Originally revealed in March 2017 via what was to become a successful Kickstarter campaign, Audeara has now announced the availability of the world’s first full fidelity headphones with an in-built hearing test, the A-01.

If you have ever sat next to someone on the bus or train and can hear what they’re listening to, it generally points to two main things. Either they need less leaky ear/headphones, or they have the volume ramped way up.

Now, I realise that everyone has a degree of hearing loss. This could be as a result of every loud gig they’ve been to, every busy street they’ve walked down, or every police siren that’s ever gone past. But, more and more young people have some loss of hearing, and an increasing number of 30-somethings have the same hearing health usually associated with someone in their 60s.

Over the past two and a half years, Audeara has grown from a medical device company to a commercial business dedicated to improving the way people listen to music.

Audeara headphones can be used to test and retest hearing over a lifetime and adapt music to the users’ individual needs. They make music better, not louder, and provide perfect sound, always.

The way that this is achieved is when you first put the headphones on, you complete a hearing test – the results of which are subsequently stored in the headphones themselves.

The headphones use this hearing profile to adjust the sound signal as it passes through them. They adjust the right ear differently from the left, making sure each part of the signal reaches the user’s brain in a way that’s heard as a perfect reflection of the intended signal.

What makes the Audeara headphones especially powerful is that all the technology is inside the headphones themselves.

After the first test, the app isn’t required again unless the user wants to retest. This means headphones are no longer passive magnets for signal conversion. Instead, they’re sophisticated tools for personalised sound reproduction.  

The Technology

Audeara headphones use a software interface from a smartphone application to send Bluetooth commands to the onboard printed circuit board (PCB). This allows the headphones themselves to generate the tones and maintains consistency across all Bluetooth devices.

The headphones are calibrated and the profile is used as the baseline for accurate audiogram testing. After the user performs the audiogram, a modulation table is applied. This adjusts all incoming musical signals to the user’s requirements. Using an attenuation model, rather than increasing gain, ensures maximisation of the overall signal intensity, without distortion.

The result of the audiogram is displayed for the user, perfect for long-term tracking of any hearing loss. If your hearing profile shows significant impairment, an alert will be shown, and it might be time to book an appointment with an audiologist.

Dr James Fielding, CEO of Audeara, told StereoNET:
 
The response from people who use the headphones for the first time is amazing. They’re usually overwhelmed at the difference in what they hear – and they wonder why they’ve been using off-the-shelf headphones for so long.

The Audeara Headphones are available now for £299.99 direct from Audeara.