@arj, it was precisely my point in discriminating between physical damage and mental discomfort. Let me put it as a pair of following questions:
hearingsc.com
That has been my observation as well. It is unfortunate that we live in an increasingly loud environments. Excessive sound can cause hearing damage and the sound pollution can also have a detrimental affect mental health. I wonder if there is a connection with the "Loudness War" in music and the increase in loudness levels.
I understand when it is phrased as "discomfort".
I'm not sure about Mongolia and the impact of low ambient noise on hearing loss, but I have lived over two decades in two Indiancities that have high sound pollution. I listen to soft, meditative music at 40-45dB but also intense electronic music at 75dB. I personally don't find anything to cheer about someone who listens at 85dB or higher, especially for longer duration. Few minutes is okay.
Yeah could be.
Cotton works well for me and was advised by my ENT. As for a trucker blasting his horn well I never get down from my car in traffic and also only visit malls for any shopping. For now my lifestyle and habits are well planned to never expose to dangerous level of sound. But the funny part is I still continue this hobby which is the root cause and is the bigger threat for the ears. Well I almost reached a point of quitting and selling my gears when tinnitus was in its peak. Thankfully I habituated to the sound and it reduced to a level where I can concentrate on other sounds ignoring the Tinitus
Can you please quote the reference for scientific data on this?
Do you listen on IEM or closed back headphones? I wonder how one can even focus on music played at 40-45 dB on speakers when ambient sound levels in cities is seldom below 50 dB (except in a voice-insulated room)! My apartment is in one of the quietest neighbourhoods in my city but still even at late night the lowest volume I play music at is in the 55-65 dB range to be decipherable.
That’s ‘love 4 sound’!
The one sound that irritates me a lot is distorted/clipped bass on PA speakers (mainly due to it being overdriven and/or bad woofer driver). Another irritation is the general tendency to play PA speakers really loud and disturb everything/everyone nearby.
There are number of resources online. Here are a few citations. The common thread is that 85dB is the threshold. There are variations on the exposure time that cause hearing damage.
www.cdc.gov
I was speaking about listening levels from my speakers. I don't know about measuring IEM or headphones. I'm located in a small town and the ambient sound levels are at 35dB during late evenings/night. The room is acoustically treated (but not isolated) to make it discernible in low volumes.
Most would feel a differential of 10 dB between the music and the ambient isn’t sufficient to hear nuances in the music. Also dependent on the gear - to make the musical details discernible at 10dB differential with the ambient a highly resolving gear would be essential, I imagine.
The ambient noise levels in my home is about 27 db. In Bangalore it was about 45 to 55. This makes a huge difference!
And what dB levels do you play your music at? The OP has ambient noise level of 35 at his location and plays certain music at 45dB. Dynamic range of recorded music can be as high as 32 dB. Now, if your listening dB is 45, then some sounds on the music will play even at 30 dB, which is lower than the the ambient level of 35dB. Irrespective of what gear one uses, it will not be easy to discern those sounds (though one can hear them) over the ambient (even though it is quiet, relatively speaking). Unless one is listening passively in the background of course where one doesn’t need to discern.
I play at an average 65 to 72 db. Peaks can higher. This is my optimum level where I feel acoustic instruments and vocals sound like the real thing. If I go higher, it feels like the instruments ( acoustic ones) are amplified which sounds a bit artificial. In a really well treated room, if you play higher you don't really experience that problem although it is louder than life size instruments. It is more entertaining. I don't like playing at average levels of above 80db though unless it for a short bit of time to get a kick out of something.And what dB levels do you play your music at? The OP has ambient noise level of 35 at his location and plays certain music at 45dB. Dynamic range of recorded music can be as high as 32 dB. Now, if your listening dB is 45, then some sounds on the music will play even at 30 dB, which is lower than the the ambient level of 35dB. Irrespective of what gear one uses, it will not be easy to discern those sounds (though one can hear them) over the ambient (even though it is quiet, relatively speaking). Unless one is listening passively in the background of course where one doesn’t need to discern.
Interestingly, EDM has the lowest dynamic range - just about 6 dB.
Source (and also an interesting read on the subject of DNR, loudness and noise):
What Is Dynamic Range, and Why Does it Matter? - Yamaha Music - Blog
In this article, we explore the concept of dynamic range and explain why it is so important to the enjoyment of listening to recorded music.hub.yamaha.com
We have a severe hearing loss which runs in my maternal family. I listen at insane levels, mostly 85 db+. But it is distortion that registers as being loud to the human brain. With absolutely no distortion in my system, even at very high levels, there is absolutely no warning how loud it is, until my wife comes banging on the door
Hahah exactly in my case as well and only when I had Tinitus i realised I am listening at very high levels.
When the noise (music?) pauses or s
When the noise (music?) pauses or stops and we experience a sense of …. relief, and dread that it will start again ? That is a good indicatior I think.
Unfortunately, that's true. We don't realise this until it is too late. Without distortion, a normal individual could go above and beyond safe level. Devices like Apple Watch would be of great help in warning us.We have a severe hearing loss which runs in my maternal family. I listen at insane levels, mostly 85 db+. But it is distortion that registers as being loud to the human brain. With absolutely no distortion in my system, even at very high levels, there is absolutely no warning how loud it is, until my wife comes banging on the door
