A Simple Trick

Buqui Productions

Buqui Productions

Active member
I learned this from an experienced audio engineer...a simple trick to 'reset' your hearing. First place your two index fingers on your tragi (tragus singular, it's the small flap of skin near your ear canal) press down so that the tragi cover the ear canals. Then take your middle finger and lightly tap your index finger 10-15 times which is holding down the tragi. You should hear a muted bass sound. Do this after a while of mixing and/or hearing audio. You will find when done hourly during heavy audio sessions it will give your ears a 'refreshed' feeling.

Hope it helps,
Michael
 
An addition

An addition

After two hours of audio editing/mixing take a long break of 20 minutes in complete silence. It will keep your ears calibrated and in check. Also if you are editing/mixing music listen to a completely different style of music during part of that 20 minutes to clear your mind.

-Michael
 
When mixing giving your ears a break is pretty key to keeping perspective. I find I will overcompensate after non-stop hours of mixing. That ear trick is a new one on me. Not sure what it does though. Might be interesting to try in the field.

I will give it a try.
 
does anyone have any more general tips on ear-care. its so important to us as audio proffesionals to look after them, and sometimes I think I'm doing them damage without realising.

I take all the care I can, plus more.

I never go out to a place where there's loud music before a day of work.. I am going to start having earplugs in my pocket for times when I don't expect to be in a loud place.

I always cover my ears when an ambulace or siren goes past me on the street.. that **** is LOUD and can't be good for you.. got my girlfriend doing the same. we look quite ridiculous on the street doing it, but hey.

I have a loud car and have recently taken to wearing earplugs on long journeys because that 4 thousand rev drone seems to get into your skull otherwise and can't be good.

I am worried about the amount I have to equalise my ears, I know that pushing too hard can damage, and can't find a consistent way to do it so it works every time. sometimes my ears equalise on their own and its like being born again, i'm like, wow, i've been deaf for ages.

any tips on that anyone?
 
ScoobySounds said:
I always cover my ears when an ambulace or siren goes past me on the street.. that shi* is LOUD and can't be good for you.. got my girlfriend doing the same. we look quite ridiculous on the street doing it, but hey.

I have a loud car and have recently taken to wearing earplugs on long journeys because that 4 thousand rev drone seems to get into your skull otherwise and can't be good.
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The second is a lot more dangerous than the first.

Constant loud noises can make the cilia lay down and not get up again.
 
absolutely.

sharp loud noises can stun, and feel kind of distorted, but loud constant noises over 80 or 90 dB are the killers.
 
Eh? Can't hear you over these two 750 kW diesel generators.

Seriously. Spent entirely too much time with those...in an enclosed space.
 
Get musicians earplugs if you go to lots of shows. Always wear earplugs when attending concerts, mowing the yard, vacuuming, using power tools, that kind of thing. Get a cheapo radio shack meter and make sure your monitors are set to a sane level. This is really important for a number of reasons, not just saving your hearing.


Musician's Earplugs
http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/erme.aspx

I think they end up costing around $120 or so after you get the custom earmolds, but they are just about the best investment you can make in ear protection, in my opinion. I have the countersunk earplugs, and I don't think anyone has ever even noticed I was wearing them.
 
Every sound guys enemy:

ipodindex.jpg


But it is such a seductive enemy.... :love4:
 
tigeba said:
I think they end up costing around $120 or so after you get the custom earmolds, but they are just about the best investment you can make in ear protection, in my opinion. I have the countersunk earplugs, and I don't think anyone has ever even noticed I was wearing them.
Click to expand...

Other than comfort and visibility, these don't seem worth the $120... you can get foam plugs with (much) higher NRR ratings for $10. The Musician's Earplugs seem designed for wearing while playing music with their flat freq response... I would guess drummers and bass players love them BECAUSE they can still hear while playing, it's just not as loud. For straight protection while in high sound-pressure environments, the $10 ones seem like the better option, unless I'm missing something.
 
no you probably aren't missing anything.. the foam ones however will have a response similar to that of a compost heap.

I, for one was impressed with tigebas link. I can't believe that the response can be flat 15db attenuation across ALL hz. I would imagine these are ideal if you are mixing live sound gigs every night. in fact, i'm going to pass the link on to a friend of mine who does exactly that.

for me though, they're probably a bit much just to protect my hearing outside of work.
 
shawnmaddock said:
Other than comfort and visibility, these don't seem worth the $120... you can get foam plugs with (much) higher NRR ratings for $10. The Musician's Earplugs seem designed for wearing while playing music with their flat freq response... I would guess drummers and bass players love them BECAUSE they can still hear while playing, it's just not as loud. For straight protection while in high sound-pressure environments, the $10 ones seem like the better option, unless I'm missing something.
Click to expand...


I don't think you are missing anything. If you are using a jackhammer or a lawnmower or some sort of loud machine a foam earplug or normal isolation headphone would be superior. I use the normal foam earplugs when I am mowing the grass. If you go to a concert, or are a musician or any other situation where you actually want to hear what is going on, but still want to protect your hearing, these are incredible. Personally I got them because I am a musician and wearing the normal type of plugs makes life very difficult. I also wear them any time I go to a concert or even loud clubs and such. If you are a professional that works in loud enviornments I think they are a no-brainer.

Etymotic also sells a cheaper version of the musicians plugs that don't have custom earmolds, I think they are more in the 20-30$ range, but I have not tried them. I can say that the custom plugs are VERY effective and really do deliver something close to even attenuation across the entire frequency range. Honestly, the sound is so much cleaner that it is much more enjoyable for me now to go to shows and wear the plugs. The few times that I forgot them I was miserable the whole time. I wouldn't wear them while I was mixing an album in my studio, because I can easily monitor at a safe volume, but I am fairly certain I one could wear them while mixing in a small club and do an excellent job.
 
Sweet; I'll have to check them out. Normally when I mix the sound levels are not bad, although I had to leave the last hardcore show after the rehearsal as the SPL was over 115dB. The kids (who will be deaf in 5 years) love it though. That's always an ethical issue, although when the band controls their own amps and only cares about pleasing the crowd there's not a whole lot you can do.

Have you noticed any issues with bass frequencies with these plugs, as those freqs are transmitted more through the jaw/skull than the ear canal?
 
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