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Hearing damage... "WHAT YOU SAY ????"

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  • 03-03-2009 9:15pm
    #1
    spideog7
    Registered Users Posts: 1,230 ✭✭✭


    Interesting experience today, a TA was playing with a frequency generator in the lab, there was a secondary school student in and he was showing him some stuff.

    It was hooked up to a speaker just playing a tone. So he kept switching it up through the frequencies and as it got higher and higher it started to move out of the hearing range, well other than the secondary school student I was the youngest in the lab, I'm 20 most of the lads are 21-22 and the TA was 30+, (I'll be nice to him :D ).

    I was the first to drop :eek: once he went to 13kHz I couldn't hear it anymore, he could hear 13kHz and 14kHz and the rest of the lads dropped away around 15 or 16kHz, the secondary school student could hear it up to 18kHz.

    These are the same high frequencies they use to deter teenagers from hanging around shops and stuff. Anyway it clearly highlighted the damage that shooting has done to my ears, (I'm pretty sure that's the most likely cause of it). I never wear ear plugs when I'm out hunting I just don't feel like I know what's going on around me with them in, I like to use all my senses I guess :o

    Just thought it was interesting and I should share it.

    On a general note the human range of hearing is 20Hz to 20kHz and it typically decreases with age.


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    #2
    jwshooter
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,612 ✭✭✭jwshooter


    your 20 ,custom passive molded plugs cost about 140 euro every 4-6 years over your life time of shooting -hunting its a small price to pay for your hearing .
    even the foam cheep ones just pushed into your ears are a help .


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    #3
    Vegeta
    Registered Users Posts: 11,393 ✭✭✭✭Vegeta


    passive foam and passive peltors for target shooting and active peltors for hunting

    I have a constant ringing in my ears, has gotten really noticeable this season, and I wear the above when shooting. It helps keep it under control big time. If I ever forget them for even a few shots I regret it for days afterwards


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    #4
    kowloon
    Registered Users Posts: 13,472 ✭✭✭✭kowloon


    I drive a bike, the constant wind/engine noise damages my hearing a fair bit. Intend on buying some proper ear defenders at some point during the summer, are there any good low profile ones I could fit inside a helmet and use out shooting?


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    #5
    Sparks
    Registered Users Posts: 40,038 ✭✭✭✭Sparks


    We did a bit on this earlier, didn't we? Anyway, wouldn't trust the actives myself Veg. Custom moulded plugs are good - if they fit (they just don't on some people apparently).


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    #6
    pullandbang
    Hosted Moderators Posts: 4,948 ✭✭✭pullandbang


    Watched a girl last week try to fit the foam plugs in her ear - she had some job even though they are fairly simple to roll up tight and shove in.

    However I wouldn't let her shoot until they were in properly - not worth the risk to her hearing. I even notice a lot of people end up pushing their ear defenders up from their ears with the stock on the gun. When they mount the gun and lower their head, the muffs hit the stock and can get pushed up far enough to be ineffective.

    Moral of the story - wear plugs and muffs!


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    #7
    Vegeta
    Registered Users Posts: 11,393 ✭✭✭✭Vegeta


    Sparks wrote: »
    We did a bit on this earlier, didn't we? Anyway, wouldn't trust the actives myself Veg. Custom moulded plugs are good - if they fit (they just don't on some people apparently).

    I personally trust the peltors, they have a custom ASIC as opposed to some crap RC circuit, that ASIC means they can do pretty much anything they want with the input signal, a human can tolerate on average 150 milliseconds of delay in sound before they really start to notice, that's more than long enough to buffer out any impulse noise.

    And when walking around a field with a loaded shotgun its either active hearing protection or passive. I just do not think passive hearing protection is safe for that type of hunting.


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    #8
    deerhunter1
    Registered Users Posts: 2,703 ✭✭✭deerhunter1


    jwshooter wrote: »
    your 20 ,custom passive molded plugs cost about 140 euro every 4-6 years over your life time of shooting -hunting its a small price to pay for your hearing .
    even the foam cheep ones just pushed into your ears are a help .
    Celtic hearing Lower Eyre St Kildare (045-433983)do a Starkey Custom made in the ear electronic hearing protection,brilliant,bought a custom one this year used it pheasant shooting, could hear perfect, suppressed shot instantly.
    Also do non custom, make them for every type of noise related instances.
    Check web starkey.com for the range of products


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