Ian,

My hearing impairment is from tinitus, which is a constant ringing sound. It has nothing to do with the volume or quality of sound heard in both ears. The tinitus damage was caused when I was an 18-year-old kid in the U.S. Navy. I was a first loader on a 3-inch 50 dual, anti-aircraft gun, slamming 60-pound shells into the revolving hopper of one of the barrels. When the gun went off the breech was just a couple feet from where we were positioned and the explosion was deafening. The same damage has been reported in the medical journals about youngsters who allowed themselves to be exposed to loud music at rock concerts. My ENT doctor told me that most folks over age 50 have tinitus to some degree, but we learn to compensate for it, often without knowing the malady is present.

Now, back to the Bose. I've always said that the Bose L1 is not for everyone. And, if you recall I said the Yamaha Grand Piano sounded somewhat thin because of its stereo sampling process. Because of this, I created, and later posted, a grand piano voice to be used with the Bose L1, and to date there have been several thousand downloads of that voice. It was the only voice that had those problems, and because we all tend to use the piano voice routinely, I created the voice in mono.

The other thing I have always contended with any sound system, stereo, mono, etc.. was to purchase it from a retailer that has a liberal return policy. Then, if you don't like what you hear, return it for a full refund. Some retailers want to issue you credit or charge a restocking fee for returned items, even it they are in orriginal packing and are in perfect (new) condition. The return policy with Bose is among the best--45 days--no questions asked, full refund.

Cheers,

Gary

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Travlin' Easy