Rectifier and Hearing Damage

[KDS]

I've been using the Sonics for quite a while now. I tried the foam inserts but they took all the high end away. If your ears ring after a gig you are hearing the frequencies you are losing. Protect yourself!

 

[stadidas]

I too have had tinnitus for some time, I actually can't remember a time when I've not had it. In the past I have had times when I was literally punching the wall at night from the frustration of the constant ringing. The sad thing is I've never abused my ears, they've just always been like this .
Luckily more recently they have started to get better. If I don't listen to any music for a few nights then it really does start to drop in volume (I don't listen to music loudly at all, this is just something that happens). I have been using the Etymotic ER20 earplugs for a few years now at gigs, and they are superb, my ears do not ring after a gig and are not painful.
For music listening I have the Ultimate Ears UE5c, which are absolutely wonderful. I will probably also get custom ear plugs from Ultimate Ears too. Just as the others described, I went to an audiologist and had the impressions taken which look like this:

Sent them to California and in a couple of weeks I had these gems:

They're great to use with my iPod because it means when I'm out and about I don't have to turn the volume up to block out outside noise. Many people are losing their hearing these days because they listen to their iPods far to loud. I'm not saying everyone should buy these as they are very expensive, but if you do listen to a lot of music on headphones then I must recommend at least some form of noise canceling in-ear headphones. It's not worth spending a fortune on a wonderful amp and then killing your ears, you will regret doing it. You might think it sucks having to wear ear plugs at gigs, but trust me, the alternative is much worse.

 

[triple rectumfrier]

Sorry to hear about that, that cannot be fun. I love those iPOD headphones, I wouldnt mind getting me some, although I hardly ever listen to my iPOD. It seems to me stage volume is never as loud as practice volume is...am I missing something? I never feel the need to wear plugs on stage but in a garage I almost have to.

 

[eltrain858]

anyone who's used these.. what level NR filters did you get? 9 seems puny and 25 seems excessive, but i really have no frame of reference

read my post above regarding NR db with the UE's...

ok... read it again... and again... you just listed the three options for filters. i saw those same numbers on the UE website. they still mean nothing to me in a practical context :roll:

Anybody here actually use or have used the UE plugs?

now that's what i was getting at! but more specifically asking what level NR filters they got and for what application (rehearsals, gigs, uber-loud gigs, etc)

 

[stadidas]

It seems to me stage volume is never as loud as practice volume is...am I missing something? I never feel the need to wear plugs on stage but in a garage I almost have to.

That'll be because in the garage a lot of the sound will be coming back at you from the walls, so you're getting the vibrations over and over again. In a gig environment most of the sound is absorbed by people, so it may very well seem quieter.

 

[matt_o]

A 10dB drop is subjectively half as loud.

Have a look the 'Measuring Sound' pdf at http://www.bksv.com/2148.asp. Pages 6-9 or so give some more info.

Matt

 

[triple rectumfrier]

half the sound? wow. I might go for the 6 instead of the 9. If its half volume, but who knows maybe the 9's worth it.

 

[eltrain858]

wow, just looked up the Hearos hi-fidelity series plugs i've been using for the last year. after seeing this chart i really don't think 9db is all that much...

 

[triple rectumfrier]

what does that mean

 

[stadidas]

A 10dB drop is subjectively half as loud.

Have a look the 'Measuring Sound' pdf at http://www.bksv.com/2148.asp. Pages 6-9 or so give some more info.

Matt

That's news to me. On the standard dbSPL (Decibel Sound Pressure Level) scale -6db is half the level. Remember the decibel scale is logarithmic not linear, that is to say just because -6db is half the level doesn't mean that -3db is three quarters of it.

 

[eltrain858]

what does that mean

its showing how many decibels of noise attenuation the earplugs achieve at each frequency (shown in the chart in Hz).

it is a lot easier to cut out high frequency soundwaves, hence the 24.6 dB attenuation at 8kHz vs. the 14.5 dB attenuation at 125 Hz.

these earplugs supposedly have a "flatter" attenuation response than the super cheap foam plugs you buy in bulk, meaning that the attenuation is fairly similar across the whole range of frequencies, i.e. not 1 dB at 125 Hz compared to 24 dB at 8kHz.

this still means, though, that the lowest attenuation these earplugs offer at any frequency is 14.5 dB, which is still significantly greater than the 9 dB option in the UE plugs. this makes me think the 15 dB filters could be a valid consideration.

 

[eltrain858]

A 10dB drop is subjectively half as loud.

Have a look the 'Measuring Sound' pdf at http://www.bksv.com/2148.asp. Pages 6-9 or so give some more info.

Matt

That's news to me. On the standard dbSPL (Decibel Sound Pressure Level) scale -6db is half the level. Remember the decibel scale is logarithmic not linear, that is to say just because -6db is half the level doesn't mean that -3db is three quarters of it.

yeah, 6 dB is the REAL difference for doubling spl, but for the human auditory system we perceive 10 dB as doubling (empirically determined)

 

[matt_o]

When they test earplugs they test them a bunch of times each - hence they get a mean (average) result as well as a standard deviation (how much it can vary from person to person with the shape of their ears etc). So for example at 1000Hz one person might get 15.9dB attenuation while someone else might get 21.9dB. Also with generic/disposable plugs you get big differences if you dont put them in properly.

Also note that the attenuation at 125Hz (bass frequencies) is almost 10dB less (half as loud remember) as at 2000Hz (treble frequencies) - thus you find yourself turning the treble way up to compensate. The custom moulded plugs should have a lot better balance across the different frequencies.

The table above has about 19dB overall attenuation so if you went for 9dB (or 6dB) plugs it would be a lot louder. Personally I would probably want 15-20dB plugs. If I had to choose between 9dB or 25dB I would go for 25, but that is a personal choice.

 

[eltrain858]

Also note that the attenuation at 125Hz (bass frequencies) is almost 10dB less (half as loud remember) as at 2000Hz (treble frequencies) - thus you find yourself turning the treble way up to compensate. The custom moulded plugs should have a lot better balance across the different frequencies.

do you think the custom fit has anything to do with it? or is it just the quality of the filters in them? are the low frequencies sneaking in around the sides of the plug or coming through the filter? i should really just ask my dad all this stuff...

 

[matt_o]

"do you think the custom fit has anything to do with it? or is it just the quality of the filters in them?"

Both I think. With custom fitted plugs you get a lot better repeatability because they sit in the ear canal properly every time (and they are made to fit your ear perfectly, rather than being made to fit everybodys ears). Also you can make a more elaborate fitering mechanism with an expensive reusable plug. Disposable plugs are generally made to be cheap and to block noise, the 'quality' of sound coming through is generally not considered too critical.[/quote]

 

[Johnson]

IMHO, I don't see how anyone can't afford spend 100+ dollars on ear plugs. What good is a 3k IIC+ if you can't hear it b/c you have permenant hearing loss. Once you blow you damage your ears, thats it, game over....it doesn't get better.

 

[Elpelotero]

A 10dB drop is subjectively half as loud.

Have a look the 'Measuring Sound' pdf at http://www.bksv.com/2148.asp. Pages 6-9 or so give some more info.

Matt

That's news to me. On the standard dbSPL (Decibel Sound Pressure Level) scale -6db is half the level. Remember the decibel scale is logarithmic not linear, that is to say just because -6db is half the level doesn't mean that -3db is three quarters of it.

yeah, 6 dB is the REAL difference for doubling spl, but for the human auditory system we perceive 10 dB as doubling (empirically determined)

I took a college class last year on the physics of music...I didn't learn much, but this was one of the facts I do recall. So yea, it's 10db=half