Cut-Throat Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 Just got a new Extech Digital SPL meter and thought I would see what levels I was listening at. I have a Max hold button on it to show you the absolute loudest it measured. With my Belles powered by my DRD45s and an entire CD My Listening position - 12 feet from the speakers * Average 75db - peaks at 78-82db - Loudest measured was 86.4db At 1 Meter in front of the speakers * Average 80db - peaks at 86-89db - loudest measured was 97.4db Any louder than this is painful to me. I am finding that on average I usually listen at around 75db. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkBK Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 I find that range to also be most pleasant although I do wander into the low 80's from time to time. It's also much safer for long term hearing preservation to listen in these ranges. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 I know what's causing the pain, but I don't think you would believe if I told you. Willing to do a little experiment for me? Break out the Van Alstine, and repeat. I believe you'll miraculously see your threshold of "pain" increase, and I predict 105db peaks before discernable discomfort. Do this from the listening position -- 12 feet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cut-Throat Posted January 29, 2004 Author Share Posted January 29, 2004 Sorry Dean, Already did this - No difference! If you really are listening at these volumes, you have already suffered hearing loss and that is why you cannot feel any pain. This is not my opinion, but the opinion of medical specialists. You should not be subjecting your ears to 90+ db's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3dzapper Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 Kevin, Can you please speak up? You are talking to a lot of old rock and rollers here. Personally, I like between 80-95 db depending on the choice of music. Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 http://www.gcaudio.com/resources/howtos/loudness.html Stay away from that heavy street traffic then! Seriously, duration of exposure is the biggest determining factor in hearing loss. Doing a CD or record at 95 db for 40 minutes is not really an issue. I've been doing it since High School, and can still hear all the test tones up to 15Khz. I can also still tune the G string on my guitar -- something most of my old bandmates can't even do anymore without a tuner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dale W Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 I can fart at 80 db . These levels are great listening on the jazz , country etc . But do little to envelope my soul in rock 'n roll . Some music is better felt than heard if you know what i mean. 95% of my listening is right in your range, so it's nice to have equipment that funtions well in this range. Then again is even better to have gear that fails to fall apart at 125db as well. Not such an easy task as you might think , i've spent years getting my gear as pure as possible at these levels . I've come to realize after 20 years that 1 system can't do both ( without emptying the bank )so i employ 2 systems just for that reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WMcD Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 I'm glad to read the report. I too find that 80 dB is about what I consider comfortable. Maybe it is having aging ears. But maybe not. Gil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrMcGoo Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 Unfortunately the threshold of pain from loud noises dereases with age. As we age, the threshold where we start hearing increases. When the two meet, hearing aids no longer provide any benefit. Bottom line is take care of what you have. Seventy-five decibels will not do any harm and provides lots of enjoyment. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-MAN Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 I actually have no idea as to the level I normally listen to except for the wattage meters on the amp, which are probable wildly inaccurate (McIntosh MC300). Normally, I listen to 1/3 of a watt on each channel according to the meters. I can handle peaks of 3 watts if they are only peaks. To show off I turn it up to 10 watts, but only for less than 30 seconds or so. I'm not THAT old that I don't rock out, but JET ENGINE volume is downright painful... take it easy dude, or you'll hurt yourself permanently! DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoggy Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 Most of the time I listen at 3.5 watts peak. Sometime when it's a special song or I want to feel like at a concert I push it up to 35 watts peak. This with my McIntosh MC352 according to it's meters at hold. In the early days of listening I was always just barely clipping my 150 watt Tandberg (clip lights barely blinking) which according to all studies I should be deaf by now. Of course I'm a sheet metal worker in a shop that's mostly over 90 bds anyway. We get hearing test once a year. I have some hearing lose but am considered to still have good hearing for my age. In the 5 years at this shop my hearing tests have showed no change. So I'm not totally convinced of the hearing loss due to ludness but believe it's the TYPE of lound noises we hear that cause the damage. Of course the sciencetific findings say I'll full of ------ hoggy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoggy Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 BTW Dman. Mac meters are suppose to be fairly accurate. hoggy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 CT, My preferred levels are about the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phredd42 Posted January 30, 2004 Share Posted January 30, 2004 Holy Cow, you call 82db listening? Geez. Gutsta be at least 95 or better. 100db is good. lol Fred p.s. just got a clean bill of health from my hearing test too, couldn't believe it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piranha Posted January 30, 2004 Share Posted January 30, 2004 I guess I am a lost cause after routinely standing under F-4, F-15, F-106, and F16's on the trim pad while in the USAF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrWho Posted January 30, 2004 Share Posted January 30, 2004 when everyone is out of the house and i've sat down dedicating myself to just listening (no tweaking), it's gotta average at least above 100db for at least 4 or 5 songs. It's not music if you can't feel it! But then i usually turn it down to around 60db after my ears start fatiguing. As far as hearing loss goes, I can still hear dog whistles, so I think that's a good sign. I'm not sure of any scientific significance, but I've found that loud SPLs hurt less when you're relaxed and "absorb" the sound. When running around mixing live gigs, I've measured acoustic drums to be as loud as 120-125db at times without amplification...in the meantime I'm running around moving mics and listening to monitors (which adds to the overall volume). Whenever I'm tense, stressed, or physically exhausted, I find myself walking off the stage with nasty ringing hurting ears. But if I take a sip of water, take my time and relax while I do my thing, then I find myself experiencing no discomfort at all. Dunno if it's psychological, but it seems to work in every situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triceratops Posted January 30, 2004 Share Posted January 30, 2004 Dr. Who's intuition is right on the money according to medical studies. When I was in college in the 1970's I did a paper on "Noise-induced Hearing Loss" for a course in acoustics at the Physics dept of Temple University. Read a lot of journals on Oto-Rhino-Laryngology (ear-nose-and throat for non-latin speakers). What follows is all from memory (the paper is long gone) so please don't bust my chops if I get some details wrong. In the studies researchers noted that some types of environmental noise like subway trains, jack-hammers, airplanes, etc. caused hearing damage that actually tore off pieces of the tissue that support the sensory hairs inside the cochlea, where hearing is perceived. That was as expected, and the degree of trauma was proportional to hearing loss. What puzzled the researchers was that some people where subjected to louder sounds without damage, or with considerably less damage than expected at very loud rock concerts. They eventually corroborated these findings on many subjects, and were convinced that loud music caused less pain and less damage than loud noise. The question was why? The theory goes like this: the stapes are a series of small bones that connect the eardum to the cochlea. These bones are descriptively named the anvil, hammer, and stirrup. These bones have small muscles that keep them in connected with each other and with the eardrum and cochlea. When we hear a loud or unpleasant sound we reflexively tighten these muscles. This increases the conduction of vibration through the stapes because now they are more tightly connected. Better conduction with loud noises causes more damage. What is the purpose of this mechanism? Presumably it was developed to increase hearing acuity in times of stress--listening for a predator, stalking prey, avoiding an enemy, etc. This is why rock music doesn't always cause similar damage at higher levels. The listener is enjoying the loud music, and is not stressed by it so the muscles on the stapes are looser, and less efficient at passing on damaging vibrations. So you can imagine, if you hate loud rock music it probably will damage your hearing with the same efficiency as a jack-hammer. Also if you are exposed to unexpected loud noises in your environment and you're not wearing hearing protection, you'll be less likely to have damage if you just relax (and cover your ears if possible!) Finally, be alert for the sensation of hearing damage--a ticklish sensation in the inner ear which means the sensory hairs in the cochlea are being shredded. Move away quickly. If you think it is too loud it really is too loud--regardless of what the meter says. Dean--I never could keep a plain G in tune, even before I trashed my ears! Best in horns, triceratops Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted January 30, 2004 Share Posted January 30, 2004 Roughly similar levels here too, although it does depend largely on the music. Rock I tend to listen to louder (which is another reason why all my night-time listening is classical). Even with Rock I almost never break through 100 dB at my listening position (peak) which is typically 85-95 continuous, again depending on the music. The most I have recorded with my current speakers was with DSOTM at 1 meter with a peak of 109 dB - but that was just when I was playing with the new Radio shack. I am told by Tony that the system goes a lot louder than that (he stayed at my house for a week whilst I was away). Frankly - I dont want to know what levels he was listening to. Fortunately for my neighbours the house seems very well sound proofed - at least no-one complained... My washing machine, on the other hand - is starting to approach the mid 90's on its own - worrying!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted January 30, 2004 Share Posted January 30, 2004 Triceratops -- that's some pretty interesting stuff. I also read once that people routinely exposed to loud "things", have more wax imbedded around those sensitive parts in the inner ear that affords them a level of protection that most others don't possess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randy Bey Posted January 30, 2004 Share Posted January 30, 2004 Kevin, this is in line with what I measured myself using a borrowed crummy analog Rat Shack meter. 80dB is PLENTY loud. But it didn't represent peaks for beans, so I don't know if there were (very) short periods of higher level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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