Man, am i losing my hearing?


I gotta get my hearing checked!

I swear i hear things as well as i used to, but as time goes on i feel i have a hard time distinguishing what is being said. Seems like i am having a hard time making sence of what i hear.

Ive recently started seeing a new girl, and i swear she mumbles from time to time. She has been giving me crap about it latley.

I'm only 28, my hearing was excellent back when i was in the military, but it has been a while since ive had a test.

Whats the point in spending thousands on a stereo system if you cannot distinguish the subtle nuances anymore?

AcK!

Anyways,

Havent talked to you all in a while, been too busy with the car and the new girlie. Looks like i might score a free 14lb Vortech Supercharger for the ol Mustang. Will have to redo the fuel hoses and fuel pump, and it will void my warranty, but an extra dyno'ed 184+ RWHP? Crap! That will put roughly 394-400 horses at the wheels!!!!!!
How could i turn that down? hell, i bet i could pull a low 12 second 1/4 mile in this altitude! maybe low 11's at sea level!

or maybe that is a bad idea? ROFL
slappy
The good news is that its most likely nothing more than earwax build-up, which can be removed by a doctor. It is extremely common and you will be amazed at the difference after the wax is removed. But, you have to go to a doctor to get the problem analyzed and, if it is the wax, to get the wax removed.
Slappy

Have your ears cryoed. It helped me hear all the highs and lows. And you can use the frozen ear wax to cool your drinks.
Slappy, when you do get your hearing checked I predict that you will see a loss in the 4 - 5 KHz range and the profile will look like a sharp shelving drop somewhere in that region. This is consistent with high level listening back in our concert-going days at +100 dB SPLs. Also this is the region where female voices need to be heard in order for clarity of annunciation to be heard. Let us know what you find.
Go see a specialist; your complaint is usually the first one that is heard from people with a hearing problem. Up here your visit and treatment would be free. I sure hope you have insurance since medical treatment sure is expensive in the land of the free! Good luck. BTW I have tinnitus so I understand how hearing problems sneak up on you.
Hey Slappy, what's more expensive, a hi-po car, a hi-tech stereo, or a hi-maintenance girlie !!
Just bustin yer chops, get your hearing checked A.S.A.P. dude, we can't lose ya here, take care and be careful.
Hey Slappy, I also have a loss of hearing that effects me especially when I'm among too many people talking with ambient noise in the background. Sounds like they are mumbling. It makes going to bars and other social events a bit of a "pain in the butt."

However, it is a great justification for playing your stereo loud. It doesn't seem to affect my critical listening sessions.

Does your new girlfriend mumble all the time, or only after a "doobie"?
Hey you guys,
Why spill the beans here on a national forum? You know as well as I know that your hearing is fine and that subconsciously(or consciously) you automatically filter out anything that you're not really interested in listening to. My long dead grandmother used to play that game with my mother and father. It's not that we can longer hear as well..we play music louder because it sounds better and also makes it impossible for us to hear our spouses bitch!!!
Slappy:

Yo dude, I went through the same type of hearing problem when I was in
my late 20's/early thirties. It seemed to be at its worst whenever
dipthongs were used in a sentence (essentially, diphthongs are vowel
combinations that can be both difficult to ennunciate, as well as hear). I
went to a number of hearing specialists who confirmed that this was
happening (along with the sage advice that I was geting older) and it
seemed to level off by my mid-thirties. But what a load of crap I took
from an ex-wife and several ex-girl friends who swore that I was just
not listening.

Today, I have a much different, but related problem. Just about a month
ago, I had some spine fusion done and one of the screws not only broke
but ricocheted inside my spine, puncturing my spinal cord, and causing
spinal meningitis (system wide blood poisoning). On those rare
occasions when I am reasonably lucid, the last thing that I want is to
hear anyone ... so I guess it balances out.

Be well, Rich
Slappy seriously you should get it checked.

There is a condition called Otoscerlosis (sp?)which can hit you late 20's early 30's and is basically genetic and not related to outside considerations like your military background.

You are more likely to notice it when people speak than your hi-fi (which you compensate for with volume)and you may start to speak quieter yourself for related reasons.

If you need more advice,mail me direct.
I was just on the phone with Nrchy and we were lamenting the fact that you were not posting as frequently at Audiogon.

Have fun with all your distractions. The girl, the car and the music.

As for your hearing, If your girl mumbles too much, "Snatch" that copy of "The Great Gatsby" away from her and give her your personalized "Moby Dick".

Prove you're a literary giant.
Yeah, I have that problem too, as everybody in my family mumbles then says I'm going deaf. They say that just because I do some pro sound stuff but I can tell the difference if the singer sounds muddy & I need to boost 2.5k or 4k. Actually only one of them mumbles; the others just talk w/o looking at me. The analogy would be listening to your spkrs. when they're facing the wall instead of you.

Another example is the weather dudes talking about the upcoming TD heading this way. The first day they all said "Sydney" & it wasn't until they flashed the name on the screen I knew it was "Cindy". Doesn't matter, as I have cousins with each name. (So what does that mean?)

Anyway, it's a conspiracy, I tell ya, 'cause when I went to another channel, the weather dude made a point of enunciating "Cindy" and I had no trouble at all making it out. People mumble, talk too fast, don't use proper grammatical structure...doesn't have anything to do with listening to loud music, shooting off rounds or running cars w/open headers. (You are going to run open headers, no?)
Slappy,
May I suggest you get your hearing tested, take the blower and put it on after the warranty on the Mustang ends.
ROFL you guys are great, its good to hear from you all again, i gotta get back on the audio wagon.
To go along with what Rives said, even M16's can mess you up because they are so close to the ears. At least that seemed to be my experience..many many years ago. And as others have said,, wait till you hit or pass 50! Say what?
Glad to have you back here Slappy. You said you were in the military. Did you have anything to do with morter shells or rocket launchers? These can have a drastic effect on hearing. I knew someone that was in the military and fired morter shells--lots of them. Whenever he talked to people he used a very loud voice. If you didn't speak loudly back to him he would ask you to repeat it. My guess is his hearing was about 30% as sensitive as most other people in their mid 30s.

Another interesting thing I've found out about myself has to do with excercise. If I don't excercise my hearing, particularly high frequency falls off. If I get into a very strong and disciplined regimin for a few weeks--my system actually sounds a bit shrill to me. Has anyone else every experienced this? When I first discovered it I thought I was losing my hearing, and found out it was because I had not kept up with a good workout routine. As soon as I got back to a good routine my hearing went back to what it was. Since then, I've actually tried to see if I can reproduce the effect, and oddly enough I can, but also realize a certain portion of that is psychoacoustics (or me just being plain nuts--but aren't we all a little bit in this hobby).
Ah, horsepower does corrupt the soul! I remember when I had the SS tricked all out, man she could fly. Those were the good ol' days 4 sure. My next door neighbor has a V-12 Ferrari and a V-12 Maserati, man they are like being in a rocket ship, gives a new meaning to the words zoom, zoom, zoom. Luckily I have a family member gold shield to use for those tender times in need. Put your hands where I can see them and get out of the car!

Fly high my friend but keep a low profile.

As for the new girlie, as the saying goes, make love, not war my friend, because who the hell cares what she is saying!

Happy Listening and all.
Wait until your 50.
It does have it's pluses.
Like when the Mrs. tries talking to me.
Huh?Wha??
Bigbry
Isn't it amazing that if you can't/don't hear what your gf mumbles she gives you crap...but if you mumble something yourself...it better be something good like "I have the best girlfriend in the world and I'm gonna spend all my money on her"...because no matter how softly you say it...or how far out of earshot you think she is...she'll hear it.

Then she will claim that all stereos sound the same

go figure

good to have ya back
Newbee,

I just got a brilliant idea to test your theory, ill have her read the first chapter of "The Great Gatsby" naked...
I doubt i would understand any of it regardless to my hearing situation, but it should prove to be fun either way!
:)
Lugnut,

Good hearing from you! its been a while!
Yah, the biggest problem with it is my warranty will be totally voided out. Seeing as how it is a ford, that is not the best idea. ROFL
Hopefully he finds somebody who is willing to buy it, then i dont have to worry about it.

Nwebee,
You may very well be onto something, I might have to have her over again tonight and explore this in more... depth..

hehehehehehe
There is a heriditary hearing loss that starts in the late 20s. Your hearing curve starts to get bathtub shaped. And for some reason, most of the loss is concentrated where the female voice happens to be. This also makes forward treble in speakers sound B-A-D, because you have a lower midrange compared to the highs and lows. A tube amp will sound better to you than solid state. There is nothing you can do aboout it, unlike loss of hearing due to loud noises...
Its called attention span deficit, or no short term memory when it occurs in the presence of a new girl fried. Your mind is occupied with things other than the words from her lips. :-) Now if you have this problem with music or others speaking, go see the doc.
Slappy,

Good to hear from you again. Do yourself a big favor and don't get your Stang to hook up too well. You WILL break things if you try too hook hard and that is very expensive.

You're too young to have this kind of hearing loss. Sorry to read about it. A good friend of mine that shoots several thousand rounds of shells through his shotgun each year has similar hearing but he can hear every change I make to my system. He recently upgraded his system and is very happy with the results. Previously he had said many times that it was a waste to spend the money because of his hearing loss. I'd really urge you to drop the need for speed before giving up on audio.

Yeah, and in spite of what your girlfriend says she might mumble. Get a hearing test. If you are okay then it's her. If you're not okay she needs to accomodate your hearing by looking directly at you when she speaks.

Have fun with the Vortech but watch out.