How Hearing Works

Understanding the Basics

Hearing is a complicated process that seems seamless until an issue arises. Hearing is dependent on the outer, middle, and inner ear all working together to transmit sound. If any of these parts is experiencing problems, then it could lead to hearing loss. Each part of the ear plays a vital part in communicating sound to your brain.

Everything starts when the outer ear picks up sound waves and moves them down the auditory canal toward the middle and inner parts of your ear. The middle of your ear can be found at the end of the auditory canal. It has four main parts: the eardrum, the hammer, the anvil, and the stirrup. Each part of the middle ear moves sound waves from one part to another. Sound waves hit the eardrum, which causes the hammer to vibrate and move. The hammer then moves the anvil, and the anvil moves the stirrup, which transmits the vibrations to the inner ear.

In the inner ear the snail-shaped cochlea and the hearing nerve convert sound waves into an electrical signal which is sent to the brain to recognize and decode. Even though sounds enter through the ears, it’s the brain that interprets everything. You’re using not only your ears, but also your brain to hear.


Contact Us Today

If you would like a better understanding of how hearing works or you believe that your hearing is impaired, then call Audio Acoustics Testing & Diagnostics today. We would be glad to help you understand your own hearing more and help you find solutions to any problems you may be experiencing.