Do you notice your hearing change based on mood or energy level?

Discussion in 'General Audio Discussion' started by a44100Hz, Mar 1, 2016.

?

Does your listening experience change noticeably from external factors

  1. Yes, I've noticed that

    91.7%
  2. No, I haven't noticed that

    8.3%
  1. a44100Hz

    a44100Hz Friend

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    My hearing seems borderline unreliable because it changes so much based on external factors like:

    -How much I slept
    -My emotional state / stress / heart rate
    -Time of day / amount of visible light
    -What I've eaten recently
    -Even weather?

    So something that sounds amazing on a Friday night can sound boring the next day. The next Friday may again be uninspiring.

    I never know, when I put my headphones on, whether I'm going to have a "good" audio day or a mediocre one. I rarely know which set of headphones I'm going to think sounds best prior to that particular session.

    This makes impressions of equipment difficult and the enjoyment itself unreliable.

    Am I hyper sensitive to these physical or mental changes or does this happen to you guys too?
     
  2. lm4der

    lm4der A very good sport - Friend

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    I am totally like that. My hearing changes a lot, and some days nothing sounds good.
     
  3. Griffon

    Griffon 2nd biggest asshole on SBAF

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    Collectively known as placebo!
     
  4. rott

    rott Secretly hates other millenials - Friend

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    But seriously, my mood for what I want to listen to can vary drastically from day to day and that may affect the satisfaction of hearing a particular song, irrespective of the gear used.
     
  5. a44100Hz

    a44100Hz Friend

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    Me too.

    As a tangible example, I've noticed that when my heart rate is elevated / I feel pumped up and energetic while leaving work, I have to turn the volume up on my IEMs by 2 or 3 iPhone volume clicks to feel the same level of satisfaction from the sound compared to my usual volume levels. I think it's a difference of going from about 70 to 80 dB.
     
    Last edited: Mar 1, 2016
  6. rott

    rott Secretly hates other millenials - Friend

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    When adrenalin is flowing or you're drunk, I think everything is more satisfying when it's amplified more than usual.
     
  7. a44100Hz

    a44100Hz Friend

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    Yeah but that also means that the ends of the frequency range that I can hear are somehow being muted by my brain? Because usually either the bass or the treble would bother me at those higher volumes.
     
  8. hellwhynot

    hellwhynot Friend

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    I’m thinking drugs, especially alcohol, will affect you both psychologically and physiologically. And we all know that alcohol affects people in different ways. In other words, who knows what the outcome will be. Alcohol might lead to a more enjoyable experience. But I'm not sure I'd recommend it for 'critical listening'. ;)
     
  9. hellwhynot

    hellwhynot Friend

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    I couldn’t be more with you on this. This is probably why, although I do believe in things like tubes, the benefits of a good DAC, beefy power supplies, etc., I try not to worry TOO much about those things.

    We’ve seen cost/benefit of gear laid out like this before:

    Headphones - 50%
    Amp - 25%
    DAC - 25%

    Don’t mind the percentages- they’re just examples. If I were to add ‘Self’ into the equation, it would look something like this for me:

    Self - 30%
    Headphones - 50%
    Amp - 15%
    DAC - 5%

    Those are sort of off-the-top-of-my-head numbers. But the take away is that my mood, which can be related to physical and/or mental condition, is second to only the headphones. There will be days when the line out of my iPod will make me tap my toes just as much as my Gungnir. And my mood can easily affect the ‘value’ of the headphones too. This is why I like rolling headphones!

    I have no doubt that some people are affected by this more than others. But I lean towards the camp that believes the human is a very mediocre measuring instrument in the objective sense. My favorite food doesn’t taste EXACTLY the same every time. Or maybe it does; but I wouldn’t say that I enjoy it the exact same amount each time. How hungry was I? Who did I eat it with? How was my day?

    And I haven’t even mentioned the effects of synergy between all of the music I listen to, the gear, and me.
     
  10. Deep Funk

    Deep Funk Deep thoughts - Friend

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    A good wine goes well with Pink Floyd.

    I voted "yes." I prefer closed headphones unless I am in a quiet environment for that reason.
     
  11. Friday

    Friday Friend

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    After a few glasses (not full pints) of beer, I find that my hearing goes to shit. Everything starts to sound veiled and soundstage falls in.
     
  12. Friday

    Friday Friend

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    I have just carried out the same experiment. While my hearing remains the same, I do find myself hollering uncontrollably and diving into the nearest corner whenever I see the OH f**k OH f**k GET THAT Porker AWAY FROM ME
     
  13. phillip

    phillip Friend

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    My first day at CanJam Singapore sucks real bad. I was severely deprived of sleep and yawned along the whole day. I could only discern a few really really good ones. The next day when I had ample rest, KABOOM. Lots of good stuffs suddenly became apparent.

    Too bad my transport was early and I have to leave.

    And also, when I'm really frustrated, everything sounds bad.
     
  14. Friday

    Friday Friend

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    I expect that frequency response will be higher. That is, the number of shouts will increase over time until three weeks into the experiment, when I simply drop to my knees and gurgle.
     
  15. Thad E Ginathom

    Thad E Ginathom Friend

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    But it is not the same for different chickens of different composition, right? Even though they have the same weight, the same density, and the same colours.

    Some people say that all rubber chickens sound the same, but hey, they might just as well spend their lives listening to measurements, because they sure don't know anything about music. Or anything about rubber chickens.

    But seriously... see my signature. The stuff the brain does in incredible. Much more incredible than the stuff that electronics does. It is not just a linear path from the open end of the ear to the brain cells, either: there are control loops involved. And our ears do DSP, EQ, are DACs. There was a great article (I think from Sound on Sound*) on this, I'll try to find the link. And JJ Johnston is great on how this stuff works. One would have to understand how the brain hears music before one could code lossy compressors.

    *Yes: How the ear works
     
  16. a44100Hz

    a44100Hz Friend

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    Sounds like you're suggesting I sleep on a cutting board for maximum dream dampening effects!

    But yes, brains are crazy. They're the final, and mostly ignored, link in the component chain.
     
  17. Colgin

    Colgin Friend

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    Funny you started this thread as I was going to start a somewhat related thread but wasn't sure where it should go. Anyway, may as well put my question here.

    I have been enjoying the AKG K7xx quite a bit matched with my Cavalli Liquid Carbon (an amp I otherwise have some reservations about), and that has been my primary pairing of late edging out time with my Senn HD 600. Unlike the Q701 I don't really find the K7xx bright at all and particularly on the LC it is not IMO.

    On Monday night I was listening to the K7xx/LC pairing and it sounded pretty awful to me; very thin, congested and bright. Quite the surprise and the first time I felt that way. I had three possible explanations:

    1. Amp warmup. I usually leave the LC on all the time but it had actually been powered down for 2-3 days. Cavalli recommends 30 minutes of warm-up time. I only listened for about 15-20 minutes because it was already late and the sound was unpleasant so the amp never really got warmed up (although it is otherwise broken in).
    2. Fatigue. Although I often listen late at night this was particularly late and I was already fatigued from some online chess matches.
    3. Comparison. I had been listening to these cans over the weekend on an even more laid back setup. So, comparatively the LC may have seemed bright when going back to it even though it is otherwise not.

    So, my question is whether it was the first mechanical reason, or the second and third psychoacoustic reasons. It could well be a combination of the three although I tend to think there may be a warm up issue even though I tend to be somewhat skeptical of warm-up claims. The third reason is not that persuasive since the listening on the other setup was over 24 hours prior, was relatively short and I am very familiar with the K7xx/LC combo. So, I don't think that earlier experience would affect me that much. I definitely think fatigue was/could be a factor. I answered the OP poll in the affirmative as all sorts of personal/external influences affect my listening to some degree. But this was so dramatic -- going from my favorite setup to feeling it was borderline unlistenable -- that I tend to think the amp was not doing its best at that time.

    Last night, I listened to the same setup and many of the same tracks and everything was hunky dory again. I had left the amp running since Monday night and last night the setup no longer seemed thin or bright and was very engaging to me.
     
  18. a44100Hz

    a44100Hz Friend

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    I think if you're really curious about isolating whether it was gear or brain you'll have to continue listening to the system for the next few weeks at various times and leave it on / warmed so that you can eliminate any factor that isn't yourself.
     
  19. Skyline

    Skyline Double-blindly done with this hobby

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    It could very well be a combination of all three @Colgin . It's not an easy web to untangle.

    And to the OP, yes, this certainly happens to me. There are days where I just sit there entranced. Everything sounds glorious.

    And, other days where everything is simply...meh.

    On those days I either take a nap or go outside and enjoy some fresh air. It's better than listening frustrated and not understanding why everything suddenly sounds like crap.
     
  20. Tim Thomas

    Tim Thomas Friend

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    Agree completely with @Skyline. I find the same "thing" happens when reading -- at times I love to read and others, can't bother to pick up a book. This isn't always related to the book. I've got several good books in the queue, just currently not in the "mood" to read. The same happens with music, I suppose.
     

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