2. speakers
  3. 154684-137666

Accounting for slight hearing loss

On a whim and with a suspicion, I recently had a hearing test and it showed some loss in left.  Mainly around 3k and then recovers some above that.  I had noticed (after many good tips gathered on Agon) after really paying attention to set up and room, featured vocal/instrument was often right of center, almost never left.  Mind you, i still hear all freq, even quite  high and get great staging but often, its annoyingly with a right bias.  Maybe that's where he's supposed to be!  Thats actually not a trivial point.  Funny thing, I can listen to MD Kind of Blue in mono and I sense no shift. Quite opposite as instruments still have some staging. Go figure.  

Any tips or tweaks to compensate?  Ok, here's where I might be all wet.  Lower resistance to tweeter in left XO (phase issues with right?)  A mod to extend left baffle above the tweeter some?  Simple "Left" on amp works but isnt freq specific.  Im suspicious that using an EQ unit will degrade overall sound although that seems the most obvious.  Do they?  Speakers are Madisound kit Klang+Ton NADA designed with Scanspeak Illuminator drivers.  In Lee Taylor cabinets.  Amp is Rogue Sphinx V2 (A/D). 
Thanks in advance.  Otherwise it's a tad "L" on the amp.
akgwhiz
gdnrbob
4,409 posts
 
@OP, 
I suffer from the same 'problem'.
After 30+ years, I just accept it for what it is- My hearing isn't perfect.
One easy fix is to tow in one speaker a bit/point the other speaker out.
Not exactly high tech, but it helps, and doesn't cost anything.
Bob
bobheinatz
705 posts
 
I have a simular problem.  My tubed integrated has a balance dial and I simply adjust it.   Nothing complicated just common sense.
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
akgwhiz
just looked at Loki. Inexpensive enough to try
Stay away from digital EQ’ing.

Get this great piece, many here love what it can bring, and it’s so versatile, all done in the analog domain, just put it between your dac and amp on the channel you need to adjust the upper mid stronger at 3khz.
And then your not screwing with the sound of your cherished dac by doing a DSP eq instead which have lousy d/a converters in them.

This is the amazing things it can do, if your system needs it, I’ve tried it and it’s great, mine system doesn’t need it, but I still have one, just in case one day it’s needed.
https://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/schiit-loki-eq-measurements.5153/

Cheers George
erik_squires
15,654 posts
 
Stay away from digital EQ’ing.


No reason to avoid this if you do it before the DAC.  Still, for the OP's problem, a Schiit might just do everything he needs. It's cheap, easy to use, easy to install.

georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
No reason to avoid this if you do it before the DAC.

No you can do it but, you’ve got 3 digital devices daisy chained before it gets into an analog domain,source, dsp/dac, then into back into your own dac!!!! You want to "sterilize" the sound then this is a good way to do it, it’ll be like using a crap transport into a great dac.

First you need a digital output on whatever DSP/dac you use, then your getting whatever nasties two dacs give, one being very cheap, instead of the sound of your favored one.

Just go the much simpler analog way with the Schiit Loki akgwhiz it’s cheap and transparent, your system will keep the same sound except for what you’ve boosted, to aid your hearing at that frequency, with no extra digitalis imprinted into the sound

Cheers George
More to discover