The dangers of listening to music too loud on headphones

Sophia Wells72 said:I honestly think once we get a few pieces of advice or some expert insight in here, I’ll move this thread over to the Wellness section. 😉
(just came from the Music forum)

I'm definitely on board with that—it feels like listening to music through MP3 players or headphones isn't just my own issue, but something most young people deal with nowadays. It would be good to hear from an actual professional on this.

Keith Rodriguez27 said:Personally, I find myself living through my headphones most of the time—whether I'm out running errands or just hanging out at home. It’s not that my family actually enjoys being subjected to my playlist 24/7, and besides, my laptop speakers are pretty mediocre anyway.

I've felt the same way for the last three or four years. Even though I own a few external speakers, I still gravitate toward headphones—the sound quality is just on a completely different level.

Paul Thompson3 said:It’s one of those things you dismiss as nonsense until you’re left regretting it later.
Blasting music at high volumes will absolutely wreck your hearing in the long run.

I couldn't agree more. I’d urge everyone to cut back on headphone use and, for heaven's sake, don't crank the volume to the max when you're driving through town.

Sandra Brooks91 said:I completely agree, and I’d really urge everyone to be careful with their headphone volume too—and honestly, even when you're driving, try not to crank the car speakers up to the absolute limit...

Well, I don't usually blast it at maximum volume because I'm pretty sure I'd just blow out my speakers,
so I tend to keep it just a little bit lower than the max setting, just a tiny bit 😁

I’ve got that same weird buzzing in my left ear... nothing in the right one, though. Sometimes if I hiccup or just yawn really wide, that low-frequency hum finally cuts out. Maybe it's just a fluke? But then I wake up the next morning and there it is again... just that constant *shhhhh* sound. It isn't super loud yet, thank God. It’s definitely from blasting music through my earbuds way too much. Some people swear it’s even from cell phones, too. I’ve officially quit using headphones until my ears get a total break—don't want to go completely deaf or anything—but honestly, my laptop speakers are garbage. They aren't doing me any favors.

Hey, so like, how much damage can those over-ear headsets actually do to your hearing? I’m constantly blasting music on my PC—mostly just moderate levels, though sometimes I crank it up way too high. I did that for about a month straight once and ended up with a massive headache and this constant ringing in my ears, kind of like 🙏. I’ve been using headphones pretty much every day for the last year, though lately I've tried to keep the volume at a medium level. It's not even heavy stuff like rock or hip hop, just some basic pop hits. What do you guys think about these kinds of headsets? Am I totally wrecking my hearing? Is there like a safe limit I should stick to, or should I just quit using headphones altogether? 😉

silentraven9 said:Hey everyone, I was wondering how much damage those over-ear headphones can actually do to your hearing? I’m talking about standard computer headsets since I love listening to music on my PC every single day. Most of the time I keep the volume at a moderate level, though sometimes I crank it up a bit too high. I actually did that for about a month once and ended up with a massive headache and this constant ringing in my ears, which felt like 🙏. I've been using headphones consistently for the last year now, mostly keeping things at a reasonable, slightly boosted volume. It's not heavy stuff like rock or hip-hop, just some regular pop hits. What do you all think about these kinds of headphones? Am I going to ruin my hearing? Is there a safe limit I should stick to, or should I just stop using them altogether? .... 😉

Honestly, don't stress out too much and enjoy your music! As long as you aren't blasting it at maximum volume like you mentioned, you should be perfectly fine.

Thanks for getting back to me. I don't even listen to it every single day, though I guess it happens pretty often, maybe every other day or something. But before I head out for a night on the town, say, I won't use my headphones at all because I don't want to get stuck in my own head or whatever. And once I'm done going out, I'll probably skip the headphones again for like a week. Sometimes I'll just turn the volume down to basically nothing just so I can actually hear what they're singing... it works better for me that way, plus using a speaker just sounds like garbage quality.

I feel the exact same way about using headphones on my laptop. Most built-in speakers just aren't up to par anyway. I used to blast my audio pretty loud, but then I realized it was leaving me with this annoying ringing in my ears afterward. Now, I make sure not to overdo it.