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 for hearing loss. Sound generators (masking devices) have received Class II approval from the FDA. However, they are considered to be “experimental, investigational, or unproven” therapies. There is one report of a bone conduction vibration masker that transmits a 60 Hz fundamental with adjustable harmonics up to 1000 Hz. A commercial device based on the phenomenon (Aurex3) was approved by the FDA. A new development in tinnitus management is the use of high audio (10 kHz-20 kHz) or ultrasonic (20-100 kHz) via bone conduction. A 2012 Cochrane Review stated the available studies do not show strong evidence of the efficacy