Hatrack River Forum: Ringing in ears while TVs are on.

This is topic Ringing in ears while TVs are on. in forum Books, Films, Food and Culture at Hatrack River Forum.

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Posted by MEC (Member # 2968) on :

I always get a high pitched ring in my ears while TV's are on, regardless of what is on said TV. I was just wondering if anyone could help me with this. Does this happen to anyone else? Is it normal? Is it bad? Would getting a better TV set help?

From what I've found most other people can't hear it, they are often surprised when I turn off their TV when the only thing displayed is a black screen from an input channel. Also I don't know if this may also be a factor, but I can often hear high pitched whistles other people can't.

Posted by advice for robots (Member # 2544) on :

My only advice is to avoid full moons. [Wink]

Posted by pH (Member # 1350) on :

It happens to me, too. Also, those detector things they put at the doorways of libraries to keep people from walking off with books make me cringe when I walk through them.

-pH

Posted by MEC (Member # 2968) on :

I'll do my best.
[Roll Eyes]

Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :

Yahoo answers says "The high pitched whistle that you can hear when the tv is switched on is at 15.625kHz . This is the frequency of the line scan (left to right of the screen) timebase. This occors in all CRT screens, though some are louder than others.

This is nicely inside the human hearing range, though some older people can't hear it.

LCD won't have this noise as it is purely electonic switching of the individual pixels on the screen rather than magnetically deflecting 3 electron beams" link

I hear it as well. You are not alone.

Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :

MEC,

that used to happen to me all the time when I was younger. Doesn't happen any more probably due to some hearing loss on high end of the frequency range.

I don't know how much of an issue it is with newer TVs, but it was a big issue with old ones. That high-pitched noise, I've been told, is always there, but usually overwhelmed by the normal volume coming out programming coming out of a TV.

Once, in a class, a professor showed a video. When it was done, she turned off the video player, but left the TV on. It looked like it was turned off, but there was that high-pitched noise coming out of the speaker and driving me up a wall. when I got up and turned off the TV, everyone tried to convince me that what I heard was a *low* pitched hum coming out of a faulty fluorescent light. Nope. Heard that too, but it wasn't giving me a headache.

So the good news is you are not alone.

The bad news is I have brain damage, so we probably can't be sure this is what you would call "normal." [Wink]

Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :

I've always been able to hear that, but it never bothered me.

Posted by pH (Member # 1350) on :

Does anyone else get horrible headaches from those low-energy long lasting lightbulbs, whatever they are? It took me forever to figure that out....I finally realized that I only got headaches in my bedroom...the one room where I was testing out that kind of light.

-pH

Posted by MEC (Member # 2968) on :

I've never used those, although too much light in general usually gives headaches.

Oh, and thanks for the info, I thought that maybe it was hearing damage that was causing the noise.

I hope I'm not being rude, but what brain damage do you have sndrake?

Posted by brojack17 (Member # 9189) on :

Are you guys warewolves or something? [Angst]

TV's, lighbulbs, RFID scanner thingy... What happens to you on a full moon? [Eek!]

Posted by pH (Member # 1350) on :

brojack knows too much....quick! To the were-cave!

-pH

Posted by brojack17 (Member # 9189) on :

quote:
Originally posted by brojack17:
Are you guys warewolves or something? TV's, lighbulbs, RFID scanner thingy... What happens to you on a full moon?

Edit: weird. That was my post # 666. That's like Alanis Morissette ironic.

Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :

That's exactly like AM ironic. [Razz]

Posted by MEC (Member # 2968) on :

quote:
Are you guys warewolves or something? TV's, lighbulbs, RFID scanner thingy... What happens to you on a full moon?

I prefer to be called a Therianthrope.

Posted by advice for robots (Member # 2544) on :

All hicks to the was-cave! Everyone else to the were-cave!

Posted by Architraz Warden (Member # 4285) on :

I can certainly hear it. I can walk through my apartment complex and point out who has a CRT TV or Monitor on inside their place even with the windows and doors closed. It's a fun game to play.

Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :

quote:
I hope I'm not being rude, but what brain damage do you have sndrake?

MEC,

Given that *I* brought it up and said it in a pretty flippant way, I don't take the question as rude at all.

I got injured with forceps at birth resulting in a lot of bleeding. After the bleeding subsided, it turned out it probably caused scarring that screwed up the hydraulics in my head. The spinal fluid didn't get drained off fast enough and my head grew - the condition is called hydrocephalus.

Between the initial head injury and the diffuse damage done by the water pressure increase, I have a lot of interesting weirdnesses in terms of motor planning, spatial ability and some kinda odd things happening sensorily as well.

At least I think they are odd. They seem different from what "normal" people talk about. But never having been "normal," I can't really be sure. [Wink]

Posted by Shigosei (Member # 3831) on :

I can hear the TV when the screen is black but the TV is on. I don't think it's particularly abnormal to be able to hear it.

Posted by Artemisia Tridentata (Member # 8746) on :

I could hear it. None of my siblings could. They always thought it was "magic". When I was supposed to be watching them, they would sneek in the other room and turn on the TV with no sound. I always knew as soon as it happened. In any case, age cured it. I haven't heard it since early thirties.
EDIT: For the last five years, I have heard the same sound constantly. The Dr. says that is age related too. It was better when I could make my sister turn it off.

Posted by Timoty (Member # 10389) on :

I can hear it, but not half as strongly as some of you seem to be. Doesn't bother me either way.

Posted by Primal Curve (Member # 3587) on :

quote:
Originally posted by pH:
Does anyone else get horrible headaches from those low-energy long lasting lightbulbs, whatever they are? It took me forever to figure that out....I finally realized that I only got headaches in my bedroom...the one room where I was testing out that kind of light.

You may want to try a different wavelength. Typically the "daylight" Compact Flourescent Lightbulbs (CFLs) have a much more pleasant light that tends to make people feel better rather than worse.

Posted by Earendil18 (Member # 3180) on :

I'm exactly the same way with the high pitched issues. I hate the library scanners etc.

Posted by Eaquae Legit (Member # 3063) on :

I hear it too. I can often tell if there is a CRT tv on anywhere in my house. It's very annoying.

Posted by Lupus (Member # 6516) on :

I don't notice it when the TV is playing sound...but if it is on mute I can hear it from an amazing distance...even through doors.

I love my LCD monitor. My old monitor used to drive my crazy some times with that high pitched noise.

Posted by Launchywiggin (Member # 9116) on :

We looked at the phenomenon in my Acoustics class one day--and I wish I had the textbook with me so I could go into scientific detail on the subject. From what I remember, all people who are capable of hearing the pitch will hear it, but after a short period, the brain will "switch off" that particular pitch in your ear temporarily. This is especially noticeable if you ever get a sudden, loud, high pitched ring in your ear that goes away in mere seconds. What actually happened, in fact, was your brain turning off that pitch while it was still sounding because your brain recognizes that there's no danger/value in keeping it going.

IIRC, As far as the TV, it's harder to ignore because the 15.625kHz varies slightly, and if it's particularly loud, it's easier to keep in your conscious mind, making it harder for your brain to cooperate

I'd have sources and more specific vocabulary for you--I even remember that it was chapter 2, "Psychoacoustics", in our textbook. It was my favorite part of that class.

Posted by MEC (Member # 2968) on :

That's very interesting, I must say the worst is a TV my sister has, whenever it goes on I can hear it even in the basement or on the other side of the house, and it doesn't usually go away.

There was one time in Denver when we were having dinner with a family. We ate outside because we were having barbaque, but they had installed some high-frequency sound device in their garage to scare away mice. I was the only one there who could here it and it was driving me nuts.

Posted by Goody Scrivener (Member # 6742) on :

I get intermittent squeal and in various places, even outdoors with no apparent electronics nearby. Nobody's ever been able to pick up on when I do. And oh man the headaches it triggers.....

Posted by Launchywiggin (Member # 9116) on :

Goody, I think that has everything to do with your brain's inability to turn off those pitches you don't need to hear. You're not crazy, though--they're probably very real sounds that only you can hear.

Posted by NotMe (Member # 10470) on :

http://www.compoundsecurity.co.uk/teenage_control_products.html

Posted by MEC (Member # 2968) on :

Awesome, now I can finally rid my property from all those darn kids, and their dog too.

Posted by Magson (Member # 2300) on :

I've always been able to hear it. I can always tell if a tv is on in the next room, even muted, becuz I can hear it. Usually it doesnt bug me, but every so often. . . . .

Posted by Shigosei (Member # 3831) on :

I can sometimes even hear changes in the whine of my laptop computer when I click on links in Firefox. It's a little freaky sometimes what I can hear. Also, I've noticed that the TV sound does tend to be really good at penetrating walls.

Posted by Raventhief (Member # 9002) on :

I'm not sure how much of this is in my head, but I hear some sort of whine with every electronic device. Small devices like phones or flashlights I only hear if I'm trying to and the conditions are right (still air, no other sound) but ceiling lights, computers, TV's, toasters, just about anything that plugs in I can hear. I even stopped charging my cell phone at night because it was keeping me awake.

I'm guessing a good chunk of this a mental construct because I think I can hear it, but it's still a little weird.