AirPods causing Pressure in Ears?

[ATHiker95]

So now that the AirPod pros are coming out, I’m curious about their new venting system and whether that might be the answer for those of us who had the stuffed up ears symptom as well as the tinnitus issue

 

[Lebherz27]

I suffer from both terrible tinnitus, have had many ear surgeries, mastoidectomy, and have a t tube in place.

I had the 1’s and2’s.
Bought the pros on launch day and I would say that they definitely increase pressure in the eardrum. It felt like it took my eardrum from the normal ( position to the ) position.

I really wanted to like them, but in the end I took them back today. 2’s it is for me.

 

[ATHiker95]

Lebherz27,
So did you have issues of fullness or bad resulting tinnitus after using the 1’s? It’s interesting that with all your issues that the 1’s didn’t drive you up the wall. I was hoping that the rubber tips on the pros might mean the electronics were a bit more removed from the eardrum and this help in reducing the stuffed up ear feeling. What made the 2’s better for you than the 1’s?

This link makes me think the pressure is relieved by the presence of this valve in the Pros but your experience doesn’t seem to bear that out

thanks,
mark

 

[TechFounder]

That pressure you feel is the headphones pushing counter sound waves to try to cancel out the ambient noise from the outside. The louder the noise from the outside, the more pressure you’ll feel.

 

[Lebherz27]

Lebherz27,
So did you have issues of fullness or bad resulting tinnitus after using the 1’s? It’s interesting that with all your issues that the 1’s didn’t drive you up the wall. I was hoping that the rubber tips on the pros might mean the electronics were a bit more removed from the eardrum and this help in reducing the stuffed up ear feeling. What made the 2’s better for you than the 1’s?

This link makes me think the pressure is relieved by the presence of this valve in the Pros but your experience doesn’t seem to bear that out

thanks,
mark

[automerge]1572746003[/automerge]

 

[ATHiker95]

That pressure you feel is the headphones pushing counter sound waves to try to cancel out the ambient noise from the outside. The louder the noise from the outside, the more pressure you’ll feel.

I think this is what the new vents in the Pro version are supposed to eliminate

 

[TechFounder]

I think this is what the new vents in the Pro version are supposed to eliminate

No, the air vents are to eliminate the pressure differentials between inside and outside air. Active noise cancellation that I’m describing is entirely different. It’s generating the opposite sound that it detects with the outside microphone thereby canceling out the outside sound. That generates sound pressure. What people feel as pressure on their ear drums.

 

[billchase2]

I'm bringing back this old post, as I purchased some AirPods Pro last month and have recently noticed some slight ringing in my ears and think it could be related. The ringing is constant, but I don't really notice it unless I think about it (like right now). I notice it the most while laying in bed before I fall asleep, likely because there aren't many other sounds in the room. I've never been diagnosed with tinnitus and my previous wireless earbuds, Bragi’s The Dash, never caused an issue.

I saw an article that for some people, active noise cancelling can cause headaches and other negative reactions, so this morning I disabled it to see if it helps. I'm not sure if I should keep trying this route or just completely switch back to my old earbuds to see if that makes a difference. I may actually go with the latter, as it's getting annoying and a bit disconcerting. I'm hoping that after a few days or so, I can get the ringing to completely go away. I haven't been listening at high volumes (as it's primarily been audiobooks and podcasts) so I doubt that's it. If it ends up being the AirPods, hopefully I can return them.

Any updates or advice is appreciated!

Update (1/20/20) - The slight ringing is still happening, even though I haven't used my AirPods Pro for 5 days. Maybe it's something else? I'm going to keep an eye on it a little longer and if it continues, will check with my doctor.

 

[LongJohnSilver]

I experience severe tinnitus in both ears when using AirPods for extended periods. I do not experience it when using their Wired headphones. I adjusted the “max volume limit” to 50% in attempts to maybe prevent any sounds that I’m not perceiving as ”too loud” from getting through. After months of self experimenting, I have accepted that using AirPods absolutely 100% causes me to experience tinnitus for hours after long term use. I still use them. however, it’s a bit concerning.