Hearing Tests and Ear Health

PaulBrewer

Has anyone every done any? Would you wear earplugs at gigs?

I've just stumbled into my 46 year this week and I'm sure my hearing isn't what it was when I was a boy, but then how could it be!?

In my touring days I wore earplugs during sound check and gig and currently carry a pair at all times with me for that unplanned spontaneous gig attendance.

When I met Philip Newell in Spain last year who, I guess, is in his mid/late 50s he reckons he can't hear much above 11 Khz!

I was working with a well respected UK producer last week who listens at Monstrous Volume, so loud that even when we left the studio went down the stairs and outside the door the volume coming out the window was still Very Loud - Bizzare!

One thing you young pups will have over us old codgers is you'll be able to hear more ..... however we might know better what to listen for!!;)

Have a look at this -

http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/statistics/begins.htm

Interestingly higher frequencies can be sensed but not heard i.e. on a test sine wave one can be aware of something coming through the speakers but not hear the tone itself, this can also be the speaker itself generating overtones (or undertones?) - not the same as hearing the pure test sine wave. There are online hearing 'tests' that say I have hearing that a Bat will be proud of when I know it's the speakers/headphones/room.... and that I don't!

Like all scientific tests a hearing test needs to be done under controlled conditions.

http://hypertextbook.com/facts/2003/ChrisDAmbrose.shtml

dav nagle

PaulBrewer wrote: »

Has anyone every done any? Would you wear earplugs at gigs?

I've just stumbled into my 46 year this week and I'm sure my hearing isn't what it was when I was a boy, but then how could it be!?

In my touring days I wore earplugs during sound check and gig and currently carry a pair at all times with me for that unplanned spontaneous gig attendance.

When I met Philip Newell in Spain last year who, I guess, is in his mid/late 50s he reckons he can't hear much above 11 Khz!

I was working with a well respected UK producer last week who listens at Monstrous Volume, so loud that even when we left the studio went down the stairs and outside the door the volume coming out the window was still Very Loud - Bizzare!

One thing you young pups will have over us old codgers is you'll be able to hear more ..... however we might know better what to listen for!!;)

Have a look at this -

http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/statistics/begins.htm

Interestingly higher frequencies can be sensed but not heard i.e. on a test sine wave one can be aware of something coming through the speakers but not hear the tone itself, this can also be the speaker itself generating overtones (or undertones?) - not the same as hearing the pure test sine wave. There are online hearing 'tests' that say I have hearing that a Bat will be proud of when I know it's the speakers/headphones/room.... and that I don't!

http://hypertextbook.com/facts/2003/ChrisDAmbrose.shtml

I ear you!

Soundman

Belated Happy Birthday young man. I should get a test done and get some attenuators, but I always mix for myself as such so I can get it loud for me without hurting myself. It's been years since I have had ringing in my ears from a gig.

frobisher

I recently went to the doctor and he gasped when he saw how blocked my left ear channel was. I've got some stuff that's over the counter from the chemist caled Exputex or something equally sexy. If it doesn't work he's going to syringe me. I'd say it's something worth doing periodacally for anyone working in sound and music.

My ears have taken a serious bashing working at the biggest gigs with the biggest PA's with the biggest dicks on the desk measuring their amplitude willies during sound checks. Ear plugs all the way.

As for tinnitus. Scary, scary, scary. I once met a a trumpter player in Denmark who's tinnitus rang a perfect note in the chromatic scale. Over night his hearing became pitch perfect :D

I was convinced I had it myself for a while there when in the silence of my bedroom at night there was what was an un-mistakable high pitch ringing. Then I realised it changed volume as I moved. Turned out it was a dodgy Dell monitor that whistled when on standby!

Niall - Dahlia

frobisher wrote:

I was convinced I had it myself for a while there when in the silence of my bedroom at night there was what was an un-mistakable high pitch ringing. Then I realised it changed volume as I moved. Turned out it was a dodgy Dell monitor that whistled when on standby!

Heh, same experience with a Nokia charger, freaked me out a little until I found out what it was!

I got my ears checked about 2 months ago with a doctor. Actually, I went with the intention of getting them syringed, but I didn't need to. I had heard from a good few people that syringing did wonders for them, but I'd rather take the advice of a doctor. Must go see an ear specialist soon and get one of them tests like we did in primary school!

What few gigs I go to I always wear plugs, but what I find I have to watch out for more is during a session the monitor level will slowly but surely go up and up a tiny bit every hour, to the point where by the end of the session the clip indicators on the monitors are blinking away. Not good.

mike65

Here's my online test



from
http://www.digital-recordings.com/hearing-test/www-ht-pro/ht_help_p.html

I dunno how accurate such a test can be (not hugely) as you really do need TOTAL silence and even my quite new PC made enough noise to compromise the extremes I think. Still, its an insight.

I'm 43 btw.

Mike.

studiorat

38! playing and monitoring too loud for nearly 20 years, wouldn't set foot in a doctors unless my leg was falling off. Can still hear the carrier on the TV, 17kHz I believe. As long as my hearing doesn't change overnight I don't really mind. I know a guy who did get his ears syringed, he found it really hard to work for the first few weeks afterwards.

I find my hearing is becoming more selective as I get older and grumpier...

Run_to_da_hills

Internal high pitched burglar alarm went off in my neighbours house (Attached) It kept my brother awake all night, didn’t bother me because I couldn't hear it. :eek: