Advice on how to liquidate system

Whoa. Really sorry about your trauma and its consequences. Seriously. It must feel debilitating to say the least. 

You have any or family or close friends who might even a little appreciate your system? How could you keep the gift of music going?

Have you been evaluated by an ENT for this condition?  There may be treatment options if seen immediately.  Also, several weeks is far to short a time to decide whether you'll improve.  I've been told in the past that conditions I've had would not improve past a certain point, and they were wrong.   I would be patient, and hope for gradual improvement.  Keep us updated.

@simao 

It’s extremely frustrating to the point of anger. Sitting down and listening after a long day at work was my daily routine. I find that it’s best to avoid it for the time being. I’m praying that at headphones might be an option at some point. I tested the waters with iPod pro’s and it’s out of the question for now. 

Just FYI, there's a lot of EQ solutions for listening on headphones and speakers.  If you have an idea of your hearing curve you could try to make an adjustment that way, but how much luck have yo had with the modern hearing aids??  The tech has gotten pretty advanced in being able to apply DSP in the aid now. 

@kb54 

After the incident went straight to the doc, as I thought I had ruptured my ear drum (thankfully not the case) then went to a ENT and Audiologist for a battery of tests. I have more testing to undergo. The audiologist was straight up and said the level of loss i sustained was significant. Time will tell I guess.

@erik_squires

Erik thanks. I’m open to all solutions, what’s going on here is multifaceted. midrange and upper frequencies sound static and harsh. My right ear sounds like there’s a fax machine in it and the left ear sounds like Im wearing a 30db earplug.
I’m using a coupe of tinnitus apps to mitigate the fax machine going off 24/7 in my head and I’m bio-hacking with magnesium / NAC / ginko for what it’s worth…collectively it offers some relief.

Who is responsible for the accident? Sustained on the job? Sounds like you need a Lawyer who can get you proper compensation including the cost of your system which may be useless to you now. Good luck

Don't sell your system for a year, you never know what tomorrow may bring. 

I’m with the don’t sell crowd.  First, you have inflation which will make it less painful to wait.  Second, what you are going through is tragic and I’m sure depressing, but time is very important.  You are having a much more difficult time than myself and there is no way to compare our hearing, but my tinnitus is always present and since birth.  Occasionally, it sounds like there is an ambulance in my driveway.  Aging has further destroyed my ability to understand speech.  Two characteristics here, one is a condition that I have always had and the second is a conditioned that slowly caused hearing degeneration.  In any case, I still enjoy listening to music, but I have changed my listening taste due to my inability to understand lyrics.  I now listen to alot of Korean vocals and will probably take in more varied music.

Assuming that your loss isn’t close to total, time will allow for some healing, but more important it will allow you to adapt to a new normal.  Right now, your hearing loss is just a reminder of what you could hear in the past.  Give it some time.

I would wait for a good long time before sending off your system. Back in the day I was messing around with the youngsters and got slapped right upside my head and like you, I thought my eardrum popped. Couldn't hear straight for the longest time and like you, the tinnitus was bad. Muffled sound and with my balance off a bit, I thought I was a goner. 

Time did heal everything and it didn't take that long, relatively speaking. 

All the best,
Nonoise

@dweller 

Yeah man, that’s all pending. A flash-bang detonated right near my head during on the job training (ear pro wasn’t mandated). 
 

@vonhelmholtz 

check your messages when your free!

Seriously, thank you all for the encouragement, I truly appreciate it 🙏

The body has ways of healing itself. Years ago, one of my sons had a near fatal auto accident in which he fractured his skull. He lost hearing in his right ear, but over the years, it has come back.   In any event, wishing you health.

The body has ways of healing itself. Years ago, one of my sons had a near fatal auto accident in which he fractured his skull. He lost hearing in his right ear, but over the years, it has come back.   In any event, wishing you health.

Wait until you have talked to your audiologist about the most advanced hearing aids.  Now that they are OTC they should be much cheaper.

@jl1ny

I’ll try to answer you here.

Once your hearing loss is fully accepted by you and you are not fixated on it, you will need to answer for yourself as to which direction you want to go with your audio listening habits. That said, for me, with whatever level of hearing disability that I have, I continue to enjoy listening to music. I moved into a newly built house in February of 22 and built my system from scratch after at least 17 years away from two channel listening. When I was a young teenager in the 1960’s one of my friend’s father had a full McIntosh system and I just fell in love with the sound. I also knew that McIntosh held value a bit better than some. I wanted fewer interconnects, so I purchased a McIntosh MA12000 and proceeded to sample speakers. The MA 12000 was purchased on my birthday, with my wife present and we both assumed that this would be the main expense incurred in building a system. I was living in Texas and my wife continued to live in California and I paid all credit card bills, so you know where this is going. I started auditioning speakers with the integrated and as I went up in price, the speakers just kept getting better. I finally reached my financial limit, because I still thought that I could limit the expense and purchased the Wilson Sabrina X. I purchased an iFi Zen Stream, Technics SL-1500G and Hana ML cartridge. I used the integrated phono section and DAC. Unfortunately, my system didn’t have what I identified as the musical quality of the system that I heard over 55 years ago…. When you look at my system, you will see that everything except for the integrated and speakers have been dramatically upgraded. Some changes involved multiple returns to Music Direct. My power conditioner and cords are now my most costly expense. The problem is that I could hear differences. My point being, I don’t hear what others hear, but I could hear differences when switching out power cables, interconnects, DACs, phono preamps and streamers. I can hear the difference between Ethernet cables. Now, I probably can’t hear fine differences and this might be why I upgraded to the top of the Shunyata line. I could hear a clear difference between their Venum NR and their premier cables. I now have a very musical system with lots of detail and to my taste vocals can be just stunning. So, for me, I can’t understand lyrics and I have a constant fairly loud ringing in my ears, but due to slow changes, I don’t focus on what I lack, but on what I still have. Unfortunately for me, this was a very expensive journey. I hope that this helps out.

@erik_squires 

You bring up a good point.  I think I will post a question related to hearing aids.

Considering the traumatic nature of the event, I'd consult an acupuncturist and possibly a hypnotist. Your hearing loss may be your body trying to protect itself.

Could be worth a try.

Hang in there my friend. There is more to life than just one thing. Shift your passion to something else. Show the rest of the world that you are a resilient, multifaceted individual. You can do it, won’t be easy but you got this. 

I like the idea of finding a friend or relative you trust, to lend them your gear. You would not have to see it every day and someone else would enjoy it. If things change, and  you want to give it a try, you can still take your gear back.

@jl1ny,

Maybe this could be of some help. See article below:

Mike

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bone_conduction

I have about $50k invested in HAM radio equipment and my HAM shack is state of the art.  I could talk almost anywhere in the world.

I got diagnosed with tongue cancer two years ago and they had to remove part of my tongue then graft on some muscle from my forearm.  This has greatly affected my speech and it could take up to 5 years.  I am difficult to understand on the air or phone.

My first inclination was to go out and sell everything.  I came to my senses, remained optimistic and let it collect dust for now. 

Like sever members have already suggested, give it some time and don't sell.  Doctors don't always have the correct answers as I've discovered.

This is what a community is all about. A member has an issue and everyone is eager to offer insight and assistance. Very refreshing.

I’d hold off before you jump. Judging by your user name, you are in NY? SkyFi through Dave Wasserman (ex-Stereo Exchange) buys high end, but there are all kinds of things you can do to try and recover some of your hearing. I’m really big on integrative medicine, which combines traditional western stuff with wacky Eastern snake oil. It has helped me through a few medical issues.

Are you LEO? Why were you close to a flash bang? Nasty stuff.

I have nominal hearing loss in one ear and much more significant hearing loss in the other ear.  With the addition of hearing correction (expensive hearing aids), I could hear the music more clearly but it lost most of it's passion / live quality while wearing hearing aids.  And now, since I wear the hearing aids most of the time, it takes about an hour for my ears to adjust to listening to music without them.  But, then the music sounds better.

The best thing for me right now are headphones (Focal Utopia and Burson headphone amp/dac for serious listening and Grado GS1E for connecting to the laptop.

@jl1ny 

I am sorry to hear about your hearing loss. I am with those in favor of not selling your gear until you have exhausted all the options out there to restore your hearing. If your mind is made up to sell your gear, then reach out to TMR audio in Colorado. 

Wishing you nothing but the best! 

I agree with others on giving it at least a year, as a combination of healing and slight gear modifications (adding an equalizer) may allow you to regain your enjoyment of listening.  

I you end up deciding to sell all or some of your gear, I recommend TMR (The Music Room) in Erie Colorado.  I've sold gear to them twice... one time some large relatively expensive speakers.  They are very professional and make the process easy.

I would say wait awhile too.  I find many songs tell stories and I love those song even when the quality is not great.  Some are old or just not perfect clarity, but listening to the story is still fun.  I also listen to music on many different types of speakers and I still enjoy it - some are poor quality like in the garage or 10 headphones.  I guess what I am saying is that the level of enjoyment is not always matched to the quality of the sound.   

I empathize with your current situation. I had a temporary  loss of hearing in my right ear due to trauma 18 month later my hearing was at 70 to 80%.  Give it time friend. 

Sorry about your trauma.  I would sit on selling the system, as you might regain some hearing over the next year.  Also, are you a candidate fora cochlear implant?

Now 70 with very good hearing, however 30 years ago after working in munitions testing I have severe tinnitus, does it get better, does your hearing or, more likely, your brain, adapt?  I don't know but your hearing may well change, for the better with time. I sold excellent hifi gear and installed costly theatre system more for the family than me, now back with near audiophile gear.  Try headphones with good eq set up and patience. Good luck.

I’m really sorry for your problem and I wish you to get better. I think if you sell peace by peace you could sell it for more money. Same happened to my friend who was hunter. Ones, for his new hunting season he decided to switch his caliber for bigger one and new rifle was several inches shorter. At the end of the season his hearing loss was dramatic. It was also end of lovely hobby for the guy. :(

I'm in the don't sell group. Sorry about your situation. FWIW silence helps me. I'm assuming you work in a noisy environment and may benefit from more frequent ear protection use. Maybe even double up. Good luck and try to be patient. 

Try seeing a practioner of chinese medicine, whole different approach:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30439402/

I will offer a prayer for you

Maybe trying headphones is agood alternative,I have tinnitus and when it’s loud a qualitypair of headphones forsure makes a solid difference Qualitythough

is essential.

Count me as one of the "Don't Sell Right Now" crowd.  Traumatic injuries are dealt with by us at the emotional level very much like the grieving process when we lose a loved one.  Early on we can get caught in the darkness and the feelings that, "All is lost" -- it's a natural and overwhelming feeling....but the situation does get better over time.

Don't make a decision now that you will regret later -- such as "At this point I really don’t give a crap about being lowballed".  I try to see the good in people and want to think that nobody would take advantage of your current state of mind...but I've also seen human nature rear its greedy head way too often.  Don't give anybody that opportunity.  I'm cheering for you to rally. 

Maybe not, but I feel a "Thanks for your service" is appropriate here. Truly from my heart.

Sorry to hear about your situation. That bites. Hope it improves. Whatever you were doing with flash bangs, I suspect it was in the service of protecting others. For that, thank you for your service.

So sorry about this. Can your hearing problem be helped by increasing volume (like hearing aid)? I would be patient and give it a year before deciding anything.

Not sure if you have the same symptoms but I know someone who suffered hearing loss from blast. Doc said maybe he could’ve improved if he got some powerful steroids ASAP. He explained everything was cacophony and echo sounding, He got rid of the hearing aids and asked people to speak slowly and distinctly as yelling was minimal help and got him angry for being yelled at.

He did try wearing ear muffs for a time right after but they did not help the healing. Alternative therapies as suggested may be with a try. Herbal supplements, acupuncture, relaxation techniques.

There is also the treatment where they attach a device right to the bone in your ear. A Baha (bone anchored hearing aid) consists of three parts: a titanium implant, an external abutment, and a sound processor. The system works by enhancing natural bone transmission as a pathway for sound to travel to the inner ear, bypassing the external auditory canal and middle ear

Very sorry you have suffered this trauma

pleased to hear you seem to be receiving good medical care. Hoping you see great improvement. 
Every good wish 

I sympathise @jl1ny ​​​​

I have Tinnitus too. It drove me mad for the first 6 months. I could only get relief when focused on work or sitting in the shower. The tone of the Tinnitus went through changes too. It took a good year for me to learn how to manage it. It is part acceptance, learning tricks that work for me (getting adequate sleep, hot showers), recognising bad days and not listening to music then).

I dont know the severity of your Tinnitus and it may take longer for it to improve, but it will improve, it’s just a matter of time. I am with the "hold on" group. Give it a year (or more) and try again. It may take longer but there will come a day when you think to yourself that you want to listen to music rather than to the recorded sound of waterfalls, brooks and rivers.

FYI, I got tinnitus while in the headphone phase. In the 4 to 5 years since then, I have acquired 3 different speaker based systems (some of them on Audiogon), while living with Tinnitus. There is an audio life after tinnitus. Of course there are things to avoid, eg loud West end musicals, wedding dinner dances (ear plugs help), and not listening too loud for too long.

Wishing you a speedy recovery @jl1ny and lots of patience whilst dealing with your Tinnitus.

Sorry to hear if your hearing loss but don’t give up yet. Since I was a child, virtually a continual series or ear infections in my left ear resulted in permanent hearing loss. Mostly in the critical midrange and about a 30-40% loss of hearing. After a successful surgery in my early 20’s which halted the infections I have been fine but the damage is irreversible. I have just learned to compensate, heating the highs and lows through my left ear and all through my right. It hasn’t deterred me from being an avid audiophile since my teens. Don’t sell your gear for a year as others have said, you just might be surprised at how much might come back. You would definitely have sellers remorse if you liquidate your system now.

I sustained a traumatic brain injury in 4/2009. Tinnitus was with me for years- but it slowly improved. It ruined my audio enjoyment - for a while. Therefore;

My advice is to not sell at this time. Let some time go by and see how you heal. 

This assumes you don't need to raise money, If money is the issue then sell on a reputable site like this one. check the blue book for pricing guidance. Don't panic sell- you will regret it. 

Very sorry for your situation, I wish the best possible in the future.

When my mother was 80, her Dr. told me "surely she won't go beyond 83". She just turned 100. 

You are naturally depressed, I would be too, but I join others in advising spending a year of natural recovery as it may be, as well as reading/seeing what's out there to aid the situation.

Just like Audio, Avoid the Quacks. Best of Luck.

Elliott

@riie

"Just put some liquid on it "

Great solution Brainiac!!!!

I also have a hearing issue. Mine is just the right ear. Try a bone conductance speaker, I used one for a year or two.  Hearing aid tech has improved.  And, so has my perception.  I don't think that I ever stopped being an active listener. What ha s changed for me is my focus. Equipment is all from the land of diminished returns. I  recently auditioned amplifiers, and selected a Cambridge Audio for the  "English sound."  Maybe not top shelf, but for me enjoyable. Warmer is better for me. I  find the most pleasure in the mid range. It might be tempting to abandon the audio world, but actually just new challenges. Give your ears and your soul some time to heal.

@jl1ny, I feel for ya. I know how disgusted you must feel but as others have said, give it some time. If you feel like you must sell, The Music Room as someone has suggested might be a good solution.

Someone mentioned acupuncture. I’ve used acupuncture for years for debilitating back pain and it has helped. Not a cure but does give weeks even months of relief for me. The MD will tell you it’s placebo effect. Placebo or not I rely on it when it gets really bad. It may or may not help you but it might be worth a shot. I was a skeptic before trying acupuncture. I hope you recover and wish you all the best.

Sorry to heart about your loss, BUT
You mention that this is a relative recent injury. Give it some time before you give up on everything. Physical trauma is often just temporary. You might even give it a year or two. I hate to see anyone give up on the beauty of Music/sound.
Also there are different types of tinnitus and how it affects a persons hearing. I suffer from years of live concerts up close and personal with the huge bass horns, Jet engines from my time in the Navy, and gun fire W/O proper hearing protection, and though my Tinnitus is getting worse now at the age of 71, and my level of auditory volume is probably 60% or more, I still hear the music clearly and can enjoy it fully.

DON"T GIVE UP!

I'm with the don't sell group too, OP.

Hyperbaric O2 therapy has been especially helpful even for traumatic brain injury and other neural conditions.

Please check this out ... google HBOT for hearing loss ... relatively inexpensive and getting remarkable results for many maladies!!