# Impressions for in-ear monitors for Darius Rucker...



## hearingspecialist

Looks like I get the honor of providing my Hearing/Ear services for Mr. Darius Rucker tonite after his concert at the Fox Theater here in Bakersfield. He will have 2 tickets waiting for me and i'll provide my magic after his show per his request. He will be getting new in-ear monitors and I will provide the impressions of his ears.

I look forward to this great performance tonite!!!

I'll post a pic of him and I asap ; )


Brian in Bakersfield...

http://www.dariusrucker.com/event/all/april_28_2011-3


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## tesseract

That's pretty cool, hearingspecialist! :T

Have fun!


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## tesseract

I don't really like country, but I enjoyed that song. :sn:


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## hearingspecialist

Update: Last nite was awesome to say the least. We really enjoyed the personal pre-concert "meet and greet" and are waiting to get our picture that we took with him.

I honestly felt like I was included within their private circle and felt like part of his family group. Everyone there was real and so down to earth and just reminds me why we connect with such a talented artist as Darius. The royal treatment was really appreciated and enjoyed but as a servant I felt I didn't deserve such a wonderful welcoming. I'm just a purpose driven man who makes mistakes, loves my family, and takes my vitamins. This was totally unexpected and we are forever one of their biggest promoters. :clap:

Passion for sound is something one cannot turn off or on and believe me we conversed about sound, in-ear performance, and making sound that much better. I'm honored to have been welcomed and escorted to their individual bus by security amongst the crowd, that was way cool. My wife and I really appreciated everything they did for us. :T

Brian in Bakersfield...


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## hearingspecialist

here's a pic taken by one of his equipment trailer. Darius is such a great guy! :clap:


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## TedMckennedy

That's great, he's a nice guy!
What model in ears?


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## hearingspecialist

We talked about various models and more in depth about it happened with his keyboard guy. Looks like they are going with Ultimate Ears. They need as many drivers as possible to share the load and give them the best opportunity for them to do what they do best...perform.

I talked about some of the Westone products and their best units but UE was their choice of flavor.



Brian in Bakersfield...


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## TedMckennedy

Very neat, thanks for sharing!


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## hearingspecialist

Now i'm thinking these should do the awesome job for them I encouraged as many drivers as possible. Thanks for reading my post, it really was cool. I extended the same offer to Lady A when they come to the mid state fair soon. Here's a link for your viewing pleasure for the monitors :T

http://ultimateears.com/en-us/products/18-pro


Just speakers/drivers and a crazy passive crossover internally. Those were the days back in the 90's when we use to build circuits and amplifiers for hearing aids/devices, takes me back :nerd:


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## TedMckennedy

How tight do the custom molds end up fitting?


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## hearingspecialist

Just like a full shell size hearing aid. It's all in the fit. They are snug and needs to fit the very best possible. I take 2 sets of ear impressions one closed mouth and one open mouth for the companies to choose for the best fit. Fits like a glove 

Since Darius has lost a bunch of weight it changed the fitting so his didn't fit correctly. When we gain weight or loose weight it completely changes the size of our ear canals so fitting perfectly is necessary for performance and health of physical ear. Thanks for your interest and check out this on another forum i'm on:

http://forum.ascendacoustics.com/showthread.php?t=4675


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## TedMckennedy

Very interesting, thank you for the link.
Someday I'll be getting IEM's of that caliber.

I always find it interesting, the differences between listening to a speaker system vs. circum-aural headphones vs. in ear monitors.
Are you familiar with any company developing an algorithm to simulate the head related transfer function using in ear monitors? Everyone's HRTF would be slightly different, see my large nose  , but it would be interesting to see it implemented.


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## hearingspecialist

Excellent question, what I would present to you first is a hearing test done by qualified Specialist. That is the constant or backbone to any artifacts or experiences you will have. It all stems from that first. You can even go into your local Costco and get a decent hearing test in a sound booth. Problem though is you don't know the qualifications of that provider.

I'm into creating loudspeakers based on the person's individual hearing thresholds. I have also done that with in-ears but technology has changed and with most everything DSP based its sometimes hard to do and being a software architect is what's needed. I'm not sure of any active compensating device for musicians because being passive the mix would need to be eq'd or tweaked and that could be done using a current and valid hearing test. That's what I think but what do I know... I'm just a hearing specialist 


Thanks again for your interest, it makes my day and with corporate health care the way it is, things like this keep me going :T


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## TedMckennedy

Yes, the hearing test would allow an EQ compensation curve to be created for the individual musician. 
What I would find interesting, that could theoretically make headphones more realistic, is a DSP algorithm that simulates the HRTF, crosstalk etc.
This would help fill in that center image we normally get when listening to loudspeakers, or in every day life. 

It reminds me of hearing the Legacy Whispers for the first time- the sound stage and center fill was incredible. After speaking to the designer about it, and how they were designed to cast the maximum "acoustic shadow" across the listener's face while being room independent, the advantages of the design were clear.

Simulating that, could be an interesting application for headphones. :T


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## hearingspecialist

See, that stuff pushes my buttons and i've always wanted to come up with a processing scheme and algorithm to then sell to makers like Klipsch or any other umbrella type owned company.

Well, all that's needed is time to create this and virtual DSP is available and I would love to stumble onto something like you mentioned. With all the constant messing I love doing with all the various DSP programs in our receivers I still think I need to somehow include a calibration program, a mix of what we use when programming digital hearing aids (scans their ear canal and adjusts gain for feedback reduction) and a calibration setup like when we setup our rooms with our receivers. This first, then having that platform create the virtual DSP based on head shadow effect and inter-aural attenuation. The components are really there its just a matter of coming up with the right recipe to make it all come together. Then there is tactile stimulation thru bone conduction behind each ear on the mastoid process, what's cool is that inter-aural cross hearing (both cochleas stimulated at same time) happens at 0db. There would be the efficiency in the system of creating the sound your after. You have this Okie thinkin now, and really wishin I could do something like this.:nerd:


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## TedMckennedy

Yes, it would be an interesting DSP project.
I think a big question would be how to deal with the musician moving around.

When you listen to loudspeaker and turn your head to the right, you hear the change in sound.
Now in our headphone world, with HRTF and crosstalk, when you move your head, it would be like the speakers are moving with you, and you're always at the center of the speaker triangle.

Can you imagine looking back at the band, then the crowd, and it sounds like the mix is laid out in front of you, no matter what.
This would be either really neat, or nauseating


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## hearingspecialist

I think using direction mics in the front and omni in the rear just like a set of high end digital hearing aids would do the trick. Its just controlling the polar patterns just like in hearing aids. So much of what's done in high end hearing aids do this exact thing, its just hard to figure out the missing link to the equation. I have always wanted to create a hearing prescription or discover a key component that makes things work better. With headphones I think I can make something and control the virtual with phasing. I really could do it and wish I had investor support. There is so much I could do using my hearing health and hearing science background. Wishful thinking!


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## TedMckennedy

Are the microphones you are referring to, for picking up the sound on stage? (crowd response, ambiance)

That seems spot on, how would you do the stereo headphone mix though? If you model the HRTF, and it results in a large sound-stage that is 5-6 feet in front of the listener, it will sound great. However, moving your head would move the whole picture with you. I'm wondering if this would be an uneasy feeling.


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## hearingspecialist

The directional mics would really be the same ones used for hearing aids and there can be 2 omni mics, one omni one directional, or tri mics - one omni 2 directional. There is this type of processing already used in hearing aids and wireless Direct Audio input so it replicates whatever is there and has dimension or spatial affects, in fact based on where the eyes look determine the polar patterns of the mics. There is just a key magical component that's missing to cross connect the technologies. Trust me I have been trying to figure a way to use some of the existing platforms and modify for what your wanting. Phase, simple logic, and use of existing tech is what I would love to make work.


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