There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why • Hacker News Board

Re: There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why

#261

Post by asclepi » Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 12:03 PM UTC

Steve44 wrote: post #246

I'm not sure it's related to these humming reports but there is a lot more ambient noise than most people appreciate. I live about five miles from Heathrow airport. Occasionally I will have planes taking off over our house which is fairly loud and sometimes I can hear them powering up and taking off - that's quiet and distant and I can't always hear it. When the Icelandic volcano closed the airspace a few years ago I…

Would "the hum" not be noticed in a lot more areas if it were caused by jet engines?

Note that there is some variance in the volume of air traffic: weekend nights tend to be a lot slower than weeknights. Same for Christmas Day (and the night before and after). If "the hum" was caused by jet engines, this variance should be noticed too. The risk of misattribution is considerable, however, as industrial and other activities also tend to wind down during weekends and holidays.

Re: There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why

#262

Post by kakarot » Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 12:33 PM UTC

stuntkite wrote: post #219

blunte wrote: post #101

As one who can hear these sounds, I can attest to how maddening it is. It's even worse when (most of) the people around you can't hear it, and they don't believe you. Earplugs only make it worse, because they filter out ambient noise that otherwise helps distract you from the incessant hum. Daytime is not as bad as night because of the natural activity sounds of a city. I have read that waves and underwater currents…

I have been working on a project to use some DIY bone conduction "headphones" to do directed noise canceling because I'm on the autistic spectrum and loud places bug the shit out of me and make it so i can't focus. Bone conduction is neat because it works inside your head and doesn't cover your ears. I think BC noise canceling is really under explored for audio related stress issues. I'm putting a mic on the back of…

Are you eventually going for an external "headphone" system, a transdermal solution, or actual implants similar to BAHA hearing aids or the DIY transducer implants some of the grinder community have installed, or perhaps even piercings in the tragus?

What drivers are you using?

Re: There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why

#263

Post by Double_a_92 » Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 12:42 PM UTC

Johnythree wrote: post #181

blunte wrote: post #101

As one who can hear these sounds, I can attest to how maddening it is. It's even worse when (most of) the people around you can't hear it, and they don't believe you. Earplugs only make it worse, because they filter out ambient noise that otherwise helps distract you from the incessant hum. Daytime is not as bad as night because of the natural activity sounds of a city. I have read that waves and underwater currents…

I was plagued by the Hum for years. At times it became astonishingly loud. But I was able (eventually) to figure it out. Short version: I made many attempts to track it down. Used low frequency Microphones, filters, amplifiers, etc, as well as PC Spectrogram programs to try and and visualise and record it. Visited many nearby industries etc to try and find it. But none of my attempts did any good. As I'm a Radio Engi…

I can produce noise in my ears on command. It sounds like loud, low-pitched white noise.

I'm not sure what exactly im doing, but it feels like im contracting some muscle inside my head near the temples.

Is this normal and could this be something similar?

Re: There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why

#264

Post by stuntkite » Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 12:44 PM UTC

kakarot wrote: post #262

stuntkite wrote: post #219

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have been working on a project to use some DIY bone conduction "headphones" to do directed noise canceling because I'm on the autistic spectrum and loud places bug the shit out of me and make it so i can't focus. Bone conduction is neat because it works inside your head and doesn't cover your ears. I think BC noise canceling is really under explored for audio related stress issues. I'm putting a mic on the back of…

Are you eventually going for an external "headphone" system, a transdermal solution, or actual implants similar to BAHA hearing aids or the DIY transducer implants some of the grinder community have installed, or perhaps even piercings in the tragus? What drivers are you using?

I have no interest or ability to build surgical implants. Purely over you skin. I've read about people with hearing damage loving bone conduction over regular headphones. It's been described as miraculous by some. Obviously hearing loss is complex and that's not for everyone.

What is the grinder community? I assume not the gay dating app, I don't think that has a scene for cyberpunk body mod, but I could be wrong.

I linked to the drivers in another comment below. I think I can find better ones, but they are the most powerful I've been able to find and have good frequency response. They are also HUGE so with my test rig I look pretty silly wearing them.

Re: There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why

#265

Post by MzHN » Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 12:55 PM UTC

Double_a_92 wrote: post #263

Johnythree wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was plagued by the Hum for years. At times it became astonishingly loud. But I was able (eventually) to figure it out. Short version: I made many attempts to track it down. Used low frequency Microphones, filters, amplifiers, etc, as well as PC Spectrogram programs to try and and visualise and record it. Visited many nearby industries etc to try and find it. But none of my attempts did any good. As I'm a Radio Engi…

I can produce noise in my ears on command. It sounds like loud, low-pitched white noise. I'm not sure what exactly im doing, but it feels like im contracting some muscle inside my head near the temples. Is this normal and could this be something similar?

I don't know the correct terms here, but there is a path from your throat to your ears that is normally closed. When you swallow or yawn the paths usually open, but some people can voluntarily open them.

When you do it, you can hear a low humming, but also sounds through your mouth. Maybe this is what you mean?

It's clearer if you're wearing for example hearing protection, and open your mouth and the paths.

Re: There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why

#266

Post by Uplink » Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 1:03 PM UTC

Did everybody get a takeaway shop's fan duct stuck to their wall like at my last rented flat?

It took me ages to understand why I was so stressed out until one evening I noticed things going peaceful all of a sudden. After that I became aware that the fan was running continuously from early morning to late evening, so I set to move out as soon as my term was over. Now I'm noticing that the building AC at the office is making the exact same low frequency, low amplitude hum when it's on and I get the exact same sensation of relief when it goes off.

Now, when I look at property, I also look for fan ducts on the walls. I also just realised that I should be looking for fan ducts inside walls if there's AC too...

Re: There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why

#267

Post by hmd_imputer » Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 1:08 PM UTC

To those who are affected by the incessant hum, have you ever tried to actually measure it by some technical equipment? I am pretty sure there are devices that can detect and register sounds of almost all frequency levels. What about the noise canceling headphones? Sony, Bose and Sennheiser have some top-notch headphones that cancel out static noise. Being very sensitive to noise, I use one of those and am totally satisfied.

Re: There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why

#268

Post by Cthulhu_ » Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 1:21 PM UTC

chch wrote: post #222

Johnythree wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was plagued by the Hum for years. At times it became astonishingly loud. But I was able (eventually) to figure it out. Short version: I made many attempts to track it down. Used low frequency Microphones, filters, amplifiers, etc, as well as PC Spectrogram programs to try and and visualise and record it. Visited many nearby industries etc to try and find it. But none of my attempts did any good. As I'm a Radio Engi…

This reminds me of the story of how composer John Cage was inspired to write his piece 4′33″ [1]: 'In 1951, Cage visited the anechoic chamber at Harvard University. An anechoic chamber is a room designed in such a way that the walls, ceiling and floor absorb all sounds made in the room, rather than reflecting them as echoes. Such a chamber is also externally sound-proofed. Cage entered the chamber expecting to hear s…

I did read about those, a "challenge" is how long you can stay in there before going mad - I think the longest one lasted for 45 minutes.

I'd like to experience that sometime, like, true silence. Have to say that my current house is very quiet (especially compared to my previous one), but there's still some background noise from outside, neighbours, the ventilation, etc. Should get a decibel meter sometime.

Anyway yes, sensory deprivation is weird.

Re: There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why

#269

Post by phkahler » Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 1:21 PM UTC

blunte wrote: post #101

As one who can hear these sounds, I can attest to how maddening it is. It's even worse when (most of) the people around you can't hear it, and they don't believe you. Earplugs only make it worse, because they filter out ambient noise that otherwise helps distract you from the incessant hum. Daytime is not as bad as night because of the natural activity sounds of a city. I have read that waves and underwater currents…

For low frequency stuff, I would suggest using an accelerometer instead of conventional audio equipment. A small one could also be placed on a large diaphragm to allow more movement at really low frequencies.

I like the physiological suggestions in the replies, but I don't see how an entire community could suffer from the same thing without a common cause.

Re: There's a Persistent Hum in Windsor, Ontario, and No One Knows Why

#270

Post by jebeng » Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 1:23 PM UTC

Double_a_92 wrote: post #263

Johnythree wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was plagued by the Hum for years. At times it became astonishingly loud. But I was able (eventually) to figure it out. Short version: I made many attempts to track it down. Used low frequency Microphones, filters, amplifiers, etc, as well as PC Spectrogram programs to try and and visualise and record it. Visited many nearby industries etc to try and find it. But none of my attempts did any good. As I'm a Radio Engi…

I can produce noise in my ears on command. It sounds like loud, low-pitched white noise. I'm not sure what exactly im doing, but it feels like im contracting some muscle inside my head near the temples. Is this normal and could this be something similar?

Pretty sure it's normal. Feels like I'm pushing from behind my eyes.