Klarinet Archive - Posting 000686.txt from 2002/01

From: "Benjamin Maas" <benmaas@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] Earplugs
Date: Sat, 26 Jan 2002 11:29:17 -0500

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Donna Higgins [mailto:donna@-----.com]
>
> A question for list members who play in orchestras or bands:
>
> Do you wear earplugs to protect against hearing loss, and if so, what
> brand do you use and where do you buy them? My local music store sells
> something that's described as "musicians' earplugs" that are supposed to
> provide protection while still allowing the person to hear enough to
> play. Do these work as advertised?
>
> I never thought I needed earplugs before, but I've started playing some
> percussion and those cymbal crashes are awfully loud when you're the one
> doing the crashing. :-)
>
> Thanks!
>
> - Donna

Warning this is my favorite soapbox to step on...

</Soapbox ON>

It is my opinion that anybody that actually cares about their hearing should
have a good set of earplugs. The technology is there that you can get
really good sounding earplugs these days. We don't really need to stick
those 35-cent foam things in our ears that keep you from being able to hear
anything.

As Audrey Travis mentioned in her post, the Eytomotic Research ER-15 and
ER-25 are one way to go. Your audiologist takes a mold of you ear canal and
the plugs fit your ear perfectly. They fit like a lining in your ear canal
and the attenuator is sitting outside of your ear. The result of their
design is almost perfectly flat frequency response. What does that mean for
the wearer? The sound is softer, but not changed. They are expensive, but
very well worth the cost. I got a pair with both 15 and 25 decibel filters
and it cost me just under $200. To save my hearing for that small sum of
money is totally worth it for me.

I've used it playing in orchestra when I've sat in front of trumpets in
Mahler, Percussion in Verdi, etc... and it doesn't make me sound horrible to
myself. When I play in orchestra, I generally use the 15 dB cut filters.

Now, as many of you know, I'm also a sound engineer. I work a lot of very
loud shows (and I enjoy going to rock concerts and other loud events, too).
I have sat behind the mixing console wearing the plugs with 25 dB cuts and
had people remark about how good the sound was, even though it was loud.
Why is that? Because I could actually hear what was going on... I wasn't
doing anything special, but I could hear clearly. I will not go to rock
shows or other heavily amplified musical events without plugs now...

It doesn't take much loud sound to cause permanent hearing damage. Since
we, as musicians, depend on good hearing, we owe it to ourselves to protect
that hearing...

</Soapbox OFF>

--Ben

Benjamin Maas
Freelance Clarinetist and Recording Engineer
Los Angeles, CA
benmaas@-----.com
http://www.fifthcircle.com

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