It’s safe to say that just about everyone enjoys listening to music. One of the best ways to enjoy music is with a good pair of headphones. However, many people listen to their headphones at too high a volume and don’t even know it. Listening to your music too loudly can cause severe hearing damage, so it’s important to maintain a safe range of volume. Here are four simple ways to check if your headphones are too loud.
Ringing Ear Test
The first way to check if your headphones are too loud is by performing a ringing ear test. Ringing in the ears can be a sign of tinnitus, a condition associated with hearing loss. To check for ringing in the ears, you will need a quiet setting and a standard pair of earplugs. In order to create an uninfluenced baseline, you should refrain from using headphones or listening to loud music for a few days prior to the test.
Then, place the earplugs in your ears while you sit in a quiet space and listen to see if you can hear a faint ringing in the ears. This slight ringing is your baseline. The day after this initial test, you should continue with headphone usage as you normally would. Then redo the ringing test at the end of the day. If you notice the ringing in your ears has gotten louder than the baseline, it is a good indicator that your headphones are too loud.
Double-Check Volume Controls
Double-checking volume controls is another simple way to assess whether your headphones are too loud. Every device has different features when it comes to volume, but as a standard practice, it’s safest to set your volume under 60 percent of the device’s maximum level. If you notice that you’ve been setting your volume above this level, it’s a good idea to lower your volume controls to ensure you’re listening at a safe decibel.
Take Your Headphones Off
The next way to check whether your headphones are too loud is by taking your headphones off. This is one of the quickest and easiest ways to test volume level. All you have to do is remove your headphones and hold them in front of you at arm’s length while your music is still playing. Your headphones are too loud if you can hear your music clearly while holding them away from you. Try turning your music down and repeating this test until you cannot hear your music when holding the headphones away from you. This will ensure that you keep a safe volume level when listening to your music.
Watch for Signs of Hearing Loss
The last simple way to check if your headphones are too loud is to watch for signs of hearing loss. Some things to watch out for are ringing, buzzing, or clicking in the ears and difficulty hearing or making out what someone is saying. If you notice an increase in the need to clarify what someone said to you because you couldn’t hear it correctly, this is a strong sign of hearing loss. You may also notice that you are turning the volume up higher on your devices because you can’t hear well.
Now that you know four simple ways to check if your headphones are too loud, you can check yours today. It’s important to follow healthy habits to maintain overall ear health, and evaluating the volume of your headphones is a great first step.
