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You mean I'm not the only deaf piano tuner???

If I hadn't mentioned it before, mine's drug-induced, a side-effect of the antibiotic gentamicin. If a doctor ever wants to give it to you, to switch to a different med.

My ears have been ringing continuously since 1992.

Jim, hope you are still following this..

Two specific ideas:

1. Earplugs - high quality, musicians' type - like the ones found at www.etymotic.com I tried the custom ones first, but like the cheaper ones better! I have small ear canals, so I use the blue ones. Earplugs are to tuning as a good pair of sunglasses are to driving in the full sun... They help reduce the overload of information, while allowing us to focus on what is needed.

1. ETD Yeah, I know... this is a tough one for a lot of folks. Blah dee blah dee blah about all the pros and cons... Using one allows the tech to "live in the unison" for a bulk of the time, or even all of the time if you gain control of the best software. Reduces a bunch of listening strain.

By using these two suggestions, the limiting factor for bulk tuning becomes more physical, which can be helped by stretching or some yoga between pianos. Of course, staying focused remains a challenge, as always!

18 is my max for one day at the college, only because I had to stop to meet up people for dinner. I'm sure I could have cranked out some more. (The next day, I wasn't worth much - I quit after 9!) That was over 10 years ago, not sure I could do that again...

Ron Koval

I find ear plugs just make the ringing louder.

There aren't enough hours in one day, given my other responsibilities for me to even think about tuning that many pianos. :hair:

I'm still wrapping my brain around Tunelab...

He's right. The ER doctor told me this when I had Bell's Palsy. Closing the shower door sounded to my right ear like someone fired an M16 from a foot away. He explained that muscles in the ear are paralyzed and not responding the way they normally would.

Yup, but when you are at the piano, can you focus on the notes through the ringing? As I concentrate and move the notes, the ringing becomes just background to ignore. Kindof like working with false beats; while you move the string notice what changes - focus on that and not the stuff that doesn't change....

Mine might be much less than yours - constant blend of notes up around 14k or so - most bothersome when I'm somewhere quiet.

Ron Koval

I'll give it a try.

Jim,

I differentiate between hyperacusis and tinnitus. As you might know, hyperacusis is hypersensitivity to sounds while tinnitus is non-real noise generated and/or perceived inside the ear/brain.

When my hyperacusis was bad, last year, I found that piano playing and tuning was one of the worst forms of sound to endure, and that it lead to premature "saturation". So I started using musician's earplugs. This gave my hyperacusis a bit of a break - but as you say, at the expense of increased tinnitus. The plugs definitely cut out a significant part of high frequencies, and my impression is that the brain starts "hunting" for them by turning up its "gain" even more. Hence the tinnitus becomes worse.

Initially, I wore the plugs very often, even while driving and going to the shops, but after having made the above connection with increased tinnitus, I now try to avoid the plugs whenever possible. I only ever wear them when I know that I'll be exposed to high sound levels for prolonged periods, e.g. tuning.

BTW, my tinnitus is a broad-band "white hiss" of about 12-15 kHz.

I have the ringing also but have learned to ignore it when tuning. A pink noise machine at night helps deal with it when things are normally quiet. One study I read about tinnitus indicated 84 percent to 92 percent of those with tinnitus also have hyperinsulinemia, a sugar metabolism disorder. A diet similar to what diabetics use can help a lot. It has worked for me and the ringing is just faint background now....in the past it used to be like a siren blaring.

I've heard that also. Mine's drug-induced; it was a side-effect of an antibiotic I was given in 1992.

Until a few years ago, I was sure I'd never tune another piano, until Ron Koval taught me the method I use now. I know for a fact I'm twice the tuner I was before.

I owe him an eternal debt of gratitude.

The wikipedia article on Auditory Fatigue gives good information about this issue:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auditory_fatigue

Aw, shucks - dinner and drinks would do...

RK

Anytime we're in each other's neck of the woods, baby!

Dredging up this subject...

I've found that, since I began with the district and my volume of work has skyrocketed, my hearing seems to be getting into shape a little. I can divine what I'm hearing a lot faster, and it now takes more like five or six pianos in close succession to tire out my hearing.

Anyone else experience anything similar?

Sorry, I have nothing to add there. My customers, and myself are not tired-disturbed by the tone when I tune (usually) That even surprise me.

I get physically tired well before any hearing tiredness.
Come to think of it, I don't know what tired ears feels or sounds like.

I was about to say something similar but not sure it would be understood.

I seem not to "listen" sometime, making more efforts on the physical aspects than on some "listening". the justness, I "know" where it is, no much brain exercise on that part (anyway I do not have much brain left so it is better that way)

But it happened some (far !) long time ago, I can understand that.

That give me the right to say one can "listen differently" even if some do not seem to understand what it mean

BTW I don't know if you have used some ETD but I suspect it may be more "tiring" for the ears to tune with those (or to use them always). I am unsure of the cause, however.

Tuning together with noise exposure is tiring, but more for the brain than for the ears I suppose.

But I recall when I was younger (about 30) and I came home, did not wish to hear the TV or even to listen to music.

HA HA ! as we all hear less with age, that should certainly be the cause is not it ? !!!

As an aural tuner, I do 3 a day(4 max) It's not that it's tough on the hearing, but it's exhausting mentally to listen with laser like focus.

I think that's what was divined in this thread; that it's really the mental fatigue that's at play.

That changed when I learned to appreciate the tone structure, as the precision remain high but attention can be given more to the pin and wire than to the tone. Listening then is as natural as singing or speaking, can get tiring if working in really noisy circumstances , but I stopped to be overhauled by tone as I was (this is really tiring in the end)

I would describe that as listening to the tone projection mostly, then refining the top of the spectra.

When I am "tuning" the tuning pin, the wire is easy probably, in comparison.

Dealing with the tone structure, we are way less annoyed by poorly sounding pianos, also, and can more easily give them the illusion of having a decent tone (some fast voicing included).

I know a pianist who takes an unusually large amount of time between songs even when he's performing. I asked him why, he replied, "It is important that I empty my ears of the last piece before I move on to the next piece."

We both laughed.