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Is the iPod Generation Going Deaf?
prozac79 writes "Ars Technica and Wired News are both running interesting articles on how personal music players are a major contributor [ArsTechnica] to early hearing loss [Wired]. According the ArsTechnica article, an increasing number of people are now living in "noisy" environments that is only made worse by blocking it out with even louder music. The article also suggests that listening to music for one hour a day is considered safe. So now you have a choice... go deaf early or go insane listening to your coworkers chatter."
Is the Walkman Generation Going Deaf?
US News and World Report and Newsweek are both running interesting articles on how personal tape players are a major contributor [US News] to early hearing loss [Newsweek]. According the US News article, an increasing number of people are now living in "noisy" environments that is only made worse by blocking it out with even louder music. The article also suggests that listening to music for one hour a day is considered safe. So now you have a choice... go deaf early or go insane listening to your coworkers chatter."
Nothing new hear, we've been getting this since at least 1980. There are likely stories about how the photograph, motion picture "talkie", transister radio and lord knows whatelse cause problems.
Uhm... yes? If I can hear the music clearly from your earbuds across the room, your "coolness factor" (apparently consisting of making sure everyone can hear your really loud rap music) will not prevent hearing damage. I say let 'em. Common sense will prevail for the rest of us.
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I find, when walking down the street - that I've got my iPod's volume up to the highest level. It's not because I really like the song, and want to hear it really loudly, but rather, I can't hear it if I turn it down at all. Simply because of the passing traffic is so noisy.
Had I kept the iPod down to a lower level, say at 0.75 or 0.5 - then I simply wouldn't be able to hear it - so, perhaps the problem is not the music players, but rather, an increase in noise from other locations? For example, traffic?
Is the world itself getting noisier?
go deaf early or go insane listening to your coworkers chatter.
Or wear ear plugs.
It'll be difficult for some people to stop wearing headsets. You get used to the "company", and become a bit nervous when there's silence.
"I don't know, therefore Aliens" Wafflebox1
Seriously: I was born 1969 and clearly are part of the walkman generation, using one (OK, cheap copycats) from the mid 80s till the early 90s. Then I exposed my ears to techno parties :-P
Whenever they check my hearing at the doctor or hospital they are surprised how good I hear considered my age.
So let me say:
Bah.
Noise cancelling or isolating headphones.
Etymotic, Shure and Koss all make noise isolating headphones, which are generally cheaper and have higher quality sound than noise cancelling gimmicks like the Bose headsets.
Basically, you put in a set of these ear-canal plugs, you hear nothing but the music, and therefore can listen to your music at far lower levels in noisy environments than you would be able to with normal open or closed can style headphones.
The isolation from the Etymotic ER-4p/s for example, is 44 decibels, which is phenomenal. I own a pair of Er-4ps myself, and have used them a lot while travelling, and have to say that spending 300 euro on a set of headphones does not look like a waste of cash once you get up to 30,000 feet in a packed Airbus.
The isolation is so complete that it's shocking to hear the noise levels that everyone else is being exposed to once you pull the headphones out after a period of use.
Not to mention the fantastic sound quality.
This has nothing to do with BOSE being mainstream and hating it therefore becoming chic and everything to do with the fact that consumer-level BOSE equipment really is crap.
Am I the only one who heard Roxette to sing "I'm gonna get blitzed for some sex"?
Nice try, but this doesn't apply to Bose. Their good reputation stems entirely from marketing. In fact, their products are mediocre at best, certainly not 'pretty good'.
Bose tends to market their products using technobabble that impresses the mainstream consumer, but is absolutely ludicrous to anyone with a modicum of knowledge of acoustics. Their 'surround with 2/3 speakers' claims are a good example: it doesn't bloody work!
Try comparing Bose products to equipment that costs the same, but is produced without the technobabble influence. Mainstream stuff will do, nothing exotic is necessary. The Bose stuff won't sound better.
I did this once with a set of Bose 301 speakers versus a set of Magnat Concept 2 speakers (about $100/pair cheaper than the Bose set). The Magnats had a much more linear frequency response, the Bose really emphasized the midrange frequencies too much. The Bose's direct/reflecting system made them sound unfocused: close your eyes and you've no idea where the sound comes from. With a good system, you should be able to point out where the instruments are - can't do this with the Bose, piece of cake with the Magnats.
Also the Magnats were far less fatiguing to listen to (side effect of the flat frequency response).
Bose tends to market their products using technobabble that impresses the mainstream consumer, but is absolutely ludicrous to anyone with a modicum of knowledge of acoustics.
As opposed to "audoiphile" marketers using sciencebabble that impresses the audiophile consumer, but is absolutely ludicrous to anyone with a modicum of knowledge of physics.
Have you ever tried comparing a Bose system with anything else? You know, actually do listening tests?
I have. I worked in the Audio department for about a year at Best Buy.
For starters, bose dictated sale prices to best buy - best buy couldn't just choose to put them on sale; they had to put them on sale when Bose corporate said to, which is why the circulars always said "All Speakers Onsale*" *except bose.
And the no highs, no lows, must be Bose does hold true. I am by no means an audiophile, but even my damn-near deaf due to rock concerts ears can tell they suck. I mean, the 201's and 301's aren't terrible speakers, but they are a bit muddy and much more expensive than, say, a pair of JBL bookshelfs that sound better.
The crux of the matter is the Lifestyles systems, though. The bass tube with the little cubes? Ugh. You're not going to get good bass out of a 6.5" woofer, especially if it's the unpowered one. If you do a sound sweep from like 50 hz to 50 khz, you're going to hear huge dropoff points all over the place. They just sound bad. Which would be acceptable for consumer electronics, if they were cheap, but they're upwards of $1000! The one with the dual cubes and the powered sub was $1300 when I worked there, and I bet it hasn't gotten cheaper. Give me $1300, and I'll get you some relatively inexpensive Sony tower speakers for front and rear, and a JBL center channel and 10" sub, and give you $400 back, and it'll sound vastly better (just going off of the brands that were there when I worked there). I know that sony and JBL aren't excellent names in home theater, but jesus, they're a far cry better than Bose.
It's not an audiophile thing. It's a listen to it and say ugh thing.
~Will
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