H-GM wrote:I'm the idiot sitting next to you on the train with Cherubs gushing from my headphones; I'm the idiot roommate chastised early in the morning for listening to Big Black when I think my headphones are plugged into the stereo; I'm the idiot music fan dancing with the speakers at a Flaming Lips gig, (so ecstatic); I'm the idiot drummer with no sense of subtlety and/or dynamics so I just hit shit as hard as I can. I'm that idiot.

I wonder if there are degrees of idiocy. I mean there's a bad, badder (i think!) & baddest. ..anything for idiocy?. Anyways, I used to listen at 9, till an accidental overdose of masonna (not madonna) with the volume slider at half, nearly made my eardrums flap like dumbo's ears. All this because of a loud, no signal television box-set noises.

My ears were buzzing for nearly a week & I think I had a slight hearing loss after that incident, certainly in my left ear plus there are other medical reasons (not tinnitus) for which I have been advised to keep the volume low....but there are exceptions, rather there have been many many exceptions.

m.koren wrote:72.5 db average.

With peaks of like 85, otherwise it's ear fatigue. Too many years of standing in front of amps and drums.

I also want to able to hear in twenty years.

etch wrote:

m.koren wrote:72.5 db average.

With peaks of like 85, otherwise it's ear fatigue.

Wha ? You mean I'm not the only one ?

johnnyshape wrote:Thanks for that.

Next week on the PRF: how tasty do you want your food?

5.

do you mean watching / playing live? or listening on stereo etc; there is good loud and bad loud volumes. if a band is good and onto their sounds then good loud. there is nothing worse than an awful band with awful sounds cranking it up. all in all though, i like it SUPER LOUD!

johnnyshape wrote:Thanks for that.

Next week on the PRF: how tasty do you want your food?

More like "Next week on the PRF: more cute pictures of animals!" Hide everyone! It's the thread police!

benjaminwayne wrote:do you mean watching / playing live? or listening on stereo etc; there is good loud and bad loud volumes. if a band is good and onto their sounds then good loud. there is nothing worse than an awful band with awful sounds cranking it up. all in all though, i like it SUPER LOUD!

I mean at what volume do you most enjoy your music. I don't always listen to music as loud as I'd like because it would probably involve a visit from the police. Sans headphones I can say this is usually the case. Therefore "because I live with my parents" doesn't justify a volume because it is not your volume of choice. I, personally, most enjoy my music at a speaker-ruining/ear-damaging level. That doesn't mean I can listen to music that way all the time, but when I can, it's perfect.

is tinnitus and/or hearing loss something you develop over time or does it take just one too-loud show or listening session? i'm always playing music (on headphones) as loud as possible before it becomes painful, but i've yet to ruin my hearing. had it tested a couple of years ago too, it was 9 out of 9 apparently. still, i should be more responsible with this.

The answer is 'both'. Tinnitus happens gradually over time anyway, because any and all hearing loss is cumulative and permanent. Most people just don't notice the change as they grow used to it. You can get 'temporary' tinnitus, but that's permanent too, you just stop hearing the ringing sound associated with it.
Going to one loud show, once, is enough to permanently damage your hearing. If you make a habit of it, you're condemning yourself. If you listen to music through headphones at the loudest possible volume, you're damaging your hearing. Loud sounds damage your hearing. It might just take you a few decades to notice.

'medical experts' have warned about this, and assuming that it's not just the media trying to scare us again, that's pretty worrying, as 'medical experts' don't usually worry about your hearing at all as long as you're able to carry out a conversation.
The requirements for having a conversation, and the requirements for music are very different.

Edit: Hey, while this thread is active, how do you folks clean your ears? It's been done here before, but there's no point in bumping a thread that old when we can discuss it here. I recently switched from q-tips to peroxide. I don't feel too comfortable putting bleach in my ears though.

I find a good solid twenty minutes of listening to rock and roll at high volume through iPod earbuds cleans out my ears very nicely.

Take my advice, I'm a doctor.