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Hearing Loss and Hearing Enhancement

Hearing Loss and Hearing Enhancement. Listening and Analysis Day 2 Lecture. Protect Your Ears!. They are going to be the most important tool of your profession At live shows: Wear ear-plugs There are a variety of effective ear plugs that muffle sound to a lesser extent

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Hearing Loss and Hearing Enhancement

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  1. Hearing Loss and Hearing Enhancement Listening and Analysis Day 2 Lecture

  2. Protect Your Ears! • They are going to be the most important tool of your profession • At live shows: Wear ear-plugs • There are a variety of effective ear plugs that muffle sound to a lesser extent • In-ear monitors for live musicians • Reasonable levels for iPods and on speakers

  3. How loud are sounds? • 20dB: Ticking Watch • 60dB: Normal Conversation • 85dB: Start of risk of damage (long periods) • 90-95dB: Lawn Mower • 110-120dB: Concerts or Loud Stereos • 140dB: Jet Engine Takeoff • 160dB: Temporary Gunshot

  4. HRTF • Stands for Head-Related transfer function • It means: Our ears measure decibels differently than a machine • Be even more careful: we may be hearing 18dB more than we think we are!

  5. Noise Exposure • We get a “Dosage” of different noises • A 3dB change will double or halve our dosage time. • Example: A continuous sound at 89dB for 2 hours is as damaging as a sound at 86dB for 4 hours. • 85dB is considered the starting point for hearing loss in the U.S. and Canada.

  6. Otoacoustic Emmissions • Our ears actually emit sound! • It is very quiet, but can be read by machinery • This is actually used to diagnose inner-ear health • A good amount of Otoacoustic Emmissions means that you are probably hearing well

  7. Tinnitus • You don’t want this! • Can be natural, but also can be a result of hearing damage • No single known cause, but it is believed to be a neurological reaction related to ear damage • Also can be related to “Hyperacusis” or ultra-sensitivity to various sounds • The best known remedy is psychological therapy

  8. Tinnitus continued… • 70% of people have experienced it • Think of how your ears feel after a concert, and you get the idea • It has been linked to depression • Be aware of your environment and take care of your ears to avoid hearing loss or Tinnitus

  9. Live Sound Levels • Finding ways to have a full impact without all of the noise • A lot of what we are hearing at concerts is reflections, not just the speakers • Fill the room, but try to minimize reflections: Raise the loudspeakers above ear level, use sound absorbtion

  10. Hearing Enhancement

  11. After hearing loss • It can happen from sound exposure, and also naturally with age • Approx. 14% of population have some kind of hearing loss, according to the article • AHS: Assisted Hearing System, like a hearing aid

  12. Problems with PA Systems • The article says this is where people have the most trouble with hearing detail of speech • The microphone may not be ideally placed to capture diction • Sound processing, speakers and room reverberation can diminish sound clarity • The hearing device may enhance sounds, but it may not be the BEST sounds, and may also include NOISE and REVERBERATION

  13. Enhancing Speech • There has been research done to enhance speech in the presence of other noise • Think of in movies, for example, or a crowded room • Both FREQUENCY RESPONSE, and MASKING can be an issue to make speech less intelligible

  14. Problems with Televisions • Speech recognition is difficult because of: • Poor sound reproduction • Low wattage speakers • Often facing the rear of the room • No separate center channel • Stereo speakers or 5.1 surround can remedy this

  15. Measuring Loudness Difference scientifically

  16. Last Note • Improving noise reduction and speech enhancement is not just for hearing impaired • This can benefit everyone • We can here BETTER and more CLEARLY

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