KVR Audio

willdub1 · Post by **willdub1** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 6:49 am

Live has a test tone feature in its preference menu just recently I thought of using it to test my hearing range. When using headphones I noticed something odd, the frequency response in my left and right ear are different from each other. I dont understand how this is possible as far as my understanding goes a persons hearing usually starts to degenerate gradually from top to bottom along the frequency spectrum, however when testing my hearing I found that im completely deaf in my left ear between 5k-6k but i can hear perfectly between that range in my right ear. Then my right ear is completely deaf between 10k-11k but I can hear perfectly between that range in my left ear. Is this common? I initially thought the problem was with the headphones I was using but I flipped the headphones over and the results were the same. I thought if people tested their hearing one ear at a time and posted their findings it may shed a little more light on the issue which could prove beneficial to everyone. So what do you say guys, care to take the tset and post your findings?

willdub1 · Post by **willdub1** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 6:54 am

I forgot to mention that my hearing in both ears are identical up to 20k apart from those frequency ranges mentioned above.

lnikj · Post by **lnikj** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 7:09 am

willdub1 wrote:I forgot to mention that my hearing in both ears are identical up to 20k apart from those frequency ranges mentioned above.

Oh to be young again

I can't hear anything above 13.5khz, and my tinnitus is louder than the test signal above 10khz.

Same in both ears though.

deastman · Post by **deastman** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 7:21 am

I can hear in both ears up to around 11-12k, which is where my tinnitus takes over. I was listening on crappy iPod earbuds though, so I'd probably get different results with my Sennheiser HD650's. I do find that my hearing has been steadily declining for a few years now. As my grandfather used to say, getting old isn't for the faint of heart.

mmoncur · Post by **mmoncur** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 11:41 am

I'm 45 and I can hear up to about 14.5K if I crank up the volume. There's a definite drop off at 13K before that. For 14.5K-20K I can hear lower harmonics, so Ableton's test tone might not be a pure sine wave.

Keep in mind you need really good speakers to truly test this, my Sony MDR-7506 headphones drop off in frequency response around 15K and most headphones are probably similar. I'll have to try it later with my studio monitors, which are flat up to 20K, but right now I would wake up my wife and every dog in the neighborhood if I cranked up a 15K+ sound...

She Changed Her Mind · Sun Mar 29, 2015 11:46 am

That is just normal, I assume.

whyterabbyt · Post by **whyterabbyt** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 12:55 pm

willdub1 wrote:When using headphones I noticed something odd, the frequency response in my left and right ear are different from each other. I dont understand how this is possible as far as my understanding goes a persons hearing usually starts to degenerate gradually from top to bottom along the frequency spectrum

Aging-related degeneration of one's hearing range occurs, but Im a bit unsure why you would think its the only possible hearing 'issue' one might have. You're basically 'surprised', I think, because you're expecting two organic components of your body to behave identically, and they wont, ever. They probably didnt even start off matched in the first place, and, like your eyesight, arm strength, and shoe size they'll never be identical.

If you're absolutely sure your ears were at one point fairly well matched, and you cant think of a reason why one would be 'suddenly' different (anything from a blow to the head, proximity to a suddent very loud noise, etc) then consult a specialist.

gassle · Post by **gassle** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 1:09 pm

When using open back headphones for these tests at very high frequencies you might get a certain cancelation/phasing effect at very specific frequencies so sound might feel like it's going left or right. Moving headphone caps on your head, pushing it or pulling it a bit back, even changing your position in a wet room might change those frequencies. If it's closed headphones, that's another matter though.

willdub1 · Post by **willdub1** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 1:10 pm

mmoncur wrote:right now I would wake up my wife and every dog in the neighborhood if I cranked up a 15K+ sound...

Lol we would'nt want that. but congrats though, your 45 and still hear up to 15k

willdub1 · Post by **willdub1** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 1:14 pm

lnikj wrote:
willdub1 wrote:I forgot to mention that my hearing in both ears are identical up to 20k apart from those frequency ranges mentioned above.
Oh to be young again I can't hear anything above 13.5khz, and my tinnitus is louder than the test signal above 10khz.

Same in both ears though.

dont feel to bad. since the ipod made its mark on the world every young person on the planet has hearing damage

willdub1 · Post by **willdub1** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 1:15 pm

deastman wrote: getting old isn't for the faint of heart.

lol your grand papi is a wise man

spaceman · Post by **spaceman** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 1:16 pm

Left ear about 13.5K, right slightly more reaching about 14K.
But I perceive volume slightly lower in my right ear.

I'm 40.

willdub1 · Post by **willdub1** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 1:18 pm

whyterabbyt wrote:
willdub1 wrote:When using headphones I noticed something odd, the frequency response in my left and right ear are different from each other. I dont understand how this is possible as far as my understanding goes a persons hearing usually starts to degenerate gradually from top to bottom along the frequency spectrum
Aging-related degeneration of one's hearing range occurs, but Im a bit unsure why you would think its the only possible hearing 'issue' one might have. You're basically 'surprised', I think, because you're expecting two organic components of your body to behave identically, and they wont, ever. They probably didnt even start off matched in the first place, and, like your eyesight, arm strength, and shoe size they'll never be identical.

If you're absolutely sure your ears were at one point fairly well matched, and you cant think of a reason why one would be 'suddenly' different (anything from a blow to the head, proximity to a suddent very loud noise, etc) then consult a specialist.

Thanks i think ill consult a specialist. did you take the test? what was your findings?

willdub1 · Post by **willdub1** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 1:19 pm

gassle wrote:When using open back headphones for these tests at very high frequencies you might get a certain cancelation/phasing effect at very specific frequencies so sound might feel like it's going left or right. Moving headphone caps on your head, pushing it or pulling it a bit back, even changing your position in a wet room might change those frequencies. If it's closed headphones, that's another matter though.

it was closed back headphones. I wonder what this will mean for me... did you take the test? what was your findings?

willdub1 · Post by **willdub1** » Sun Mar 29, 2015 1:23 pm

spaceman wrote:Left ear about 13.5K, right slightly more reaching about 14K.
But I perceive volume slightly lower in my right ear.

I'm 40.

thats not to bad.. its great actually considering that your 40. i doubt you would have any trouble mixing a song since nothing important other than sparkle exits above 14k. also the frequency response isnt as drastic as mine

ableton users: have you tried testing your hearing range with live's test tone feature