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question about hearing loss

yddet12

yddet12

Active Member
I just got back from a school dance (you know, where the "DJ" is of the mindset that everything sounds better if it is drowned out by a +20dB boost on the bass and midbass) and, considering that I could literally feel the bass vibrations pulse through my body, I am now worried about hearing loss. What happens if one is exposed to high SPL's? Does one get hearing loss over all frequencies? Or is it primarily one's ability to hear high-frequencies (say, 15 KHz) that is affected? Or does hearing damage primarily occur only in the loud frequencies (in this case, only the bass/midbass)?

Thanks!
 
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Usually, the highs are affected first. And, assuming you are young, NOW is the time to start taking care of your hearing. Believe me, you will regret it if you don't. Wear hearing protectors when around any loud noises. Your ears 'train'..in other words....with a continous loud noise, they get used to it, and you find that after awhile it does not seem so loud, but the damage is still being done.

Take care of your hearing, and your sight while you are young.:thmbsp:
 
yddet12 said:
I just got back from a school dance (you know, where the "DJ" is of the mindset that everything sounds better if it is drowned out by a +20dB boost on the bass and midbass) and, considering that I could literally feel the bass vibrations pulse through my body, I am now worried about hearing loss. What happens if one is exposed to high SPL's? Does one get hearing loss over all frequencies? Or is it primarily one's ability to hear high-frequencies (say, 15 KHz) that is affected? Or does hearing damage primarily occur only in the loud frequencies (in this case, only the bass/midbass)?

Thanks!
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well assuming you are in the dance for a couple of hours..

in the very same night, when it it very quiet; did u get any ringing in the ear.. ?



share a incident. Once i detected a low hum in a new amplifier on one channel audibly. the shop send a 'old uncle' technician over to check. he pressed closed to the speaker said 'there is no problem' . I was shocked. how can he work as a audio technician when his hearing is having a problem. lucky that the shop didn't based on what he said...
 
Sonic traumas like that one, being exposed to high SPL for a good hour or more, will affect your hearing to some degree. Keep repeating it, and you'll notice loss in short order. I wasn't so lucky... I was fine up until my college years, when I went to an extremely loud concert that was painfully loud. I couldn't understand why more people didn't have fingers plugged into their ears. You can only hold your arms up for so long... I really suffered some damage from that, which introduced tinnitus to my daily experience of life. I'm still hoping someday they'll have nerve rebuilding technology for eyes and ears, before I'm too old to benefit.

Anyway... you may be lucky and didn't suffer too much damage. The very good thing is that you're now aware of the danger. So many young people are not aware, and do irreparable damage, not only at concerts but by listening to earbuds extremely loud. I've even encountered people who are PROUD that they can tolerate the sound so loud... little do they know that they've already done damage that reduces the pain and their ability to hear the finer nuances of sound.

Buy yourself a set of ear plugs. They're inexpensive. You can go with some inconspicuous colored ones and just pop them in when you're in loud venues. And keep your earbud volume down. A lot of people don't know this, but iPod devices have a setting to control the volume limit. It's a good idea to adjust it on the low side.
 
As a victim of a WHO concert at Madison Square Garden in 1974 I can firmly state I wish I could take that night back. Been listening to tinnitis and having to deal with a loss in both ears since.

Protect your hearing at all costs and don't use ear buds either.
 
I'm only 24 but I won't go to any more live shows until I a pair of good sound isolation ear plugs. The highs at the last show I went to were just WAY too harsh. It was almost painful.
 
signal-dude said:
...Protect your hearing at all costs and don't use ear buds either.
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I just recently had a hearing test, and I've got some high frequency hearing loss. However, as the audiologist told me, it's perfectly normal "for a man your age."

I'm really starting to hate that phrase.

Anyway, to the post above, we talked about listening to music using headphones, and I told her I use the kind of earbuds or in-ear phones that plug tightly into the ear, and she said: "Excellent! Those are the best kind to use for listening to music, because they shut out outside noises, put all of the music into your ear, so you will use a much lower volume level than with any other kind."

She said the large full size ones that completely cover the ear are fine, but the ones that just sit on the ear and/or are otherwise open are the worst, because you end up unconsciously turning the volume up much higher in order to drown out the background noise.
 
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If only people really did use them that way it would be OK. Recently walking thru my local mall I heard a guys music playing and he was using earbuds. Makes my head hurt just thinking about it.
 
biko said:
share a incident. Once i detected a low hum in a new amplifier on one channel audibly. the shop send a 'old uncle' technician over to check. he pressed closed to the speaker said 'there is no problem' . I was shocked. how can he work as a audio technician when his hearing is having a problem. lucky that the shop didn't based on what he said...
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That is why you should not trust people who claim to be authorities on sound, unless they publish the results of their hearing tests. :D
 
Mine was a KISS concert 1974

signal-dude said:
As a victim of a WHO concert at Madison Square Garden in 1974 I can firmly state I wish I could take that night back. Been listening to tinnitis and having to deal with a loss in both ears since.

Protect your hearing at all costs and don't use ear buds either.
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My ears rang for 3 solid days after that night. They played the Civic Center in OKC. It's a small venue, actually made for sound and it was the loudest concert I have ever heard.
It has been "tinnitis city" for me ever since. I'm like you, I wish I could take that night back.
 
Hi yddet12,,,

You are absolutely right to be concerned about your hearing. Since I have joined this forum ,I have seen many of posts about powerful stereos, and how loud they can go etc. But beware, Some of these high powered stereos are capable of producing sound levels that can be damaging to the ears, especially in a small room.. One of the big trends in my city is young people who install powerful stereos in thier cars, with big power amps anywhere from
150 watts per channel , 250 watts per channel or even more... You can hear them coming all the way down the block and the music is inside their car, not outside... These people are slowly killing their ears, and sadly,the reason for the expense,and risk to their hearing is not for the joy of listening to their favorite music, but just to be noticed.
If you want more information about sound levels, how they are measured and, what levels are safe for the ear, the best thing to do is go to the internet and do a search for 'sound levels', 'sound level safety', or 'sound level measurement' .
I think that you will find it a facinating subject..
 
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What many of the others here have said is true. Protect your hearing at all costs. Keep a set of foam earplugs on you at all time, and don't be affriad to use them.

When you do get epxosed to noise, take lots of antioxidant supplements as soon as possible afterwards. N-A-C is one that I recommend. This can help to limit the amount of damage that your ears experience as a result.
 
I saw the Scorpions in the early to mid 90's and was about 1/3 of the way from the stage at a 30K size seating arena..indoors.

That was the loudest event I have had the "luxury" of being a part of. The music was remarkably clear with my fingers in my ears and wasn't embarassed to do it. The ride home I had about 12Khz of pink noise banging around in my cochlea.

One heck of a show though.
 
Agreed we are all wise to protect our hearing. I have no idea why so many live shows have to be set up at ear-bleeding levels. I can recall having ringing in my ears for up to 36 hours after attending a good number of shows in the 80s. I guess I'm lucky I don't have more long-term damage; maybe I was never exposed to anything of the magnitude of the above mentioned 1974 Who Madison Square Garden show, so I'm lucky. I would suggest that whenever you feel pain or discomfort because of the loudness of a live show, it is time to leave.
 
Hearing loss can be caused by some surprising things. Had lunch with my good friend James yesterday & we were talking about hearing loss and his pair of very expensive hearing aids. Now, he played in a band 40 years ago (59 now), and has farmed for years. I asked about the cause, figuring it would either be from being an old rock n roller or from operating farm machinery. Wrong on both counts. Not the band, and the big tractors he runs have very good cabs...it's from working in the HOG BARNS! I asked if they'd done SPL measurements in a barn...130db!! That's the freakin' Who!!!
Constant noise from the hogs plus the ventilation systems add up to a pretty damn big number. What a surprise!
 
RamblinE said:
The highs at the last show I went to were just WAY too harsh. It was almost painful.
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Same with me. I saw Zappa Plays Zappa last year and while the musicianship was stellar, the highs sounded like an icepick in the forehead. I haven't seen a show since.
 
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