AstralStorm
500+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Apr 5, 2011
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About the only way noise cancellation could cause hearing damage is if it caused consistent static pressure in the ear cup. The effects of prolonged exposure to static pressures are not completely researched. If you can detect a weird "pressure" effect, then you might be subject to it. The sensation is somewhat like sticking fingers in your ears or, say, travelling down from stay in the mountains. Such overpressure is also sometimes present in poorly designed in-ear monitors.
"High" frequency interference caused by imperfect cancellation is low intensity, so if anything, your hearing should be protected instead.
The high frequencies produced are mostly harmonics of the cancelled waveform.
We're talking -40 dB or less of generated harmonics. Might as well argue that any sound reproduction equipment will cause hearing damage as opposed to listening to live music. (Talking about Bose QC25 here, not anything cheaper and/or worse.)
That said, some poor quality noise cancellation systems may actually generate audible annoying distortion - or the driver's frequency response itself might be poor enough that you get high frequency boost, resonances, other annoying and fatiguing qualities.
I risk annoying some people, but most of the noise cancelling headphones are actually mediocre or poor quality, easily heard in passive mode.
"High" frequency interference caused by imperfect cancellation is low intensity, so if anything, your hearing should be protected instead.
The high frequencies produced are mostly harmonics of the cancelled waveform.
We're talking -40 dB or less of generated harmonics. Might as well argue that any sound reproduction equipment will cause hearing damage as opposed to listening to live music. (Talking about Bose QC25 here, not anything cheaper and/or worse.)
That said, some poor quality noise cancellation systems may actually generate audible annoying distortion - or the driver's frequency response itself might be poor enough that you get high frequency boost, resonances, other annoying and fatiguing qualities.
I risk annoying some people, but most of the noise cancelling headphones are actually mediocre or poor quality, easily heard in passive mode.