AirPods Pro 3 - Tinnitus question

[stiligFox]

Hey all - I'm curious about the new AirPods Pro 3. I had a very odd problem with the Pro 1 and Pro 2 models - whenever I used them with the ANC, they exacerbate my tinnitus quite severely. I think it's something about the pressure the ANC creates, or the silence it creates? They would cause my tinnitus to become much louder and noticeable all the time, even when not using them - and it took about two or three weeks of not using the AirPods at all before the tinnitus went back to normal volume in my ears. I have used regular AirPods 3 and AirPods 4 (with ANC) and they don't have the same effect on me, so I think it's something to do with the seal that the Pro's create.

So all that is to say - has anyone else experienced this, and are the AirPods Pro 3 any better? I'd love the better ANC of the Pros and the other features, but the way the previous generations made my tinnitus ring so loud it was making my eyes water after a couple hours of use at low volumes makes me hesitant to try the new generation...

Thanks!

 

[BigMcGuire]

I have pretty bad tinnitus in my left ear. Using AirPods usually doesn't help them - keeping the volume low helps. And yeah, the tight seal of the AirPods Pro 2 made the ringing significantly worse and hurt in my ears after a few hours for me.

AirPods Pro 3 feel like they're not even there and my tinnitus doesn't go super loud after using them for hours which has made me a very happy camper with these.

Mine is a constant ring that gets louder when I eat lots of salt or my blood pressure goes up. Had ear doc look at it and say there was nothing they could do.

Hope you get the same experience if you choose to go with the APP3.

 

[stiligFox]

I have pretty bad tinnitus in my left ear. Using AirPods usually doesn't help them - keeping the volume low helps. And yeah, the tight seal of the AirPods Pro 2 made the ringing significantly worse and hurt in my ears after a few hours for me.

AirPods Pro 3 feel like they're not even there and my tinnitus doesn't go super loud after using them for hours which has made me a very happy camper with these.

Mine is a constant ring that gets louder when I eat lots of salt or my blood pressure goes up. Had ear doc look at it and say there was nothing they could do.

Hope you get the same experience if you choose to go with the APP3.

That's nice to hear - no pun intended! Yeah I keep mine at very low volume. Sounds like you had similar issue to what I'm had. I'll give the APP3's a try then!

And yeah - I definitely need to go to an ear doctor as well. I don't think mine is hearing loss related - I can still hear all the tones in a hearing test, but when I get stressed a lot, my tinnitus gets a lot louder. I bet it's blood pressure related for me as well.

 

[sparksd]

Interesting. I have severe tinnitus in both ears and haven't noticed an issue with either the 2's or 3's. Tinnitus really sucks.

 

[titanium69]

I skimmed over your post. I would say they temporarily make you more aware of it

 

[SimonYKMa]

I had tinnitus in both ears, AirPods Pro 3 is working as good as 2.

 

[RedWeasel]

I don't think mine is hearing loss related - I can still hear all the tones in a hearing test, but when I get stressed a lot, my tinnitus gets a lot louder. I bet it's blood pressure related for me as well.

Could also be jaw-related, so you might want to check for things like TMJ disorders as well maybe.

But that's one of the big issues with tinnitus, there's so many forms and so many causes :-/

And btw, I had the same issue with the AirPods Pro 2. Just testing the APP 3 at the moment, not conclusive yet.

 

[stiligFox]

Could also be jaw-related, so you might want to check for things like TMJ disorders as well maybe.

But that's one of the big issues with tinnitus, there's so many forms and so many causes :-/

And btw, I had the same issue with the AirPods Pro 2. Just testing the APP 3 at the moment, not conclusive yet.

Oh that’s interesting, I never heard of that - I do have tense jaws a lot and grind my teeth from time to time.

And interesting! Let me know what your conclusion is, I hope they don’t affect your tinnitus negatively!

 

[RedWeasel]

Oh that’s interesting, I never heard of that - I do have tense jaws a lot and grind my teeth from time to time.

Could well be related then. The hearing nerve is very close to some muscles in the jaw and one theory is that there is some kind of „spillover“

You can check if you can modulate your tinnitus by opening your mouth or clenching your teeth

 

[Lee_Mac]

ANC could increase awareness of tinnitus. However, using transparency mode alongside your hearing aid test results should help reduce tinnitus over time. This is how tinnitus is managed with actual hearing aids.About 10 years ago, I had a viral infection in my ears that was devastating.
As a touring sound engineer, it instantly made me redundant. I spent a year studying the causes of my sudden deafness and associated tinnitus. After consulting several specialists, my hearing has improved, but not enough to resume sound engineering.Tinnitus often manifests as sounds like hissing or whooshing, which correspond to the frequencies your hearing has lost. Your brain overcompensates by "listening" for these missing frequencies. A skilled audiologist can fine-tune hearing aids to target these specific frequencies. The AirPods hearing aid test can also identify the main frequencies where your hearing is diminished.
Using hearing aids or AirPods in hearing aid mode can help, but I strongly recommend consulting a good audiologist.I now work in other areas of touring, mainly equipment management and as a drum tech for bands. I regularly use AirPods with ANC to manage noise on the job, especially to block out those pesky guitar techs!

 

[subtin]

I realize this is an older thread but wish to note that others are experiencing Airpod Pro gen 3 use related tinnitus events. Let's assume I had it before, but didn't know it. After using the airpods this year, oh ya, I started noticing it. Generally after a day or two after stopping their use (and we are talking about having used them for maybe a couple hours tops) it will pull back. All it took was a couple hours of use. I have been searching the internet and it seems that there are thousands who are reporting tinnitus or exacerbated tinnitus after using the airpods - especially when using them in noise cancelling mode. I have noticed that if you post about this on the Apple community forum, they quickly lock the thread. I posted today and ended up with my post deleted. Call me suspicious, but when this is how large corporations start behaving, well, perhaps we should be a little suspicious. Anyway, just want to let those who may be experiencing this that they are not alone. I haven't seen this noted on this forum, but one user said they took their airpods to a mac store and was told his were defective - and replaced them. So, that is something I will be checking on, just in case. Otherwise, mine will likely not be used anymore.

 

[stiligFox]

I realize this is an older thread but wish to note that others are experiencing Airpod Pro gen 3 use related tinnitus events. Let's assume I had it before, but didn't know it. After using the airpods this year, oh ya, I started noticing it. Generally after a day or two after stopping their use (and we are talking about having used them for maybe a couple hours tops) it will pull back. All it took was a couple hours of use. I have been searching the internet and it seems that there are thousands who are reporting tinnitus or exacerbated tinnitus after using the airpods - especially when using them in noise cancelling mode. I have noticed that if you post about this on the Apple community forum, they quickly lock the thread. I posted today and ended up with my post deleted. Call me suspicious, but when this is how large corporations start behaving, well, perhaps we should be a little suspicious. Anyway, just want to let those who may be experiencing this that they are not alone. I haven't seen this noted on this forum, but one user said they took their airpods to a mac store and was told his were defective - and replaced them. So, that is something I will be checking on, just in case. Otherwise, mine will likely not be used anymore.

Man, I'm sorry to hear this! I still haven't tried the AirPods Pro 3 out of fear that they'll exacerbate my tinnitus like the 1's and 2's did.

I will say though - I've been using the AirPods 4 ANC for over a year now - I got them as soon as they came out - and even in ANC mode they don't make my tinnitus any worse than normal.

I know they say it's only psychosomatic and that the AirPods Pro cannot make tinnitus actually worse, but I swear they do. It would take two or more weeks for my hearing to recover and the tinnitus to go down; it was enough to make me wince and keep me up at night even when they weren't in my ears..

The AP4 don't seal as well and so the ANC doesn't work as well as the APPs, but it's well more than enough for me, and they don't make my ear ringing any worse than normal. In fact I'd say my ear ringing has largely gone away most days.

If you haven't tried the AP4 ANC model, give them a try once your ears feel more like normal.

 

[SimonYKMa]

I sold my APP3 and trade in for my AirPods Max 2 on day 1. I'd never thought of APP3 and tinnitus but after more than 3 months of using APM2 (and NO more APP3) my tinnitus is getting better to be frank. I was having both high and low pitch noise on my left ear (and high pitch noise on my right), now I only got high pitch noise on both ears (which was before I used APP3). The time I used APM2 was no different than APP3, so I am not sure if APP3’s active noise cancellation was the cause..

 

[VanXava]

Very interesting contributions! I myself have been suffering from a pulse-synchronous tinnitus for years. I have also found that headphones that are inserted directly into the ear canal are not good for me. I really like to use the AirPods Max / today Max 2 and I'm always happy not to hear my ear mouse for a few hours. Currently I even installed the beta and am thrilled with the small 3 band EQ.

 

[fastred]

Interesting. I have severe tinnitus in both ears and haven't noticed an issue with either the 2's or 3's. Tinnitus really sucks.

It sure does 🙁

Sorry to hear that you've got it too.

I've not experienced any issues with AirPods making it worse - but curious as to what specifically is making it worse for others.