iPods and hearing damage
p2pnet.net News:- You’ve sat in the subway / bus / trains / café close to someone with their mp3 / CD / tape / whatever player cranked up to the max. And when you ask them to turn it down, ‘Like who ARE you?’
You’ve also probably thought to yourself, ‘How can their ears stand it?’
The short answer is obvious.
They can’t.
It doesn’t take an expert to predict anyone who listens to loud music through headphones will eventually end up with varying degrees of hearing loss, if not actual damage.
It’s a no-brainer.
But just to drive it home, “Many MP3 players in Europe have now had volume levels capped at 100dB [decibels] after authorities in France ordered a clampdown on the devices,” says the Royal National Institute for the Deaf (RNID), reported in The Scotsman.
"Most people are listening to their iPods on public transport to drown out the noise of traffic, but to do this they turn them up to quite dangerous levels,” RNID campaigns officer Lisa McDonald is quoted as saying.
Experts say mp3 players shouldn’t be playable above 90 decibels, about two-thirds of the maximum volume of a typical device, says the story, going on:
“Perhaps more worryingly for people who have 3,000 songs stored on an iPod, they also say listening should be restricted to no more than an hour a day.”
And obviously, what goes for iPods also goes for any other music player.
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See:-
The Scotsman – Digital music craze stores up ear trouble for iPod fanatics, May 8, 2005
May 9th, 2005 at 5:57 pm
“Most people are listening to their iPods on public transport to drown out the noise of traffic…”
Using “in the ear” sound isolating ear-buds that seal out external noise greatly reduces the need to crank up the volume to mask unwanted background sounds. They also bleed much less sound so you can listen without bothering others as well…
May 9th, 2005 at 7:56 pm
as much as listening to music that loud is bad… and maybe even annoying for others…
You can’t restrict people… at least not unless your just setting guidlines
May 10th, 2005 at 1:26 am
I don’t actually own an iPod, but it must be said that Apple’s headphones – whilst pretty decent in reproducing some higher frequencies, seem prone to not masking out much noise. This may or may not be indicative of other bud-style headphones packaged with DMPs.
And on a personal note, I loathe people who seem oblivious that they’re contaminating public places with whats sounds like a nasty scuffle between some tin cans in the distance.