Ear ache

[leif]

Hi folks,

About a month ago I tested what my stystem is good for when it come to playing loud. I have a pair of 4430 and a B460, with nuff power in the amps.

I did not play loud very long. Pink Floyd "shine on you crazy diamond" was on for about 2 minutes or so, and belive me when I say it was LOUD.

But afterwards, I got pain in my ears. Physical pain.
Now, a month after, it is still painful. I have been to my regular doctor, but she did not find anything wrong. So she sent me over to an ear specialist. He did not find anything either. At least not yet. But I have a new appointment tomorrow.
I am having pain when playing loud now. Even on not loud levels it is painful


Anyone experienced the same thing? Did the pain disappear?

[Zilch]

You've done the right thing to get doctor's care, for sure. Follow their advice. I think it will get better with time.

Please buy a hand held SPL meter and use it. These speakers can cause permanent hearing damage. I rarely let it get over 90 dB on the "C" scale, and 80 dB is more typical. It's easy for it to get out of control if you don't know what the actual levels are.

Interestingly, it's my subwoofer that causes my ears to tense up more than anything else. There's HUGE energy there, and if the room is tight, a lot of air compression involved. B460 can reproduce subsonics you don't even hear. Maybe tone that down for the duration, or disconnect it for now....

[JBLnsince1959]

Is it painful all the time, or only when you play music..

is there a ringing in your ears(?) or just pain....

10-4 on what Zilch said about the sub, I too experienced "pressure" from subs at times, particularly when I had my 4430's

[leif]

It is no no special sound ringing in my ears, like the sound you may hear after you have been to a consert or so. It is just pain.
The pain is not there all the time, but it come and goes. And it come even when I watch tv at regular levels.
I still feel that I hear well, and will get a confirmation on that tomorrow.
I also think that the sub may be the problem. But at the time that I played loud, it was the guitar sound that made me feel uncomfortable and turn down the volume.

Leif

[Titanium Dome]

When I used to regularly play bass guitar in a band, sometimes those SPLs would get pretty intense. I loved standing in front of the speakers! I can remember a few instances where my ears would bleed a litte. I'm sure there are other times I can't remember at all.

I was lucky that my ears' tympanic membranes didn't rupture, but I recall one case where physical pain was a side effect of too much SPL. Apparently it somewhat dislodged the organ of Corti, which then started sending voltage pulses of action potentials that caused pain until the darn thing went back into place. Unfortunately I don't quite recall how that was acheived.

Here's a graph of an action potential. What's it look like?

[JBLnsince1959]

Man, not sure of what it is. I've played my speakers ( including 4430's with custom 2235 subs(2), redone C-35's with E series stuff, Cabaret Series , and 300's and more etc) well beyond what is sane and I've had no problems. In fact it's only the last 8 years or so that I've had a sound meter. Maybe I've just been lucky.

best to just continue seeing the doctors until they get it taken care of.

good luck and let us know what it is.

take care.....

[Zilch]

I don't need an SPL meter.

If it drowns out the continuous whistle in my head, it's too loud....

["Duke" Spinner]

my hearings about average for my (old) age, i guess ...

i can hear to 14k, maybe 15k on the right day

don't know why after years of standing next to that 100w Marshall stack

anyways ...once after a concert that probably was Waaaaay to loud
my ear hurt for about 6 mo

it did go away, but "crackles" on loud noises

[pelly3s]

Im only 22, and I get all sorts of weird things happening to my ears. Nothing like having your head next the a BH-800 when lagging it to the floor in a club and having someone fire up the rig without knowing you are there. Or sound checking before some of the hiphop shows I do when you are at 128dB for like 2 hours i hate working those shows. but it pays the bills

[Lawrence HF]

Pelly, please, at your age when at loud sound work use ear plugs before damage is done that is not reversible.

[boputnam]

... shows I do when you are at 128dB for like 2 hours i hate working those shows. but it pays the bills

Caution, dood.

Damage is irreversible, and your ability to creat a good natural (neutral) mix will be compromised and your engineer status ruint.

Please research, carry and wear noise-reducing ear plugs that don't alter the sound too much, and preserve your hearing. Furthermore get those master gains down to not exceed 105 dB. You are not helping your clientele...

http://www.shure.com/otws/tech/safe_listening.asp

http://www.dangerousdecibels.org/hearingloss.cfm

[leif]

Well, I went to the ear specialist again today, and he did not find anything wrong with my ears. He took hear test as well, and I had exellent hearing he said.
I find it odd that I have pain in my ears, but they can not find nothing wrong.
And as one of you said, you were bleeding from your ears. So was I.
Right after the loud playing, I found blood in my ears. The doctor thought that was too much to be true, and did not belive me on that. But it is true. Of course, it could be a coincident that I was bleeding right then. I don`t know...

Anyway, as expected, he warned me not to play so loud anymore. And of course, I won`t.

[Dynacoman]

I've been to quite a few concerts lately where the mix was pretty bad. I don't think it was the system.Gotta wonder if the board guys have some damage that precludes a proper mix.

[pelly3s]

I am lucky that i havent caused any major damage. its guys like when I did the Kanye West show where his tour manager wants to see the level that high durning sound check. I just make them happy. I ran a brief tour with George Lynch and the guitar's stage volume alone was 117dB at mix position at the Chance in NY. Yeah needless to say that wasnt the best time Ive ever had.

[Rolf]

Well, I went to the ear specialist again today, and he did not find anything wrong with my ears. He took hear test as well, and I had exellent hearing he said.
I find it odd that I have pain in my ears, but they can not find nothing wrong.
And as one of you said, you were bleeding from your ears. So was I.
Right after the loud playing, I found blood in my ears. The doctor thought that was too much to be true, and did not belive me on that. But it is true. Of course, it could be a coincident that I was bleeding right then. I don`t know...

Anyway, as expected, he warned me not to play so loud anymore. And of course, I won`t.

Well, sorry, but you are "one of us" I to have something in my erars. Nothing to do about it.
Rolf

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