Greetings from Canada to all you fine forum folks!
This is my first post. I've just started LifeFlow 9 after enjoying LifeFlow 10 for a month. Wonderful improvements! I had been on Holosync for over a year, which I enjoyed very much until there was too much overwhelm and I felt a bit bogged down. So I stopped and started for another year or so. Until I discovered LifeFlow at the end of February. Hallelujah!
I noticed this past month with LifeFlow 10 that I much preferred listening with headphones than I did without because I felt that the meditation was deeper.
So I ended up listening 6 days a week with headphones and once a week without headphones.
My question to any and all is:
What are your preferences in terms of binaural beats vs. the monaural and isochronic ones? And does it matter if we don't listen to close to a 50/50 balance?
Thats in fact something i always forget about. I only listen to LF through headphones, and sometimes it gets too much and i take a day break. I guess thats the point where speakers would be a good idea.
So for me, it seems these pauses are necessary, and i guess thats one of the reasons, why we should also listen through speakers - to backup a bit from the binaural beats. Could be wrong, though
I use speakers only now. I must say I did not notice any extra effect of headphones, and less effect from Holosync than most people. (There will, I suspect, always be some effect from sitting down and shutting up!) Then again I am extremely left-brained (right hand / leg / eye etc), to the point where it is something of a handicap. I have wondered if handedness may have something to do with this, with the ambidextrous perhaps being more sensitive to binaurals, as these are made by combining input from both ears. I have never heard about it anywhere else though.
Isochronic, Monaural and Binaural each have unique benefits. LifeFlow incorporates all three wave forms in its entrainment matrix creating a wider variety of use and benefits.
The strongest attribute of binaural waves is their ability to create whole brain synchronization. All three wave types produce synchronization, but binaural does a better job than the other two tones. Binaural beats must be listened to with stereo headphones for them to achieve this.
Monaural beats are produced when two tones combine digitally or naturally before the sounds reach the ears, as opposed to combining in the brain like binaural beats.
In a 1973 issue of Scientific American, Dr. Gerald Oster noted that Monaural waves create a far greater entrainment effect than binaurals. Isochronic tones incorporate a single tone, which turns off and on in a specific and accurate pattern and is widely regarded as the most effective method of entrainment. Many people who do not respond well to binaural beats often respond very well to isochronic tones.
Monaural and Isochronic tones share the big advantage in that they can both be listened to over open speakers, i.e., without the need of using headphones. This is a real bonus for people who don't want to be tied down by a pair of headphones with a cord.
Thanks, guys, for your feedback and for the reminder of what the literature says. It sounds like binaural, monaural and isochronic each have their advantages and work differently for different people and their individual brains. The best thing is to be open minded (pun intended) and experiment and find the right balance for oneself.
...the adventure continues...
Binaural vs. Monaural/Isochronic
Linear Mode
