[JmanOfIsrael]

Hi all,
 
I am fairly new to the whole hi-fi thing but I believe I have already realized what the most important aspect of being a listener is:
 
Be nice to your ears so they will last you the rest of your life.
 
So my question is how can I do this? How can I listen to my headphones enjoyably while avoiding certain actions that may cause hearing damage (permanent, temporary, early/late onset, chronic, any kind!)? Do I need to limit myself to a certain amount of listening per day? I understand that I shouldn't listen to my headphones "too loud" but sometimes the line between "safe" and "dangerous" is a little faded (what can help me to discern exactly what "too loud" is?). I imagine that my love for music will only grow exponentially as I age which is why I want to be smart about the way I listen as a 21 year-old.
 
This question goes out to all who have any knowledge or experience of what "safe listening" is. I would especially love to hear from the Oldies on this site who have managed to keep their ability to hear since headphones came out (sometime after the stone age I believe...).
 
Thanks to all who respond!
 
Jordan Kemme
 
P.S. Let me know if I should post this in a different forum to get better results.

 

[eucariote]

Head-fier Tyll Hertsens wrote a great article about loud music and the ways that is destroys sound (due to the acoustic refllex), not to mention hearing.  He says that he listens at about 70dB, a range he describes as a 'solid, but not loud, listening level'.

 

[JmanOfIsrael]

Thanks a ton for the link! I'll get reading.

 

[bowei006]

To easily do it.....see if you get tinnitisu as the end of the day. If you don't, you are solid. Don't go over. If you get it. Lower it. Very very crude advice here..very crude and sometimes I can see even faults in my post..but it's a decent general rule.