• Positionspeakers,ampsandloudinstrumentsasfarawayaspossiblefromyourself,yourcrew,yourmusiciansandyouraudiencewithoutcompromisingperformancequality.
• Giveyourearsquietbreaksofatleast15minutesbeforeandafteraliveproduction–Ifyourearsarealreadyfatiguedpriortoaloudproduction,youmayincreasetheriskofhearingdamageanddegradeyourlisteningacuityonthejob.Inversely,findingquietspacetorestyourhearingafteraloudperformancemayaidinyourear’sabilitytorecovermorequickly.
• Communicate–Priortoproduction,establishanunderstandingbetweenperformers,productioncrew,promotersandvenuemanagementonbestwaystomanagedecibellevelsandacceptablelimitsforaudienceandproductionsafety.
Off the Job – Recreational Exposure
Ifyou’vebeenover-exposedonthejob,limityourriskforhearingdamageoffthejob!
• Beextravigilanttolimitoravoidactivitiesandenvironmentswheredecibellevelsexceed85dB.AvarietyofamateursoundmeterphoneappscanprovidebasicdBreadingsthatareadequateforoffthejobuse.
• Wearearplugsorearmuffswithahighnoise-reductionrating(NRR)wheneveryouarearoundloudpowertools,lawnmowers,homeappliances,sportsevents,machinery,andconcertandclubvenues.
• Listentoyourpersonalaudiodeviceatnomorethan60%ofmaximumvolume.Noonenearyoushouldbeabletohearyourdeviceifyouarewearingearbudsorheadphones.
• Investinnoise-cancellationearbudsorheadphones.
Notice a change? Seek Medical Advice
Ifyounoticeachangeinyourhearingability,itisimportanttohaveitcheckedbyalicensedENTorotologist,soitcanbediagnosedandproperlytreated.Therearemanycausesforhearingloss–somearefullytreatable,somecanbeasignofamoreserioushealthissue,whileothers-suchasnoise-inducedhearingloss-canbemanagedthroughphysicianandaudiologistrecommendations.
Assess Your Hearing Abilities
Ifyou’reamusicindustryprofessionalanddependongoodhearingforyourcareer,youshouldhaveyourhearingtestedannuallybyalicensedaudiologist.Theycanassessyourpersonalhearingability,monitorchanges,andhelpaddressyourspecificlisteningandprotectionneedsbothonandoffthejob.
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RESEARCH INSTITUTE
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Hearing Health Facts for
Sound Professionals & Musicians
On the Job
Off the Job
Your Ears -Your Most Valuable Sound Equipment Yourauditorysystemisoneofthemostcomplexsystemsinyourbody.Workinginconcertwithyourbrain,itmanagesbothyourhearingandbalancefunctions.Damagetothisintricateprocesscanproducehearingandbalanceproblems.
How You Hear
Yourouterearcondenses,amplifiesanddirectssoundenergytoyoureardrum,causingittovibrate.Thevibrationthentravelsacrossthreemiddleearbones(knownasthemalleus,incusandstapes)wherethesoundisfurtheramplified.Theovalwindowmembranethentransfersthevibrationintotheinnerear’scochlea,wherethousandsofmicroscopicsensorineural“hair”cellsconverttheenergyintochemical-electricalsignalsandthentransferitontoyourhearingnerve,whichleadstoyourbrain.Onceallthathappens,youcaninterpretthesound.
Excessiveexposuretoloudsoundcancauseirreversibledamagetothesensorineuralhaircellsinsidethecochlea.Ifyourfamilyhasahistoryofhearingloss(includingage-relatedloss),itmayincreaseyourpersonalsusceptibilitytohearingdamagefromnoise.
Effects of Ear Damage from Excessive Sound Exposure
Theresultiscommonlyexperiencedasatemporaryhearinglossor(temporarythresholdshift),whichmaybecomepermanentwithrepeatedexposuresovertime.Recentstudiessuggestthateverysingleoccurrencemayweakenvitalneuralstructuresintheauditorysystem.
Symptoms include
• Degradationoffrequencyresolutionrecognitionandabilitytodiscriminatetonalrichnessandsubtleties
• Distortionoffrequenciesanddecibellevels;soundsseemeithertoosoftortooloudandwhatyouhearisnolongerwhatyouraudiencehears
• Difficultyhearingpeoplespeaktoyouinplaceswithbackgroundnoise-youmayhearthem,butyoucan’tunderstandwhattheyaresaying
• Increasedstressandfatigue
On the Job Exposure – Put Hearing Safety into Your Mix
• Forliveaudienceproductions,mixwithoutheadphones–notonlyforsoundqualitypurposesbutalsotohelpensureamoreaccurateperspectiveofthedecibellevelsofyouraudience’senvironment.
• Ifyouknowyouhavehearingloss,factoritintoyourmix.Avoidturningyourmixconsoleintoyourpersonalamplifier(orhearingaid).
• AvoidmixingatlouddBlevels.• MonitorandmanagelouddBlevelenvironments–Use
thedB(A)weightingtomanageexposuretimestolevelsthatriseabove85dB,particularlyforthe500to8kHz
hearingrange.CoupledB(A)withdB(C)weightingstoassessdBlevelsacross
thebroaderspectrumoflowandhighfrequencies–dB(C)canbemosteffectiveformeasuring
soundpeaksandwhereloudlowfrequenciesmightbedistortingperceptionsofhighfrequencydecibellevels.
• Incertainlivesoundmixsituations,wearingeventhebesthighfidelityhearingprotectioninbothearsmayprovetooinhibitiveformixingaccuracy.Inthosesituations,considercompromisesthatwillstillgiveyousomelimitedhearingprotection-
1. Wearhearingprotectionononeearsoyourotherearisfreeforcriticallistening–toequallyprotectbothears,frequentlyalternatewhichearyouprotectandwhichoneyouexpose.
2. Shortenyourexposuretimetolevelsabove85dBforyourunprotectedear(s)usingtheNIOSHguidelinesforsoundsafety.
3. Wearhearingprotectioninbothearsbetweensetsandevensongs,andimmediatelybeforeandafterperformances.(Crowdnoisebyitselfoftencanreachmorethan105dBinmanyconcertandclubenvironments.)
• On-stagemusiciansshouldwearhighfidelityearplugsorusein-earmonitorssetatsafevolumelevelsforthedurationofperformances.
• Keeppracticesessionsatdecibellevelslowerthanperformancelevelswheneverpossible.
NIOSH Safe Exposure Guide
