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I dare say that this problem is not really that big of a problem really. Everyone has a degree of ringing in their ears but some people tolerate it more than others. I have no problem with it and neither does my brother who usually keeps his stereo speakers at max volume.

And besides there can never be any environment that is 'silent'. There is always a small sound that you do not notice when not paying attention. Your CRT monitor makes a tiny screeching sound for example.

Of course there is no silent environment, unless you decide to do a vacation on the moon or something, we were talking about what would be considered relatively "silent" in a modern city or w/e.

But I wouldn't say that one should just adapt and go with having ear damage as if it didn't matter. I guess it's like smoking, some people don't care, but it's not exactly good advice to say that it isn't a problem. I wouldn't want a constant sound in my ear, and I would not want not being able to hear well either (especially because then I'd have to turn up the volume even more, making things only worse).

Just try not to think about it, in my case, I only really hear it if I pay attention to it

It's a good thing you're taking care of your ears now, I started doing that recently too, and I encourage other people to do this.

I've had tinitus for as long as I can remember, and I've just learned to put it into the background.

Things to note, it's been related to earwax, so give your ears a good clean out, to put it bluntly.

Other than that, I can only echo the others and suggest going to see a doctor about it. But there's very little they can do other than confirm it. I highly doubt it's because your headphones are too loud.

ive been a long standing sufferer of this ringing in ur ears, known as tinitus, since grade 2, its not guarenteed to be caused by loud noises or anything noise related (as in my case) at night i have to sleep with a white noise so i dont go crazy (dehimudifiers) i can tell you right now theres basicly jack all they can do about either A) teach you to ignore it or B) teach you to deal with it, alby theres a new experimental treatment involving botox ya no joke. They think its caused by ur brain trying to feel a gap in the frequency that u can hear so ur brain fils it with there own sound.

TheComedian wrote: And besides there can never be any environment that is 'silent'. There is always a small sound that you do not notice when not paying attention. Your CRT monitor makes a tiny screeching sound for example.

Untrue! Once I was at the super awesome Icehotel up north here in Sweden (Jukkasj?rvi) and when i lied still it was totaly silent! At least to level of hertz that I could hear then, and I was pretty young back then too (which means that I could hear a lower frequency of hertz than older people can)... I swear, a bat would've thought that he was dead if he stayed in my room at the icehotel!

Happened to me some time ago, it will go away. one of the most annoying things ever
And also it can because by the jaw bone witch is not in the correct positions

I've had tinnitus for a very long time, in fact as long as I remember. Got a history of being exposed to loud sounds being a musician for one (cap guns as a child, drums, guns etc.) Also my use of earplugs could be a bit more frequent.

It's a permanent high pitched sound, I hear it always if I pay attention to it and very clearly when it's quiet. Sometimes it can get louder and annoying but usually it's nothing that bothers me. I'm not planning on committing suicide over it or anything.

The way I found out about it was a bit traumatizing though: my music teacher spoke of the horrible tinnitus and dangers of loud noices in a very frightening way after which I realised I have tinnitus. It was a shock for a small kid after that kind of fear mongering speech. Of course I got over it in a couple of days but at that time I was like



But I miss the sound of silence.

Tinitus is a problem yes, but honestly getting worried about it isn't going to help =]. You just have to know that at this moment in time, nobody is 100% on what causes it and nobody has a cure. Yes it can be annoying, and to try and stop it getting worse you can reduce the noise volumes you listen to (noise canceling, ear plugs that kinda thing) But honestly it never really causes a problem until your trying to sleep and sometimes it can stop you sleeping, best thing to do then is to turn something on that makes a noise, doesn't have to be louder than the high pitch ting, but something you can concentrate on =]. Helps me anyway.

Pedz wrote:But honestly it never really causes a problem until your trying to sleep

For most people, yes. However for someone with more severe tinnitus it can be a real problem all the time. Most people learn how to deal with it or filter it out, and that's easy with a single high pitched tone. But when it's whizzing, whirling, a whole 'noise orchestra' in your head, how it can be a problem is pretty understandable.

For someone like me who is considering a career in music production and audio engineering, even a small problem like slight hard of hearing on one ear or a little ringing can make or break if I get into a certain school or get the stereo perspective of a mix as good as that other producer.

Not to mention that a tinnitus is not the only thing that can happen. Tinnitus aside, loud noise (including headphones on high volume or these small pieces that you put into the ear, I hear those are especially dangerous) does of course result in hearing loss. Less of a problem than tinnitus probably, but still nothing to be desired, so be careful with your ears, or you'll regret it.

splatters wrote:I've had tinnitus for a very long time, in fact as long as I remember. Got a history of being exposed to loud sounds being a musician for one (cap guns as a child, drums, guns etc.) Also my use of earplugs could be a bit more frequent.

It's a permanent high pitched sound, I hear it always if I pay attention to it and very clearly when it's quiet. Sometimes it can get louder and annoying but usually it's nothing that bothers me. I'm not planning on committing suicide over it or anything.

The way I found out about it was a bit traumatizing though: my music teacher spoke of the horrible tinnitus and dangers of loud noices in a very frightening way after which I realised I have tinnitus. It was a shock for a small kid after that kind of fear mongering speech. Of course I got over it in a couple of days but at that time I was like



But I miss the sound of silence.

I'm in the same boat.

cyberzomby wrote:Hello everyone,

I was just wondering about something. How can I check if my headphones are to loud?

I almost always play PR with headhpones (sennheiser HD202, they "cut off" the external non gaming sounds really well) and since a couple of months I hear a ringing in my ears when I'm in bed and its all quiet.

I always play with the volume down to the lowest point. One click lower and its all gone. So I was under the impression I was on the safe side with my audio levels... When I found out about it I proceeded to reduce the ingame volume (in the menu) to about 10% and I have TS and Mumble on increase and decrease keys.

My audio never hurt my ears but still I have the ringing. Or a beep so to say. Anyone else knows what causes this? Can it be the headphones? The audio from the headphone speakers havent got a place to go but my ear. Maybe with different headphones that dont dampen my ears totaly it would be better?

I love my PR but I would hate to lose my hearing over it

Hello cyberzomby, im sorry to hear your having the same as i have.
Idm advise you to either turn up your volume very low or get rid of your headphones. The risk of putting your volume up to high and damaging your ear even further is something you shouldnt be taking.

Also i advise you to go to a (sory for the dutch) KNO arts; do a hearing test (an official in a hospital).
I have done the same last year, my hearing is still above the average of 80% in both my ears but i too have the ringing. From time to time it seems to get worse (when drinking alcohol or smoking a little something) and sometimes it just seems away.
The arlier you accept this as a part of your body the better you can cope with it, although somewhere in the back of my mind im praying to fuck knows who it goes away.

A little something extra the docter told me;
All the people expierience noises in their ears, some are aware and some arnt. Since i had an infection in my ear( sounds worse than it was) i developed titanus and now im highly aware of all sounds in my surrounings, nothing to do about it than accept this as what i am now, and try to "tune it out".

Good luck and visit the arts.

Edit: like others said, the only thing they can do is acknowledge it BUT its important to do the test and a med check anyway, in case it COULD be something else causing it. Nothing to worry about, just in case you know, so you wont find out in 25 years that there has been something bothering you wich could have been fixed.

You might wanna play with speakers for a while and you also might wanna listen and see if you can hear a sound that is constantly playing however quietly. I just wouldn't use headphones for a bit. Some headphone make those kind of quiet noises and it may be from not having it plugged in all the way too. Just be careful, u don't wanna ruin your hearing.