is one ear usually stronger?

I would think that no two ears are alike be it from one person to another and with just between the two ears that one has.

It would be impossible to have exactly the same hearing acuity with each of your ears but the differences should be so small as to be inconsequential. All those years of adapting as you age should make it second nature and not readily noticeable.

The older you get, however, will reveal subtle differences that would still go unnoticed until you strain to hear or concentrate hard enough (like with listening to your system not for enjoyment but for discerning purposes).

The only caveat I can think of is some unfortunate and unnatural event or cause that would diminish your hearing in one of your ears. All of this is conjecture on my part and it just may be that one ear is always better than the other but I've heard of that.

As for the soundstaging favoring one channel over the other, this has been a topic for discussion for many a year, going back decades even. When I first started out with this hobby, I noticed it as well, but no longer pay any attention to it but now that you brought this up, it will probably occupy more of my attention than it should.:-)

All the best,
Nonoise

Al,

Thanks for the mention of the ENT as I used to have some pretty bad ear wax when young and the when they removed it, my hearing acuity went through the roof. I can remember how good it felt to hear all the little details.It's been decades since I've had it checked out and now I'm going to make an appt. with my HMO to check them out.

All the best,
Nonoise

B-limo, I have an aunt who was a nurse who used to lay my head on her lap on pour in the hydrogen peroxide when I was a kid. It really loosened up the wax in my ears. I do it every couple of months or so and it always 'feels' better but I don't know if it works like it used to.

Rja, You just may have a point with the dominant ear subject that escaped my (our) notice. I can see no reason why it wouldn't follow that same reasoning that already applies to our eyes, arms, and legs. It's been part of us for so long that it could easily be overlooked.

All the best,
Nonoise

At least you guys can put the object in the circle. I never could. I have a lazy eye and as a result, I always see two of everything. One eye always dominates and the other eventually shuts down and goes its own way.

It's not as bad as when I was young, having a 15 degree vertical displacement (my left eye would almost disappear) but surgery has helped to keep it level. My depth perception is not as bad as you'd think since I've been wearing glasses since the age of 5 and I've learned to adapt. I sucked at sports. When that baseball got within swinging distance, there'd be two to choose from and their locations were both wrong.

Through time and the discipline that comes with it, you'd couldn't tell unless I'm tired and only then you might think something is wrong with my eye.

Sorry about the tangent but it seemed relevant in so far as your ears, like my eyes, with one being dominant, or somewhat impaired, can still be of value and work harmoniously in concert, adapting as best they can. The brain then does its job at collating all the info and filling in the gaps.

All the best,
Nonoise