Hehehe.
And that rather illustrates the more salient point that it doesn't really matter if someone is able to hear down to -17dB. They're not going to be able to hear something at -17dB AND something at say, 60dB at the same time.
If you're in a good anechoic chamber, you can ultimately hear the air molecules beating on your eardrums. But you can't do that until you've acclimated to the silence.
se
Many of us have high abilities in hearing when we are young, perhaps better than average, and that may be why we find hi fi an interesting hobby. I started comparing differences in acoustical guitars, before I took hi fi very seriously. I acquired the best sounding guitars from several similar ones, starting 50 years ago, and sometimes I sold similar guitars off, because of some characteristic that annoyed me, and would not go away with more time on the guitar. This was all before getting into hi fi.
This ability, I think, prepared me to get into hi fi design and do something with it.
Now how does this 'ability' affect me, especially in my later years?
Well, listening to FM radio, for one.
Long ago, there was a San Francisco FM station called: KYA. They did 'oldies' rock and roll from the '50's onward. I listened to it in my car, and at home, always being 'fortified' by whatever an old song gave me. One special song was 'Angel Baby' by a young woman of indeterminate race, but with great intensity. I must have heard that song on the radio, almost every day, and it almost always reminded me of teenage love, as I also had in my earlier years.
Later, KYA changed its format, and the 'oldies' moved to another station on the dial. The sound transmission probably digitally processed, was not as good, but still listenable. This went on for a number of years, then the station material moved again, this time with what I must presume resembles an MP-3 format. Now it is virtually unlistenable to me. Why? Well, same basic music, but too much was lost. The 'soul' of even that old rock and roll music is gone, and only a recognition remains.
This is my curse, as well as my blessing. I am sure that others can still listen to that 'oldies' station and be happy. So it goes.
This ability, I think, prepared me to get into hi fi design and do something with it.
Now how does this 'ability' affect me, especially in my later years?
Well, listening to FM radio, for one.
Long ago, there was a San Francisco FM station called: KYA. They did 'oldies' rock and roll from the '50's onward. I listened to it in my car, and at home, always being 'fortified' by whatever an old song gave me. One special song was 'Angel Baby' by a young woman of indeterminate race, but with great intensity. I must have heard that song on the radio, almost every day, and it almost always reminded me of teenage love, as I also had in my earlier years.
Later, KYA changed its format, and the 'oldies' moved to another station on the dial. The sound transmission probably digitally processed, was not as good, but still listenable. This went on for a number of years, then the station material moved again, this time with what I must presume resembles an MP-3 format. Now it is virtually unlistenable to me. Why? Well, same basic music, but too much was lost. The 'soul' of even that old rock and roll music is gone, and only a recognition remains.
This is my curse, as well as my blessing. I am sure that others can still listen to that 'oldies' station and be happy. So it goes.
Yes when your hearing is working you don't normally visit audiologists.
The Maico hearing test unit I got as a kid started at -10db. It was retired because it used stepped attenuators and made a clicking noise between steps. It was determined the switches were worn out by the factory authorized service folks. I had a great time taking it apart, beautifully built, learned about log size steps, silver shorting rotary switches, etc. Of course with later knowledge the actual problem was DC through a leaking capacitor!
People see ENTs for a lot more than hearing loss and they usually test people's hearing when they come in. The two ENT doctors I talked with said that people hearing thresholds usually vary from 0dB to +15dB for normal hearing, even with no bandwidth loss.
Anyway, I think it makes sense that if you have hyperacusis and the world sounds +40dB to +60dB louder to you, then you'll probably do better on the test. Though a person's threshold for hearing probably doesn't change in absolute terms, as far as I know.
But not everyone has the same threshold for hearing, even without damage, it varies. I'm just going by what audiologists and the two ENTs I've talk to said. A better testing method or facility might give different results ... I have no experience with that.
John
How about the blood flow in (say) your carotid artery or your heartbeat? The brownian motion of air at the eardrum is really going to be noisier than that?
Sorry that I have a life and can't always respond to you instantly.
JJ has never said what you claim he said. Period. Nor has anyone else. What's so hard to understand about that?
If this were the first time you ascribed that incorrect notion to others (last time, I think you ascribed it to me, which was just as much a fabrication), that would be one thing. But it isn't, you've done it again and again, and you've been refuted again and again. At a certain point, one must either believe that you're stupid (which you are decidedly not) or you're willing to lie to try to score meaningless debating points against someone who's not a participant here and can't correct your false assertion himself (which I find very disappointing).
Speaking of 'fabrications' SY how about the Jack Bybee comments by you on this website? Any proof, any evidence, any first hand knowledge?
I made a generalization of what I think jj and his bunch are trying to do with audio. Do they not resist SACD, and think that MP-3 is A-OK? Didn't jj invent MP-3, or did I get that wrong?
I made a generalization of what I think jj and his bunch are trying to do with audio. Do they not resist SACD, and think that MP-3 is A-OK? Didn't jj invent MP-3, or did I get that wrong?
listening at night, as the traffic became sparse, i'd turn the sound down,
lower, and lower still, till when a car/truck came by,
i couldn't hear what was on, 'the music machine'
also, the number of people who were in need of brake adjustments,
seemed to be higher than what seemed normal.
easily heard, when careful listening was practiced.
not sure how high of a frequency that sort of thing is.
(the neighbors dog, actually clued the brake problems,
as he heard them first,and complained early and often,
by howling)
i believe you -
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Wow, now I am either 'stupid' or a 'liar'. Well SY, talk about debating tactics. Perhaps I could be 'mistaken'? Just because I have directly debated jj over the years, does that count for anything. I once told jj, that it was his business to remove as much as he could and still get away with it, but my business was to take what I had and get the most from it. That is the difference between us. I have great respect for jj, as a scientist, I always have.
really?
hummm
forgive me, my attention span is , well ........... -
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