more on tinnitus, hyperacusis

[Charles Neuman]

Here's my story:

I was diagnosing a string buzz/ring a few weeks ago. I carefully took note
of what had changed since before I heard the ringing: I had tuned the
piano, and the temperature had gone up. To make a very long story short, I
ended up systematically eliminating causes. I looked for sympathetic
vibrations in the room and ended up moving the computer, the lamps, the
picture frames, the smoke detector, etc. Nothing. I pulled the action and
plucked the strings with a guitar pick. The ring was still there. Then I
notice a similar high-pitched ring in the SAME NOTE on two other pianos.
Strange, eh?

So I searched for "high pitch ring", or something like that, in the
archives, and came up with lots of info on tinnitus. Hmmm, _I_ have
constant ringing in my ears, I all of the sudden noticed. And I seem to be
very sensitive to high-pitched noises all of the sudden. Maybe that has
something to do with it... I was relieved to discover at www.ata.org that
alergies and sinus problems can be causes of tinnitus. I had forgotten to
note my sinuses' acting up when I tried to diagnose my string problem, but
I had no idea that might be a factor. I got some ear plugs, the kind that
attempt to filter all frequencies evenly, and I was playing the piano with
ear plugs for a while because it was hurting my ears to play the piano.
Fortunately, the problem seems to be getting better as the alergies are
clearing up, but I'll still check with a doctor.

I will now always use ear plugs when tuning. I can hear the beats fine
with them, and now I can pound the notes harder. My unisons are holding
better!

So, I got a wake up call to protect my ears. And I also learned that
things aren't always as you hear them!

Charles Neuman

P.S. As it tunred out, there WAS some stuff going on the with the strings
as well. Now that I'm not as sensitive to high pitches I can play around
with it. I'll ask about it in a separate email.