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I have finally got my Korg D1. When I was testing the sounds, I discovered that, just like with my old piano, I had to use an equalizer to get a good piano sound. I know it could be just me, being a retiree.

Then I wondered what I could really hear well. You can test that with this video. The frequencies I can hear lie between 25 Hz and 11,500 Hz (at 66). That scared me a bit. I thought I could still hear at least 15,000 Hz. Not so.

Whenever the sound of a piano is discussed in this forum, both young and old people are usually involved. I wonder who is right when one claims that a piano sounds sharp and the other finds it rather dull. If you want to know what piano sounds best, you should ask someone who is just as old as you are. Or use an equalizer. In case someone wants to know, I use the Behringer Mini FBQ800.


Last edited by Rowy van Hest; 01/05/22 10:44 AM.

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Originally Posted by Rowy van Hest
The frequencies I can hear lie between 25 Hz and 11,500 Hz (at 66). That scared me a bit.

If you find that you don't hear as well as you thought you could, you might want to contact an audiologist for a true hearing test, to see if you would benefit from hearing aids. It is important not to wait too long before getting hearing aids, because your nerves can atrophy by not being used for a long time, diminishing the effect that hearing aids can have.


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150 Hz to 9,000 Hz but I know my hearing is not that poor. One of the problems with this type of test is it's limited by the frequency response of whatever device you're listening on. To me, that's why the various videos of pianos where the presenter talks about this subtle sound problem or that subtle sound problem are almost meaningless.

BTW, this is one of the advantages of getting older and losing some hearing response. You can buy cheaper equipment because you can no longer hear the difference anyway. smile

As I got older I also found I was dropping things, like car keys, that I never dropped before. Turns out we lose some sense of touch as we age. I thought I was gripping things the same but I was not. Now I don't need a piano keyboard that's super high quality either. (I wish this was a joke but it's not.)

Ray

Last edited by NXR; 01/05/22 11:59 AM.

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Originally Posted by Animisha
Originally Posted by Rowy van Hest
The frequencies I can hear lie between 25 Hz and 11,500 Hz (at 66). That scared me a bit.

If you find that you don't hear as well as you thought you could, you might want to contact an audiologist for a true hearing test, to see if you would benefit from hearing aids. It is important not to wait too long before getting hearing aids, because your nerves can atrophy by not being used for a long time, diminishing the effect that hearing aids can have.

Before panicking and visiting a doctor (haha) make sure your speakers/headphones can actually operate and generate a powerful enough signal in this frequency range

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I'm no expert, so take all of this with a grain of salt or two. As I understand it:

- In principle, human hearing is about 20 hz to 20k hz.
- In practice, few adults can hear much more than 15k hz.
- The vast majority of the sounds we hear, both in everyday life and in music, take place at 10k hz and below.
- Above 10k hz, you're only getting really, really subtle high-end stuff, extremely high harmonics and such.
- A lot of people actually find the frequencies above 10k hz unpleasant, cold, brittle, fatiguing, etc. and they are even mastered out of some music. This is one reason some people prefer vinyl to CDs.

In conclusion, if you're hearing up to 10k hz, you're still probably in pretty good shape to enjoy life. smile

Having said all that, this is an internet forum, and not the best place for information or advice about possible hearing loss, so I agree with the above poster who recommended an appointment with an audiologist.


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Originally Posted by Rowy van Hest
[...]The frequencies I can hear lie between 25 Hz and 11,500 Hz (at 66). That scared me a bit. I thought I could still hear at least 15,000 Hz. Not so.
[...]

No reason for panic ;-)
Almost 12000 Hz for > 60 years is not bad...

I tried this "hear test", as expected I hear up to about 14000 Hz...

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Originally Posted by NXR
BTW, this is one of the advantages of getting older and losing some hearing response. You can buy cheaper equipment because you can no longer hear the difference anyway. smile
Yes, unfortunately wealth and hearing are inversely related. When I was young I could hear but had no money to buy equipment. Now I'm old and have money but can't hear well enough to justify buying good equipment.


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Originally Posted by TheophilusCarter
I'm no expert, so take all of this with a grain of salt or two. As I understand it:


In conclusion, if you're hearing up to 10k hz, you're still probably in pretty good shape to enjoy life. smile

Having said all that, this is an internet forum, and not the best place for information or advice about possible hearing loss, so I agree with the above poster who recommended an appointment with an audiologist.

I am enjoying my life very much smirk I even wish I heard less, like a crying baby next door. But I'm not asking for any advice. It caught me by surprise that my Vulcan hearing is decreasing. It didn't seem logical.


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Originally Posted by NXR
150 Hz to 9,000 Hz but I know my hearing is not that poor. One of the problems with this type of test is it's limited by the frequency response of whatever device you're listening on. To me, that's why the various videos of pianos where the presenter talks about this subtle sound problem or that subtle sound problem are almost meaningless.

BTW, this is one of the advantages of getting older and losing some hearing response. You can buy cheaper equipment because you can no longer hear the difference anyway.

There's another advantage. I don't have to listen to a conversation. I just say: What? Sorry... I didn't hear you. My kids always smile when I say that. They humor me, but the joke is on them cool


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13,000 Hz here but I had to bump up the volume a tad after 9,000Hz.
It could be due to the tinnitus I've been having from time to time but I guess this is expected for a 50+ years old.
As Animisha has recommended, it's better to have the whole thing assessed by an ENT to see whether an aid will help.
Since the piano sound typically ranges from 27 to 4,200 Hz I don't think the acoustic experience is affected. It's just the differences in sound characteristic of a certain piano sound.
You can download a trial of the Pianoteq to see whether these differences can be reproduced there with different models: in my opinion you can take Steinway Model D as representative for mellow sound while I would consider the C.Bechstein D282's sound as bright.
Best


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26cps up to 10400. R ear is a tad better than left, but left hears a nice sound., the right is the nasty sound.
I'm a super-septo-psycho (evil grin) . . . .


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And!
If you want a bit of insidious fun on your younger noisy neighbours, get thee a treble transducer set to just above your hearing range and fasten it to the adjoining wall.
Make sure it's loud!


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Originally Posted by TonyDIGITAL
13,000 Hz here but I had to bump up the volume a tad after 9,000Hz.
Since the piano sound typically ranges from 27 to 4,200 Hz I don't think the acoustic experience is affected. It's just the differences in sound characteristic of a certain piano sound.

It makes a lot of difference, that's why I use an equalizer.


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Originally Posted by peterws
And!
If you want a bit of insidious fun on your younger noisy neighbours, get thee a treble transducer set to just above your hearing range and fasten it to the adjoining wall.
Make sure it's loud!

I suspect that the neighbors have taped their baby to the wall.


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My advice to all of you "headphone players":
from time to time take your headphones of, put them in front of you and play your piano.
You will be amazed how loud it is what you actually don't realize with the headphones over your ears.
So do your ears a favour and don't turn the volume too high when playing with headphones


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