Headphones recommended
People hear tinnitus differently — ringing, hissing, buzzing, crickets, roaring — so the helpful sound is different too. Choose a research-informed tone, send it to the left ear, right ear, or both, and keep the volume comfortable.
This only ranks suggestions. You can still try any tone. Common labels come from clinic surveys (Stouffer & Tyler, 1990; Meikle et al., 2004).
Soft background sound so silence does not make tinnitus stand out. Used in tinnitus retraining approaches.
A closer sound covers the tinnitus while it plays. Relief usually lasts only during listening.
After ~60 seconds near your pitch, some people hear a short quiet gap. Temporary, not everyone.
Energy around your pitch is removed, aiming at lateral inhibition in auditory cortex. Evidence is mixed.
Highlighted cards fit the type you selected. None of these is guaranteed to help.
Most tonal tinnitus sits between about 3 and 8 kHz, often near 4–8 kHz. Octave errors are common — try half and double.
For a “tinnitus killer” trial, play matched narrowband on the affected ear for a minute, then pause. If tinnitus is briefly quieter, that is residual inhibition (Roberts et al., 2008). It is not cancellation of a sound wave in the ear — most tinnitus is generated in the brain.
Sound therapy is widely used. High-quality evidence that one tone is best — or that sound alone is a treatment — is still limited.
UK NICE guideline NG155 (2020) did not recommend a specific sound therapy, because trials were too mixed. Cognitive behavioural therapy and tinnitus support have stronger evidence for distress. Hearing aids can help when hearing loss is part of the picture. This page is a listening tool, not a substitute for audiology or ENT care.
Clinic studies find several perceptual clusters: tonal (ringing, whistling), steady noise (hissing), buzzing, high-frequency fluctuating / cricket-like, and low-frequency roaring (Lentz et al., 2021). About 59% of people describe tonal tinnitus, 25% noise-like, and 16% both (Turner, 1990). Residual inhibition is usually stronger when the masker spectrum overlaps the tinnitus spectrum (Roberts, Moffat, Baumann, Ward & Bosnyak, JARO, 2008). Hissing tinnitus often responds better to wider high-frequency noise; ringing often needs a closer match.
Broadband noise is the classic masker and the usual TRT enrichment sound (Vernon, 1976; Jastreboff & Hazell). In a TRT trial that let people choose colour of noise, white was preferred by about two thirds; the rest preferred red/brown noise (a low roar, like a shower). Pink was not chosen in that small sample, but outcomes did not differ by colour — comfort and consistent use mattered more (Barozzi et al., International Tinnitus Journal, 2017).
A systematic review of 17 studies (1,066 people) found complete residual inhibition in about 34.5% after sound, with higher rates after pure tones or narrowband noise centred on the perceived pitch (Negrila-Mezei et al., 2021). Clinical RI protocols often use 1/3-octave noise for about 60 seconds. Longer stimulation can lengthen the quiet period, but it remains temporary.
Tailor-made notched music (an octave around the tinnitus frequency removed) reduced loudness and tinnitus-related cortical activity in a small PNAS study (Okamoto, Stracke, Stoll & Pantev, 2010). Later trials are mixed, including a 2024 meta-analysis that did not find a clear THI benefit. Unilateral tinnitus can sometimes be masked from the same ear or the opposite ear (Feldmann, 1971). Try the tinnitus ear first, then the other, then both.
A note from the maker
I’m a tech enthusiast, hobbyist, and vibe coder — the sort who builds things because an idea will not leave me alone. I also have tinnitus. Using tones like these has given me real relief, especially in quiet rooms, so I put this page together for anyone who wants to try the same approach.
If a sound helped, you have a question, or you just want to say hello, leave a short message. No account, no newsletter.
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Enrichment / masking · both ears · 0:00
High playback volume can make tinnitus worse. Stay well below discomfort.
Stereo headphones needed for left / right routing.