From 203 cases of low-frequency complaints a random selection of twenty-one cases were
investigated. The main aim was to answer the question whether the annoyance is caused by
an external physical sound or by a perceived but physically non-existing sound, i.e.
low-frequency tinnitus. Noise recordings were made in the homes of the complainants, and
the complainants were exposed to these in blind test listening experiments. Furthermore,
the low-frequency hearing function of the complainants was investigated, and
characteristics of the annoying sound were matched. The results showed that some of the
complainants are annoyed by a physical sound (20–180 Hz), while others suffer from
low-frequency tinnitus (perceived frequency 40–100 Hz). Physical sound at frequencies
below 20 Hz (infrasound) is not responsible for the annoyance -or at all audible – in any
of the investigated cases, and none of the complainants has extraordinary hearing
sensitivity at low frequencies. For comparable cases of low-frequency noise complaints in
general, it is anticipated that physical sound is responsible in a substantial part of the
cases, while low-frequency tinnitus is responsible in another substantial part of the
cases.
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