With aging ears, do we turn to Low-Fi now?

Having read a few posts lately regarding people having trouble hearing high frequency sound when they age, I am certainly on the same boat here. I did some hearing tests and found that I could only hear up to 10-12Khz these days, I think mostly because of working in noisy heavy industry at young age. I have some fairly decent set ups in my main listening rooms. However, I found myself using them less often because they sounded somewhat flat to me, but using and enjoying a modest set up in my study more, which consists of a Sony STR-6065, a Technics SL-23 and a pair of Celestion Ditton 15. For some reason, this modest system produces far more enjoyable music. The sound is more engaging, punchy, better clarity and more details. Ditton 15 can only reach 12khz at most, but it has more forward (in your face) sound. With smaller and close proximity of the listening space, the sound it produces has compensated my hearing loss on high frequencies in my opinions. This has generated my thoughts, do we turn to low-fi systems to satisfy our needs when we are aging?
I wouldn't be surprised if most young people would think your modest system sounds better.
 
"Hi-fi" sound is about a lot more than reproducing the maximum range of human hearing. It's about realism, tonal balance, dynamics, stereo image, etc. That's what makes listening on a quality system fun.

Besides, have you ever noticed how much of the music is in the three octaves between 200 Hz and 1600 Hz?
 
Last edited:
I was briefly bothered by Tinnitus in 2010-2015 and it turned out to be a side effect of an anti-peripheral Neuropathy medication. I had to dial those doses back and I haven't had a problem since.
But here's what I'd like to share: My hearing self tests out to being better NOW (not quite 18K, I can still hear a flyback transformer on the rare occasions I run across them) than it was when I was playing three to six nights a week. It wasn't hearing LOSS. It was psychological DESENSITIZATION. I don't play my gear (the main system features a boatload of multi-Carver and Sunfire Amps fed into proprietary custom Subs and a pair of Carver Amazing Plats Mk. III's) anywhere NEARLY as loudly as I used to when I was younger.

I had a pretty similar experience myself. Throughout my twenties I road raced motorcycles and rode long distances without any type of hearing protection. I also worked in a noisy auto shop for several years without any thought about protecting my hearing. When I left the shop and got a desk job along with a decreased amount of time riding on the road I started to notice a ringing in my ears. Some sounds were starting to make me cringe that never bugged me before. My wife (then my girlfriend at the time), told me to check in with the Doc. The doc sent me over to an audiologist. I came home with a tear in my eye when the doc told me I am experiencing tinnitus and that it may or may not go away. After a decade of protecting my ears, following the docs advise, eating a healthier diet, and being more active. The tinnitus has diminished considerably. I still get flare ups here and there due to stress but its manageable. It is not nearly as bad as it was in the beginning. Dealing with it over the years has really shaped my preference of how my stereo sounds. Oddly I find myself preferring the sound I actually didn't care for when I first started on my audio journey. During my heavy bouts with tinnitus I preferred a more mellower type of sound. After giving my ears some time to heal and managing my tinnitus I now prefer a dynamic and detailed sound.

We should all remember that due to so many different circumstances we don't all hear the same. I no longer judge another person's choice in stereo gear because of my experience. I can easily understand where the OP is coming from. My best to you OP in finding a system that sounds great to you! :)
 
"Hi-fi" sound is about a lot more than reproducing the maximum range of human hearing. It's about realism, tonal balance, dynamics, stereo image, etc. That's what makes listening on a quality system fun.

Besides, have you ever notice how much of the music is in the three octaves between 200 Hz and 1600 Hz?
I agree. Sure, the top range is better in a nice system but there's so much more going on than that.
 
Hmmm.... I thought the topic to be of value, even if previously discussed.

My age figures going up.. I am anticpating changes soon in hearing. Yet I still enjoy nice clear highs and firm bass notes. Needless to say, this may take some customizing in terms of the listening room and acoustic adjustments via the EQ. But I don't consider myself a loss.

On another note, perhaps its time to enjoy some different sort of material.. such as techno.. symphony.. or even rap.... Yes, I did, say rap : )

Listening pleasure can be found in all sorts of material, and there are so many diversified artists these days. Break the norm.... and examine an interest of a new musical rendition of your system highs .... and lows!

You may be surprised at what you CAN still hear?
 
As a low cost experiment, pick up a good quality graphic equalizer and see if you can get that 'sparkle' back that you are missing by boosting some of the upper ranges you feel are lacking.
I think you have brought up a valid point. As I said, the Sony and Ditton combination might have a EQ effects pleasing my aging ears. Just to make things clearer, I still enjoy music immensely. Unfortunately I can't hear the full range of sound as I used to, which is a pity.
 
I'm 62 and I've never experienced any loss because I've never been able to handle loud volume. I think if you turn music up to loud you loose tonal qualities. Yes, there are certain recordings that sound full where the tonal qualities don't nearly disappear under high volume but those songs are few and far in between. Fact is certain flat sounding elliptical stylus don't sound right unless they're played loudly.
 
As a low cost experiment, pick up a good quality graphic equalizer and see if you can get that 'sparkle' back that you are missing by boosting some of the upper ranges you feel are lacking.

An EQ can bring back some semblance of neutrality, if that is what the listener prefers. However, an EQ cannot restore a signal that was mangled by the amplifier and/or any other link in the chain.
 
Anyone can use an equalizer to compensate for hearing loss when playing music on their stereo. However, what do you do about the rest of life, most especially live music?

Using an equalizer for compensation is the same thing as trying to fix something by trying to cure the symptoms instead of curing the problem
 
As a low cost experiment, pick up a good quality graphic equalizer and see if you can get that 'sparkle' back that you are missing by boosting some of the upper ranges you feel are lacking.

My first slightly sarcastic reaction was that if you're not hearing the high frequencies there's a magic control on your Sony receiver known as the treble knob. Incidentally several sources on the net give a frequency response of 30hz - 15khz although with a peak of 14 khz and dropoff above. There's also something to be said for a fairly simple system of receiver, TT, and speakers.
 
The last time I mentioned hearing aids to correct this type of problem it wasn't accepted very well. That's why I didn't mention them this time.

IMO a hearing aid fixes the problem not the symptom.
 
I'm 65 now, and I know my hearing is not "what it used to be"...maybe some high-end acuity loss, nerve deafness (I sometimes clearly hear a voice but don't "understand" the speech until repeated). However, "lower-fi" is not an option to me. Case in point: several months ago, I purchased a new phono cartridge with a "Microline" stylus. I mounted it properly, new headshell wires, new cables, etc. But I immediately noticed the increase in high frequency audio (sharper, more pronounced), and a small loss in bass/midrange audio as opposed to my new elliptical stylus cartridge...and it has stayed that way (not a "breaking-in" problem). I may not hear as much as before frequency-wise, but I can still hear a difference in the overall performance/reproduction. "HI-FI" is still necessary.
 
No. The frequencies that are available to your brain will still still benefit from sound quality. Other sensory cues will still be available such as bass harmonics from high resolution bass. Lo-fi muddies the image so much that these details are lost.
I agree. As I have aged and age-related hearing loss has started to rear it's ugly head, it seems it's MORE important for me to have as high-fidelity a system as possible to help get those subtle cues which help with differentiating instruments, following musical lines etc.(EDIT: and I hasten to add that my use of "high-fidelity" does not mean "Uber-Expensive." I just mean well designed, well made equipment.)

I personally don't subscribe to the idea of trying to add back high frequencies that are lost via bright speakers or electronics etc though. My ears/brain have adapted to that loss, and I find such compensated systems sound "unnatural" because that's not how I hear in the real world anymore.

YMMV, as we like to say though. :music:
 
Back
Top Bottom