I’m curious, how many people are aware of these sounds. I have designed, etched, and built my own switching power supplies along with winding my own transformers. I am aware of the source of the noise. So, does anyone else hear these high frequency sounds regularly?
I have tinnitus and it sounds just like power supplies, except it comes from nowhere. So, when I hear the squeal, I turn my head. If the squeal noise follows the movement of my head, tinnitus. If it stays put, power supply!
It’s like skunk and pot! (I’m in Canada, it’s legal and everywhere.) If I smell it, I look around. If I see a burrow, skunk! If I see a dozy looking dude with red eyes…
It’s funny that you mentioned pot. Because people described the reaction of pot sometimes in the way of OPs question: When you smoke weed, you get sensitive for things your brain normally is able to filter out as irrelevant information because your head can only process so much before it gets overwhelmed. Some people described that when they smoke weed, that they can sit in their living room or kitchen and start noticing the humming of the fridge or the buzzing of an electrical object as your synapses are wired “differently” when blocked by THC and you start to notice things, your brain normally suppresses.
Sorry for your tinnitus bro. I hope you find ways to make it bearable at times.
It’s funny, I had a horrible toxic job for way longer than any sane person should ever have to deal with, and one aspect of it was dangerous noise levels. We complained, and the company always sent “independent” inspectors who always found that the noise levels were juuuust inside the legal safe limit. Even when they added enough equipment to double the volume! Funny that… Anyways, I am now over six months gone from that job, and I just realized that my tinnitus is way better than it was! Ditto my mental health… Now I just need a winning lottery ticket or a not-soul-sucking job…
Just checking that you know the tinnitus trick: palm flat on ear blocking sound, fingers drumming lightly on the back of your head.
Makes it go away fairly quickly for most people. Obviously isn’t a permanent fix but helps when it gets annoying.
Yup! It fades it out really quick, but it comes back within minutes. My tinnitus has gotten a lot better lately.
Reading people like you describe their tinnitus makes me think I have mild tinnitus myself… It’s not “loud” enough that I realize it’s there over the background noise of a house. But if things get really quiet, like in a power outage, or in a very nicely isolated room like a sound booth, I do hear a slight ringing that sounds extremely similar to CRT noise. I guess the years of blasting music in my headphones and metal/hardcore shows without earplugs didn’t help my case lol
Sometimes I wonder if my tinnitus is real or if we’re just so heavily surrounded by whines nowadays that it seems like tinnitus. I’ve been in an anechoic chamber and the first thing I noticed was that my ears weren’t ringing, but outside of that I have a near constant tinnitus-like whine in several frequencies that doesn’t go away even when I wear some kind of hearing protection. It’s weird.
Exactly what I was thinking hahahahhaha
It’s especially common among people with Autism/ASD and ADHD to hear noises other people often don’t hear. Like those LED light bars, or coffee pot crackling, or electricity from appliances. For ADHD I’ve seen a few people claim that those sounds are just as audible for everyone else, but everybody just subconsciously filters it out and doesn’t notice it, while people with ADHD are easily caught by it. I assume for ASD it would be somewhat similar – plus Autistic people are a lot more susceptible to sensory issues, although people with ADHD also often have fucked up senses, which can make noises like that a LOT more noticeable (and even problematic/headache-inducing/stressful/painful).
ah…
…shit
ADHD really seems like a superpower
Ah yes, what a great superpower to have when your brain essentially registers every single noise like it needs your full attention, every time.
Framing extremely debilitating things as a “superpower” feels wildly ignorant and disrespectful.
“Seems” being the key word. Oh sure, we have our moments. I once finished a 20 page paper overnight. I also procrastinated on it for a month. Nah, for the 5% this “superpower” works, we get to deal with the 95% struggle trying to get our brain to listen to our brain.
And don’t get me started on self-help articles and videos. You’ll find very few of those that talk about “Get better sleep!” and also mention adhd. All neurotypical. …which might be a good Youtube channel come to think of it. Taking all the advice and adjusting it to maybe help people with adhd.
A good night’s sleep, exercise, and a good diet make a huge difference to my ability to focus. It’s a shame that having ADHD means that I’m terrible at getting myself to exercise, eat well, and to sleep at a normal time, even when medicated. (Note that I haven’t watched those specific videos)
There’s a pretty great channel for ADHD on Youtube - the creator of all the videos above - https://m.youtube.com/@HowtoADHD - and I think she’s covered that topic.
Yes, often, especially lower quality ones.
You might want to ask this question versus age. Our ability to hear higher frequencies drops with age. They even make high frequency ring tones that teens can hear but their parents can’t.
I remember when I was little I used to hate my grandma’s old tv because there was always a high pitched noise that came from it when it was turned on or off, my grandma was never able to hear it though and I couldn’t understand why till I learned about how we struggle to hear higher frequencies as we age.
Coil whine ? Yup. They told me it would go away as I got older and lost range of hearing. Still waiting for that.
Edit: typo
the moment I could bearly hear an old CRT when a younger friend winced in pain, I knew I was old
My father used to make fun of me for saying that I could hear the TV on even if it was muted, or that I could hear the furnace ‘scream’ before it came on.
One year, I got as a gift for Christmas, a handheld recorder and a fancy microphone from my stepfather a university music professor And that recorder could actually record the sound which he was able to show me on the computer.
That was like 25 years ago, I’ve been working with computers ever since, and now I am familiar with many many many devices that make high pitch whines.
The TV thing, from what I’ve gathered, is normal in kids and lasts up until your 30s or somewhere around there. After that your ears just can’t pick up that pitch anymore.
CRT TV’s stopped being common at the same time I was aging into the range that would be unable to hear their distinctive whine.
I’m 40s and can pick it up sometimes. Depends on the TV.
This must be a snippet from Anthony Doerr’s latest All the Squeals We Cannot Hear
Tinnitus crew checking in
Yeah I don’t even hear the big 40A power supplies at work, usually 3 or 4 of them in a row on din rail.
The variable frequency drives are a different story, sometimes those sound like the worst high frequency you’ve ever heard in your life. But I don’t even hear those all the time anymore, depending on the drive.
I take steps to make sure my tinnitus isn’t getting worse. But about all you can do is try and protect your ears as best as you can. Once it’s there, it’s there to stay
I did as a kid, but my tinnitus covers it up now.
I have tinnitus AND can hear my lightbulbs buzzing. Follow me for more tips!
It’s probably the type that’s brain side like mine. It’s not an ear thing but your brain has some reason for thinking you hear the ringing. But even so, I can still hear the slightest sounds. It’s bizarre because the ringing will be louder but I hear things that are quieter. It’s like having two sets of ears at once in those moments and is always unsettling.
^^eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Same. As a kid my hearing was sharp enough to hear the high pitched sound my neighbor’s tube TV made.
Now? 24/7 of this: https://youtu.be/lRxTBo7qxg8?si=32Vsxmux3p-y2Vow
Not anymore.Age.
When I was a kid I hated going to the city art museum because all the humidity and temperature control devices emitted this awful high frequency noise that made me nauseated.
I can’t hear the “mosquito” pitch noise emitters used to deter teenage loitering in some cities anymore. I kept that longer than I thought I would.
I had to throw out my carbon monoxide detectors. The constant beeping was giving me a head ache and making me nauseous.
/🥁
Yes. They drive me nuts. My family had a PC that would buzz whenever you moved the mouse. We have a bunch of cheap LED lamps in my apartment and every one has an especially loud transformer.
My main laptop is making similar noises all the time, I think they come from the CPU.
Yes, often. It doesn’t really bother me that much, plus tinnitus generally overwhelms those sounds.
My favorite is when the ringing from power resonates with the tinnitus and ends up with an oscillating tone. Drives me absolutely insane.
Great, just what I need: resonating tinnitus!
I’ve been trying some of the tinnitus masking videos from “Dale Snale”. It’s been hit and miss though, some of the frequencies closest to my own have actually made it worse! So I’ve been trying stuff further away from the 13KHz region.
Yes and it drives me bonkers. I’ve had to leave rooms because the noise was just too loud
Despite me having tinnitus, I hear those sounds very clearly in quiet environments. They annoy the crap out of me…
Used to, until the tinnitus kicked in.
Not since I developed tinnitus…
Mawp
I thought I was developing tinnitus. Turned out it was the new modem Comcast sent me.
