Link: https://old.reddit.com/r/autism/comments/1vktl4n/why_some_of_us_can_hear_wires_in_the_walls/

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The original was posted on /r/autism by /u/crua9 on 2026-08-10 18:47:09+00:00.

Some of us has mention this before but no one has gotten into the why. Many of us has spoken up we can hear the electrical wires in the walls, and others (NT outside of the forum) don't believe us. And how that upsets them, and how those same others treat it as a lie. Often going to, if it doesn't bug me, then it shouldn't bug you. Or because they don't hear it then you don't too.

Wires and metal conduits can physically vibrate under normal electrical loads due to the magnetic fields generated by alternating current (AC). This phenomenon, often referred to as mains hum, is caused by the 60 Hz (in North America) or 50 Hz (in other regions) oscillation of the current, which creates fluctuating magnetic forces that cause ferrous metals and conductors to expand, contract, or shift minutely. Note: the EU uses 50 Hz (producing a 100 Hz hum), while the USA uses 60 Hz (producing a 120 Hz hum).

Both are low-frequency sounds. If you are autistic and have sound issues, your brain likely does not filter out this specific low-frequency drone, making it sound loud and distinct, even if the physical vibration of the wire is tiny. The sound is real, and your sensitivity to that specific low frequency is a known sensory experience.

Now I am sure many are like, if I really can hear it, why can't i pinpoint it. I looked into this and it has to do with the wave pattern. A 120 Hz sound wave is roughly 9 feet (2.8 meters) long. Your head is tiny compared to that wave. The sound wave simply flows around your head like water around a rock, hitting both ears with almost identical volume and timing. Because the wave is so long, the difference in time it takes to reach your left vs. right ear is negligible. Your brain receives nearly the exact same signal in both ears, making it perceive the sound as coming from everywhere at once (omnidirectional).

Where something like an air leak is about 20,000 Hz Approximately 0.67 inches (1.7 centimeters). And that is why it is easy to pinpoint.

Keep in mind also sound levels play in this. Without a loose component to amplify it, the actual sound pressure level escaping the wall is often below 20 dB, which is quieter than a whisper (30 dB). It should be noted the reason why it is louder for us or we can hear it at all is more in the brain than the ears themselves. At 15 dB to 20 dB, the physical sound wave hits the eardrum of both an NT person and an autistic person. The tiny hair cells in the cochlea move, and the auditory nerve does fire electrical signals up into the brain for both people. The hardware is working in both cases. Before a signal reaches your conscious mind, it passes through the brainstem (specifically the auditory brainstem). This is where sensory gating happens. NT normally can't detect anything sub 20db.

• In an NT brain: The brainstem looks at that tiny, constant 15–20 dB 120 Hz signal, labels it "irrelevant background noise," and blocks it from going any higher. The conscious brain never gets the message.
• In an autistic brain: That automatic gate is often open or less aggressive. The brainstem lets the signal pass right through to the auditory cortex.

Because the NT brainstem blocks the signal so early, the NT person has zero conscious awareness of it. To them, the room is completely silent. If you ask them to listen for it, they genuinely cannot, because their brainstem is automatically deleting the data before their conscious mind can access it.

It should be noted the DB can change on a number of factors. And if the place isn't built right or a problem happens, then it can get into a range they can hear. But I'm more talking about normal conditions. Also the NT statement is a general statement, and other medical conditions or factors can cause them where they can hear it. Again, I was speaking towards a normal situation.

Now with me, unless if my nerve is raw. I tend to just ignore the sounds of the wires in the walls. In fact, when they are gone my brain freaks out. Like a power outage. Where high pitch is extremely painful. Like worse than breaking my leg sometimes.

Side note: personally I didn't know about the wire thing until many years back when I notice background sounds went completely away during a power outage. I thought it was tinnitus or stress. Then when it came back on I notice it back. After playing around with stuff I figured out it was the power in the walls I was hearing.

TLDR: the reason why a number of us can hear electrical wires in the walls but when we talk with it to NT they don't. It's because for the most part most NT their brains never get the signal where our filter lets it go right through and we get it to some degree or all of it.