Tinnitus: my personal warning to loud music lovers

[jhuik]

Hey all,

I have recently developed tinnitus at what I think is a young age: 52.

YOU DO NOT WANT TO GET THIS!

I have been a loud music lover all my life. I did not think too much about warnings about exposure to loud noises. I thought going deaf wouldn't be so bad. But tinnitus sucks. It's a constant ringing or buzzzing that never goes away, never stops, not when you sleep, not when you're awake. You can mask it, it can vary and can tone down under certain conditions but... basically you have a CONSTANT BUZZING OR RINGING in your head that can make you

I have gotten used to it and made adjustments and I can live with it, for sure. But...

Monitor the volume of music that you listen to. Don't listen to highest volume for any extended period of time. If you go to a lot of concerts protect your hearing with earplugs (seriously). Heed warnings and good advice like mine and this: https://www.wikihow.com/Prevent-Tinnitus
_________________
Top Canadian songs, keyless entry remotes, home care, whatever...

[Graeme2]

This is is important. I suffer.

[Yann]

I've always thought the concerts were much too loud. Does not do justice to the music. It's often all burried in the bass...
Reasonably loud would highlight musicality more, I think.

Does anyone know the reason why the concerts are so stupidly loud ?

[kickerofelves]

I second this! I've had tinnitus since i was 17, it is not fun.

I also suffer from:
High frequency sensitivity (certain frequencies are literally painful to listen to, even at relatively low volume.)
Pitching problems (one ear hears slightly flatter than the other. Fortunately it's only a mild difference but in cases worse than mine this discrepancy can be as much as a whole semitone.)

If you go to a lot of gigs, buy musicians earplugs, they're only about $30. If you're playing a lot of gigs get custom molded ones. These are a lot more expensive ($200-$300) but they're worth the money.

[AAL2014]

I've been playing drums for almost a decade now, I don't have tinnitus just yet, but I've had sustained ringing in my ears after gigs or practices in which I didn't have ear protection or I was just too fuckin lazy to wear it. It's a must as a drummer, be it for gigs or practice.

My uncle is also a drummer and has attended an immense amount of concerts since the 70's. He's felt the effects of tinnitus for a couple decades now. He's even had surgery performed inside his ear and nothing has worked.


This is an important thread.
_________________
Attention all planets of the solar federation: We have assumed control.

[Tha1ChiefRocka]

What's even worse is when a concert has explosions of any kind. Most of the time when I'm working the crew for the band tells the security staff when there will be explosions. Green Day for example did. Kendrick Lamar's crew didn't. I was behind the stage, so the music wasn't that loud, and I took my earplugs out, because he had started playing "Humble" and I wanted to hear it better. Almost immediately after, something directly above my head exploded, and made my ears ring for the next day. I know that did some permanent damage.

Going to a concert or on a date have the same rules. Always have protection.

[Graeme2]

You all must wear some ear protection before the damage starts., I was playing a gig last night and had in some new plugs especially made for musicians and gig goers. Music sounds good with them in and much better than the foam ones which are awful for gigs. Problem is my ears are raging now so I'm not sure how effective they are. Maybe a good idea if you don't already have damage, they may just prevent any without taking away any enjoyment.

[jhuik]

[Puncture Repair]

I got asked to play in a friend's band for two gigs. The first gig I was not prepared for, could not hear out of right ear for 24 hours and the only albums I could listen to without being in pain were Mark Hollis' solo debut and Vashti Bunyan. It sucked so bad I invested in a pair of £15 earplugs for the second gig, but the headlining act was so loud that I couldn't even tell I was wearing the damn things - had a numbness and ringing in my ear for like four days.

Ear plugs are one thing, but tinnitus is no joke - stand a w a y from the speakers, the plugs can only do so much work. How the people stood even closer with no ear plugs are still alive, it beats me.

I guess I've learned my lesson, but ear damage doesn't just disappear, so I hope there's no problems down the line. I know I sound like a grandpa, but seriously why do these gigs have to be so loud? Crank that shit up, but it doesn't always have to go to eleven just to enjoy yourselves.

[RoundTheBend]

Sorry to hear! That's gotta be terrible.

Also drummers - wear the protection! Drums have such a large range of frequency to damage ears with... if you play next to a drummer - those cymbals are murder on your ears - protect em!

I like this brand of ear protection called Hearo's - they let some noise in, but protect. Important for musicians too poor for the in ear monitor/ear protection. Sometimes people don't do protection because they want to hear - well then don't put construction ear plugs in- that just mutes everything into a muffle. Totally get it. Hearo's are worth the $10-$20.

Good for concert goers too.

And to answer the question, to be honest it has to do with assholes ruining the music. If they turned it down like they were in a coffee shop, do you really think a crowd of 30,000 people would behave themselves? Sad but true. I mean like anyone else, I like singing along and exclaiming great excitement at appropriate moments, but sometimes as much as 40% of the crowd came because they had nothing better to do and wanted to say they went to some cool concert even if they don't even know the artist. And then there's the other group of people who don't realize they are at a concert and try and tell you their whole life story instead. So basically assholes.