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Aggrivated tinnitus from speakers?

Hi,

I'm new to the forum and was looking for some advice. I recently put together a system comprised of a McIntosh MA6900 + a pair of KEF R7s.

I've always had hearing sensitive to high frequencies, and have a very high frequency tinnitus at 18,000k. That's why I went with the Mac, as everyone talks about how smooth and musical it is. When I was shopping for speakers, I was doing a lot of research but then the KEF R7's went on crazy sale and I was able to pick up a pair for under 2k. It seemed like too much of a deal to pass up, especially with all of the glowing reviews, but maybe that was a mistake on my part...

I'm noticing when I listen to the system, my tinnitus activates at a lower frequency for several hours afterwards. I notice this most on FLAC / MQA - quality tracks on Tidal (via WIIM w/ integrated DAC, at very reasonable volumes - <85db ) It seems to happen less when I listen to vinyl or CD-Quality tracks, but it still happens.

It's driving me crazy and I'm so disappointed as I thought this was going to be my ultimate setup and I dropped a lot of $. The Mac has just been to an auth service center for new lamps and was bench tested and given a perfect bill of health after a small bias adjustment, so I don't think it's the problem.

I decided to use some headphones to see if I experienced the same thing... Senn. HD650's let me listen for long periods without problems. HD660S2s seem to give me maybe a little sensitivity after awhile, but the sensitivity I get from the KEF's is totally different.

I realize I should have demoed the speakers, but I just jumped on the deal - partially on their reputation and also because their narrow, tall size was ideal for the room layout.

Any advice on how to get to the bottom of this? Do I need to test different speakers or do I need to treat the room? I'd hate to give up the Master level recordings because I mentally swim in the detail and love it. I just hate the thought of not being able to enjoy the system properly, but I'm not sure where to start on making  it work for me.

 

 

128x128omegaman79
mojo771
49 posts
 

I have a McIntosh 352 Hybrid integrated amp.  I bought some new speakers and wanted a new amp to push them and so I got the McIntosh MC462 and the C53 preamp.  There was some additional clarity but the high end really aggravated my ears, so I had to go bak to the MA352.  The tubes give me a much warmer sound and I can listen for hours without fatigue.  But I still try not to go above 82db.  

tmortsd's avatar
tmortsd
30 posts
 

I too have tinnitus but listening to my music never seems to bother me even when played loud.   I am using Martin Logan electrostatics….you might consider auditioning this type of speaker, there’s no specific driver emitting high frequency sound and instead the sound spectrum is produced by a large membrane so it’s a far less focused high frequency source.  Magnapans could provide the same benefit. 

shalmaneser
62 posts
 

It's not about the freq. I have a pair of NHT 2.5 towers as my daily drivers.

Last week I fired up my Velodyne sub and began positioning & EQ'ing. Youch! My tinnitus lit up to a degree I've not experienced in a long time. 

Eventually we came to an agreement. I suspect inaudible SPL issues and interference patterns because the 2.5's go well into the Velodyne's range.

Science/medicine is making progress with hearing issues. Last week I found a white paper discussing tinnitus and how conventional hearing testing doesn't identify associated nerve damage. 

bipod72
135 posts
 

I have more noticeable tinnitus in my left ear vs the right and any bright sounding system will cause me to turn down the volume if my system isn't set right. I recently moved to a new home and just finally got around to using the Audyssey software on my Marantz receiver to "correct" the speakers to my listening space. A vast improvement. I tend to EQ my treble flat and bump the midrange a bit and I never listen to music at high volume for extended periods. Typically I might crank it for a particular song but then dial it back down.

Your setup sounds like it is too heavy on the treble end and the brightness is causing you issues. I would suggest listening to music w/ flat/neutral EQ settings for a while as you address room treatment. Then make adjustments after that. Not sure that you need to run out and start equipment swapping if you haven't fixed the room first and made adjustments to what you have on hand. 

markcasazza
26 posts
 

I had a similar experience last year out on the astronomy field. This is a very quit place, but both my telescopes emit a high frequency sound that many can't even hear. I set the telescopes up closer than normal resulting in spending several overnights within the range where these high frequency whines could be clearly heard. It took a week or so for my tinnitus to return to previous levels. 

What does this mean? I'm trying to convey that in my experience it is not the volume of the sound, but rather the frequency and exposure time. Based on my experience I suggest a solution that involves truncating the high frequencies as a test. That could be your EQ or test driving a set a speakers that are less bright.

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