AirPods Pro as Hearing Aids for Audio Professionals

Rethinking Audio Production Tools

In the ever-changing landscape of audio production technology, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 have introduced an intriguing capability: FDA-approved hearing aid functionality. While primarily known for their convenience and noise-canceling features, these earbuds might offer audio professionals an unexpected tool for addressing subtle hearing variations that influence their work. This development comes at a time when the audio industry is increasingly recognizing the impact of individual hearing characteristics on production decisions.

Understanding Personal Hearing Profiles

As a technology educator and headphone collector, I've become acutely aware that our hearing characteristics significantly impact how we approach audio work. My own experience with a mild cookie-bite hearing loss in the mid-range illustrates this connection. This type of hearing variation, while not severe enough to affect daily life, influences how I perceive certain headphones - particularly finding bright-sounding models like Beyerdynamics more fatiguing than others might.

The relationship between personal hearing characteristics and monitoring preferences runs deeper than many acknowledge. When headphone reviewers discuss their preferred frequency response curves, they're often unknowingly describing how these curves complement their own hearing profiles. This observation suggests that many of our "objective" preferences in audio equipment might be more closely tied to our individual hearing characteristics than we typically acknowledge.

The AirPods Pro's hearing assistance features address these individual variations through detailed personalization. Using either Apple's built-in hearing test or third-party applications like Mimi, the system creates a profile of your hearing characteristics. This profile then informs real-time adjustments to any audio passing through the AirPods, whether from a digital audio workstation or other sources.

Practical Applications in Audio Production

The implementation of this technology offers some practical advantages for audio work, though within specific constraints. While AirPods Pro won't replace high-end studio monitors or professional headphones for critical mixing and mastering, they provide a useful reference point for understanding how your hearing affects your production decisions.

What makes this particularly relevant is how hearing varies not just between individuals, but also across time and conditions. Even without clinical hearing loss, our hearing sensitivity fluctuates daily and changes gradually with age. The AirPods Pro's ability to compensate for these variations could help maintain consistency in audio work, especially when working across different environments or during long sessions.

Implications for Professional Audio Work

The audio engineering community has historically been reluctant to discuss hearing variations, particularly age-related changes. This reluctance is understandable - who would choose a mastering engineer with known hearing issues? However, this silence might be counterproductive. Every audio professional, regardless of age or experience, has unique hearing characteristics that influence their work. The availability of tools like AirPods Pro's hearing assistance features might help normalize conversations about these variations and their impact on audio production.

The technology's relevance extends beyond those with identifiable hearing loss. Even subtle variations in hearing can affect how we perceive and mix audio, particularly in the critical mid-range frequencies where much of our musical decision-making occurs. By providing a way to compensate for these variations, AirPods Pro can offer an additional tool for maintaining consistency in audio work.

However, it's crucial to understand the technology's limitations. The system requires careful setup through an iPhone, and the correction algorithms only work with Apple devices. The frequency response of the AirPods themselves, while adequate for many purposes, doesn't match the precision of professional studio monitors or high-end headphones. Yet, these constraints don't diminish its potential value as part of a broader toolkit for audio professionals seeking to understand and compensate for their personal hearing characteristics.

Looking ahead, this technology might signal a broader shift in how we approach monitoring and hearing compensation in professional audio. As our understanding of individual hearing variations grows, tools that can adapt to personal hearing characteristics might become increasingly important in maintaining consistent audio production standards across different engineers and environments. While AirPods Pro won't replace traditional studio equipment, their new hearing aid functionality represents an interesting step toward more personalized approaches to audio monitoring and production.