Custom Hearing Protectors

Ray

Just browzing around on Mucradar and I came across a review of ACS ER Custom Hearing Protectors. Sort of hi-tech earplugs. Anyone use something like this at rehearsals or gigs?

deanBailey

You can get a pair of custom ear plugs that fit your earfor 500 bucks at your local ENT I believe, I've been meaning to get 'em but I'm a big procrastinator.

Keira-WitherKay

yes i have used them.... and had my ENT make em custom when i was playing the concert scene where each show was way too loud.....

they great cos they build filters into em so you don't feel like you sticking your fingers in your ears but just that someone turned down the volume by 40 % ....and believe me if one pops out when you in middle of a show and you'll see the huge difference ...

if you playing loud music i highly reccommend it .....

i'm a hint older i guess than most of you but i suffer from tinnitus (thankfully mild) by being in loud rock bands in my 20's and before i got wise and got the plugs ...but only after a visit to my ENT to complain about the ringing that was staying longer and longer after each show...(thats the tinitus) thankfully i caught it in time and have only minor damage.... and now doing acoustic gigs...i don't need em...and thankfully have my hearing to appreciate the acoustic nuances .....

so protect your ears....

peace and light
Keira

doc-phil

Keira WitherKay wrote i'm a hint older i guess than most of you but i suffer from tinnitus (thankfully mild) by being in loud rock bands in my 20's and before i got wise and got the plugs

I'm 19 and I have tinnitus in my left ear!! >☹ I literally got it in a single night... I stood too close to the wall of speakers at the Underoath concert last year... its so annoying, I've damaged one of my most important assets!

Is it possible to reduce the ringing? Cos i have browsed the internet and there seem to be various herbal cures but I'm reluctant to purchase any cos most seem like scams to me.

I need some of them earplugs, my friends laugh at me when I wear earplugs to clubs and gigs now, but i'l be laughing when i stil have (some) of my hearing when I'm 90!

Gearhead

It's just that none of your friends will hear you laughing :'(

Ray

I dont know if the damage is reversible. I have a bit of this affliction as well. Not that bad at all but it is irritating. My original post above was more of a probe. I am more than a hint older than they who believe that they are a hint older and have had this thing for years. So, all you okes and okesses who play or listen to serious load stuff or spend lots of time on a shooting range or have spouses who have spouses wot admonish in upper dB range, get something to prevent the problem, or at least to arrest the development. And dont worry about you tjommies laughing at you. They are the okes who laugh because you wear briefs instead of boxers as well.

doc-phil

Gearhead wrote It's just that none of your friends will hear you laughing :'(

Haha, well they'll be able to see my facial expressions at least. ?

Riaan

I first became aware the issue of hearing loss among musicians when I got an iPod. At first I was disappointed that it didn't seem to go loud enough to my taste, and I tended to listen to it at almost full volume - using the crappy earphones supplied with the iPod. I read up a bit and eventually bought myself a set of Westone UM 2 in-ear phones...all of a sudden I heard every single sound, at more than adequate volume, at half the volume settings I previously used.
The Westones were not cheap, around $350 USD, but worth every cent. I listen to music when I mow the lawn, hear the music perfectly and hardly hear the lawnmower...bliss, as I also don't hear the rest of the family, neighbours wanting to chat, etc... ?

But the point is, I would reckon it's wise to invest in the best quality audio equipment and hearing protective gear that you can. Inferior equipment makes you turn up the volume to hear better, which leads to hearing damage.

As far as live performing is concerned, which I don't have any experience with, I reckon hearing loss is an occupational hazard which musicians should protect themselves against, the same way other professions do - such as vets going for rabies shots, surgeons getting hepatitis B shots and wear protective glasses, etc.

Eric Clapton says at the end of his autobiography that a career in rock music left him almost totally deaf, and he definitely is not the only one!

BTW: those of you experiencing tinnitus, have it checked out by an ENT guy. It's not always caused by inner ear damage, it could just be a wax plug also.

Gearhead

+1, those in-ear headphones are super.

A point that many of us will be aware of but I feel should be mentioned in this thread: since the arrival of good PA's, rock stages have become a lot quieter. Since the subsequent development of good in-ear monitoring stuff, I would say the volume levels of a small band practice are likely to be louder than a pro rock stage. Now all we need is affordable gear to use the standard in-ears, a mixing desk with half a dozen bluetooth monitoring channels would be cheap and functional...

Wizard

When I was playing in a djembe group, things got pretty damn loud.
Using cheap wax earplugs work pretty well - your ears don't ring afterwards, or the next morning.
Also use them at work now since they've jammed 4 million of us into a small-ish sardine can to save costs.

AlanRatcliffe

Beware of sudden loud sounds - they are the worst. In many situations your ears adjust to high SPLs (that's why you'll be partly deaf for a while after a loud concert, but after a while the sensitivity returns), but it takes them a little time to do it. Sudden loud sounds like snare drums tend to do damage before the ears can adjust - that's where I got my tinnitus from.

[deleted]

Last year I got fitted for a pair of Noise-Ban Elites, and I recommend them very highly. For years I'd been using these industrial christmas-tree-shaped earplugs that I thought were great for sheer attenuation (cutting out decibels), but the Noise-Bans have shown just how clearly a really good set of plugs can let stuff through while at the same time protecting your ears. They're not in-ear monitors, but for most shows in SA, those are over the top anyway.

The best thing about Noise-Bans is that you can go to an ear clinic/audiologist (I went to The Ear Institute), get tested (so they can suit the attenuation and frequencies to your needs), get a fitting, and get the plugs all on your medical aid - you pay upfront (I paid R800 in all) but can be reimbursed the full value. What's not to like?

http://www.hass.co.za/noiseban.asp?area=noise_ban

aubs1

Re: Custom Hearing Protectors
« Reply #2 on: April 15, 2009, 05:58:02 pm »
Reply with quoteQuote
yes i have used them.... and had my ENT make em custom when i was playing the concert scene where each show was way too loud.....

they great cos they build filters into em so you don't feel like you sticking your fingers in your ears but just that someone turned down the volume by 40 % ....and believe me if one pops out when you in middle of a show and you'll see the huge difference ...

if you playing loud music i highly reccommend it .....

Keira, I agree 100% with your recommendation. In my sport (shooting) EAR and EYE protection is COMPULSORY!! And I also play my music loud!! The wife I use ear protectors (electronic) that cost about R1700 a pair! So R500 to protect ones ears is a bargain every rocker should invest in. I remember the Stones' concert at Ellis Park, sat with my fingers in my ears throughout the whole concert.

Unfortunately, there is no way the "compulsory rule" can apply to musos.

Byron

Excuse me for side tracking a bit. But Ive noticed sometimes at gigs there are those smaller angled speakers put on the floor of the stage right at the front but they point towards the band and not the crowd? what is up with that?

_____
band / | <-speakers (side view) -crowd here
___________________| |

CDee

@Byron - Those speakers are called monitors. Stage monitors are used for feedback to the players. For example: I'm the lead guitarist so on the monitor facing me I decide I want to hear my guitar very loud and maybe turn the drums down a bit. That makes it easier for me to play my solo. The monitors are set according to what each player wants to hear. Hope that helps... ?