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Have you tried matching a stereo to your hearing?

Have you ever had a hearing test done to determine your actual hearing curve? It is my understanding that the average human hearing range is essentially an arc that tails off at high and low frequencies, but isn't necessarily a smooth line. It might be possible to tune a system to compensate for dips or peaks in ones personal hearing. It might sound terrible to everyone else, but perfect for you.

Has anyone ever tried or thought about this concept? I wonder how similar the hearing curve is for people that commonly enjoy a particular system above all else.
mceljo
Post removed 
ojgalli
165 posts
 
The natural sound of things is our reference. Our natural hearing curve is our reference also. If we "compensate" for our hearing curve we are actually throwing the balance of natural sound way, way off. We'd have pounding bass and excruciating treble.

The analogy to eyesight would only apply to people with significant hearing loss, but even then the correction should be made at the ear, not in the system.
oakleys
78 posts
 
i believe you are simply describing how each and allmost everyone puts together a stereo system, sans a visit to a doctor.

we use our own two ears and pick out the gear what we enjoy, hence matching the stereo to our hearing.

indeed, some people do like measurements, i.e for equipment, but these measurements might not dont matter too much or even help or explain the joy we experence when it comes down to playing back music.

Ag insider logo xs@2x
jgiacalo
446 posts
 
There was a study a few years back in a Japanese journal of physiology that documented that although the accepted upper limit for human hearing is 20KHz (although most of us come no where near hearing that high up), the human brain actually responds to signals up to 45K. Although not 'heard' in the traditional sense, there was increased blood flow and cellular activity in the auditory lobe. When these ultra high frequencies were present in audible music the music was perceived and reported as more pleasurable/enjoyable.
buconero117
2,311 posts
 
Having been hearing impaired since birth, I have a lot of experience with hearing aids and audio. Needless to say, current SOTA hearing aids, some costing over $5K each, try to match a hearing curve to the device. The problem is that few aids, even costly ones, do it effectively. I do think it is a good idea for any serious audio person to get a comprehensive hearing test. Watch out, typical tests don't go over the 8K band. So, find a real professional audiologist and tell them you want a 'broadband' test. If they ask what is that, move on quickly.
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