How Many Have Tinnitus?

QuadraphonicQuad

Help Support QuadraphonicQuad:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
I have tinnitus. After many years of playing in bands it would be remarkable if I didn't have it. I always stood to the left of our drummer on stage and I do notice that my right ear has more high frequency loss compared to my left (left side crash cymbal in close proximity many times). My tinnitus is 'there' when I want to hear it. I can distract my focus when listening and don't really notice it in those situations. I still do independent audio production and my listening skills I learned while doing work at a recording studio help greatly with focused listening. My tinnitus is a whooshing noise with what sounds like a LFO mod filter which results is an ever changing white to pink noise type of situation - very swirly and actually interesting to 'listen' to when I choose to do so. It's a bit louder than ambient room noise so my case is fairly mild compared to some folks - Pete Townsend comes to mind. I did some of this to myself - doing things like sticking my head up close to a loud PA - I mean within 2 inches of the speaker in the cabs. Young and stupid - that was me.

I'm 70 now and have some of the 'normal' age related losses. You know, those times when you get a loud tone burst in one of your ears - I was always told that was the 'hair' that senses that particular frequency dying (at least that's what stuck in my memory). Mix Magazine used to have a hearing related issue every year back in the 90s. I learned a lot from those articles. One was on the 'theory' that even steady state noise, as opposed to transient noise, can contribute to hearing impairment. In the late 80s an optician friend had a connection to what were higher tech ear plugs that reduced all frequencies equally by a certain dB amount (he did hearing aids too). He did ear molds for all of us in the band that wanted them. Basically we got what were then $250 plugs for free. I wear them whenever I am going to be in situations with high sound pressure levels - even when I mow the yard and stuff like that. The House Institute is a good place to go for info on hearing loss and current related tech.

EDIT: Forgot to mention the plugs I use are the ERs - don't remember which reduction; 15 or 25 dB. After reading most of the thread I wonder if it was those crazy screaming girls at the 66 Beatles' concerts that started mine off. The afternoon performance was worse than the evening, but it was just constant screaming from when they took the stage til when they left. Didn't even consider hearing protection in 66.
 
Last edited:
30 years ago we knew full well what asbestos does, there was no excuse for still using it in the 1990s. It was banned in the UK before then. My house was built in 1987 and shouldn't have any asbestos in it, but a lot of builders spent a few years quietly using existing material that had been manufactured before the ban so it's possible I have some in the artex and similar.
Thinking about it now, it was most probably over 40 years ago.
The danger was unknown at that time.
 
Thinking about it now, it was most probably over 40 years ago.
The danger was unknown at that time.
Actually the danger of asbestos was known as far back as the 1930s but it's the usual story of corporate and government interests suppressing the issue for as long as businesses can continue to make money and governments avoid being liable for compensation.

And in India it was noted hundreds of year ago that people working in the asbestos mines developed lung problems. That didn't stop some troops in India wearing asbestos armour, you can see some in museums.
 
I can’t say definitively that Savoy Brown did in my ears 45 years ago, but that clearly was the only concert that I recall being painful. They were an opening act for Rick Wakeman (I had heard of them, but was never a fan), and somehow screeching guitars still are unpleasant. 😬
 
30 years ago we knew full well what asbestos does, there was no excuse for still using it in the 1990s. It was banned in the UK before then. My house was built in 1987 and shouldn't have any asbestos in it, but a lot of builders spent a few years quietly using existing material that had been manufactured before the ban so it's possible I have some in the artex and similar.
Here, suppliers were allowed to use up existing stocks as long as the asbestos was not exposed to environmental air. And brake and clutch parts are still allowed to contain asbestos because there is no suitable replacement.
 
And brake and clutch parts are still allowed to contain asbestos because there is no suitable replacement.
I'm not sure where you live, but in the U.S., asbestos has been phased out of friction materials. It's actually not a particularly good friction material. It offgases when hot, which can create an unwanted boundary layer of gas between the friction compound (like a brake pad) and the friction surface (like a brake rotor), significantly reducing the friction created and heat transfer from compound to surface. This offgasing was why racing and performance brake rotors were originally drilled: to provide channels for the gas to escape. They remain on most performance cars (but few race cars) mostly as a matter of tradition and market forces, but...

These days, para-aramid, ceramic, and other friction compounds have taken over. Each has its pros and cons, but none offgas like asbestos, nor do they pose the same kind of health risks. So if you see drilled rotors on a performance car—or any car—just know that braking performance could actually be improved with slotted or plain-faced rotors.
 
For anyone who has an iPhone with current iOs, Airpod Pro earbuds are a game-changer for my high-frequency hearing loss and tinnitus.

They're currently selling at a Prime Day discount on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09JQMJHXY
For high-frequency hearing loss, you can load your audiogram into your phone to use as the equalization curve for music and / or speech.
For me, it restores the sizzle of cymbals, the pings of pianos, way beyond what the Apple music eq templates allow.
You can take a photo of your audiogram, upload a file, or take an on-line hearing test to generate a new one.

Here's mine:

IMG_0838.jpeg




For tinnitus relief, there is a menu of background sounds available, with options and level controls to mask the noise.

IMG_0859.jpeg



IMG_0861.jpeg


The active noise-cancelling function works very well for me riding a bicycle in the wind, in a noisy old vehicle, or sitting on the deck blocking out the sounds of lawn care.

Here's a short video from an audiologist:

 
For anyone who has an iPhone with current iOs, Airpod Pro earbuds are a game-changer for my high-frequency hearing loss and tinnitus.

They're currently selling at a Prime Day discount on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09JQMJHXY
For high-frequency hearing loss, you can load your audiogram into your phone to use as the equalization curve for music and / or speech.
For me, it restores the sizzle of cymbals, the pings of pianos, way beyond what the Apple music eq templates allow.
You can take a photo of your audiogram, upload a file, or take an on-line hearing test to generate a new one.

Here's mine:

View attachment 81188



For tinnitus relief, there is a menu of background sounds available, with options and level controls to mask the noise.

View attachment 81190


View attachment 81189

The active noise-cancelling function works very well for me riding a bicycle in the wind, in a noisy old vehicle, or sitting on the deck blocking out the sounds of lawn care.

Here's a short video from an audiologist:



Eager to check this out. Same price at Costco for the next few days, by the way (through 7/15)--and it beats their previous best sale price by five bucks.
 
Last edited:
Hi all
I have Tinnitis as well.
My own vault.. I was DJ in a club in the early 80ties... I played it loud.... very loud....And therefore I often could not hear the headphone... So I pumped up the Wattage there as wel.

I have a constant whistle and hiss in my left ear. I learned to "ban" it form my day to day train of thoughts and hearing experience. I had it tested 10 years or so ago I my hearing dips in the 4000 hz range...

But now as I turn 61 in short while, and are again involved in a relationship, my girlfriend points out more then once That my hearing is getting worss.. I tend to "use" this knowledge to "not hear her" every now an then when it suites me... (thats not nice ...i know :) )

There is no therapy ... no medication.... It is problematic in crowds, witch I tend to avoid. Even 3 people (me as 4) talking is to much... It is getting more and more an issue

Recently I bought a new house for me and me girlfriend and we are in the process of remodelling. When that is done, later this year, I promised my self a new test and getting an aid ...

I might not like it but i have to deal with it
So to all "tinnitis friends" Be strong! don't let it mess up your mind...
 
There is no therapy ... no medication.... It is problematic in crowds, witch I tend to avoid. Even 3 people (me as 4) talking is to much... It is getting more and more an issue
I'm 71 and two years ago I realized that when I thought I could hear "the sound of the room" it was actually tinnitus. So I went straight to my health system's audiologist. The hearing test showed moderate hearing loss, with a drop off at 8kHz. The audiologist told me he had tinnitus too. About 20% of adults in the U.S. have it, he said. He suggested hearing aids, I declined.
At my followup visit this year he told me that he'd gotten hearing aids and now he doesn't notice his tinnitus at all. That's good to know, and if mine gets more intrusive I'd definitely give them a try.
YMMV but it may be something to consider.
 
Last edited:
I have some tinnitus in both ears that sounds pretty close to an 11kHz sine wave, which is about where my hearing cuts off. Not bad for 71 years of age.

Oftentimes, hearing sounds from tinnitus is like continuously being told to stop thinking about monkeys. Usually I can filter out the noise by re-focusing my attention on other things. Reading this thread makes me aware of the whine and cranks up the volume :p
 
Have had it for almost 50 years. Went a few weeks ago to see about hearing aids.
He said my hearing isn't as bad as I might have thought. I did not know that tinnitus isn't always high pitched sound. It can be low of a ruffled noise.
As far as hearing aid he did say after you use them, not all but most will say their tinnitus is better. It won't cure it or it won't go away but it can get better. He used an example of before aid it being an 8 and after 6 months of aid it might be a 2. I asked is that while useing them or after you take them out. He said oh no, after you take them out He said it isn't uncommon. I asked about listening to music at home on my surround setup and he said he would program the aid to have a music mode or something like that. A ton of stuff I didn't know. He said there are a lot of different things to do to a hearing aid and when I'm ready we would go over all the options like Bluetooth, rechargeable, small enough not to see and many other things. Kind of looking forward to them now.
 
I knew that is how the ear works, but I have never seen it described so succinctly and clearly. I suppose the explanation is normally long winded because most people don't know what a Fourier Transform is.


My grandad worked in incredibly noisy factories all his adult life, working on steam locomotive boilers before and during WWII (hammering down boiler tube ends) and then he worked at British Ropes making wire rope for suspension bridges. He always used to say all his old work mates were completely deaf and he had no idea why it hadn't happened to him. Then at 87 the asbestos from the steam loco boilers caught up with him and killed him. But he lived considerably longer than all his contemporaries so he didn't do too badly.
I survived factory work, but it was that Santana gig back in the day at the Greek in Berkeley that stung me (gloriously)
 
This Q & A is worth reading, even if you've heard it all before (so to speak):
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/16/...jdiMMWZG0RKSBGSOXdh1oI3nhOvKKA&smid=share-url
What I appreciated the most was the reminder about the "80 for 90" rule (80% of max volume for 90 minutes a day). If the max volume of most iPods and phones is 105 to110 decibels, then 80% is 85 decibels--"on par with that of a gas-powered lawn mower or the sound of city traffic from inside of a car." Also: "to prevent noise-induced hearing loss, you should avoid prolonged exposures to ambient sounds above 70 decibels (like that of a washing machine or dishwasher). But environmental noise that is 60 decibels or lower (like from a normal conversation or the hum of an air conditioner) typically won’t cause hearing damage."

Donno whether that rule of thumb changes once you already have hearing damage--I can't stand the sound of a lawnmower for 5 minutes, never mind 90--and one of the experts they talk to warns that there can be a vicious cycle where you keep turning things up louder to overcome ambient noise and/or because you can't hear so well anymore, and that could easily do more damage. So: use passive & active noise-reducing cans. And remember: “If it sounds loud, it’s too loud.”
 
Last edited:
Just came back from the audiologist.
Hearing Aids are in my future :(
He thinks I have a genetic predisposition for my hearing it is worse than usual for my age and my pattern does not reflect loss from loud concerts.
Funny thing is I came in for my tinnitus not any hearing issues.....
As far as tinnitus...people take meditation, yoga etc and try not to think about it or focus on it. Nerve damage hearing loss is incurable and gets worse.
Mine is not that bad but I am aware of it now whenever it is quiet. You also have a noise layer that masks quiet sounds.

I know no one here gets out alive but I'd like to not leave piece by piece but rather intact...
 
Just came back from the audiologist.
Hearing Aids are in my future :(
He thinks I have a genetic predisposition for my hearing it is worse than usual for my age and my pattern does not reflect loss from loud concerts.
Funny thing is I came in for my tinnitus not any hearing issues.....
As far as tinnitus...people take meditation, yoga etc and try not to think about it or focus on it. Nerve damage hearing loss is incurable and gets worse.
Mine is not that bad but I am aware of it now whenever it is quiet. You also have a noise layer that masks quiet sounds.

I know no one here gets out alive but I'd like to not leave piece by piece but rather intact...
So sorry to read this...it sucks..
I know it's not a relief but, personally, I don't think ANYONE gets out of here intact!!!!

I posted a few weeks ago that my tinnitus is around 11K (the MAIN tone cause there are others) and it MAY help me because it makes the hi freqs resonate more! weird, huh? at least that's how I "rationalize " it cause I ain't got any other option.. hope your hearing aids help you!
 
Back
Top