A Deafening Silence

"Why do you have earplugs in your glovebox?"

I get asked that, a lot, and I'm amazed at how few people use them when they're needed. How come concerts are so f'ing loud these days? Why is the music at a club turned up so high? Its got to be bad when you jam earplugs in and suddenly the music sounds, well, normal. The tones even sound like they should, especially at a concert. Shit, I could even understand what The Nuge was trying to sing!

But few people seem to wear them. How can bartenders, night after night, continue to endure the noise? Even when the sound isn't enjoyable, like working with a wood chipper, etc, people still won't wear 'em. And what happens to all these people on Harleys with the chopped-up exhaust?

I already have a bit of tinnitus (slight ringing in the ears heard in very quiet places, it makes for an unusually noisy silence) and I don't want anymore of it. Anyone else got it? I'm curious to hear from frequent concert-goers that don't wear plugs to find out what it has done to them.

Kitsune wrote:

Anyone else got it? I'm curious to hear from frequent concert-goers that don't wear plugs to find out what it has done to them.

I got tinnitus from a dance I went to. In 6th grade.
Sucks. Now I pretty much have to have a fan or somthing going at night, or I can't sleep. :smack: I should have sued someone.

Yes, I do carry earplugs (in my purse) and have used them as required.
- Pie ("What? Speak up, sonny!")

Yep got ringing. I use ear plugs for all power equipment and pretty much avoid any unbearably loud music venues. We went to a dance club a while back, never again. These dopes are worried about a little cigarette smoke when there is blood coming out of the bartenders ears... weird.

Kitsune wrote:

I'm curious to hear from frequent concert-goers that don't wear plugs to find out what it has done to them.

Eh?? What was that again??

Eh?? What was that again??

This is a message board! If your vision is going bad, you suffer from different bad habits entirely. :p

Interesting. Now that you mention it my onset of puberty and need for corrective lenses do seem to have coincided ...

I don't even remember what quiet sounded like. I find the tinnitus seems to vary with blood pressure, louder as I get more active, but it's more annoying when I'm less active. I try to have something like the radio or TV going but rarely paying attention to them.
I vividly remember being dragged out of line at the Spectrum(Ozzy bit the bat), because they were suspicious of the bulge in my jacket breast pocket.
When they found out they were ear plugs, I was openly ridiculed by the rent-a-cops. "Hey Harry, this guy's got ear plugs, har, har, har." I'd have decked him if I was clean. ;)

I've had that high pitched ringing come and go usually following a long interval of constant high decibels, like at clubs and concerts, but it never stayed more than a few hours. Occasionally it'll appear out of nowhere with no noise to bring it on then fade again in a few minutes and be compeltely gone. Is tinnitus only permanent or can it ebb and flow?

Tinnitus is permanent. Everyone gets a little ringing in their ears on occasion.

Younger people won't consider hearing loss until they experience it, and then it's too late. You can tell them about it, but they won't believe you. If your ears ring after a concert, it means you lost some hearing that night. It may take years before you notice it, but that doesn't mean it's not happening.

I'm 37. I am just beginning to notice very slight hearing loss, and my ears ring more than they used to when I was young. Whenever I go to concerts, clubs, etc. (which is 2-4 times per year) I wear ear plugs. The music actually sounds better, and you still feel it in your gut. I also wear ear plugs when I mow the lawn or use any power tools. I've been very careful for the last 5 years or so. I wish I was careful before then.

When walking around on the sidewalks downtown, there are always emergency vehicles zooming around with their sirens blaring. They are loud enough to cause pain to pedestrians. I used to ignore it and wait the ten seconds or so for them to drive past, but now I stick my fingers in my ears. Nobody else does, except kids. If kids are sticking fingers in their ears, it means it's too damn loud. Everyone else is just trying to be too macho.

A lot of it is just getting to the point of maturity where I don't feel self consious anymore. When I was a teenager, I wouldn't wear bulky coats in the winter time, because they didn't seem "cool." Now I'd rather be warm. I'd also rather be able to hear.

I was wondering if someone here would be able to give me the reference to some good earplugs to wear when studying at home. I want to block out as much sound as possible.
I am currently considering the Sensaphonics ER-20 Earplugs (http://www.sensaphonics.com/er20.html). Do you know any other good, reusable and comfortable earplugs with a higher noise-reduction rate?

Also, what NR rating would you consider to be sufficient for flights, etc?

Thanks!

Good earplugs: Speedo makes some gel silicone earplugs that work great. Target sells them sometimes but just order them online.

I just tried the earplug style referenced in your link - I stuck them in, determined there was no way they would ever work and pitched 'em in the wastebucket - another $8.00± down the drain.

Silicone plugs are the way to go, imho - just don't shove them in too far. Speedo isn't the only brand, either - there's another one more widely available but the silicone is much softer - almost too soft - the Speedo ones are relatively firm which seems to suit me.

The ER-20 part is the hint - those are rebadged Etymotics earplugs, which are very pro and are meant to reduce sound across the whole frequency spectrum, so it still sounds natural. B, you have to insert them FAR into your ear canal in order for them to work properly...

For flights, a few companies have developed noise cancelling technology headphones that clear out the low hum of the engines. Don't have any experience with those, but people rave about them.

Wow...thnx, wasn't sure what that was. I wonder then why my hearing (outside of those rare ringing occurences) is exceptional? Kitsune do you normally hear ok too?

Without a hearing test, I couldn't say if my hearing is normal, but I assume it is, as in day to day activity I'm just fine. I still have a bit of a ring in silent rooms and it is often made worse with alcohol. I think its a blood pressure thing.

Most people suffer from frequency specific hearing loss. If you did an acoustic survey of your home and work place you could probably figure out what frequencies to look for the most loss in.

I was a sonar technician on a fast attack submarine it was a serious concern.

A good place to look for good hearing protection would be a local shooting range if you have one nearby. The people that work there probably take their hearing pretty seriously.

Kitsune wrote:

........often made worse with alcohol..

Switch to weed. Problem solved.

Most shooting earplugs are 26 dB reduction, IIRC. I tend to throw out the backing cards with the safety data on them before I'm out of the store, so I'm not sure. I think I may have seen some up to 30 dB.

I have several sets of plastic ones from various manufacturers. I really don't like the big "headphone" style. They muss my hair too much. ;)

I have a friend who snores something awful, and she's ALWAYS my roomie at conferences, so as a survival tool, I bought some E.A.R.S. These things are awesome in terms of their ability to allow me to sleep nearby a woman who gets complaints from the airport for being too loud.

And you can still hear conversation, fire alarms, and alarm clocks.

Kitsune wrote:

I'm curious to hear from frequent concert-goers that don't wear plugs to find out what it has done to them.

I have been, and do currently go to many a bar concert and regular concerts and haven't had any hearing problems. Only problems i got with my ears are from way back when I had ear tubes and swimmer's ear. Still get ear aches from that every now and then, and F do they hurt.

Though i still run with the "old enough to know better, but young enough not to care" crowd. I'll probly learn my lesson in due time.

Thank you! I'll try to look for some good silicon ones. =)