I read an article in Stereophile last month, I think it was from Michael Fremer, where he explained that he had lost most of his hearing in his left ear - a career altering problem, he thought. After going to the doctor, he found out that it was wax build-up and after a "cleaning" he had years of earwax buildup removed. This is a bit gross, I know, but it got me thinking about all those people on this board who say they can't hear the difference between A & B, when someone else can. Could this be the cause?

Hitting closer to home, how likely is it to be a problem for someone in his early 40's, for example. Is this common? I keep my ears clean, but who knows what may have been pushed up there by thousands of q-tips over the years?