Why don't MEs go deaf?

T

teddy rockspin

Guest
I was a DJ for a number of years, and already have some minor hearing damage. I can't help but thinking that sitting in front of monitors (using headphones too) for hours at at time is gonna catch up with me eventually.

I guess my question is: does one have to worry about hearing loss when mixing at moderate levels over long periods?
 
dBSPL is one thing - Distortion is another. Just like speakers - A distorted signal will roast your drivers long before their time. But with a good, clean signal, you can run nearly double the power into a set of speakers with no damage at all.

Your hearing is most accurate at 85dBSPL - Arguably, where most of your critical sonic decisions should be made. That's not awfully loud. I think OSHA regs state that you can safely handle around 8 hours daily (although that seems like a bit more than I'd want). *Clean* louder signals don't aren't such a nasty thing to listen to. But overly compressed (and/or poorly mastered :bigeyes: ) music can induce physical hearing fatigue after only several minutes even at very low levels.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
John, you've mentioned that you master at pretty low levels, right? I seem to recall you saying on your site that a client was surprised that you were holding a conversation over the music.
 
Mostly around the "universal" level (85dBSPL). A little more, a little less, but most of the critical decisions are made right around 85.

Louder and quieter are good for "checking" things, but the tonal accuracy of human hearing falls off considerably on either side.

For more, google "Fletcher-Munson Curve"
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Agreed.
The FMC is a good comparative.

I find that if you have the right room and monitoring, you will not need to go beyond this level as the revealing qualities will be more than enough for clinical listening.
 
and you can also dj with the monitor and headphone lower. I'm a dj myself, and the first thing i do when i enter a dj booth is cut the monitor by half. Most dj's work way to loud. It's the crowd that needs loud music, not you.

on a double 250w monitor, i put the volume of the monitors and the headphone on 2 or 3 not at 8 or 9 like most dj's
 
MASSIVE Mastering said:
But overly compressed (and/or poorly mastered :bigeyes: ) music can induce physical hearing fatigue after only several minutes even at very low levels.
Click to expand...

Damn. Not what I wanted to hear :) I'm a definite squasher...

Thanks for the info, though.
 
But overly compressed (and/or poorly mastered ) music can induce physical hearing fatigue after only several minutes even at very low levels.
Click to expand...
Does hearing fatigue mean hearing damage?
 
An SPL meter. The cheapie ones from Radio Shack are fine.

Eventually (actually, very early in the game IMO) you should inherently *know* what 85dBSPL "feels" like within a dB or two.

Once you have that "feel" down, you can equate it to headphone use, but seeing as mixing through headphones doesn't work anyway...


But that's for another thread. I think we've beat that horse to death a dozen times...
 
Yah I noticed that my hearing was damaged considerably from DJing. When I'm at a gig now I try to bring a fellow DJ and switch off at half an hour intervals so that I can go outside and rest my ears. This helps a lot!

Another thing is magnesium supplements. Most people don't get enough magnesium, a mineral that helps the nerves in your ear get adequate bloodflow. I started taking a magnesium supplement and a little over month ago and I've noticed some minor but noticeable improvements in my hearing. I don't have to turn up the music quite as loud as before. I've also heard that Ginkgo is good for the ears as well, but I have never tried it for myself.
 
where in the world do you get magnesium supplements? GNC?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top