Tinnitus masker Tinnitus masker Tinnitus maskers are a range of devices based on simple white noise machines which are used to add natural or artificial sound into a tinnitus sufferer's environment in order to mask or cover up the ringing. The noise is supplied by a sound generator which may reside in or above the ear or be placed on a table or elsewhere in the environment. The noise is usually white noise or music, but in some cases it may be patterned sound or specially tailored sound based on the characteristics of the person's tinnitus. The perceived loudness of tinnitus, called
Tinnitus range and bandwidth in cases of narrow band noise tinnitus, loudness in dB above hearing threshold at the indicated frequency, mixing-point, and minimum masking level. In most cases, tinnitus pitch or frequency range is between 5 kHz and 10 kHz, and loudness between 5 and 15 dB above the hearing threshold. Another relevant parameter of tinnitus is residual inhibition, the temporary suppression or disappearance of tinnitus following a period of masking. The degree of residual inhibition may indicate how effective tinnitus maskers would be as a treatment modality. An assessment of hyperacusis, a frequent accompaniment of tinnitus, may also be