AirPods causing tinnitus?

hey, just a heads up that is a common problem. apple should replace yours for free. don’t keep wearing them, they’re defective now and can potentially cause hearing damage. warranty them asap, save your ears.

As the exact causes of tinnitus are not known, that's an impossible question to answer. My advice is that, if something hurts you and it is not essential that you use it, don't use it.

Here is some additional information on the condition:

https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/tinnitus#2

Dude, stop using them! ANC can irritate some ears (although it is still not proven 100%). Do not use them if you are still experiencing this.

Tinnitus is a symptom of an underlying condition, such as age-related hearing loss, ear injury or a circulatory system disorder.

Make an appointment with a Ear, Nose and Throat ( ENT/Otolaryngologist) and have a medical professional diagnose your concerns.

This forum is not a medical facility, and no one on this forum should diagnose a medical condition or make claims about the causes of their own until they have been seen by a professional.

Be very clear on this. I do NOT work for Apple, nor have I EVER worked fore Apple.

I have however had an opportunity to marry into a family of physicians and medical professionals enough to know that personal diagnostics are about as responsible as having your cars transmission repaired by a mediaeval alchemist.

As I've said, any concern you have with Apple is not going to be addressed here and should go to

apple.com/feedback

more importantly make an appointment with your family physician and have him referral to an Otolaryngologist if you are truly concerned with your health.

This is a volunteer forum. To speak directly with Apple call 1-800-MY-APPLE or go to apple.com/contact for a list of international phone numbers.

Just to chime in on this topic. I have the original AirPods but was noticing that my tinnitus symptoms increased shortly after I start using the AirPods. This even occurs when they are in my ears but no sound is coming out.

To provide some background I already had hearing loss affecting high frequencies above 16KHz from previous noise exposure (work and being in bands). This was exacerbated by some extended noise exposure. Tinnitus symptoms started occurring about 15-20 years ago and have become progressively worse the last 5-10 years.

That being said, if I protect my hearing and am cautious about noise exposure the tinnitus symptoms (2 or 3 high-pitched frequencies around 16KHz that whistle constantly) are manageable.

I have started to notice a correlation with an increase in perceived amplitude of my tinnitus symptoms that occurs immediately after I put my AirPods in ears. This continues for a few hours after I remove the AirPods.

I have a pair of Bose wired headphones that don’t cause this issue so I am beginning to wonder what could cause the increase in tinnitus symptoms while using my AirPods.

Some possibly causes are:

1. selection bias (I just happen to notice my tinnitus symptoms while wearing my AirPods)
2. tinnitus symptoms do increase but are pyschosomatic (not directly caused by my brain or auditory systems are being triggered somehow via a placebo effect). Could still be a perception issue and not really an increase in the symptoms.
3. Something physical or electrical with the AirPods and/or their placement in my ears is actually causing an increase in tinnitus symptoms.

Note: It was the frequent and recurring pattern of my tinnitus symptoms becoming worse while using my AirPods. Imagine my surprise when I find this topic already underway on one of the Apple discussion forums. Perhaps this is a worthwhile study to undertake since the cause of tinnitus is still unknown and there is no treatment or cure available yet.

I have suffered from tinnitus for over 30 years. I recently had a barotrauma injury to my left ear on a recent flight causing increased tinnitus. After having the fluid clear and the tinnitus level return to original normal, I visited the ENT who checked out everything. My ears were fine, albeit with tinnitus that returned to the prior level.

I purchased the AirPods Pro and was amazed by them right out of the box. They indeed provide immediate noise-cancellation. I have an air purifier running in my living room, and while I wouldn't describe it as noisy, the AirPods Pro immediately eliminated the noise from the air purifier I thought the electric had been cut, but the TV was still on and I could hear it clearly. I took the right pod of out of my ear and both turned off and I could instantly hear the air purifier as I normally would. I found this amazing.

After listening to podcasts for about 2-3 hours -- no loud noises, no music -- I took the pods out of my ears to watch TV instead and I noticed that my tinnitus is louder than ever. This is very disappointing. Since tinnitus is a noise recreated in the brain due to the lack of a signal from some part of the ear that the brain expects to receive, I have no idea how noise-cancellation technology could be making this condition worse but that is in fact what is happening. I can listen to podcasts for 2-3 hours on a plane ride using a cheap pair of wired Sony earbuds or even the older wired Apple earbuds and I never experience an increase in tinnitus.

I cannot use these AirPods Pro, and I will return them. As a sufferer of tinnitus, the last thing you want is for it to get louder. Had I even know this could possibly be an issue I wouldn't have bothered to order them.

A common denominator seems to be the symptoms are noticed in the left ear first. My symptoms occurred after using them for video editing for hours at a time, and at a low volume. Did you also use them for extended periods? Some people say they hear a buzzing from the buds (mostly left ear) even when they're being worn without audio playing.

I already have had tinnitus for more than twenty years, and I wear hearing instruments to give back the high frequency loss. The aides also reduce the ringing, which can be a terrible thing to live with.

Enter Apple AirPod Pros two weeks ago, and the ringing definitely increased. So I would say my experience mirrors many others in this discussion group. However, if one already has tinnitus, it is best to avoid these products that are in-the-ear fit. Better to have over the ear cups that encompass the ear and (if you already have hearing instruments like me) can partially back-feed through the aides. That helped me a lot to have an enjoyable listening experience.

To all of us who have experienced the ringing in the ears, I am happy to report that mine has subsided after not using Airpods (Pro or non-Pro). If the ringing persists for like three months or so, then I would recommend having your hearing checked, because I wear hearing instruments from Costco since 2017 - these definitely eliminate any tinnitus, as they smooth out the hearing loss on the high end frequencies. Some of us of a 'certain age' might deem it necessary to 'take the plunge' and use some assistance. If you are youthful yet, then I think your issue will subside in time. For what it's worth, I now use SONY over-the-ear earphones, and these do not bother my tinnitus.

I do not know what causes the ringing from the Airpods, but many theories of air pressure or noise cancellation or radio waves (?) have been posed. I really do not know, except to stay away from using Airpods for entertainment or phone calls. My two cents.

I came here to this forum because it took me over a month to realize this ringing was actually coming from head and not my neighbor. I have been in quarantine for months and my bedroom is probably the quiest place.. so hearing this random buzzing I thought it was someone's subwoofer and a faulty grounded outlet... now the condition progressed I could hear the buzzing in my car... that was the final revelation that it was me and not my alleged rude neighbors. Ever since I started using my airpods I noticed that they make my ears dirty and wax builds up much quicker if I wear them often... I had an dirt wax issue before that wasnt causing buzzing but actually hearing crusty sounds in my ear...and bought some ear cleaner... and now I have been cleaning them but now that I have this tinnitus ringing sound I can see this problem has expanded now... I mentioned all of this because before I was using airpods I just used regular headphones or ear phones but not all of the time like these airpods since they are very convenient.. I mean I see everyone using them all the time.. I use them all of the time.. It seems the result is that all of this constant use is really causing hygiene issues and for me now it has progressed to damaging my ears!!! I could be getting older and thats true. but I do have instincts and sense that its a good idea to STOP USING THESE AIRPODS!!! NOW!! Its obvious to me that if my ears were weaker or whatever the use of the airpods was the tipping point!

I think your experience has given you your answer. Do not use the AirPod pros! Maybe… Maybe try using them with the noise cancellation turned off. Tinnitus is his permanent. There’s not much room to test the waters.

You have what’s technically called Tinnitus. If it’s fading that’s a good sign. Since using AirPods I’ve have the same issue. I stopped using them and I now use air tube headphones which block the electrical signal from hitting the ears. Not as great sounding as regular earphones but at least I’m allowing my inner ears and brain synapses to heal.

Guys. I used my Airpods Pro for about 8 hours over a weekend back in February. Tinnitus spiked for more than a week and after it went back down.

Its important.. if you notice Tinnitus.. do not use it anymore!

Same here. I’ve had my AirPods Pro for close to a year now and used them very sparingly for exactly this discomfort and ringing that I get after listening to them, each time hoping it wouldn’t happen again. It always did though.

They aren’t enjoyable to listen to. I’d go as far as saying that they can become painful to listen to during longer sessions. I can’t pinpoint what it is, but after some time I get the ringing and my head starts feeling like it’s going to explode. Noise cancelling isn’t on, it happens even with transparency mode. This feeling lasts for around half an hour after taking them off. The ringing lasts even longer.

The sound is too bright for my liking and even the Headphone Accommodation setting didn’t allow enough of a reduction.

They are too loud for my liking as well. Volumes over 20% are too loud.

Wired EarPods sound much more enjoyable to me, they are very balanced. Maybe it’s the seal the AirPods Pro create that I’m somehow sensitive to. I tried getting accommodated to it, but couldn’t during the two weeks after initially getting them.

I don’t want to say that there is some fundamental design flaw with them, in the end, nothing is one-size-fits-all. But since I never experienced anything like this with other wireless in-ear headphones, I’m a bit puzzled.

Btw, I did get a replacement pair just to be sure mine weren’t faulty, but the new ones are the same.