[SkitZ0]

I honestly think I have a bit of Tinnitus because I've had a permanent ringing in my ear since I was around the age of six.  I turned up my mom's headphones to MAX through a stereo system and put them on my head..........yea, horrible idea.   And now I have a pair of DJ1 and I max-volume my laptop, iPod, and HTC EVO LTE phone, so now I'm wondering if it could get worse or did you listen to your music at RIDICULOUS levels.  My DJ1 only go up to 104dB.

 

[streetdragon]

Really sad to hear this

I have some minor form of tittinus too, when i enter a really quiet room i can hear it quite clearly, i can even approximate it to a mixture of 16khz,4khz, 800hz and 200hz tones....
I do feel pain in my ear when i happened listen to music for too long or too loud, so i take breaks then.

But i'm sure if you listen to headphones at about ambient levels (50-60db maybe?) it would have no more harm than your regular stand/wall fan.

Also disappointed and frightened at how loud a lot of people listen to music at. Even at extreme volumes they would state that it is nothing unusually loud. Their closed headphones leak like madness across the room when they audition gear at the audio shop. I don't even have that problem when auditioning grados...

 

[soundstige]

There is plenty of risk if the listening is uninterrupted for long terms. Even barely-audible whisper quiet music will affect hearing if listened to for 10+ hours.
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Yea come on, just keep the volume low! There is no risk if you do so.

 

[streetdragon]

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There is plenty of risk if the listening is uninterrupted for long terms. Even barely-audible whisper quiet music will affect hearing if listened to for 10+ hours.

But how is low level music different from regular ambient noise such that is causes hearing damage?

 

[214324]

My condolences. 

 

[eujaee]

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In short, I have permanently screwed my hearing. I apparently have a harmless sounding little thing called "Tinitus". Permanent ringing in the ears. That's what I have and according to the Dr. it's what I will have to live with the rest of my life. There is a high pitched hiss in my ears that never stops and I hear "clicking" noises though the day and night. I can't tell you guys how depressing this is and I hope to God it never happens to  any of you. People have committed suicide over this, and I can certainly understand why. It's enough to drive you insane. 
 
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Hey, hang tough.  I know it blows when you first find out, but it's not life ending and you will get used to it.  I can't compare your tinnitus with mine, because obviously I don't know how loud your ringing is, but I've been living with it for 12+ years and I'm still here, still listen to headphones, probably buy stuff that is totally wasted on my screwed up ears.  I'm sure you will adapt as well.  I got mine in the Marine Corps, 360 rounds from an M4 without hearing protection on a day/night live-fire evolution.  Everything sounded like AM radio on low volume for 2 weeks afterwards, which then got better but turned into a loud, constant, high frequency ringing.  Yes, it sucks and I can't hear past 16 kHz and it's kinda annoying when you're trying to sleep, but I still enjoy music and headphones and you will too.  Shoulda kept the gear, doctors be damned.
 
A couple of months back, I cut the nerves on one side of one of my fingers, so no feeling there.  Doctor said it might get better in 6 months or it might not, but that's another new thing I'm getting used to.  Roll with the punches.

 

[sonitus mirus]

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There is plenty of risk if the listening is uninterrupted for long terms. Even barely-audible whisper quiet music will affect hearing if listened to for 10+ hours.

 
When I read the OP's initial post about his doctor's suggestion that he never listen through headphones again, it went against all of the past research I've ever done on the subject.  Thankfully, others have chimed in to counter this claim.  
 
I know there is a correlation between the volume level and time of exposure, but unless the sustained dB level is at or above a set level (usually reported to be somewhere above 80-90dB (a conservative estimate based on my online research), it should not have any impact on your hearing and health.

 

[soundstige]

It's an uninterrupted stream of acoustic energy. Ambient noise like speaking, cars, birds, etc are not uninterrupted. An uninterrupted session of TV, radio, etc will do the same kind of damage if close to the ear.
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But how is low level music different from regular ambient noise such that is causes hearing damage?

 

[sonitus mirus]

How close the source of noise is to your ear has absolutely nothing to do with it.  This information is not right at all.

 

[streetdragon]

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It's an uninterrupted stream of acoustic energy. Ambient noise like speaking, cars, birds, etc are not uninterrupted. An uninterrupted session of TV, radio, etc will do the same kind of damage if close to the ear.

But doesn't that make fan's and air con units just as dangerous then? (okay we are probably talking about different sound levels here, so we are both right in our ways, ac's cant be that loud anyway, but i was actually stating listening to the same levels as an ac unit, but then it won't be really called music at that low degree level right?)

Also probably the doctor doesn't know how loud op listens to music so the easiest answer is to quit headphones altogether. He has probably run into a lot of patients with habits of cranking their headphones to ungodly volumes. It just the same as the stereotypical statement of "headphones are bad for your hearing."

 

[soundstige]

It changes your perception of volume. You're right that 60db on the eardrum from 100 feet away is the same as 60db on the eardrum from 2 inches away, but you are less likely to perceive something nearby as being at the same volume.
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How close the source of noise is to your ear has absolutely nothing to do with it.  This information is not right at all.

 

[soundstige]

Yes, of course it means the same thing. However, fans and AC units are both at lower volumes and generally audible and used for shorter periods of time than the theoretical uninterrupted stream of quiet music for 10+ hours.
 
EDIT: I should also clarify I'm talking about it causing mild hearing damage/loss of frequency perception in general, and not as a cause of tinnitus, which may be confusing some.
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But doesn't that make fan's and air con units just as dangerous then? (okay we are probably talking about different sound levels here, so we are both right in our ways, ac's cant be that loud anyway, but i was actually stating listening to the same levels as an ac unit, but then it won't be really called music at that low degree level right?)

 

[NA Blur]

I just wanted to comment on your hearing.  First let me say that it is always sad to learn that someone is losing or has lost their hearing.  That said, you commented that your hear clicking as well as the high pitched ringing.  Now I am no medical expert, but I have a friend who heard quacking rather than ringing and thought it was tinnitus.  In reality it was found to be a vein that had grown into an artery in their brain which caused a back flow of blood allowing for the audible quacking noise.
 
Rest assured I am not here to scare anyone, but be aware that if you hear more than just simple ringing you may want to at least mention it to your doctor.
 
This was all verified via CT, MRI scans and later a celebral angiogram.
 
To help you cope with the tinnitus, however, there is the miracle of pink noise.  Some doctors claim that listening to pink noise while you get to sleep will not only help mask the ringing, but can develop a helpful brain filter that may lead to your brain ignoring the ringing altogether.  You can read more about that here:
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tinnitus_masker
 
I truly hope you find something that can help you cope and wish you tolerance and patience while science works on a cure.
 
My rule of thumb that has worked so far is to avoid listening to anything above 85dB for more than an hour.  The more bassy the tones are the worse.  I always wear ear protection at concerts and sometimes movies.  Having a stylish set around like the V-Moda Faders is a good way to attenuate harmful volume levels while keeping things somewhat stylish.

 

[streetdragon]

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Yes, of course it means the same thing. However, fans and AC units are both at lower volumes and generally audible and used for shorter periods of time than the theoretical uninterrupted stream of quiet music for 10+ hours.
 
EDIT: I should also clarify I'm talking about it causing mild hearing damage/loss of frequency perception in general, and not as a cause of tinnitus, which may be confusing some.

Yeah forgot that the subject of headphone usage was to be of such a long duration lol (10 hours) 
Was just putting the point that headphones are not anywhere more dangerous than ac units(ambient noise) if they have the same volume and duration as them.
 

 

[kotomikun]

I've had tinnitus for a few years. It's not as bad as it seems, at least for me. I don't really notice it most of the time.
 
That said, it seems to me there are two kinds of tinnitus. One is the "exposure to loud noises" type, which most doctors will assume you have, and usually comes with hearing damage (though it doesn't necessarily get worse, unless you use jackhammers without earmuffs or something).
 
The other is almost not really a disease, because most people probably have it, they just don't notice because their brains tune it out. This is probably what I have, since there seems to be nothing else wrong with my hearing, and I've always obsessively avoided loud noises due to hypersensitivity. My doctor said someone did a study where they put a bunch of people in a silent room for a while...half of them "spontaneously" got tinnitus. So it's not necessarily a horrible thing. But you still shouldn't pump your headphones up to ridiculous volumes.