The High Frequency Response Test (8-22 kHz)

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by weirdo12, Jan 29, 2013.

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  1. weirdo12

    weirdo12 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Toronto
    Of course - music first. What I hear sounds great to me (except that ringing in my ears when I'm not listening to anything). I have never been one to use head phones but I used to listen to music in the vehicle (with the windows open for the record) FAR too loud. In hindsight, the whole world does not need to hear what I'm playing - even if it's really really really good.
     
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  2. testikoff

    testikoff Seasoned n00b

    I can clearly hear a 17kHz tone during this test conducted with my humble headphone rig: fb2k->HRT MS II->Asgard-> Senn HD555
     
  3. lobo

    lobo Music has always been a matter of Energy to me...

    Location:
    Germany
    Absolutely. I was surrised though, that apparently my ears are very sensitive around 4 kHz... Could be that the shrillness that annoys me in some recordings isn't located in the high frecuencies, but more in the upper mids... Don't know what that means for my search for the perfect vintage amp.
     
  4. eyeCalypso

    eyeCalypso Forum Resident

    Location:
    Colorado, USA
    Here's a caution: I blew out both tweeters on my floorstanding speakers with this test. I hooked up my mac to receiver via fiber optic cable and while trying to hear above my threshhold, I cranked up the volume until I heard "crunch". Tweeters on both speakers were burnt. So be careful!!
     
  5. Danglerb

    Danglerb Forum Resident

    Location:
    Orange, CA, USA
    Anybody that is hearing above 20k I have some bad news, actually double bad news. Your playback system has a lot of distortion at higher frequencies, and your hearing is very likely normal for your age and no better.
     
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  6. Ghostworld

    Ghostworld Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    Either my iPads speakers don't play much above 13k or I don't have to buy those extended range headphones I wanted.
     
    Spek likes this.
  7. kevintomb

    kevintomb Forum Resident

    Ya most guys in their 30s 40s 50s or 60s, its very very normal for hearing to begin to really roll off in the 14-17 Hz range. In other words, by your 40s or 50s, You are very lucky to even hear 16khz.

    My friend that did actual real hearing tests, pretty much said its pretty much impossible for any guy to hear over 16-17 Khz at any level even beginning to approacth what he hears at 1 Khz, if he is an adult.

    When I worked near his hearing aid office he had a fully calibrated hearing test, and chamber he performed it in, and he did free hearing checks to draw in potential customers, so me and just about every guy that worked near there did it for fun when we were bored or had spare time.

    Results? Every guy I knew, 20s 30s 40s , were very lucky to even hear 14Khz at full loudness, and 16-18khz was pretty much where all were left behind.
     
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  8. SBurke

    SBurke Nostalgia Junkie

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    A public poll on this, eh? :)

    The first time I tried I thought I could start to hear something around 15k, but it really kicks in for me at about 14kHz. That's normal for someone my age, and I'm happy with that.

    Fellas, nobody who enjoys music should worry about whether he (or she) can hear 20kHz, or even 12kHz. If it's your job, maybe that's another story. But if it's your hobby, being able to hear that kind of noise really doesn't matter.

    Also, attenuation at very high frequencies (above 8 kHz) has very little to do with noise exposure. A permanent threshold shift, noise-induced hearing loss, manifests itself predominantly between 2-6 kHz. Hearing loss above 8kHz is presbycusis, age-related decline. Nothing to beat yourself up about.
     
    Spek likes this.
  9. bundee1

    bundee1 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Queens, New York
    17.5khz 36 years old, born with a walkman.
     
  10. Ghostworld

    Ghostworld Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    Hey, in the good old days of Pro Walkmans, frequency response on some stuff was 40-15'000khz. Still sounded great!
     
  11. jkev2

    jkev2 Forum Resident

    Location:
    atlanta
    12k at age 57. Not bad I guess.
     
  12. Spek

    Spek Well-Known Member

    Location:
    DFW, TX
    Right! I think that's what a lot of people are hearing. Even 18k for someone over 30 would be unusual I would think. It seems like the whole "Golden Ear" myth yet again …
     
  13. kevintomb

    kevintomb Forum Resident

    My mid 20s daughter, had a real test done. She is female and young, and her hearing rolled off at about 18 khz.

    If you guys are using some online hearing test, chances are its creating all kinda weird distortion and ringing etc.

    Only a certified signal generator, can reproduce tones clearly and at exact levels consistently.
     
  14. Spek

    Spek Well-Known Member

    Location:
    DFW, TX
    Probably both.
     
  15. hammondjake

    hammondjake Forum Resident

    I'm a solid 17k, and somewhat surprised at the number of people who claim to hear 20k+, especially given the relatively small number of respondents thus far.

    For those that are claiming to hear 20k and above, did you verify this with the 20kHz blind listening test on the same site?

    Did you 'pass' the blind listening test for your claimed frequency with a minimum of 9/10 correct responses?
     
  16. kevintomb

    kevintomb Forum Resident


    The online tests arent accurate. Something to do with how digital audio is transmitted and changed as it travels online, really high test tones, are distorted and stuff.
     
  17. SBurke

    SBurke Nostalgia Junkie

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    It's uncommon for any audiologist or doctor's office to test above 8kHz, and rarer still for them to test above 12kHz; my understanding is they will do it only when there is a specific need, such as a concern about ototoxic medication. I've gotten an audiogram on average about once every other year, for the past 15 years or so. I think all but one of those tests only went to 8kHz. In fact the form I was given the last time doesn't even contemplate testing above 8kHz. When I asked the audiologist why, she said it just isn't necessary, unless there is a specific concern, such as ototoxicity.

    You can Google "audiogram" for examples: Every image shows a chart whose high end stops at 8kHz.
     
  18. kevintomb

    kevintomb Forum Resident

    Yes very true, the main speech comprehension tones are only up to 8khz, it can be tested higher though. The guy that did the tests im talking about, is a personal friend, that I knew from years of working very close to each other.

    What I was referring to, was honestly "Not" actual hearing tests, but more along the lines of when his hearing aid business has no patients and things were slow, we would at times convince him to "test" us, more just to see what we could hear and so on. Not official hearing tests per se, but uh more along the lines of him helping our "audiophile" fun.

    My daughter stopped in at work, and I convinced her to try the test. His machine was able to go up to 22khz, but I for the life of me would have no idea what brand or so on. All I know it was some device that looked to be ( and he said it was certified and all obviously ) made specifically for doctors and hearing tests.

    I am no longer friends with him, or I would ask far more details, about how it worked, specs and so on. The times we did it, was more or less goofing around and convincing him to do it to see our limits etc.

    Im not sure at what level the tones were either, if they were the standard real hearing test levels or if they were elevated. Sorry im really vague about the details.
     
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  19. alanb

    alanb Senior Member

    Location:
    Bonnie Scotland
    :D

    I am not as high as i would like to be - but that's the case with most things in my life ;)
     
  20. Spek

    Spek Well-Known Member

    Location:
    DFW, TX
    ;)

    There's always tomorrow …
     
  21. eyeCalypso

    eyeCalypso Forum Resident

    Location:
    Colorado, USA
    Or later on, say 4:20
     
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  22. britt2001b

    britt2001b Senior Member

    Location:
    United States
    I've always used the foot petal squeak in "All I've Got To Do" to test my hearing. At age 60, I can just barely hear it now.
     
  23. Laservampire

    Laservampire Down with this sort of thing

    So it turns out that iPod earbuds don't have any frequency response past 16khz, heh.
     
  24. weirdo12

    weirdo12 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Toronto
    Yep it's just a silly online test - it wasn't a test test. Just for fun using a source every body can access. Bring on the ringing and distortion and twirling and swirling. Nobody is being marked.

    But oh my goodness - clearly and exact? Did you mean accurate?
     
  25. Spek

    Spek Well-Known Member

    Location:
    DFW, TX
    I think he was referring to the suggestion that some take the "blind test" … the issue is most sound cards will make output *something* … noise, aliasing, etc. So some could probably pass the blind test quite easily when they can't remotely hear the actual tone.

    I think this accounts for many of the "I could *feel* 20 kHz but couldn't really hear it" responses. In my case, I can "feel" it either because (a) I'm expecting the sound, and I really want to believe I can hear it, and/or (b) the distortion of my computer audio system is producing some frequencies well below the fundamental and that's what I'm hearing.

    It's possible some of us can get accurate tones this way, but I bet not many. Most of the responses I've seen are very rare statistically (but, then again, so are the "My doctor was shocked because I can hear 18 kHz at age 60" type posts.) Medical marvels, this group!

    Not that high frequency hearing has much to do with enjoying the music most of us like, but it does certainly come into play when we talk digital sampling rates. ;)
     
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