Because binaural beats are a simple sine wave with very little (no) noise, any decent pair of headphones will probably do just as well as a $400 pair. As long as the pair of headphones can produce a clean sound that isn’t “tiny” on the higher or lower frequencies, you’re good.

The more important factor is comfort. Because binaural beats are typically used for sleep and relaxation purposes, it is important that the headphones are comfortable. A pair of studio headphones with quality padding would be great or if you’re using earbuds, something that won’t irritate your ears after prolonged use would be better. Usually the cheaper the headphone, the less comfortable.

Fortunately, comfortable and decent audio quality doesn’t necessarily mean expensive.

Sleep onset insomnia or difficulty falling asleep is a problem that afflicts almost 60% of adults (according to the National Sleep Foundation)! We lie in bed counting the minutes as they go by, our minds without a leash bringing thought after thought and concern of how another day of exhaustion lay ahead.

There are many strategies that can be used to help sleep. One popular drug free approach is to use music or audio stimulation. Often the right audio in the background can help relax the mind. Common background sounds (or soundscapes) include rain falling, waves hitting the shore, water running or other comforting sounds.

In addition to a background soundscape while falling asleep, binaural beats may significantly increase the therapeutic effects of audio stimulation for sleep.

Binaural Beats is an audio perception effect that occurs when two minimally differing audio frequencies are applied to each ear. The minimal difference in the two tones is perceived as a beating sound, referred to as a binaural beat frequency. It is purported that binaural beats stimulate the brain to operate into the same frequency.

When sleeping, our brains typically fall into a theta and then delta frequency, ultimately into a deep sleep. Using binaural Beats audio stimulation can assist the brain to get into the theta and delta frequencies.

Download the following free binaural Beats mp3 for assisting falling asleep. This free audio track is 15 minutes long. It starts in a relaxation alpha frequency and slowly falls through the theta range to delta. The soundscape also has a soothing background audio of water rippling.

Take advantage of this free binaural beats offer today and get yourself a good night’s sleep.

This is pretty cool. PlayNoise.com offers a free HTML5 online whitenoise generator. It looks like it uses OGG Vorbis or MP3 samples, unlike some other online whitenoise generators out there which generate the whitenoise pragmatically. Regardless, it’s a neat minimalist page with a very functional whitenoise generator on it.  The HTML5 app also supports other noise variations such as pink noise and brown noise.

The difference between the three noise variations is minimal, but there is a noticeable difference.  White noise is completely random signals, while both brown and pink noise use a mathematical formula.  Wikipedia has a great explanation of the three noise variants here.

Beats Brainwave (available for iPhone and BlackBerry Playbook) is a binaural beats generator that also supports white, pink and brown noise for stimulating improved concentration.  See more about binaural beats and white noise generation here.  Alternatively, we also have an online binaural beats generator that also supports white noise, pink noise and brown noise.

In my own experience, listening to binaural beats audio stimulus, with a soothing background track can definitely help reduce anxiety. I can see how anxiety reduction can be beneficial for patients undergoing something like cataract surgery where only local anesthetic is used.

More information on the study can be found on the American Academy of Ophthalmology website, here: http://www.aao.org/newsroom/release/20121112b.cfm

Beats Brainwave binaural beats app for iPhone is now available for FREE!

This is the full feature app, with in-app advertising. It includes all settings – sleep, relaxation, concentration and meditation. Plus the custom binaural beats section where you can create your own binaural beats with any frequencies.

Of course, the paid version is also available at an incredibly low price.

Grab the free binaural beats app for iPhone from the App Store, here.

Participants in the study were asked to listen to the binaural beats 5 times per week over the course of 4 weeks. The participants were also asked to record their levels of anxiety in a journal before and after the binaural beats sessions.

The study found that listening the binaural beats resulted in significant reduction in the reported anxiety levels for those participants who consistently listened to the tapes over the period.

For more information about the study, see the abstract here.

And download some free binaural beats mp3′s to help you achieve your own desired state of mind.

I came across this press release the other day. It describes how binaural beats are used to enhance peak performance training of Olympic athletes.  The latest training methodology used by Dr. Rayma Ditson-Sommer, at the Arizona Training Center for sports focus training is called the VIT for Sports System which combines chromotherapy and binaural beat audio.

Generate your own Binaural Beats program with this online Binaural Beats Generator. This Flash based application gives a small sample of what’s available in my binaural beats mobile apps for the iPhone and BlackBerry PlayBook.

Here’s a track from the free Binaural Beats album that focuses on frequencies to help assist in meditation. I actually use the same binaural beats meditation program on a regular basis (or at least a variation of it) with the Beats Brainwaves app for the BlackBerry PlayBook and iPhone.