Tinnitus masker The ear has a resonance frequency (highest frequency response) at 3,000hz and rolls off at a very steep 26db/octave on the high frequency side. Unfortunately, most tinnitus is associated with hearing loss, and most hearing loss and tinnitus is high frequency. Most maskers are limited to about 6khz of effective output. Higher frequency output results in increasing distortion, and may cause rejection of the device. The minimum masking level (MML) is the minimum amplitude of narrowband noise centered on the tinnitus pitch (or frequency range) necessary to completely mask the tinnitus. Tinnitus maskers are commonly used by tinnitus sufferers when
Tinnitus masker amplitude determines the degree of masking achieved. In some cases, the required masking amplitude is so high as to cause discomfort to the user of the sound generator, and the tinnitus is therefore considered unmaskable. The frequency and other characteristics of tinnitus can vary over time, and the shifts can be temporary or permanent. They may also be cyclical. Therefore the optimal tinnitus mask may need to be adjusted periodically, within days, hours, or even minutes. So a fixed recording (i.e. CD, DVD or audio file) of a tinnitus mask is not a very efficacious application. There are also safety