Ear Popping

[dux]

In all the talk about hearing loss and tinnitus today, no one has mentioned ear popping. So hear goes... *tomato splat*

I think my old headphones (Sony MDP-Q33's and iPod earbuds) at high volumes caused my ears to pop more often. Now with my E4's, they pop less often and with less "magnitude" - has anyone else experienced ear popping due ostensibly to headphones (i.e., not due to altitude-related pressure changes)?

Before my iPod days, the only ear popping I remember was in a plane at landing/takeoff or driving along a steep road.

 

[gsferrari]

Be very careful and use headphones for not more than 1 - 1.5 hours a day. I recommend finding the lowet volume you can listen to and then turning it down a bit more from there - trust me...over time you will get used to this listening level AND save your ears...

My ears on the other hand...

I expect to be completely deaf in 20 years...if I am lucky

 

[discord]

Ear POPPING?

 

[n00b]

I've never even heard nor heard OF any ear popping before.

 

[3DCadman]

Are you talking about that "crackling" sound you get when you yawn or swallow?

I always thought that was from earwax. When I clean them ,it stops.

The only time I ever heard popping was if my ears were plugged with a cold.

Ear popping sounds painful!

 

[kukrisna]

i think it has to do with some nerve around or in your ear - i dont recall

but for me - descent on an airplane is hell - literally feels like my head is going to explode - though i've never had popping with headphones/IEMs

 

[dux]

To clear things up: what I mean by "ear popping" is that pressure adjustment sensation that happens particularly during a descent or ascent in a plane. One can manually induce it by pinching your nostrils closed and trying to exhale through them (not through the mouth) if there's enough of a pressure difference. It is not painful, though the pressure differential, particularly in an airplane, can be annoying.

 

[dux]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 3DCadman Are you talking about that "crackling" sound you get when you yawn or swallow? I always thought that was from earwax. When I clean them ,it stops.

Nope. Not that. But I agree, the crackling is caused by wax methinks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by 3DCadman Ear popping sounds painful!

Nope... not the kind I'm talking about. No pins or explosions involved.

 

[Max Minimum]

Mine make popping or clicking sounds a little bit when there is some wax build-up, especially in planes when yawning or swallowing. That's always been the case for me. I don't think my headphone use has affected it.

 

[manoftranquility]

Well, I always thought it was just me, but I guess not. Ever since a plane trip I took 2 years ago it seems like the pressure has never equalized in my ears. Most of the time I'm fine but when I think about it, it can annoy me to no end for several hours straight.

Its become a habit of mine to open my jaw in order to open my eustachian tube and equalize the pressure (several times a minute) and I'm sure it looked weird. But lately it seems I've gained some controll over the muscles that open the tube and equalize the pressure without doing the weird jaw twitch.

I've meant to go get it looked at, as it doesn't exactly seem normal. It is annoying as crap but its not harmed too much so far.

As for headphones aggravating it . . . not that I have noticed.

 

[vetter]

I had tubes in my ears as a kid and because the holes in my eardrums never healed and actually expanded, I had to have my eardrums reconstructed. Each eardrum was reconstructed because i was missing over 1/3 of tissue in each ear. Since then my ears have never ever popped (planes, high alt, etc)..maybe cause i still have a small pinhole in each eardrum. I cant remember if my ears still popped when i had tubes.

 

[Steve999]

I suspect you are clenching your teeth while listening at excessive volumes, which I believe can indeed cause more ear popping, as well as sore teeth, neck spasms, a painful jaw, etc.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dux In all the talk about hearing loss and tinnitus today, no one has mentioned ear popping. So hear goes... *tomato splat* I think my old headphones (Sony MDP-Q33's and iPod earbuds) at high volumes caused my ears to pop more often. Now with my E4's, they pop less often and with less "magnitude" - has anyone else experienced ear popping due ostensibly to headphones (i.e., not due to altitude-related pressure changes)? Before my iPod days, the only ear popping I remember was in a plane at landing/takeoff or driving along a steep road.

 

[discord]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dux To clear things up: what I mean by "ear popping" is that pressure adjustment sensation that happens particularly during a descent or ascent in a plane. One can manually induce it by pinching your nostrils closed and trying to exhale through them (not through the mouth) if there's enough of a pressure difference. It is not painful, though the pressure differential, particularly in an airplane, can be annoying.

Oh...thanks for clearing that up. I don't think i've ever experienced such a thing, but I did try it out with what you said and it was like having a bubble in each ear or something.

 

[dux]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve999 I suspect you are clenching your teeth while listening at excessive volumes, which I believe can indeed cause more ear popping, as well as sore teeth, neck spasms, a painful jaw, etc.

I *have* noticed that! [just the teeth-clenching] Ever since I got my E4's (mid-December 2k5) I have caught myself many times clenching my teeth inadvertently. I think this habit may have been formed as I got used to the ways body movements/positions affect the sound quality of IEM's. But it's not conscious, and now that I have mastered getting a good seal, it's not terribly relevant.

The weird thing is that with the E4's I listen at increasingly lower volumes than with my old headphones (Sony MDR-Q33's). My iPod's rarely over a quarter of full volume. Usually it's at one-eighth of full volume. And today I have been listening to a streaming radio station on my powerbook all day at 1/16th of full volume (though admittedly that station is a bit loud).

 

[dux]

Quote:

Originally Posted by discord Oh...thanks for clearing that up. I don't think i've ever experienced such a thing, but I did try it out with with what you said and it was like having a bubble in each ear or something.

Yup - well put! Why didn't I think of that?