Earbuds and a noisy car window down can do that, just for a point of easy comparison.
You should take a look at your EQ profile too. If you've got the lows and highs boosted up, that decimal number actually goes down, because you are driving those pretty hard, relative to the otherwise closer to flat sound.
Finally, you cannot always trust the warning on say a Samsung phone. It all depends on the encode, and its relative volume When that all reaches your ears. It is better than nothing though.
I have a little minor league loss on my drivers ear side. Many years driving with the window down. It all adds up.
Finally, I think there's a lot of damage being done by cheap earbuds. An awful lot of the cheap ones have really bad notches and peaks. People will turn them up to get all of the sound, and those sharp peaks can be 10DB or greater above the norm. It's just carving a hole in your ears. Get good earbuds. You can run them at a lower volume, and they sound better.
Wow, had no idea. Just looked it up and it's indeed correct. I had been going off the 85 db standard, which:
1. Is only for work exposure, assuming quiet elsewhere 2. Will nonetheless cause hearing loss in 8% of people when at workplace levels over a lifetime of work.
https://www.quietcommunities.org/noise-level-hearing-loss-pr...
Glad you looked it up. IMHO, people should be better informed on this.
A walk around with a sound meter app is very enlightening.
Am excited for ios 13, as it will bring noise detection to all apple watch and headphones. I think this will lead to more noise complaints in chronically loud environments, esp by workers.
For headphones, a decent test is seeing whether you can still hear yourself talk.
Portables on a keychain are a great idea!
Iirc I selected them based on:
1. Reviews were decent
2. At least one person on hn had mentioned them
3. The carrying case is ultra compact
One plastic thing on the case broke, but it still functions. I like that they're clear, a bit harder to see.
For planes though I use the generic orange ones. I keep some in my travel bag at all times. The keychain ones are for unplanned situations I can't avoid.
Though your 70 db link has got me wondering even about subways and trains. Is a two hour journey at ~85 db worth worrying about? I had assumed it wasn't based on osha.
I'd use over ear headphones but it isn't clear to me how much they dampen, apart from the nrr rated industrial ones.
Over 20 years it just happens. I noticed one day when listening to some signals. Levels, at some frequencies were different.
Again, minor league. But, due to a few decades driving window down, it all did add up to a little something.
Overall in my life, apart from that window business, I have taken good care. The highs are rolling off some now. Normal.
Discrimination is still really good. But, I can now tell left ear from right.
Thanks for the tip. I will have to get a set.
So, you have to decide what is worth what.
At my peak, I could hear well through 22khz.
Today, I still hear very well, but range has dropped. 17khz or so.
I do not care much.
Discrimination, sensitivity related to things under 12khz is where all the good stuff is. Mostly normal aging. I have no worries. I can still often tell you who made a vintage watch by the sounds it makes.
Music is still great!
With a ton of work, I could have preserved more sensitivity, and a bit of range. But I have lived well too.
You must evaluate these things and act or not, now.
Hopefully, you have no worries aging up too.
I highly recommend them!
I have a buddy that got some Etymotics and he's really happy with them.
Make sure you get a good carrying case for them. I dropped mine when I first got them and had to send them in for repairs. Now I keep them in a pelican case and haven't had any problems.
Oh and DO NOT buy the DIY ear mold kits - go to an audiologist and have them do it. It's not worth messing up your ears.
> I went with https://pro.ultimateears.com/home and have been really happy with them.
You can mitigate this by reducing the decibel level. One excellent way of doing this is by blocking out the external sound, so you can listen to the sound you want at a lower level.
The easiest way to do that is to use in-ear monitors, IEMs, headphones that go quite deeply into your ears. Using Comply foam tips or silicone triple-flange tips can reduce the outside noise 25-35dB.
Alternatively, you can use ear defenders on top of nearly any earphone in existence.