[Carl]

If an adult tells a teenage not to do something, what do you think the teenager will proceed to do?


The problem is, there's a lot of "I know better than you, so do as I say you little brat" sentiments flying around. If you want the get a lasting effect, you have to make them want to change their habits, not just tell them to.

To me, as my headphones got better and better over time, my volume levels went the opposite direction. While some of this can be attributed to growing up, I think another part of it was that better headphones showed me I didn't need to be a ball of tinnitus to get a satisfying listening experience. Lesson of the day; if you want you kids to turn it down, buy them a set of really expensive headphones!

 

[Jasper994]

All these "Play it loud" and other similar ads need to go away.

What idiots are behind these ads?!? They should be forced to live by their own slogan so they can be the deaf ones...

 

[Kiwiclx]

After reading the first few lines of your post, Ampl1tude, I turned down the volume on my amp. Not that I was listening to music loudly or anywhere remotely loud, but the thought of ear damage just triggered it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by granodemostasa after spending a week with my IEM's ive come to realize how loud the world is. seriously, whenever i take them off the noise increases 5-10 fold, the subway, the cars, the construction. we live in a noisy world.

I, too, had this observation when I made the transition to IEMs. Just wearing them without any music already works wonders, blocking out the music being played in the weight room, loud fans, people talking, et cetera.

There are volume pot positions I remember not to pass (except on a few albums), measured out at a comfortable volume in a calm environment. This way, whenever I have some adrenaline rush and want to pump up the music a bit more, I keep myself in check with the volume.

Sadly, I believe he deserves what he has coming to him. Defiance on his part will prove nothing and he will certainly suffer from not heeding your warning.

A slight play on some 2Pac lyrics -- Deaf at thirteen 'cause he yearned to (head)bang!

 

[NiceCans]

You cannot protect people from themselves . . . stupidity always wins out,
in some cases even by using ingenius methods to over-ride safegaurds.
If you doubt this read The Darwin Awards

 

[Rock&Roll Ninja]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cire with the type of music they listen to, they don't deserve good hearing. it doesn't bother me that idiots are getting deaf, a new type of evolution.

And people said disgenics had died-out in the 1940's........

Quote:

I know Hi-End receives displays its' output by displaying the dB's. But this hasen't been forwarded onto DAP's. I think DAP's should have a system of displaying these numbers.

If you think the problem is bad now, just you wait until "they" suddenly get proof of just how badass their taste in music becomes. The strong will trample the weak in their quest to get ever higher numbers. 110Db's will become the minimum to be "cool". CDs will become even more poorly mastered with less dynamic range.

As a saftey procaution, a display of SPL will do alot more harm than good.

 

[Zorander]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ampl1tude I've been encountering alot of children lately who are soo ignorent and shallow. One example: Some unfortunate boy's parent brought him to my clinic telling me that their son might have a hearing problem. I first interviewed him and it struck me on how rude and "cool" he was. He tells me he "loves" music and listens to it for awhile. I told him i loved it too and wanted to know how loud he listens to it. (He was using iPod headphones(no muffler) on some no name equipment, listens to top fourty hip-hop songs. He gave me his headphones, blasting FULL VOLUME, (the only thing i heard when i put them on was similar to a static atomic bomb) I told him that it was way too high and that he could(obviously did) damage his hearing if he continued to listen to it like this. Like a "gangsta" he is, he tells me off and that he ain't a sissy and that he's a man so he can handle the "flo" of the "beatzzz" **what the hell?** I asked him why he listened to it soo loud, and he told me he does because everyone else listens to it that way. I checked his ear's afterwards and he has extreme cases of tinnus, and moderate hearing loss. I called him in a couple weeks later after the results were in and told him, and asked him to level his music down and to muffle his ipod headphones (Muffles on them reduces extensive frequency and ultrasonic rebound inside your ear). He told me that the muffles are for sissy's, and that he didn't need them because they make the music sound like ****. He left my clinic without any progression in his issue. Like this case, I have encountered many, many other cases similar to this one. And they are becoming more frequent and scary.

I guess he is under the infamous peer pressure, where most of his friends listen in this fashion (or similarly act stupidly tough in other activities). It is unfortunate, for him, indeed that he is putting a blind eye to the well-being of one of his five senses in favour of the cool image he is 'dreaming' to attain. I don't know how wide-spread this social ailment is, but there are definitely more cases that are less severe but still bad enough. I have a friend who listens on her iPod ridiculously loud she was once asked by a person in the library 5-6 desks away(!) to keep it down. This same (sonic-impaired IMO) person nearly destroyed my HD-650 a few days back (link). The scary thing is, I just know if I live with a large number of people, the likelihood of a repeat performance is almost guaranteed. A lesson on hearing protection (in addition to the same old sex education) should be implemented and the sooner the better.

p.s. did you notify the boy's parents on the results (and if they took any actions)?

 

[Febs]

Quote:

Originally Posted by felixkrull6 In no way though do I want this regulated. Companies should put a warning on their devices, like Headroom and almost all others do and leave it that. People should take responsibility for their own actions. For children under 18 that would be up to their parents.

While warnings certainly wouldn't hurt, I doubt that they would be very effective, especially for teenagers. Just look at cigarettes. They've had warnings for as long as I can remember, and in recent years, those warnings have gotten much more explicit. Yet people still smoke.

 

[markl]

Ampl1tude, did you speak to the kid's parents, I'm sure they'd want to know their child was going deaf, and might be able to have a greater affect on his behavior.

 

[romesaz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carl If an adult tells a teenage not to do something, what do you think the teenager will proceed to do? The problem is, there's a lot of "I know better than you, so do as I say you little brat" sentiments flying around. If you want the get a lasting effect, you have to make them want to change their habits, not just tell them to. To me, as my headphones got better and better over time, my volume levels went the opposite direction. While some of this can be attributed to growing up, I think another part of it was that better headphones showed me I didn't need to be a ball of tinnitus to get a satisfying listening experience. Lesson of the day; if you want you kids to turn it down, buy them a set of really expensive headphones!

I only wish this could be said for everyone. While I don't own anything "HI end" for portable purposes, I do carry DT250s-80s, and a MINT with me on the occasion. I brought the combo into work once for an audition to someone.
Another co-worker was interested in hearing it on his ipod. I left the volume on my MINT at a moderate level. Something that's adequate for me (obviously, not everyone's ears are the same, but it was at bout the 11 o'clock position relative to its 7 o'clock resting position of no volume).
His ipod didnt have a line out obviously, and he had the volume on his ipod fairly high already as could be told be the blaring music coming from his ibuds throughout the whole break-room. He put on my DT250's and proceeded to blast them. Sure, he enjoyed it, but the problem was that it was at such a volume that even I could hear it (they're closed 'phones) AND, i could hear the static that was induced by the bad quality rip/dl of his music. I started to hear for my headphones at that point.
He didnt seem to care for the niceties of music, and the detail. just wanted volume.
I've never brought my equip in there again, for fear of idiots like that.

There also seems to be a huge disrespect from my age-group towards other ppl's possessions as well. When I asked him to turn it down cause the static could be a problem for the headphones, his reply was "Don't worry, these are professional 'studio' headphones, they can handle it".

And while im ranting... I hate how every consumer company is titling their headphones as "Pro Studio" or "Studio Pro" or "DJ 'phones" or s--- like that. I doubt that ANY studio on the face of Earth, uses Sony $30CDN headphones, as a professional monitoring tool.

/rant

 

[PSmith08]

Talk about being a fashion victim.

But, seriously, forks, I am not entirely sure that one can communicate effectively with someone willing to risk permanent damage to their ears for the sake of style. It seems to me that they're on an entirely different wavelength, pardon the pun. Listening to annoying, atonal music at dangerously high volumes simply because the smart set is doing it creates a necessary problem: there is no shared grammar with the kids. I cannot communicate with them because they think I am...well, not cool, to put it tactfully.

I don't want the next fifty years to be the "Deaf Age," but I am not sure that we can avoid such a silent future.

 

[K2Grey]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rock&Roll Ninja If you think the problem is bad now, just you wait until "they" suddenly get proof of just how badass their taste in music becomes. The strong will trample the weak in their quest to get ever higher numbers. 110Db's will become the minimum to be "cool". CDs will become even more poorly mastered with less dynamic range. As a saftey procaution, a display of SPL will do alot more harm than good.

Good, after the initial fallout of deafness, everyone else will hopefully be scared and less people will end up deaf than if this period of high volumes and growing hearing loss was spread over a lengthy period of time.

Btw, only 110db? That's weak... 125db, recreate the SPL of The Who's concerts

 

[felixkrull6]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Febs While warnings certainly wouldn't hurt, I doubt that they would be very effective, especially for teenagers. Just look at cigarettes. They've had warnings for as long as I can remember, and in recent years, those warnings have gotten much more explicit. Yet people still smoke.

I agree that warnings might not cure the problem but I'm not sure that is my goal. My goal is simply to get the information out there, what people do with that information is up to them. I'm against government trying to stop harmful behavior that isn't illegal.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rock&Roll Ninja As a saftey procaution, a display of SPL will do alot more harm than good.

That's a good point. I didn't think about that but I'm still for it because why let a nice tool go to waste because of the ignorance of others?

 

[Tyson]

Yeah, I wonder how cool they will think they are when they have to yell "WHAT"? every time someone tries to talk to them. Or how cool they will look with hearing aids permanently attached to their ears. And it won't be when they are old. Think mid-20's.

 

[saturnine]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyson Yeah, I wonder how cool they will think they are when they have to yell "WHAT"? every time someone tries to talk to them.

Seems to have worked for rapper Lil John

 

[nikongod]

scarry and relivant thread

its kind of sad.

the reality of things is it really dosnt efect us.

the sad thing about this is that any laws passed about this topic (mandatory volume caps) will not actually have any efect on the outcome, which is people deafening themselvs. you can always buy more sensitive earphones, you can always buy an amp.