advertisement


Tinnitus and slight hearing loss means goodbye to my beloved system

andyzeg

andyzeg

Active Member
Hi All

There have been threads on here previously about hearing loss and tinnitus...I have been a sufferer for many years although I battled through when it came to my love of my HiFi and music.

However, over the last year or so, it has become obvious to me that I can't enjoy listening to music as I used to. It has got to the point where I have decided to part with my entire high end system as I can't now justify it...and hopefully others will be able to give it the home it deserves.

I may just invest in a decent smaller budget system later...but my days of sitting in front of a big HiFi are over.

If anyone is interested...I will be creating some ads in "Classifieds" shortly.

Thank you for reading.

Kind Regards

Andrew

20170822_170047 by Andrew Zeglicki, on Flickr
 
Andrew

Don’t despair. Hearing loss affects us all eventually, no matter how much some might like to pretend it doesn’t. I have a little tinnitus too, although not badly enough to seriously impact on my listening. But at the end of the day music is the main thing, not the equipment, and I’m sure a smaller system will give you great pleasure when you eventually get one.
 
Have suffered tinnitus for years also I find it at its loudest when watching TV. Funnily enough I get relief when playing the hifi and notice its recommend to listen to music for relief. Feel for you andy can understand anyone getting down with the constant noise in your head that never goes away.
 
Hello Andrew,
I'm really sorry.

I don't have hearing loss but just an annoying tinnitus at the left ear, so I downsized my system as well, since I'm not so able anymore to sensing the tiny differences among different equipment.

However, as Marchbanks said, a small equipment can provide you of many hours of good music and it's simpler and easier to use (going on with the age).

For example, I recently bought a Quad Vena Play, which is an integrated amplifier with Phono stage, DAC and Streamer embedded, so it is a All-in system and the results are very satisfying, no warm-up time, remote control, great ergonomics and most of all, great sound.

Other examples are Cyrus One Cast, Naim Unitiqute (no phono) and Hegel H90 (no phono as well).

Cheers.
Mauro
 
I can see your logic...I have Tinnitus is my left ear...had it for years but now it's all the time and loud, and like you, a tad deaf to boot. It's a shame, but I find that music sessions distract me and voila! Sorry if they don't do it for you.
I wish you well with the sales and my little Denon mini system was all we had in our two years on a barge. With decent speakers, we never mentioned HiFi once, just enjoyed it. Corny but true.
 
Hi Andy,
Very sorry to hear that. Dunno which is worse - tinnitus or hearing loss. I am in the throes of being diagnosed for my sudden senso-neurial hearing loss which has got no better after a month or so on steroids. I now realise that spatial info is/was an important part of my hifi habit. Now my right ear is for keeping my glasses from falling off. I now suspect it had been on the way out for some time as I have always complained about a channel imbalance especially in the bass which has stayed over to the left no matter what. And there was I blaming it on the room or my defective DIY speaker building skills ! I guess I should have suspected my ears long ago but to tell the truth it hadn´t really crossed my mind.
I shouldn´t complain ´cos my left pinna seems to be OK so far. I have no inclination to listen to music at the moment but live in hope that when the thing has stabiliised I will somehow grow more appreciative of the tonal side of hifi reproduction rather than lamenting the lack of "stereo". Maybe I can ferkle one of the inputs into my Sugden A21SE to make it mono - shouldn´t be difficult.
 
I have hearing loss and tinnitus, but interestingly I have gone a different route. I have followed an upgrade path and have found it immensely satisfying, as my listening experience has improved with improved kit. Yes the tinnitus remains, but by training my brain to 'tune it out' and become more accepting of it with mindfulness practice, it impacts very little on my listening experience.
 
Rockmeister said:
...my little Denon mini system was all we had in our two years on a barge. With decent speakers, we never mentioned HiFi once, just enjoyed it. Corny but true.
Click to expand...
Exactly. I’ve just spent a week in an isolated holiday home that a friend lets out. The music system is in need of TLC - the amp badly needs new PSU caps, the speakers are L to R reversed and I suspect the treble drivers might be out of phase with each other (or maybe there’s a knackered crossover.) It isn’t mine and no-one else really cares, so it’s been like it for ages. But whenever I’m there I put it on and just enjoy the music, although I’m aware it sounds a bit odd sometimes!
 
Last edited:
Andy, there are many disparate approaches here to your situation; quite surprising, really, despite this being pfm! I'm really Mutt & Jeff (as everyone tells me), esp. in my right ear (40/50% down). Luckily, any bouts of tinnitus are brief. Please don't make any rash decisions re. your kit; take your time, as something in your condition may change (we are coming to spring, after all...) or possible 'medication' could alleviate your condition for the the purposes of enjoying your music, or even, as aforementioned above, a component part of your system could improve listening aspects.

I find myself listening to CDs, records and radio through cans more and more nowadays (and most times for TV (through my can amp. directly)). Despite my imbalance of hearing, this never translates to an imbalance of channel info., for some reason, either on cans or big ESLs.

Can I suggest prioritising your musical enjoyment over your hearing loss/tinnitus? Obv., I don't know how excruciating this may have become, but do try (if you currently don't) listening through quality cans and can-amp via your pre. In other words, investigate other means; both currently work for me, but I can see cans becoming the principal listening device as I take up octogenarian status later this year (D.V.).

To finish on a humorous note, it's fine to laugh in the face of adversity, but maybe not if you're a grief counsellor :)
 
Oh dear, Andy. Have just seen your ad's. As I have that Lector 4 box CDP , I really think you shouldn't rush into selling this superb source, at least. You wouldn't replicate this detailed and analogue presentation easily, if at all.
 
Thank you for the wonderful replies so far.

My day to day hearing is not too bad...although the tinnitus can be a nuisance. When listening to music at anything close to a decent volume, the sound becomes distorted and echoey...and the "stereo" imagery drifts to my left. I just don't enjoy listening to music like this any more and have sort of got out of the habit. I now prefer to have music on in the background...therefore I will at some point move to a smaller and cheaper level of system. No regrets...because I have owned some amazing HiFi setups over the years...and I'm happy to move on and downsize. All is good...just a life change:)
 
Mike Reed said:
Oh dear, Andy. Have just seen your ad's. As I have that Lector 4 box CDP , I really think you shouldn't rush into selling this superb source, at least. You wouldn't replicate this detailed and analogue presentation easily, if at all.
Click to expand...
Thank you Mike...yes you are right...it is an excellent CD/DAC setup and quite underrated in my view. But time to move on and it's ok as I'm happy to do so. A couple of family tragedies last year helped to alter my outlook as well...so it all feels right and comfortable with me. I just want the stuff to go to good homes where it will be cherished and appreciated for years to come.
 
We had an old family friend who died a few years ago. He had been an avid classical music listener who in his youth had seen Toscanini and Heifetz in concert. He’d also written reviews for a well known newspaper.He developed tinnitus at a late age and he used to say it always hurt his ears at certain notes.
 
Del monaco said:
He developed tinnitus at a late age and he used to say it always hurt his ears at certain notes.
Click to expand...
I can vouch for that. Certain frequencies hurt my left ear at a mid to high volume. It’s around the frequency and volume of a female voice shouting to her friends in the pub. And of one of a set of wind chimes some friends of mine have. Ting, ting, ting, OW!, ting, ting.
 
Yes...I should have mentioned that I was also diagnosed with hyperacusis...this is a high sensitivity to loud and high frequency sounds...it is actually painful and for example...the clashing of plates and dishes is especially unpleasant. I now struggle with louder volume music too.
 
I sympathise, my Dad has a similar problem. He is now sufficiently deaf that when he watches TV he turns the sound down until it's all but inaudible and relies on the subtitles.
 
I do too.
I suffer ETS and it's not any better.
Sometimes I feel so depressed when I listen to my hi-fi, with so little treble detail, you know, what hi-fi is all about. It doesn't sound good to my ears, although guests are delighted it seems.
Those days are reading and telly days. The hi-fi remains silent.
 
I'll count myself lucky, then, as I don't know what ETS etc. is and rarely get tinnitus. A few years ago, after returning from having my first flu jab and pneumonia jab I staggered into my kitchen, sat down and wondered where hearing had gone in my right ear. Many tests and consultants/doctors later, all professing the impossibility of causation, I haven't lost the enjoyment of my hifi. The brain, it seems, is remarkably accommodative.

Similarly to Andy, my wife's washing up used to jar my brain (she does overdo the cleanliness bit), so now she shuts both doors and it now just sounds like a distant insurrection.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.


advertisement


Back
Top