About five years ago, I hit an unexpected wall that no creative
person should ever have to go through. Imagine this – you are at the top
of your game and getting gigs with a rising reputation when a physical
challenge threatens to derail and possibly end your promising career.
After ten years of DJing, that’s exactly what I experienced. This
article is the story about what happened, and how you can avoid the same
mistakes.
TINNITUS
The English pronounce it “Tin – nit – tus” and the Americans “tin
-nye-tus”, but anyone that has tinnitus would call it “life-changing”.
Chances are most of you have experienced the sensation of ringing in
your ears after a particularly loud concert. Full time DJs know that it
can take up to 1-3 hours after a gig before the ringing finally goes
away. Unfortunately, for some people, that persistant buzz never
disappears. They’re left with a constant tone – for life. This
condition is called tinnitus, and can range from barely noticeable low
tones to disturbing high frequencies that end careers.
To hear what tinnitus really sounds like,
listen to this fantastic podcast from “This American Life”.
The average night club can range from 100DB to 115db, with
Sankey’s boasting a wholloping 120db output.
OSHA (for
the non-US readers, that’s our federal Occupational Safety and Health
Administration) guidelines dictate that levels above 105 DB in a work
place are “unsafe” for more than one hour and could lead to hearing
damage. 115DB? – 25 minutes.
The problem DJs face is that their near field monitors are usually
under-powered, over-cranked and at very close proximity to the head.
These factors mean very high SPLs and DBs in mid to high frequencies,
which can cause real problems if not managed properly.
MY STORY
In late 2007, I was at the top of my DJ game, playing 3-4 gigs per
week, traveling throughout the world and making a pretty good living
playing music. This all started to come to a screeching halt when
tinnitus showed up. Personally, I was lucky. My tinnitus popped in and
out randomly throughout the week. Suddenly, in the middle of the day, a
high-pitched frequency would fade in as if someone had turned on
a miniature synthesizer in my head. After three minutes or so it would
drift away, but the fear was ever present:
what if this doesn’t go away?
That fear, and the realization that DJing was making things worse,
triggered me to change my lifestyle and significantly reduce noise. In
the end that meant adjusting how I DJed, cutting most gigs and limiting
set lengths. Having something taken away from you without choice was
profoundly depressing and took a while to get over.
Fortunately, it was a blessing in disguise. Instead of gigging full
time, my focus turned to this site and today, I feel significantly more
fulfilled helping others DJ but for many, tinnitus may mean the end of a
career completely.
Tinnitus is the medical term for the perception of sound in
one or both ears or in the head when no external sound is present. It
is often referred to as “ringing in the ears,” although some people hear
hissing, roaring, whistling, chirping or clicking. Tinnitus can be
intermittent or constant-with single or multiple tones-and its perceived
volume can range from subtle to shattering.
- Intense brief noises, like a firecracker or an explosion, can damage
hair cells, as can continuous and/or repeated exposure to high levels
of noise.
- Once the hair cells are damaged, there is no current treatment to repair them.
WHAT TO DO?
Yes, excessive exposure to noise through DJing can (and does) cause
tinnitus, however there are many things you can do that will
significantly reduce, if not eliminate most of the risk. Here they are,
from basic to more advanced:
1) Turn down the monitors between each mix
Tinnitus is caused by exposure
over time.
By keeping your monitors on throughout a set, your ears naturally
fatigue, demanding higher volumes to produce equal results. This
downward cycle can only go one direction. To end it, simply turn off the
near-field DJ monitors whenever possible.
- This practice actually provides a unique
opportunity as well, as it gives the DJ an idea of how the master system
sounds and if it needs to be tuned.
2) Limit back-to-back gigs if possible
After a long gig the ear follicles are very fatigued and at their
most vulnerable. Basically, they need time to recover. Packing gigs
back-to-back will layer on the damage and never give the ears a decent
chance to recover.
3) Limit the length of sets
I did the most damage when I was playing back to back sets of 3-6 hours. It only took a year of this routine before things started to get pretty bad. Personally, I find that a one hour set almost never causes problems with in-ears or very conservative monitoring – but I can really feel things after two. For most DJs, limiting set lengths is not an option but if you are having problems this may be a compromise that saves a career.
chances are high that you’ll be spending more than one hour in the club. For more on that, go onto tip # 4.
4) Use DB reducing ear plugs
What if you could hear the music perfectly, but just have the
loudness lowered? Wouldn’t that be perfect for DJs? Well, such
technology does exist (although not perfectly). Many companies out there
manufacture custom-molded decible-reducing ear plugs. They
have exchangeable filters that step down the volume in increments- often
5,10,15 or 20 DB.
In theory, this reduction is even across the spectrum range producing
a even response that does not distort your sonic perspective. This is
very important if you are the person in charge of tuning the frequency response of the room.
In practice, I found that these don’t exactly sound natural and take a
lot
of getting used to while DJing live. Personally I could never trust my
ears, and found my mixes suffered. Other DJs have no problem and mix
seamlessly with earplugs in. Everyone agrees they are
perfect for
when you are not DJing and hanging out at the club. Socializing at the
club is the precise time when a lot of damage can take place, so even if
you are just a patron – invest in decibel-reducing ear plugs. These
come in two varieties:
- Non-custom above (~$10 – $30) – a common brand is Etymotic earplugs
- Custom-molded “musicians ear plugs” (example below – often $100+) – these often require a trip to an audiologist
We’d recommend grabbing a pair of non-custom earplugs ASAP if you
don’t already own them. Take them out, give them a spin and see what
difference it makes when you come home and your ears aren’t ringing
after every night you go out.
Custom-molded musician’s earplugs are an investment, but many
professional performers swear by them as the best way to prevent hearing
loss. You’ll often find sound professionals using them as well –
sometimes in the range of 30 or 50 decibel reduction.
5) Use in-ear monitors
This was my personal solution, and one that has effectively worked
for most modern musicians. In-ear monitors block out the outside world,
creating a very low noise listening environment where every detail of
the mix is perfectly exposed.
Wait, if this is so perfect,
why don’t we see all DJs using in-ears? Well, there are a few downsides:
- Your in-ears don’t reflect what the room sounds like, so things may sound great in the headphones but terrible on stage.
- For in-ears to be effective they need to be in both ears, preventing
traditional “pre-cuing” popular with most DJs that beat match manually.
- In-ears eliminate that iconic “DJ” look with big over-ear cans, and
replace them with a more “iPod” look that some DJs feel does not look
professional.
- Some DJs, including myself, feel that in-ears make you feel isolated
from the crowd and eliminate the excitement of the loud sound system
that seems to naturally stimulate our brains. In short, you might feel
less “into it” without the sensation of a huge sound system at your
finger tips.
- For controllerists using a lot of effects and scratching, in-ears
are potentially very misleading, with certain things sounding perfect in
the headphones but far too loud and piercing on a larger
amplified system. Personally I found this to be a serious issue and now
DJ with monitors when doing particularly “live” sets.
THE GOOD NEWS : IT’S NOT TOO LATE
After a few years of laying low, I’ve started to gig again (a few
times a month) with in-ear monitors, one hour set times, and careful
near field monitor management. With this regimen and a few years off, my
condition has greatly improved – with almost none of the symptoms
previously mentioned. After a solid night of DJing, pain does show up –
but the ringing and dizziness are basically gone.
The Lesson Learned: Your ears can heal themselves of short term damage, but once things are really broken, they are broken for good.
Start adopting healthy DJ habits before it’s too late. If this is the only thing my site teaches you, then it will all be completely worth the effort.
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