So my brother claims to have done research on the internet and says all everything he saw pointed to the fact that bass, no matter how loud, does not deteriorate one’s hearing. I’m hoping to prove him wrong, cuz he’s just trying to use this as a flimsy excuse for blaring music way too loud (and getting 5 bajillion watt subs in his truck…even though he doesn’t have the money for them). The idea sounded kinda far-fetched to me, (plus I find it hard to believe he did any more research than asking a friend on AIM) but sometimes the truth is strange.
As an audiologist, I’m a little disturbed by what your brother believes regarding noise exposure. Your brother may have been led astray by misinterpreting some information.
Noise-induced hearing loss typically begins in the high frequencies, especially around 4000 Hz, due to the various resonance properties of the human ear. The frequency of the noise itself does not have be centered in the high frequencies in order to cause this type of hearing loss.
Point your brother towards this website, which has a lot of good detailed information about this.
This brief article is specifically about teenagers and exposure to loud noise.
Noise-induced hearing loss is one of the most common causes of acquired hearing loss, perhaps the most common, and yet it is almost always preventable. Your brother should know that his mistaken belief regarding this particular subject could cost him a part of his hearing sensitivity.
Thanks, I figure he was wrong. Anyways, on a related note I have experianced a buzzing in my ears (tinnitus according to your link) for as long as I can remeber. I it doesn’t particularly effect my hearing, I can hear just fine, and since it’s been around for as long as I can remember, I doubt it was caused by loud noises. What other possible causes could there be¿ I’ve heard allergies are one (and I have quite bad allergies), but I wouldn’t expect that to be constant.
Tinnitus (which has been discussed briefly by the Perfect Master himself) is kind of like the ear’s version of a headache: there are so many possible causes, it is nearly impossible for me to guess what the cause of it may be for you. You didn’t describe what kind of symptoms your allergies give you, but I wouldn’t exactly rule it out as a possible cause…especially if you’re taking prescription medication for the allergies. Some medications can cause tinnitus.
Some very common causes of tinnitus:
[ul]
[li]loud noises[/li][li]hearing loss (especially noise-induced)[/li][li]ear infections[/li][li]certain medications[/li][li]and, believe it or not, excess earwax[/li][/ul]
Of course, it could also be a tumor on the eighth cranial nerve, but that sort of thing is quite rare.
One audiologist told me the story once of how he experienced some fairly major tinnitus in his left ear many years ago. He consulted an otolaryngologist about the situation, who then examined the guy’s ear. Turned out that there was a strand of hair plastered against the eardrum…once that hair was removed, the tinnitus stopped instantly. The human body can get really weird sometimes.
Say, totally random thing, atreyu: I often get a kind of clicking sound when I swallow. I remember learning in a class freshman year that this can be a form of tinnitus, am I remembering wrong?
Also: is a certain amount of buzzing normal? Sometimes if I’m alone at the end of the day and it’s very silent, I hear a ringing. It’s not constant, or present at other times as far as I can tell. Is there anything to my guess here?
An ex-friend of mine’s father was a machine gunner in Vietnam. He has tinnitus from it. A machine gun firing isn’t high in pitch, but it is fookin’ loud.
That doesn’t sound like tinnitus. It could be related to the eustachian tubes, which often opens during the act of swallowing. The act of opening equalizes the pressure in the middle ear space, and that could be the clicking you hear.
Just a guess.
Many people, even those with normal hearing, experience tinnitus from time to time. However, chronic persistent tinnitus could be a symptom of something else. If I were you, I would consider getting your hearing checked to make sure you don’t have a hearing loss, or consult a doctor.
That’s what it is, actually. I used to do that ‘holding your nose’ ear pressure thing a lot as a kid. Apparently I did it too much, since I can do it at will now. 
The way the prof. explained it, I thought she was saying that it was a form of tinnitus. Perhaps not.
Right. I’m not saying it’s chronic or persistent - usually there’s an obvious explanation, like a concert.
Atreyu
Can we play ask the audiologist? This is not a scientific question. However, I was wonder if people every freak during a passive hearing test and yank those things out of their ears. Not that I wanted to do that or anything…
24 years in airplanes, 10 in crop dusters (wearing a helmet and ear plugs) has left me with a noticable hearing loss and constant tinnitus. I try to tell that to my boys when they listen to their portable cd players loud enough for me to hear them across the living room.