50 and have quite a few IEMs of different configurationsā¦single DD, hybrids, multi BA, planar, etc. My favorite that I own is still MEST Mkii. I canāt say that is because of the EST drivers. Itās all going to come down to implementation of whatever drivers are being used and your preferences. I donāt know that I can/could tell a difference between ESTs and BAs though I havenāt tried to compare directly.
My hearing isnāt terrible but rolls off sharply at 12k.
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My left ear still gets to 11k, right is around 9k. But if in double blind when 15k lifted 9 db I get quite upset in seconds, so something is getting through. 67 & 10 mos.
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14,142 is half an octave from 20k. 15k is .415 of an octive from 20k.
In case anyone wants to know.
It is important, not for fundamentals obviously but for harmonics