Your hearing is under attack.

The Baby Boom generation was the first to grow up listening to ampified music.  More recently, products like the “Walkman” and the “iPod” have brought hazardous audio levels to the masses, without even the social cost of bothering others.

Some quick facts:
•Hearing loss is irreversible.
•Loud sounds can damage your hearing even though you don't feel pain.
•Most amplified concerts these days are loud enough to cause hearing loss for members of the audience.  (They will not harm the sound man; he’s already deaf).
•Highway driving for long periods with the window open can also cause hearing loss!
•Some hearing loss occurs naturally with age.
•Some people seem to be more prone to noise-related hearing damage than others.
•The critical equation includes both the loudness of the sound and the length of your exposure to it.  Sticking your head in a jet engine will make you deaf right away – listening to your iPod® on “Stun” will do the same thing; it will just take longer.

If you’ve worked with us here in the studio, you may have noticed that we don’t monitor at high volume – not for very long.  We spend most of the day at “living-room” levels or below.  Yes, everything sounds more impressive when played back LOUD – but to what purpose?  Your audience is probably not going to be listening at that level.  And because your ears' sensitivity to different frequencies varies at different sound pressure levels (the “Fletcher-Munsen Curves”), earthshaking levels may give you the wrong impression of how your project will “really” sound... in addition to permanently harming your ability to hear.

I have two recommendations for anyone listening to amplified music:

First, if you’re going to be listening on headphones/buds for a long period, set them at a comfortable level (or better yet, find the lowest volume you can be happy with) and do not turn them up.  As your ears get fatigued, you will be tempted to adjust by cranking up the volume.   That's the time to quit, or at least take a break – not to turn the knob clockwise.  Adherence to this rule has kept my hearing relatively intact despite decades of headphone use.

Second, if you’re going to an electrified concert or doing some work with the chainsaw or trimmer, pick up some foam earplugs at the drugstore.  The ones I get are called “Quiet, Please” and they are very inexpensive.  If the concert is still too loud, walk out.  Don’t assume that OSHA or the sound engineer or the band is going to keep the performance at a safe listening level.  They’re not.  You are responsible for your own well-being. 

Be well.

Here is a link to one of the best sites I’ve seen on hearing loss and hearing issues: http://www.hearnet.com.

We used to say, “If it’s too loud, you’re too old.”  Now we know that if you want to hear anything when you’re old, it’s probably too loud.

Feedback: colorsaudio@neo.rr.com