I'm not seeking any sympathy but just curious to know how others are dealing with hearing loss. When I was in college I damaged my hearing significantly with some ill-advised shooting without ear plugs. My ears have been ringing loudly ever since (I just turned 51) and right after the accident I had my hearing tested and was told that in one ear the upper half of the frequency range was at about 50% in one ear and not quite as bad in the other ear. But over time it felt like my brain compensated for the physical damage, and although the ringing never stopped, I was still able to enjoy music a lot; even enough to consider myself a bit of an audiophile. I spent a lot of time at a high end shop in Seattle, and eventually purchased Magnepan speakers and Hafler electronics and thoroughly enjoyed them.
Twenty five years later I still absolutely love my system which has remained largely unchanged and my collection of music (acoustic jazz) has only grown over the years. But I can tell that my hearing is getting worse with age, especially in the upper frequency range. I still love jazz and enjoy listening to it, but I have to admit that the sound I hear from my system doesn't have the sparkle it used to. Some years ago I even used the Magnepan supplied tweeter circuit resistor to tame the highs a little in a bright listening space. My current listening space isn't particlarly muted at all (hardwood floor, sheet rock walls etc.) and yet I struggle to hear the highs. (no, the tweeter fuses are not blown..) If I cup my hands around my ears I begin to hear more of the high range that I recall from the past, but of course the sound stage gets jumbled and besides, who wants to sit there for an hour with hands cupped around ears!
I must not be the only one with this problem. How do others deal with the reality of hearing loss when you love listening to high fidelity music so much?
I'm not seeking any sympathy but just curious to know how others are dealing with hearing loss. When I was in college I damaged my hearing significantly with some ill-advised shooting without ear plugs. My ears have been ringing loudly ever since (I just turned 51) and right after the accident I had my hearing tested and was told that in one ear the upper half of the frequency range was at about 50% in one ear and not quite as bad in the other ear. But over time it felt like my brain compensated for the physical damage, and although the ringing never stopped, I was still able to enjoy music a lot; even enough to consider myself a bit of an audiophile. I spent a lot of time at a high end shop in Seattle, and eventually purchased Magnepan speakers and Hafler electronics and thoroughly enjoyed them.
Twenty five years later I still absolutely love my system which has remained largely unchanged and my collection of music (acoustic jazz) has only grown over the years. But I can tell that my hearing is getting worse with age, especially in the upper frequency range. I still love jazz and enjoy listening to it, but I have to admit that the sound I hear from my system doesn't have the sparkle it used to. Some years ago I even used the Magnepan supplied tweeter circuit resistor to tame the highs a little in a bright listening space. My current listening space isn't particlarly muted at all (hardwood floor, sheet rock walls etc.) and yet I struggle to hear the highs. (no, the tweeter fuses are not blown..) If I cup my hands around my ears I begin to hear more of the high range that I recall from the past, but of course the sound stage gets jumbled and besides, who wants to sit there for an hour with hands cupped around ears!
I must not be the only one with this problem. How do others deal with the reality of hearing loss when you love listening to high fidelity music so much?