Do You Use Protection?

no, not talking about THAT kind of protection (although it's important too, kids).  i'm talking about hearing protection.

last night's stooges show was a lot of things - intense, energetic, chaotic… and very LOUD.  i was about 15 feet away from one of the stacks, and even with my earplugs they were deafening.  i was surprised at how few people i saw with anything protecting their ears.  several people have complained about still having ringing in their ears this morning - no wonder.  i met Joe M in the corridor behind the soundboard, he told me the PA was so loud he couldn't hang out in the main room.  the loudness was preventing him from enjoying the show.

cheap and not as sonically destructive as pieces of foam are  etymotics earplugs.  i have a pair of these with me at every show.  highly recommended.

am i just a wimp?

edit: link for the etymotics is http://www.etymotic.com/hp/er20.html

Originally posted by sweetcell:
no, not talking about THAT kind of protection (although it's important too, kids). i'm talking about hearing protection.

last night's stooges show was a lot of things - intense, energetic, chaotic… and very LOUD. i was about 15 feet away from one of the stacks, and even with my earplugs they were deafening. i was surprised at how few people i saw with anything protecting their ears. several people have complained about still having ringing in their ears this morning - no wonder. i met Joe M in the corridor behind the soundboard, he told me the PA was so loud he couldn't hang out in the main room. the loudness was preventing him from enjoying the show.

cheap and not as sonically destructive as pieces of foam are etymotic's earplugs. i have a pair of these with me at every show. highly recommended.

am i just a wimp?

We are on the same wavelength today,my man! I was just gonna post and ask where I could purchase a set of these earplugs…..you read my mind…I went without protection last night..ears….and will be paying for it for at least a day or two….after around 1,000 shows…A LOT at max volume….I think I'm getting to the "permanent damage" level…not good…you are not a wimp….it's just common sense for a young lad these days… :D

I don't drink non-alcoholic beer.

And I don't use earplugs.

I use the Etymotic earplugs and they are well worth it. No ringing in the morning though the sound still remains crisp. The only concern is that sometimes the music still feels loud enough to hurt. While seeing Rollins Band I actually switched to the foam ones that have less protection just because it deadened the volume a bit.

I don't but really should.
Maybe I'll grab some of these.

I take Viagra. AND I use protection.

<img src="http://msnbcmedia1.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photos/050830/050830_palmeiro_vmed_8p.widec.jpg" alt=" - " />

earplugs?? what?? what did you say?

on the rare occasion i find someone to go to a real rockin show i may use them. generally i dont (earplugs at a sparklehorse concert dont seem necessary to me)
last time was the dinosaur jr. show a couple years back.

however, when working at a show, i always wear em. go figure.

Sure, last night was loud but I've heard louder: Dream Syndicate and LCD Soundsystem. DS was in '84, opening for REM at the Warner; my right ear took a two day break. LCD was two years ago; the volume was just short of the pain threshold.

I don't go to nearly as many shows as I used to. Somehow, my ears seem to recover very quickly. My ears rang after last night (everything sounded higher pitched) but they're fine today.

If I went to more shows I might consider protection. I probably just got lucky when my ears were handed to me.

BTW, kudos to the soundmen; they did an outstanding job.

i use those for my ipod. but i also have other earplugs for shows. im a big fan of their products. i also figure, that ive been to enough shows in my life and go to more shows than ever now, that i dont wanna be deaf in 10 years :)

I have the Etymotic ones which I used once and haven't used them since. The sound is clear but I suppose the foam ones are better for me for volume resistance. I don't go w/o them and no one should either! (And thanks 9:30 for having them when I forget mine.)
A guy at work has a teenage daughter who has started attending shows. I asked him if she wore earplugs and he said "she has many years to inflict damage." Her next show is Fall Out Boy, 8th row center. My response to him: "earplugs". That's right kids, use protection. Be the other "one less"!
Sucks when a show is too loud it's beyond enjoyable. I found them to be far between at 9:30. Other local clubs, I think tend to go overboard at the majority of their shows.

I didn't use to use earplugs, but I do now. Two decision makers for me were a) my ears ringing for 3 days after a show in the 90s (hey, there's plenty of space to stand over there–in front of the speaker!), b) having a significant other with music-induced tinnitus. It took a while for it to sink in that tinnitus means ringing in your ears that never ever stops.

The closest I've got to wearing some are when I bought the cheapo foam ones for the Dinosaur show a year or two ago, but never did break them out.

Loudest show I think I've ever heard was the Soundtrack of our Lives show about 3-4 years ago. Not sure why, but that one seemed deafening. And then a J Mascis show at the BC a few years ago was also really loud (which is why I'd got some for the Dino show).

I've used ear plugs at two shows in my life…both of which were Mogwai. I almost never even bring them with me, even though I keep a pack in my car just in case.

Funny story about non-alcoholic beer. I went out to happy hour for my birthday last Thursday, and we pressured right away to start drinking heavily (I know, I know, twist my arm ;) ). So I hastily grab the beer menu, and, because I was feeling adventurous, decided to select the first name I saw that I had never tried…a Kalibur. Of course, I didn't read the description, so imagine my surprise when I took a big swig and then saw the "Non-Alcoholic" label on the side…

Originally posted by vansmack:
I don't drink non-alcoholic beer.

And I don't use earplugs.

Yeah, I should wear them. I usually just stay in the back if I expect a show to be loud/very loud. But thanks sweetcell for the link…I'll buy a pair :D

Aural contraceptives, they keep your ears from getting fucked.

I get paid for hearing damage. I wear plugs to bars often.

I use the foam ones, once you get your ears used to the different eq, your brain can work well with them.

Loudest show, Skinny Puppy at College Park. 125 dB at the sound board the whole night. With plugs I had to leave to give my ears a break.

Originally posted by Joe Marshmallow III:
I usually just stay in the back if I expect a show to be loud/very loud.

It helps, but to loud and repeated exposure, ears can become senstive…not just hearing loss.

Originally posted by nkotb:
I've used ear plugs at two shows in my life…both of which were Mogwai. I almost never even bring them with me, even though I keep a pack in my car just in case.

Funny story about non-alcoholic beer. I went out to happy hour for my birthday last Thursday, and we pressured right away to start drinking heavily (I know, I know, twist my arm ;) ). So I hastily grab the beer menu, and, because I was feeling adventurous, decided to select the first name I saw that I had never tried…a Kalibur. Of course, I didn't read the description, so imagine my surprise when I took a big swig and then saw the "Non-Alcoholic" label on the side…

Originally posted by vansmack:
I don't drink non-alcoholic beer.

And I don't use earplugs.

ooh, i have one too. so me and some friends are on our way to Summersault festival and we stopped by a liquor store and each got a 12-pack. we got to the hotel and got wasted and what not.

the next morning we woke up and were getting ready for the show, and i was cleaning up beer bottles, when i noticed that someone had bought a 12-pack of St Pauli Girl, non-alcoholic.

not only did this dude not seem to notice it was non-alcoholic when he bought it, he didnt seem to notice that he wasnt getting drunk either!!!

The etymotics are great. I take them to every show, whether I think I'm going to need them or not. I almost always end up using them though.

Just because your ears stop ringing doesn't mean you're ok. The damage is probably already done. After years of shows, it adds up.

Originally posted by vansmack:
I don't drink non-alcoholic beer.

And I don't use earplugs.

cool, i'll chalk that up as one "yes" vote for the "am i a wimp" question :)

loudest soundsystem i ever exposed myself to (!) was a trance party at the Marc ballroom in NYC… ear-bleeding. 5-6 hours of deafening sound, i'm very thankful that i had plugs with me 'cause a lot of people couldn't tolerate the dBs for more than 15-20 minutes at a time (and they had some GREAT djs and live sets that night). of course, a number of people were so out of it they had no idea what they were doing to themselves. kinda pathetic.

i had both etymotic and foam plugs with me last night, foam does indeed cut the sound more (but screws it up more too, kills too much of the highs)… beforehand i thought i might switch to foam at some point but got so wrapped up in the show that it didn't occur to me again.

like chutney, the etymotics are standard pocket-stuffing whenever i go out for live music, right up there with cash and ID. use them most of the time.

I can't remember the last time I had an aural hangover. My hearing sucks, but it's sucked since I was a kid and got ear infections every summer like clockwork. One of my ear drums has burst twice. I probably should wear plugs, but I am of the vansmack mindset also.