[Kunlun]

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Synopsis:
Sensaphonics dB Check is an important hearing preservation device. Connecting between your iems and your amp or source, it can tell you, in real time, exactly how loudly you are listening to your music with your gear. The dB Check then gives you safe listening times for that volume. It’s portable and has a mic for measuring ambient noise levels in a room or space as well. The main drawback is that it only works with Shure and Sensaphonics in-ear monitors.

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Please note this review is from a loaned sample of the dB Check which I then returned to Sensaphonics.

Introduction:
Dr. Michael Santucci, the founder of Sensaphonics, is an audiologist who’s serious about hearing preservation. His custom in-ear monitors, like the excellent Sensaphonics 3MAX I had a chance to review, are as much hearing protection devices as they are great earphones and stage monitors. That’s why he uses the superior isolation and comfort of silicone for his ciems—protecting your hearing so you can enjoy your music for your whole life is in every part of the design.
 
In working with his pro-musician clients, Dr. Santucci started measuring just how loudly the pros were dialing up their music on stage. The whole idea with using ciems as stage monitors is that the musicians can hear themselves and their music at a lower, safer level. This is due to the isolation the ciem provides and because you no longer need an external set of speakers playing back at the musicians adding even more noise. However, Dr. Santucci found that people were dialing up their ciems to the loud volume they were used to hearing before they went to in-ear monitors. So, there had to be a way to help them see exactly what volume was going through their earphones with the music they were playing. The dB Check is the result and it is a very useful tool for seeing exactly how loud you are playing the specific music you play or listen to.
 
 
 
What it looks like:

 
The dB Check is very small and very portable. It’s about 3¼ in. by 2in and ½ in. thick.
 
What it costs:
It's $300.
 
 
How to use it:
The dB Check goes between your iem (Shure or Sensaphonics iems only, for now) and whatsoever source or amp/source you use.
Once it’s on and set to iem mode, you just choose the Shure/Sensaphonics iems model you have, and then set the amount of time you want it to measure for.
Now you can play any kind of music you like at whatever volume level you like. After the amount of time you’ve set has arrived, the dB Check tells you the following:
 
1)The average volume in decibles (dB) you’ve been listening to your music.
 
2)The safe listening time, in minutes, for your volume by the newer NIOSH hearing preservation standards. That’s the number before the “n”.
 
3)The safe listening time, in minutes, for your volume by the older OSHA standards. That’s the number before the “o”.
 
The newer NIOSH standards give shorter safe listening times, so if you want to be safe, stick to those.
 
Just a small reduction in volume can lead to a surprising reduction in the chance of hearing damage.
 
Every 3 db you reduce your listening volume doubles the safe amount of time you can listen.
 
 

When I decided to play my music at what I would consider to be "really quite loud", but which will be normal listening for a lot of folks, I was at 98dB, which is only safe for 24minutes by the NIOSH scale.
 
The dB Check doesn’t get in the way of your music as you listen. I do find there’s a bit of added hiss, but remember, it’s not that you would use the dB Check every time you listen to music. Rather, it’s a key part of training your ear to listen at a safer level. For different types of music, or from different amps and sources, you will want to go back and check again.
 
 
You can also set the dB Check as a straight-up ambient volume level meter to see how loud you are listening or playing in a room with speakers, etc.  
 
 
Personally, I found that I was listening louder than I thought and it was a key player in my move to slightly lower, much safer, listening levels.
 
 
Conclusion:
The dB Check is a really important hearing preservation tool. If you want to be able to enjoy your music for years to come, then you need to protect your hearing. For now, there’s nothing better for that than the dB Check. It’s worth every penny and I highly recommend it. I just hope that in the future more audio companies will step forward and work with Sensaphonics to put their iems on it, too.

 

[Kunlun]

Reserved, made a few edits.

 

[JackKontney]

Nice! Excellent review, Kunlun.
 
Bottom line: most of us (myself included) like our music loud, so the smart long-term view is to learn how to enjoy the volume we like in a sustainable way.
 
The dB Check (patented) is the only tool that offers fact-based knowledge of exactly how to do that.
For more information: http://www.sensaphonics.com/?p=351

 

[project86]

Awesome!
 
The only thing I could think of to make this thing apply more universally would be to have it be compatible with a wider variety of IEMs. But that seems really difficult to do - even if they made adjustable settings for impedance and sensitivity, it wouldn't account for variations that most IEMs have (including wild impedance swings and unit to unit variability). So the only reliable way to accomplish it would be to have a set (or several) of each IEM in house to test with. I doubt that's something Sensaphonics would want to do. 

 

[famas48]

lol 300$

 

[project86]

Quote:

lol 300$

 
Yep, it sure is expensive compared to similar devices.
 
 
 
Wait a second - there are no other devices like this on the market. 

 

[HolyCheese]

Quote:

 
Yep, it sure is expensive compared to similar devices.
 
 
 
Wait a second - there are no other devices like this on the market. 

http://www.head-fi.org/t/536499/sp-100-sound-pressure-level-meter-for-earphones-and-iems
1/6th of the price and usable with every iem there is. Ofcourse this is a completely different design then the above mentioned db meter but to me it seems more functional. I would really like one of those but I can't seem to find it anywhere..

 

[Kunlun]

http://www.head-fi.org/t/536499/sp-100-sound-pressure-level-meter-for-earphones-and-iems
1/6th of the price and usable with every iem there is. Ofcourse this is a completely different design then the above mentioned db meter but to me it seems more functional. I would really like one of those but I can't seem to find it anywhere..

1) It's vaporware, so you're trying to compare the dB Check with a product that doesn't exist.

2) The dB Check gives highly accurate measures of sound pressure levels as you listen in real time, not only in the moment, but as an average over a given track, playlist or concert. It's a huge step up from anything else.

Sure, some people think Apple earbuds are the pinnacle of sound and can't believe anyone would pay more to get something engineered better for better results. People who don't want a professional hearing preservation tool are the same way-but, let's be clear, you'll get less if you go with something less (and you may not even find something real, as we've seen here).

 

[project86]

Quote:

http://www.head-fi.org/t/536499/sp-100-sound-pressure-level-meter-for-earphones-and-iems
1/6th of the price and usable with every iem there is. Ofcourse this is a completely different design then the above mentioned db meter but to me it seems more functional. I would really like one of those but I can't seem to find it anywhere..

 
I remember that. As far as I know, that product was never actually got released to the public. They had review samples go out which seemed to have retail packaging, but they never opened their website for orders or made them available on Amazon as promised. In mid 2011, Harman purchased the company, and it looks like all they sell now is volume limited headphones aimed at kids. 
 
So I repeat my original statement - nothing like the dB Check available on the market. 

 

[HolyCheese]

Quote:

1) It's vaporware, so you're trying to compare the dB Check with a product that doesn't exist.

2) The dB Check gives highly accurate measures of sound pressure levels as you listen in real time, not only in the moment, but as an average over a given track, playlist or concert. It's a huge step up from anything else.

Sure, some people think Apple earbuds are the pinnacle of sound and can't believe anyone would pay more to get something engineered better for better results. People who don't want a professional hearing preservation tool are the same way-but, let's be clear, you'll get less if you go with something less (and you may not even find something real, as we've seen here).

Yes you're right there. Someway the dB check is in a much more superior but the fact that it can only be used with a few IEM's makes it a useless product for me. I'm looking for a smiiliar product myself since I care alot about hearing preservation but i'd never buy the dB check. I can't use it... I do agree that it's ability to give an average SPL is very good, but the same can be achieved when you unplug your earphones after a listening session and play 5 minutes in a more universal device with the same features as the dB check. 
 
It's something sensaphonics or other companies could think about. Or either use some kind of calibration tool for your own earphones. 
 
 

 
I remember that. As far as I know, that product was never actually got released to the public. They had review samples go out which seemed to have retail packaging, but they never opened their website for orders or made them available on Amazon as promised. In mid 2011, Harman purchased the company, and it looks like all they sell now is volume limited headphones aimed at kids. 
 
So I repeat my original statement - nothing like the dB Check available on the market. 

That's true, I couldn't find any more info on that device myself. It's a shame really.

 

[project86]

Agreed on both counts. If this $50 thing was available and worked to any reasonable degree, they'd sell a ton of them. 

 

[JackKontney]

Quote:

Yes you're right there. Someway the dB check is in a way much more superior but the fact that it can only be used with a few IEM's makes it a useless product for me. I'm looking for a smiliar product myself since I care alot for hearing preservation but i'd never buy the dB check. I can't use it... I do agree that it's ability to give an average is very good, but the same can be achieved when you unplug your earphones after a listening session and play 5 minutes in a more universal device with the features as the dB check. 
 
It's something sensaphonics or other companies could think about. Or either use some kind of calibration tool for your own earphones.

 
Developing a product that measures in-ear SPL with earphones in place is not trivial; it should be noted that the dB Check has earned a U.S. patent.
 
Sensaphonics is run by Dr. Michael Santucci, an audiologist who has made it his life's work to save the hearing of musicians, using evidence-based science to develop outstanding audio products with hearing conservation as part of the design criteria. Our earphones are custom-only, with all-silicone earpieces. That provides superior fit and maximum isolation, which lowers the noise floor, enabling high impact monitoring at lower actual volume levels. The dB Check was developed as a tool to help our customers learn how loud they are actually listening, even with earphones inserted. It was not designed as a universal device. 
 
The important thing is to be aware of how loud you are listening, and to adjust volume appropriately, preferably in accordance with NIOSH standards. That will give you the best chance at continued enjoyment of music throughout your lifetime.

 

[truckdriver]

I have no idea how accurate the SPL programs for cellphones are that measure ambient noise levels. It seems (to a know-nothing who drives a truck) that a software developer could write a program for popular formats (like iOS and Android) where you press your earpiece tip to the tiny microphone on the cellphone and take a rough measurement (at least giving you an estimation).

 

[HolyCheese]

Quote:

 
Developing a product that measures in-ear SPL with earphones in place is not trivial; it should be noted that the dB Check has earned a U.S. patent.
 
Sensaphonics is run by Dr. Michael Santucci, an audiologist who has made it his life's work to save the hearing of musicians, using evidence-based science to develop outstanding audio products with hearing conservation as part of the design criteria. Our earphones are custom-only, with all-silicone earpieces. That provides superior fit and maximum isolation, which lowers the noise floor, enabling high impact monitoring at lower actual volume levels. The dB Check was developed as a tool to help our customers learn how loud they are actually listening, even with earphones inserted. It was not designed as a universal device. 
 
The important thing is to be aware of how loud you are listening, and to adjust volume appropriately, preferably in accordance with NIOSH standards. That will give you the best chance at continued enjoyment of music throughout your lifetime.

I didn't look at it that way. It is indeed a very good thing for performing artists to be able to actively monitor their volume levels. That's a nice feature.
 
 
I do have a suggestion for making this product more usefull for people like me (and perhaps most people on head-fi). If you'd get some agreement with, let's say, Tyll from Innerfidelty and let him measure alot of headphones spl levels as a part of his standard review process. Then there'd be alot more headphones and iems compatible with this device.

 

[JackKontney]

Quote:

I have no idea how accurate the SPL programs for cellphones are that measure ambient noise levels. It seems (to a know-nothing who drives a truck) that a software developer could write a program for popular formats (like iOS and Android) where you press your earpiece tip to the tiny microphone on the cellphone and take a rough measurement (at least giving you an estimation).

 
Would that it were so simple! But it's not.
 
Ambient, open-air level measurements are pretty easy. In-ear, not so much.
 
I could offer some knowledge of the difficulties involved, but I'm not a scientist or engineer, and don't want to get out of my depth. It's easier and more accurate to note that -- considering all the media hype about kids and portable audio devices -- if this problem were trivial, it would have been addressed by now, either by Apple or another cell phone maker, by another IEM manufacturer, or by an app developer.