Technically, the upper limit of human hearing is about 20,000 hertz (cycles per second). Dogs are sensitive to sound at over 40,000 hertz, and bats, mice and many smaller animals can hear to over 80,000 hertz.
Humans can detect sounds in a frequency range from about 20 Hz to 20 kHz. (Human infants can actually hear frequencies slightly higher than 20 kHz, but lose some high-frequency sensitivity as they mature; the upper limit in average adults is often closer to 15–17 kHz.)
50,000 Hz—or 50 kHz (kilohertz)—means that the wave oscillates 50,000 times per second, producing an extremely high-pitched tone that humans cannot hear.
The majority of sounds that we hear every day are somewhere between 2,000 and 5,000Hz. Bird song, for example, measures somewhere between 1,000 and 8,000Hz. Most parts of human speech have frequencies of between 2,000 and 4,000Hz.
Any sound above 10,000 hertz can be extremely uncomfortable to the human ear. Some people cannot hear at this range at all since the sounds are too high-pitched for the nerves in their ears to process.
The normal frequency range of a young healthy person's hearing is about 20 to 20,000 Hz. As we age, we begin to lose our hearing at the upper frequencies, bringing the range to about 20 to 14,000 Hz. Typically, people's hearing is the most sensitive in the 2000 - 5000 Hz frequency range.
High-frequency hearing loss can be caused by a variety of reasons. These include noise, aging, genetics, and disease. Meniere's disease affects the inner ear and often happens to people between the ages of 30 and 50 years old.
Several animal species are able to hear frequencies well beyond the human hearing range. Some dolphins and bats, for example, can hear frequencies over 100 kHz. Elephants can hear sounds at 14–16 Hz, while some whales can hear infrasonic sounds as low as 7 Hz.
The 'normal' hearing frequency range of a healthy young person is about 20 to 20,000Hz.
Typically, zero decibels sound pressure level (SPL) corresponds to 0.000002 Pascals — a measure of vibration or pressure waves that we really hear. So then, zero decibels is the smallest level of sound our ears can detect!
Noise above 70 dB over a prolonged period of time may start to damage your hearing. Loud noise above 120 dB can cause immediate harm to your ears.
High-pitched sounds above 15 kHz are typically sounds only kids can hear. The medical term for this process of our hearing fading is presbycusis. The medical explanation is that the cells in our inner ears age and deteriorate over time.
The Difference In Hearing Frequencies
It has been proven that women have greater hearing sensitivity and are more sensitive to noise exposure at higher frequencies. They also have shorter latencies in their auditory brain‐stem responses and more spontaneous otoacoustic emissions than men.
Dogs, on the other hand, can hear sounds as high as 47,000 to 65,000 Hz. These are sounds far too high-pitched for us. In addition, at high frequencies dogs can detect much softer sounds than we can.
17,400 Hz is a frequency that only teenagers can hear. Most people over the age of 18 cannot hear this tone.
85 – 100 decibels: For example, a hair dryer, blender, power lawn mower, forklift, or subway train. 100 – 120 decibels: For example, a bulldozer, impact wrench, or motorcycle. 120 – 140 decibels: Such as, a rock concert, auto racing, or a hammer pounding a nail.
The answer may surprise you. The feline sense of hearing is considerably more sensitive than dogs and humans (and many other mammals). A healthy cat's hearing ability is a true biological marvel.
Mice have an audible range from 1000 to 91000 Hz, and the beluga whale's audible range is from 1000 to 123000 Hz.
Hertz is a unit of frequency (of change in state or cycle in a sound wave, alternating current, or other cyclical waveform) of one cycle per second.
In general, sounds above 85 dB are considered harmful to human hearing and we should avoid prolonged exposure to them. A lesser-known fact is that certain frequencies that we cannot even perceive can also harm our hearing.
The high frequencies goes first because the hair cells that detect higher pitches are the first to receive the sound waves - so they work much harder than the rest. When understanding your hearing loss, you might see the information expressed in Hertz and Decibels.
Sometimes, tinnitus is a sign of high blood pressure, an allergy, or anemia. In rare cases, tinnitus is a sign of a serious problem such as a tumor or aneurysm. Other risk factors for tinnitus include temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ), diabetes, thyroid problems, obesity, and head injury.