Television whine

[bozothedeathmachine]

This is an off-shoot of the "ultrasonic/hearing" thread. I was once told that only the generation of children who have grown up with TV all of the time can hear the TV's whine. Has anyone else heard this?

I ask because I know people who can't hear the TV if it is muted. Of course it could be a function of a person's hearing, but I didn't know.

Just curious.

[geni]

I grew up in a household without a TV I can hear the whine. I suspect that it is more likely that only children and young people can hear the whine.

[phildonnia]

Yep, I can hear it, and I've always had a TV. I suppose this is caused by capacitors and inductors vibrating with changes in voltage and current?

I can also hear the sound of water in the shower getting hot. I have no idea what the mechanics of this is.

Sadly, I cannot distinguish colors while blindfolded, or I'd be $1M richer.

[teddygrahams]

I have always assumed it was due to differences in hearing ability. Perhaps there is also the ability to know when one is hearing something that is not a low to mid-range frequency tone. This requires an experiment to see if people who can hear sounds actually know that they can hear them (which may be what you are getting at).

The frequency in the USA is 15734kHz for color broadcasts. It was 15750kHz for the black and white broadcasts before compatible color.

I have always been aware of the sound. To me, it is the sound associated with watching TV. But perhaps not for long, since HDTV, LCD, and Plasma displays will emit different sounds.

[epepke]

Originally posted by bozothedeathmachine
This is an off-shoot of the "ultrasonic/hearing" thread. I was once told that only the generation of children who have grown up with TV all of the time can hear the TV's whine. Has anyone else heard this?

I ask because I know people who can't hear the TV if it is muted. Of course it could be a function of a person's hearing, but I didn't know.

This sounds pretty stupid to me.

Most adults have a dip in their hearing at the frequency of the flyback transformer. Thing is, the frequency of the dip is different in the US versus Europe, where the flyback transformers have a different frequency.

[BillyJoe]

I've never noticed it. Which is not to say that I haven't heard it. Like I see things all the time without looking at them.

Next time I watch TV I'll let you know

BillyJoe
(Don't hold your breath)

[shecky]

I used to hear it as a kid. But not anymore. Perhaps my hearing is not what it used to be. Perhaps TVs are made better that they used to be. I do recall as a kid, walking past jewelry stores or other places that had video security, the whine would be much more noticable. I suppose that even if one could hear it, it would be pretty easy to tune out.

I do think the whine may be from the flyback transformer, perhaps a loose winding causing some physical vibration. I actually "cured" a excessively loud whine on a TV by immobilizing the windings of a flyback transformer. Dont try this at home! A good way to get seriously zapped.

[jj]

Any younger person or any person not terribly noise exposed should be able to hear the whine from a TV, which is at 15735 Hz, give or take (that would be 15.735khz).

Older males (and many others in this day and age) can't hear it due to noise exposure damage.

It has NOTHING to do with being born in the TV generation.

[BillyJoe]

Goddamn, I can't hear it but my son can. :(

[Rolfe]

Originally posted by BillyJoe
Goddamn, I can't hear it but my son can. :( As I understand it, ability to hear very high frequencies drops off with age - I think it's mostly an age effect, and not especially associated with noise exposure.

However, the hearing system is extremely clever in labelling sounds with their significances, and any background noise which is pegged as "harmless" will soon not be heard as the system accommodates - just as it does to the central heating system or indeed the normal internal sounds of the head. You can usually hear the central heating or the fridge if you listen for them, though normally the system would screen them out.

Rolfe.

[patnray]

I could hear it when I was younger. Back then I used to take old tube type TVs apart and make other things out of them (like an oscilloscope...). I could easily hear it when the TV was out of the case and powered on. If I put my ear near a vent hole I could hear it from a TV in its case. I could even hear it change frequency as the circuits warmed up and stabilized...

I repeat the "Don't try this at home" warning. This circuit generates very high voltages...

[Suezoled]

I can hear it... it's like a dog whistle calling me...awwwooooo!

[jj]

Originally posted by Rolfe
As I understand it, ability to hear very high frequencies drops off with age - I think it's mostly an age effect, and not especially associated with noise exposure.

High frequency loss certainly worsens with age, but since humans moved into an unnaturally noisy environment BEFORE anybody started measuring hearing loss, I don't think we can assert the second part.

It is also worth noting that females are starting to show faster loss than they used to show, but they haven't caught up with men, yet.

However, the hearing system is extremely clever in labelling sounds with their significances, and any background noise which is pegged as "harmless" will soon not be heard as the system accommodates - just as it does to the central heating system or indeed the normal internal sounds of the head.

They will be discarded by the CNS, not in the auditory periphery, if that's what you're saying.

You can usually hear the central heating or the fridge if you listen for them, though normally the system would screen them out.

Rolfe.
Now it is quite true than you can tune your attention; that's not at the first level of auditory sensitivity, though.

[aerosolben]

Originally posted by jj
High frequency loss certainly worsens with age, but since humans moved into an unnaturally noisy environment BEFORE anybody started measuring hearing loss, I don't think we can assert the second part.

Not all humans have. Perhaps someone has done a study.

[TillEulenspiegel]

I stopped hearing it after the '77 Zepplin concert when I was a kid.

[Rat]

I seem to remember also that children with asthma can hear higher pitches and perhaps quieter sounds than non-asthmatics. I read this somewhere, and have some anecdotal evidence of it.

Cheers,
Rat.

[jj]

Originally posted by aerosolben


Not all humans have. Perhaps someone has done a study.

A few studies have happened. They are inconclusive, and some have argued each way.

To me that suggests that noise is a problem, but that's not a solidly supported conclusion at this point, only a suggestion for somebody who can get funding to find non-exposed people.

[Charlie in Dayton]

An FA (Female Acquaintance -- coulda been a GF, but the woowoo factor got too high, as you'll see) claims she cannot be in the same room as a running CRT display (TV, monitor, what have you) because it makes her dizzy etc etc. Her parents have several radios around that tune the TV bands so they can keep up with the news. Sounds to me like she's got 'em pretty well buffaloed on this one, 'cause it's related to her dyslexia which she's curing with homeopathic pellets of some sort...the homeowhatnot is also doing wonders curing her mom's diseases (one of whiich is long-range terminal, if I recall)...

Maybe I coulda put up with it for awhile, but when she claimed to find the birthplace of a local Native American Revolutionary War chieftain by detecting the 'energy pocket' established by his birth...

I think the noises the TV makes are the least of her worries...

[epepke]

Originally posted by ratcomp1974
I seem to remember also that children with asthma can hear higher pitches and perhaps quieter sounds than non-asthmatics. I read this somewhere, and have some anecdotal evidence of it.

Cheers,
Rat.

Interesting. I had asthma as a kid, and my hearing was very high. My father was, amongst other things, a recording engineer, and I tested myself on really high quality equipment up to 30 kHz. I could not stand to go near the jewelry departments of department stores or the jewelry exhibit at the New York Museum of Natural History for the sound of the "ultrasonic" burglar detectors in the cases.

[Suezoled]

Originally posted by epepke


(snipped). I could not stand to go near the jewelry departments of department stores or the jewelry exhibit at the New York Museum of Natural History for the sound of the "ultrasonic" burglar detectors in the cases.

*gasp*! You could hear those too??? I would have to ask store managers at some shops to shut off their alarm systems, because I could feel the vibrations agitating my skin. The store managers were always surpised, because I didn't ask IF they had one, but to please turn it off for a couple minutes.

It's proof I'm connected to a higher plane! :p

[MartinGibbs]

Yes, I can tell immediately if my wife is listening to CDs in the DVD player.

That's why I don't listen to CDs in the DVD player, because the whine disrupts my enjoyment of the music.

[mummymonkey]

I used to hear it all the time so I got a new TV. It was an expensive way of finding out I've got tinnitus.

[Soapy Sam]

I once asked a TV repairman why the set whistled. His reply was "It doesn't whistle". I was about ten, he about forty, I imagine. Haven't owned a TV for many years, but I don't hear my girlfriend's TV whistling. (It's a flat screen job- does that make a difference?).

In high school, a science teacher turned an audio signal generater all the way up offscale, instead of switching it off. I don't know what the top frequency was, but I found it very uncomfortable when he did it. (I felt, rather than heard it). He thought I was kidding and did some blind testing. I got it right every time, after which he was kind enough to switch it off.

After 20 years on drilling rigs, this is no longer a problem. I get regular hearing checks. They say my hearing is good for a man of 48 with my work history. JJ has explained elsewhere that this is why I prefer the sound of MP3s to WAVs. I'm sure I just need platinum speaker cables or something...;)

[Captain Trips]

I can also hear the sound of water in the shower getting hot. I have no idea what the mechanics of this is.



I once put some thought into this and realized it has to do with the dissolved air in the water lines. As it heats up, its density changes. As its density changes, so does its harmonic frequency, thus the pitch changes as the water in the line gets hotter.

Simple in hindsight, yet it took me my first 25 years of life to figure this one out.

[MoeFaux]

Yes, I hear it, and at times it becomes so uncomfortable that I have to switch the set off. I can also hear other electronic items - I'm not sure what they are, but I'll occasoinally hear a high pitch while walking through the house. It really only bothers me with the television, and usually only when I have it on mute, which I sometimes like to do while watching CNN. If the sound from the program doesn't drown it out, it just gets to hurting. For other things, though, it's something I've just learned to tune out. I sure would like it to go away, though. Sometimes it really, really sucks.

[BillyJoe]

MoeFaux, stop your whining. :cool:

[epepke]

It's proof I'm connected to a higher plane! :p

I'll take that as a compliment.