Our fountains are called sound fountains^tm because they are specifically designed for their sound characteristics. Their primary function is to help provide tinnitus relief. Our fountains can be used to help tinnitus sufferers habituate to tinnitus, and to facilitate residual inhibition of tinnitus sounds. We also designed our Sound Fountains to be artful complements to the home of office environment. Our sound fountains are unobtrusive, and are scaled for desk, coffee table, kitchen counter or bedroom night stand. Being fountains, they do not bring attention to your tinnitus as is the case with in-ear sound generators or electronic white noise generators. As added benefits, persons without tinnitus find the fountains pleasing to listen to and an aid to relaxation and meditation. The fountains also help mask obtrusive environmental noises and make a great solution to working in a noisy office environment. They are especially useful in psychologist and psychiatrist waiting rooms to help insure doctor-patient privacy.

Dr. Gary Fisher, the principal of ArtSciDesign, LLC (SoundFountains.com), became interested in this problem for the most personal of reasons - he developed tinnitus as a consequence of noise exposure. Many who first notice the problem and are impacted by it probably go down the same path as Gary: ENT doctors, audiologists, vitamins, "tinnitus relief" concoctions, and the like - which in Gary's case only resulted in disapointment and frustration. Gary being scientifically trained, read and thought on, and realized that a cure - if there is a cure - was far in the future. So what to do? One day in his shower - a particularly resonant shower - he realized that upon turning off the shower his tinnitus was reduced. While drying off, the reduction in his tinnitus level remained for 30-40 brief seconds - long enough for the change in level to register. (This phenomena is known as residual inhibition.) Note that it wasn't that the shower masked his tinnitus. He could still hear it while the shower was running.

So with a background in engineering, biomedical engineering, design, and having designed fountains of all things, Gary focused on designing a fountain engineered for its sound rather than primarily for its visual impact. He attempted to produce a fountain with a sound spectrum that would be subtle, masking (or partially masking), would include the frequencies often encompassing most tinnitus, and would at the same time be beautiful to watch and listen to. Not so easy but we think we have succeeded.

Many people with low levels of tinnitus are not bothered by it and are not even aware that they have tinnitus unless it is brought to their attention by (paradoxically) silence. Others find the effects of tinnitus varying from mild distraction to severe debilitation. Since the auditory pathways are common to those in the pre-frontal cortex and parts of the limbic system, many of those persons who respond negatively to tinnitus sounds are emotionally affected by their tinnitus to the extent that it affects their lives on a daily basis.

While there is no cure for tinnitus, our Sound Fountains can help the tinnitus sufferer is the following ways:

• The sound fountains generate a wide sound spectrum that encompasses the dominant frequencies of most persons' perceived tinnitus
• The sound fountains provide a natural sound background so that the tinnitus sufferer does not experience silence (which exacerbates the perception of tinnitus)
• The sound fountains can help sufferers develop residual inhibition of tinnitus
• The sound fountains can help persons habituate to their tinnitus
• The sound fountains can be used in conjunction with treatment therapies such as tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT)
• And, as you can see below, they are also art pieces which can enhance your home and office environment while providing relief.