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Hearing Damage over 20khz?

I own speakers that produce in excess of 40khz, yet the human ear can only perceive 20khz.

If something is uncomfortably loud we can hear, we know to turn it down but what if the frequency is out of our audible range?

Is it possible hearing is being damaged by something we can't hear?

I have read reports of people having ears ring after using speakers that can go beyond 20k, but I don't know if it's due to the sounds produced below 20k or above or both.

It would be horrible to learn I was damaging my children's ears or mine without knowing it.
vintagegroove
rja's avatar
rja
2,356 posts
 
Actually, I'd be very surprised if most of us here could hear 16khz tones forget about 20khz.
vintagegroove OP
14 posts
 
Thanks for all of the input. I feel more at ease about the supertweeters on my KEFs with my kids around.

One thing is for sure, humans are exposed to many things today that we never were in decades or centuries past so the long term effects are difficult to predict.

Thanks again.
6550c
393 posts
 
Might damage your dog's ear. :)
wolf_garcia
6,598 posts
 
Frogman is right. This is exactly why analog sounds different from digital, and live instruments often sound sweeter. I have a piano in my listening room, and play acoustic and electric guitar (for over 45 years...boy are my fingers sore...) so my reference for live sound is right here. My girlfriend's Basset Hound (currently dead...the hound, not the g/f) couldn't handle my acoustic playing (even ukulele) but could sit with me when I listened to the stereo...why? I found this to be offensive and hurtful, but I think it explains something...not sure what...but something.
lewhite
156 posts
 
You cant produce a 16k square wave unless you'v got three or more octaves above that. Or more accurately upper odds of the fundamental. Damn Nyquest.
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