Why it’s important to protect your hearing as a musician

Whether you’re a musician accustomed to playing in front of a large crowd or you just play for fun, it’s important to wear ear plugs to protect your hearing. Your ears are important. They allow you to recognize melodies, register scales and discern one note from another.

Why it’s important to protect your hearing as a musician
Unfortunately, exposure to loud music can cause permanent damage to your ears. In fact, listening to sounds exceeding 85 decibels can lead to hearing loss or tinnitus. Both of these conditions are irreversible. To put this into perspective, the average rock concert can reach decibel levels as high as 115.

Wearing musician ear plugs can protect your hearing and allow you to continue to make music for years to come.

What are musician ear plugs?

While store bought foam ear plugs are good for protecting your ears from loud sounds, they can muffle the finer details of a piece of music, making it hard to hear the precise notes delivered by an instrument or voice. Musician ear plugs are designed to protect your hearing while allowing you to hear every note in the music you create.

Who can benefit from musician ear plugs?
Musician quality molded ear plugs aren’t just for musicians. They can provide hearing protection for:

• Sound crews
• Recording engineers
• Concert goers
• DJs
• Vocalists
• Professional athletes

In short, anybody that’s exposed to environments with high decibel levels and would like to protect their hearing while still being able to discern precise sounds can benefit from musician ear plugs.

Different types of musician ear plugs

There are three basic types of musician ear plugs:

• Ready-fit. These musician ear plugs sit in the opening of your ear canal and reduce sound levels by about 20 decibels without distorting speech or music. These are best for casual use or for concert goers.
• Custom. These are custom made and molded to fit your unique ear canal. This allows them to sit deep in your ear and create a proper seal. The deep fit reduces occlusion, a hollow sound that can be common with low-quality ear plugs. They offer superior listening for both musicians and music lovers alike.
• In-ear monitors (IEM). These noise-cancelling ear plugs are generally worn by musicians that perform in front of large crowds. They allow the musician to hear the music they’re playing over the roar of the audience. These can be calibrated to allow the performer to hear certain instruments or vocals more than others. IEMs are usually worn with custom-molded tips but are also available with ready-fit tips.

Get fitted for musician ear plugs

If you’re interested in having your own pair of custom musician ear plugs designed, contact Soundwave Hearing Care to find our more. Call Calgary, Lethbridge, Grande Prairie or High River clinic today to schedule your fitting.