tinnitus is killing me. don't know how much longer I can take it.

[flummox]

At this point I can't exactly afford to be picky, but I hope I never have to work in a place where I have that little autonomy. That was one of the great things about working for a small company - I didn't need a huge departmental structure to approve every decision I made. I know you can't just have rogue sysadmins re-cabling the data center at will, but someone should at least been able to explain to the higher-ups that redundant power supplies are only redundant if you plug them in.

But yeah, that's different. Racks of servers can be very loud and some of those drives have an incredibly annoying high-pitched whine. But most modern desktops are almost silent. The last batch of Dell workstations we brought in were extremely quiet.

Another thing: I work in IT and one job back we had a data center of 19" rackmounted servers that had cooling fans that were just HOWLING, incredibly loud for one server but for the floor to ceiling racking it was deafening. I took a look at the servers and I took a look at the backs and it turns out that they racked them up so that only one power supply was connected. Each server had redudant supplies and both should have been connected and the fans would have been at a much more reasonable volume level. But if only one power supply was connected the assumption was made that something overheated or failed so the fans went to 10,000 rpm or somesuch. The poor guy who had to work in there was pretty hearing impaired after a couple years exposure but nobody would listen to the lowly system administrator who said if they connected both supplies on each server the sound level would go down significantly. So be it.

 

[slidezone]

my tinnitus is associated with TMJ--jaw hinge problems, made worse by teeth grinding/gritting. I'm getting some relief with a molded mouthguard (like football players wear, but not as thick) got it from my dentist. $75
Not 100 % cure, but there is some improvement & relief. I wear it while I sleep.

[aliensporebomb]

At this point I can't exactly afford to be picky, but I hope I never have to work in a place where I have that little autonomy. That was one of the great things about working for a small company - I didn't need a huge departmental structure to approve every decision I made. I know you can't just have rogue sysadmins re-cabling the data center at will, but someone should at least been able to explain to the higher-ups that redundant power supplies are only redundant if you plug them in. But yeah, that's different. Racks of servers can be very loud and some of those drives have an incredibly annoying high-pitched whine. But most modern desktops are almost silent. The last batch of Dell workstations we brought in were extremely quiet.

 

 

Things have gotten better - one of the machines I have has nine slower turning fans instead of two or three faster louder ones and you'd never know the machine was on if it's not under load and if it is it's still so quiet it's unreal. Quiet computing has been a big trend for recording but also in areas where people have to work in data centers and don't want to lose hearing. Where you see problems are ten year old servers still slugging away that need replacement but due to lack of personnel and time they just keep cranking away.

 

And once Intel went to their Core line things got MUCH quieter. The old Pentium IV and variants were virtually guaranteed to come with an airplane engine prop to keep it from burning up.

[aliensporebomb]

my tinnitus is associated with TMJ--jaw hinge problems, made worse by teeth grinding/gritting. I'm getting some relief with a molded mouthguard (like football players wear, but not as thick) got it from my dentist. $75 Not 100 % cure, but there is some improvement & relief. I wear it while I sleep.

 

 

When I first started playing I was incredibly nervous about playing with other people and I used to clamp my jaw shut really hard.

 

I eventually wore my teeth down doing that and I'd grind my teeth in my sleep too (my dad apparently did that as well).

 

So yeah, my dentist gave me a mouthgard that I use but it's hard to wear as it's not terribly comfortable but better that than worn down teeth.

[scolfax]

Stress affects it BIG TIME!

 

 

Yeah, stress, alcohol, and aspirin make it worse for me too.

[flummox]

Things have gotten better - one of the machines I have has nine slower turning fans instead of two or three faster louder ones and you'd never know the machine was on if it's not under load and if it is it's still so quiet it's unreal. Quiet computing has been a big trend for recording but also in areas where people have to work in data centers and don't want to lose hearing. Where you see problems are ten year old servers still slugging away that need replacement but due to lack of personnel and time they just keep cranking away. And once Intel went to their Core line things got MUCH quieter. The old Pentium IV and variants were virtually guaranteed to come with an airplane engine prop to keep it from burning up.

 

 

My Mac Mini is so quiet I literally have to put my ear against it to hear anything. Subjectively, it's totally silent, or below the noise floor of my tinnitus anyway. The really are getting good at building these things.

[digitalox]

ditto hear. had it for at least 5 yrs. now both ears. It gets out of hand occasionally but I can't say it has any big emotional impact on me at this point. I'm probably more used to hearing it now than i was at first and don't notice it as much. But sometimes it just gets really really loud.
A few loud concerts, shooting guns, and years of loud headphones I'm probably lucky I just have high pitch nerve deafness and tinnitus. Hang in there!

[scolfax]

It gets out of hand occasionally but I can't say it has any big emotional impact on me at this point.

 

 

I'll admit it - the first week when it was *really* loud and it hit me that I might have it forever - I cried. Sounds pathetic, but it is one of the top 10 worst things that has ever happened to me. Of course that's probably a good thing compared to what the people in Haiti are going through.

[axegrinder]

Mojo to all you guys.

I have lost some hearing to the point that I dread loud social events where I can't understand what is being said half the time. I would hate to have constant ringing in my ears. I guess you learn to live with what you get, but I feel bad for you anyway.

[bsman]

...I have lost some hearing to the point that I dread loud social events where I can't understand what is being said half the time...

 

 

Actually, I find that my hearing loss is useful. It annoys the {censored} out of my wife! :poke:

[Bubbluz]

I've had it for 30+ years now,I've gotten used to it I guess.

A single high pitched squeal,seemingly in both ears as it feels like it's centered in my head.

The funny thing about it is that it hasn't affected my over all hearing according to any tests I've had.(except I suppose at the precise pitch of the ringing.)

I notice it at times,mostly when my surroundings are quiet, but it doesn't bother me to the point of distraction.

Somebody mentioned TMJ,they must be related because if i distend my jaw I can hear a different pitched ring at a louder volume.

 

you do learn to tune it out.

[Leisure Lee]

I have a condition called Meneires Disease in the right ear and it sounds like my entire head is one big whistling tea kettle.There is nothing to be done to cure it other than puncturing your eardrum. One thing you can do though is lay off the salt shaker at the dinner table and cut down on the junk foods loaded with sodium, try the decaf coffee.......Wont cure anything but it sure helps......................

[Brian May]

How does tinnitus arrive when you get it?? I mean...is it there all of a sudden and never leaves from that time on? or does it come n go periodically before it comes to stay with you permanently?? Just occasionally at random times I get a high pitch tone ringing in my ears for a minute or 2 then its gone. One night a couple of weeks ago, whilst lying in bed it was there till I went to sleep..but thankfully when I awoke in the morning it was gone. Warning signs?? I dont get my ears ringing after a session with the band, just that earache on the PA side. Which I am onto now - make the singer stand were I was standing and its then up to him if he wants to blast his own ears!

Also...is it a high pitch tone...or is it a hissing sound? After my rehearsal sessions each sunday (we do 3hrs) I wear ear plugs but i've noticed lately as we've turned the amps down (still loud though with 2 guitarists but less than it was)that I was still getting earache for a day or 3 afterwards usually in my left ear. Suddenly it dawned on me that it wasnt actually a guitar amp or a drum that was causing this...it was the PA!! The PA speakers were at head height and were like 5ft from my left ear...and that was the ear that was suffering! Should've realised sooner...the singer was complaining about our amps being unbearably loud and whilst they were for him stood 10ft out front...it was him all along that was bothering my ears!! He liked himself to be pretty loud through the PA....whilst complaining to us we were too loud!

I do go through moments of seriously consdering quitting this band for fear that tinnitus is just around the corner for me. I really would rather never play in a band again if that was the price to pay.

[Bubbluz]

 

How does tinnitus arrive when you get it?? I mean...is it there all of a sudden and never leaves from that time on? or does it come n go periodically before it comes to stay with you permanently?? Just occasionally at random times I get a high pitch tone ringing in my ears for a minute or 2 then its gone.

 

 

I myself cannot remember,(its been so long now) how it started up or if there was a ebb and flow to it before it was a constant thing.

I can't even say for sure if it was music/band related to begin with.

I still get those random high pitched tones,(I always thought of them like a standing wave),so i think they are removed from the tinnitus issue.

[bluffalo]

I was born with it, and unfortunately i have made it slightly worse. earplugs always, even if i get made fun of.

[scolfax]

How does tinnitus arrive when you get it?? I mean...is it there all of a sudden and never leaves from that time on? or does it come n go periodically before it comes to stay with you permanently?? Just occasionally at random times I get a high pitch tone ringing in my ears for a minute or 2 then its gone. One night a couple of weeks ago, whilst lying in bed it was there till I went to sleep..but thankfully when I awoke in the morning it was gone. Warning signs?? I dont get my ears ringing after a session with the band, just that earache on the PA side. Which I am onto now - make the singer stand were I was standing and its then up to him if he wants to blast his own ears! Also...is it a high pitch tone...or is it a hissing sound? After my rehearsal sessions each sunday (we do 3hrs) I wear ear plugs but i've noticed lately as we've turned the amps down (still loud though with 2 guitarists but less than it was)that I was still getting earache for a day or 3 afterwards usually in my left ear. Suddenly it dawned on me that it wasnt actually a guitar amp or a drum that was causing this...it was the PA!! The PA speakers were at head height and were like 5ft from my left ear...and that was the ear that was suffering! Should've realised sooner...the singer was complaining about our amps being unbearably loud and whilst they were for him stood 10ft out front...it was him all along that was bothering my ears!! He liked himself to be pretty loud through the PA....whilst complaining to us we were too loud! I do go through moments of seriously consdering quitting this band for fear that tinnitus is just around the corner for me. I really would rather never play in a band again if that was the price to pay.

I initially had it in my right ear after going to a Van Halen concert, but could only hear it if I stuck my finger in my ear. But then, after a few weeks of particularly loud rehearsals it came on full blast and stayed that way. In hindsight, I had warning signs during those rehearsals when the ringing from each one still be there when I woke up the next morning. I wouldn't count on a warning though. And also, if I had known that this would happen to me, I would have quit the band, no question.

Even though I have constant tinnitus in my right ear, I also get the random high-pitched tone that comes and goes. Maybe twice a month in a random ear for 10 seconds, something like that.

[Bluesidae]

For me it just appeared one day. Thank god for background noise!

[flummox]

 

For me it just appeared one day. Thank god for background noise!

 

 

Me too. I referred a bit to this already; I did all the same loud stuff as the rest of you guys. But the ringing always went away after a few hours from exposure. I went to an unbelievably loud Swans show at the Masquerade in Atlanta around 92 that caused a friend of mine's tinnitus. But I was OK. A year later I was taking college courses and not doing music at all, and one fairly quiet night studying - all of a sudden BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE... and that was that.

 

Mine is a steady sine-wave whistle that seems to be around 9k. On a good day normal office background noise will totally mask it. On a bad day I'm effectively deaf in my right ear and have a kind of numb, clogged sensation even when everything's clean. Even though everything's muffled save for the screaming 9k, certain midrange frequencies are painfully loud and weirdly out of proportion. My own voice becomes deafening and I try very hard to avoid conversations. That'd often drag on for days or weeks. I'm happy to say I haven't had a day like that in 6-7 years. It really has gotten better.

[aclarke]

Anyone else ever notice the ringing seems to get progressively louder the more you read about it?

Seriously, I'd pretty much tuned it out it when I opened this thread, and after reading 2 pages and one link, it's driving me insane.

[Brian May]

Well I own a GT-10, and a GNX3000. Now the GNX range are discontinued so getting a GNX3000 would mean buying used or finding someone that has such an old one in stock new...hard ask that!

I prefer the amp modelling on the GNX to the Boss no doubt. But I dont like its latency as you notice a pause when changing patches that annoys me. Also it doesnt have a loop so cant be used 4cm.

To the OP who asked is the GT-8 and GT-10 that different in the OD sounds - short answer yes!! The 10 has updated its cosm sounds...I noticed this straight away that it was different when I got mine! Some actually prefer the older GT-8's drives so is all a matter of taste. For me though I voted RP1000 cos its the one I want...and I prefer Digitechs amp modelling to Boss's COSM modelling. But as both have a loop and allow the 4cm...and this is the only way i'd use one live anyway the amp modelling aspect isn't important apart from home playing/recording. The FX on the Boss are fine...at least all the 'normal' ones - as in all these types of units i dont care for the weird stuff anyway.

[Armchair Bronco]

I started getting it back when my main hobby was trap shooting. I always wore a double layer of ear protection, but even that wasn't enough to stop the ringing. I got so worried about it (especially late at night when I was in bed) that I gave up trap shooting and took up the guitar instead.

Now I shoot once in a blue moon but I play my guitars quietly (at home) every day.

[mfergel]

I've had it from at least around college. It's always kind of been there. Used to be it was only noticable at night or in a quiet room. Now I can hear it at all times and it actually makes conversations difficult if they don't speak louder than the sound of the ringing. I really don't know what the specific reason was that made it so much worse. It's possible it could have been some concerts, but I really think it was because the band started practicing in a single car garage. I can recall a couple of incidents when the singer hit a few notes and it was actually a bit painful for me volume wise.

[scolfax]

Anyone else ever notice the ringing seems to get progressively louder the more you read about it?

 

 

Yes! It seems like when I hear the tone, I automatically focus on it. And when I focus on the tone, the more that tone gets fed back into the loop, making it louder. It actually has the sound quality of amp feedback.

 

I think that's why static helps quiet it down - static doesn't give you any frequency range to focus in on.

[nighthawk15]

I may have to start protecting my ears more......I see live shows A LOT and have never wore ear plugs. I seriously thought Motorhead was going to be the end of silence for me. I saw them in a tiny venue and I was on the gate with multiple Marshall full stacks blowing in my face in all their glory, not to mention the house speakers were not far away at all either. I couldn't hear right for about 3 days.

[Karma1]

How does tinnitus arrive when you get it?? I mean...is it there all of a sudden and never leaves from that time on? or does it come n go periodically before it comes to stay with you permanently?? Also...is it a high pitch tone...or is it a hissing sound?

 

 

 

For me it was there all of a sudden. About 7 or 8 years ago I went to a very loud concert by The Machine, a Pink Floyd tribute band and when I left my ears were ringing and it's never stopped. (Welcome to the machine) When I walked into the concert hall everything was fine. When I left, my hearing was damaged permanently. It's kind of hard to describe the sound, but I guess it's kind of like a hissing - fairly high pitched white noise. Once in a very great while it will lessen for a few moments, but it's generally there 24 hours a day.