My ear sucks

[Zeppelin4Life]

Apparently my right ear is fine, as checked by two doctors and an ENT. I had a hearing test and my hearing is in the 'normal' range for both ears. I wear earplugs when i play loud. Still, my right ear feels clogged almost every other day. bass and treble and both messed up. I can play any tone and I can hear it through that ear, but sometimes it seems like my right ear is just not as clear as my left. It's as if someone turned down the 'presence' knob for that ear or something. Also, sometimes the pitch changes from day to day. I noticed this on the telephone. if I put the dial tone up to my right ear, sometimes its a half step below my left ear. sometimes its the same. but it changes. If I flip my headphones around, sometimes the mix sounds totally different because that ear is so messed up. Anyone else with weird ear problems? It pisses me off a lot. And yet they have still found nothing wrong with me.

[Prickstein]

I got my ears tested a couple of years ago when I got my molded plugs. They told me that my hearing was "above average" yet I KNOW my left ear is down compared to my right. The audioligist told me he could only test up to 8k. Anybody know if that's true, they can only test up to there? Coz I know my damage is way up higher, sounds like yours is too.
Damn cymbals!

[zimv20]

funny, i've got pretty much the same thing going. i know my left ear is missing some high freq's (dialtone test here, too), but they tested the same. however, the test stopped at 8kHz. i often wonder if the fact that i only use my left ear when talking on the phone is the culprit. additionally, my left ear always needs popping and i've got some tinnitus on that side.

fwiw, i'm "average" at 8k, but at all lower freq's i was 10-12 dB more sensitive than average.

OT -- my eyes see colors slightly differently.

[max cooper]

I've had the cloggin problem for years. I've done various things to try to remedy it. I eventually realized I had to give up all the mucous forming stuff (dairy, bread...) or get used to the problem.

It helped a lot, though. I'd say that if the audiologist thinks your hearing is good, it might be time to check with an ENT specialist. Maybe an allergist.

[Jay Kahrs]

I think my ears have always sounded different from each other, I remember noticing it years ago as a kid when I was talking on the phone. My hearing gets checked every so often and they say its 'above average' but what is average? And it's totally normal to have a mix sound different if you flip the headphones around...I can even pick it up on speakers and I know if L/R are reversed on my mixes.

Is the pitch really changing or is it about percieved pitch & frequency range? I doubt it's really pitch. If it's not a cold or something you might want to ask your ENT about getting a deep ear cleaning. You don't need 'em often, once every couple years is fine but they go in and remove all the really deep wax buildup. Even if your hearing is fine it's like pulling earplugs out!

BTW, molded plugs are really worth the investment. They might seem expensive at first but the clarity, protection and comfort are well worth the dough. I can even answer the phone with them in! They come with me almost everywhere...to the movies, NYC streets, doing construction (hammering is a killer) and all kinds of stuff besides playing msuic or catching a show at a club.

[Zeppelin4Life]

Yeah, cool replys so far, thanks.

With the headphones, im talking like mixes like the Doors 'break on through' where the bass is panned to one side. In the normal mix (bass on the left) my left ear picks up the bass low end nicely and it sounds fine. if i flip the phones around the guitar (right channel) is too loud, and there is hardly any bass. my right ear is the problem. It might clear up, but itll just come back. and its annoying.

[hociman]

I can sympathize. I caught some kind of virus 13 months ago and the congestion hasn't gone away. I wish there was a surgical procedure where they could put a vaccuum in the eustachian tube and just suck that stuff out. As for the different perceptions in each ear, I've got that too. Funny thing about it is that the ear I think is "better" actually doesn't test better. I've also been told my hearing is average. What is average? Without my test results in front of me, I might botch this description, but if your hearing threshold is above the -20 line, your hearing is average. If that truck that has hearing tests is at AES, I'll get it checked, though I showed those results to my ENT earlier this year and he said it was worth a grain of salt.

[TonyBelmont]

I was having some problems with my ears for the past month or so... I kept thinking I had an ear infection or something...

It turns out that I was grinding my teeth in my sleep, and it was effecting my right ear.

[Zeppelin4Life]

Originally Posted by hociman

I can sympathize. I caught some kind of virus 13 months ago and the congestion hasn't gone away. I wish there was a surgical procedure where they could put a vaccuum in the eustachian tube and just suck that stuff out. As for the different perceptions in each ear, I've got that too. Funny thing about it is that the ear I think is "better" actually doesn't test better. I've also been told my hearing is average. What is average? Without my test results in front of me, I might botch this description, but if your hearing threshold is above the -20 line, your hearing is average. If that truck that has hearing tests is at AES, I'll get it checked, though I showed those results to my ENT earlier this year and he said it was worth a grain of salt.

-20 yeah. I have some measured loss around 4k, but that's pretty typical for musicians (especially ones who didnt wear earplugs for years). 4-5k goes first, not the high end, which most ppl tend to think. I could live with high end loss, but low end loss is depessing. Also, i knew someone with a -60dB loss at 3k. That's insane! try that on your EQ...

[zimv20]

what's this "-20" line? i'm looking at my chart, there's something called a "pure tone audiogram". it's got freq along the x-axis and "intensity level in dB HL" along the y. the graph is also described as "masking level in non-test ear".

i'm between 0 and 10 from 250 Hz to 4k, then around 18 @ 5k and 30 @ 8k. the doc said it was the high freqs that i'm missing (or "average", in his words), so i assume between 0 and 10 is good.

[o---]

I've been finding rocks in my ears. I can't complain of any audioligy problems, but theose hard chunks of wax definately didn't help anything. I'm serious. Have your audioligist or other doctor grab the wax out of your ears.

[Zeppelin4Life]

Originally Posted by zimv20

what's this "-20" line?.

heres a typical audiogram. X and Os mean different ears. this person has some real loss going on.


I think 'masking level' measures the same thing but reversed...10 on yours might be -10 on a typical??

its ironic how we are capable of hearing to 20k and yet a cut filter at 8k still would be 'normal'

[zimv20]

Originally Posted by Zeppelin4Life

heres a typical audiogram. X and Os mean different ears. this person has some real loss going on.

yeah, that's the kind of chart i've got. it was the "-20" (which is off the chart) which threw me.

[bobby yarrow]

I swear I think my right ear is weaker than my left. Centered stuff always sounds a little left to me.

Anyhow, I know a brilliant engineer who's half deaf one ear due to an accident. The guy hears everything, and has fully adjusted to the hearing loss.

[popkid]

Originally Posted by Jay Kahrs

I think my ears have always sounded different from each other.

That goes for me too.

1 ear is like Mogami 2549, the other is like Hosa. And the third... wait, I only have two.

[Scinx]

Originally Posted by hociman

I wish there was a surgical procedure where they could put a vaccuum in the eustachian tube and just suck that stuff out.

Actually this does exist - well, sorta (its not a vac that goes in the eustachian tube). They insert a small vacuum into your ear and it sucks all the wax buildup out. Ive had this done many times. The pressure and sound of the vac is not so wonderful (since its so close to the eardrum), but its an in-office procedure that takes just a couple minutes.

[Reptil]

to prevent hearing loss because of noise; wear molded plugs and be very careful and discriminate when it comes to loud noise. Do not stay when it is too loud.
to prevent infections, and such lay off dairy products and eat only whole wheat bread.
eat healthy, and fish and such. lay off alcohol, and other neurotoxins.
milk is for babies and no one else! it is NOT healthy.
to cure infections: steam (inhale through the nose and mouth with a blanket over your head) with camomile
this might sound ridiculous but it helps. it is one of those really special cures of mother nature.

when you do have permanent damage, that sucks. your brain will compensate some though.
good luck

[TheSweetener]

Hey, Zepellin. The good thing about your problem is that it's not premanent. Tinnitus or hearing loss is still not reparable, so if the problem with your right ears only appears somtimes, there are good chances that it's no problem with your inner ear.
It could be something with your bloodflow (I hope that's the right word) or some a nerve that is irritated. A good doctor shoud be able to help you.
A few years ago, I woke up and one of my ears was kinda closed so I was pretty scared. When I went to the doctor, she took my head and turned it around quickly. It was a nerve that was stuck and this prevented the blood from coming to my ear properly. Hearing has a lot to do with bloodflow!

Excuse my bad english, it's not easy to speak about medicinical things in a foreign language.

[Zeppelin4Life]

Originally Posted by TheSweetener

Hey, Zepellin. The good thing about your problem is that it's not premanent. Tinnitus or hearing loss is still not reparable, so if the problem with your right ears only appears somtimes, there are good chances that it's no problem with your inner ear.
It could be something with your bloodflow (I hope that's the right word) or some a nerve that is irritated. A good doctor shoud be able to help you.
A few years ago, I woke up and one of my ears was kinda closed so I was pretty scared. When I went to the doctor, she took my head and turned it around quickly. It was a nerve that was stuck and this prevented the blood from coming to my ear properly. Hearing has a lot to do with bloodflow!

Excuse my bad english, it's not easy to speak about medicinical things in a foreign language.

Thank you for the response. Your english is fine. That's very interesting about the bloodflow.

[soundthinker]

For those of you looking for a hearing test above 8k, come out to Chicago and get your ears checked at Sensaphonics. Michael Santucci tests (if memory serves) up to 20kHz. I've got a pair of the custom earplugs and won't go to a show without them.

/jim

[AustinAaron]

I got blasted by some headphones a couple weeks ago and noticed what I perceived as a -10dB drop in my right ear... same exact "loss of presence" type thing, so much so I felt off balance.

After about a week I went to get my hearing checked... sure enough I had exactly a -10dB drop off at 4K in my right ear.

Doc said I had extremely sensitive hearing, and it should come back in a couple weeks. It's been about a month and I still feel like my right side is in an ISO booth.

Very uncomfortable and unnerving considering how much I have invested in my ears.

[caseyLA]

So why do most tests only go up to 8k? I got a hearing test when i got my earplugs and assumed it was over the full hearing range.

[TheSweetener]

Because normally people use their ears to listen to other people and speech has all the important frequencies under 8K

[Relax]

anyone try hear-all? i sell this at my work and lots of old folks use it regularly.

[Zeppelin4Life]

Originally Posted by caseyLA

So why do most tests only go up to 8k? I got a hearing test when i got my earplugs and assumed it was over the full hearing range.

Its hard to test up high because I assume most people have high end hearing loss whether they know it or not. its a natural thing, really. Todays society is full of noises that damage it quicker, though. I can hear TVs turn on and things. Thats around 18k. The worst is the disposable camera flashes. they whistle at around 15k loudly. 8k still sounds pretty high. 14k and above sounds like tinnitus, not full tones. I imagine it would be harder to get accurate tests with the same stuff.


Great info so far. this thread is going good. Id like throw in something intersting about a friend. He and his friend were in a blues rock band and they played loud gigs every week or so. Recently they had hearing tests and one had 'normal' hearing while the other had a near -35db loss at 4k. they both played guitar, and moved around the stage. James, the one without the hearing loss problem, has very long straight hair that he had always wore down (covering his ears). John (the other guy) has short hair. They both suspect James hair saved his ears. I have no idea if it's true, but it's worth the thought. Pretty weird. Now they both wear earplugs.

[dhughes]

Something to consider is neurological issues with earing perception. This is something I only know a tiny bit about. We have a 'preferred' ear just like we have a preferred eye but this doesn't mean that other ear is functionally defective. I have ambliopia (which as a aside is why I am able to cross one eye so well as you see in my nerd avatar) which is basically a neurological issue where your brain has a very strong preference for one eye. The only way to correct it is to patch the preferred eye before the age of 4 years for several hours every day.

Now let me offer you some low-budget philosophy.

My son was just tested for ambiopia and he doesn't have it. But if he did, I don't know that I would want to do anything about it. I see almost entirely with my left eye. Your left eye sends messages to your right visual cortex which is the side of your brain that is used in artistic expression. This is a part of who I am. Think about how this applies to hearing and mixing. I sometimes mix with my head slightly off-axis to gain a different perspective.

Now let me just get plain crazy.

I have during kundalini yoga been able to temporarily switch my awareness and focus to my less used eye and ear. It is a very bizarre experience.

[dhughes]

Oh yeah. Brian Wilson only has one working ear......it is his left!!

[Zeppelin4Life]

Whoa, thats wild. I've always wondered about 'dominant ears' because its obvious we each have a dominant eye. Mine is my left, which is quite rare. I am right handed though. Great thoughts going on here.

[not_so_new]

Same thing here.... My left ear is pretty bad, it could be from using the phone not sure but it is really bad. So much so that while I can still mix I need to reply on meters just to make sure the stereo image is what I think it is. I have learned how to compensate but it still sucks to get old.

For the record BE VERY CAREFUL when going to the doctor to get your ears cleaned. They tend to use high pressure water for this and it can damage your ears as well, I was told this by an audiologist.

The way I look at it is they are a business just like us. Just because they are a "Doctor" does not mean they know anything. Just because someone calls themselves a "Producer" or a "Recording Engineer" does not mean they are any good at it.

Don't let the receptionist/helper touch your ears, don't let the doctor use high pressure water to clean them, if they tell you it is fine seek a second opinion.

Don't use the ear candle thingy. I had a friend go to a doctor and the doctor told him to use the candle to clean his ear, THE DOCTOR told him this. I believe Skeptical Inquirer and Consumer Reports both did reviews on these things and both found them to be at best useless and at worst a good way to potentially loose an ear drum. This goes to show that Doctors are human and make mistakes get a scond opinion from a specialist that cares..

[u b k]

one thing to keep in mind is that hearing, like all sensory processes, is a marriage of the physiological (the ear) with the psychological (the brain). the brain will adjust beautifully to deviations in the hardware.

if you get your ears cleaned professionally, everything sounds excessively bright and sibilant when you leave the office. wind is shrill, car keys tinkle unnaturally. by the next morning, everything sounds 'normal' again, because your brain has RTA'd to the new transducer response curve.

so if you want to change your hearing, you have to 'train' it slowly over time. it's the only way to overcome the brain's obsessive desire for homeostasis. listen to that doors mix every day, two sessions a day, at a volume that is comfortable; a session is one pass normal, one pass with the headphones reversed, one pass normal again, one pass reversed again. i'd bet good money that at the end of two weeks the differences between your ears will be *significantly* reduced.

it is interesting that everyone has some intuitive sense of which ear hears 'correctly' and which does not, because any such assessment is purely arbitrary. maybe your bad ear is actually the good one. maybe neither one is.

my right ear is less sensitive in the air band, and center images seem to skew left for me. i can hear a .5db adjustment on a channel eq in a dense mix, but i have difficulty placing things left to right in a stereo field. my friend, otoh, has difficulty hearing subtle eq changes, but can spot panning and phase anomolies a mile away. go figure!


gregoire
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