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Are bigger headphones that cover more of the ears "healthier" to the ears for prolonged exposures than smaller ones?

What do you mean by "healthier"?

Those headphones that go in your ear can do nasty things to you

I suffered an electrical shock in my ear due to one of those things

Sticking stuff in your ear is not good as it causes waxy build up.
Sticking headphones in your ear is definitely not good as it can damage the hearing apparatus at that short range.

BoredShirtless wrote:What do you mean by "healthier"?

I've been told that wearing headphones too much can eventually damage my hearing due to the close proximity of the sound and all that.

So would bigger headphones that are a bit further from your ears physically help or no?

InnerBrat wrote: Sticking headphones in your ear is definitely not good as it can damage the hearing apparatus at that short range.

I don't think a centimetre or so closer to the inner ear will make much of a difference in relation to hearing loss, and unless you've got them in 24x7 or you jam them inside to the point of pain, you wont suffer any hygienic related problems either.

It all comes down to sound quality. Open headphones like the Sennheiser HD's are better then some of those Sony closed jobs which in turn are better then ear buds.

Shinova wrote:

BoredShirtless wrote:What do you mean by "healthier"?

I've been told that wearing headphones too much can eventually damage my hearing due to the close proximity of the sound and all that.

So would bigger headphones that are a bit further from your ears physically help or no?

Not in my opinion. If you turn up the volume on ear buds to a level which damages your hearing, I'm pretty sure that same volume through open headphones will do you in too.

Bigger fully enclosed headphones block out external sounds much more effectively than earbuds, so people tend to turn up the volume louder on earbuds in order to overwhelm external noises. This is why earbuds are generally considered to be bad for your hearing.

Shinova wrote:Are bigger headphones that cover more of the ears "healthier" to the ears for prolonged exposures than smaller ones?

At the same listening volume, no, but I find them to be a lot more comfortable for prolonged use. Smaller headphones will clamp & put pressure on your ears which can make them uncomfortable to wear after a while. Something like the Sennheiser HD-580 is large enough to go over your ears so that nothing touches your ears when your wearing them, this makes them super comfy especially if you wear glasses like me. Unfortunately they have a tendency to make the wearer look like a complete dork.

The phones I have are ones that circle the ear and have a flat speaker against the outer ear opening. It's not intrusive like the stick-in earphones, but it's not as effective as proper fully enclosed earphones. A compromise that allows portability and is cheaper.

I definately prefer big earmuff style headphones. Wong's post was observent; less ambiant noise means you don't need them as loud...

And yea, in general it's better for you not to stick things in your ear. It just isn't a good habit to get into.

Eh, the Etymonic in-canal phones aren't that bad :p

Does anyone know anything about the materials that they make bub's from? The iPob headphones are supposed to use some sort of rare metal that is really good for sound. Any scientific/testing proof?

StormTrooperTR889 wrote:Does anyone know anything about the materials that they make bub's from? The iPob headphones are supposed to use some sort of rare metal that is really good for sound. Any scientific/testing proof?

You mean for the magnets and so forth?

I prefer the big, earmuff style headphones. The other kind tend to feel a little strange.

phongn wrote:Eh, the Etymonic in-canal phones aren't that bad :p

Now would that be foam tips or silicone rubber tips?

I use earphones which "plug" into your ears. I use them as loud as they will go, which is generally loud enough for someone to hear on the opposite side of a classroom in my college. I am not deaf, nor has my hearing gone any worse than it ever was.

Just my 2c, and I will slap anyone who says listening to music loud will make me deaf.

Embracer Of Darkness wrote:I use earphones which "plug" into your ears. I use them as loud as they will go, which is generally loud enough for someone to hear on the opposite side of a classroom in my college. I am not deaf, nor has my hearing gone any worse than it ever was.

Just my 2c, and I will slap anyone who says listening to music loud will make me deaf.

Since the effects of volume-induced hearing damage are long-term rather than short-term, your observations hardly contradict medical theory. Wait 20 years and get back to me ... after it's too late to repair the damage.

Embracer Of Darkness wrote:I use earphones which "plug" into your ears. I use them as loud as they will go, which is generally loud enough for someone to hear on the opposite side of a classroom in my college. I am not deaf, nor has my hearing gone any worse than it ever was.

Just my 2c, and I will slap anyone who says listening to music loud will make me deaf.

Hearing loss is generally unnoticeable it's pretty far progressed. If you got your hearing tested I'd bet you have a nice dip in your hearing sensitivity centered around the 1-2kHz range. Happens to lots of people and they don't notice it until the day they're going "Huh? Whuh? I can't hear ya!" like grandpa. The fact that you can listen to earphones that loud without pain means you already have hearing damage.

aerius wrote:Hearing loss is generally unnoticeable it's pretty far progressed. If you got your hearing tested I'd bet you have a nice dip in your hearing sensitivity centered around the 1-2kHz range. Happens to lots of people and they don't notice it until the day they're going "Huh? Whuh? I can't hear ya!" like grandpa. The fact that you can listen to earphones that loud without pain means you already have hearing damage.

One of my sisters probably has hearing damage already and her constant use of loud headphones isn't helping.

StormTrooperTR889 wrote:Does anyone know anything about the materials that they make bub's from? The iPob headphones are supposed to use some sort of rare metal that is really good for sound. Any scientific/testing proof?

The iPod headphones are nothing special. It's just Apple's marketting machine at work.

phongn wrote:

StormTrooperTR889 wrote:Does anyone know anything about the materials that they make bub's from? The iPob headphones are supposed to use some sort of rare metal that is really good for sound. Any scientific/testing proof?

The iPod headphones are nothing special. It's just Apple's marketting machine at work.

Not really, they're actually pretty well made for earbuds, I could actually hear bass on these, as opposed to the other crappy earbuds that have jack shit at the lower end and some shrill, ear-bleeding treble...

Xenophobe3691 wrote:Not really, they're actually pretty well made for earbuds, I could actually hear bass on these, as opposed to the other crappy earbuds that have jack shit at the lower end and some shrill, ear-bleeding treble...

I should have noted that compared to higher-end headphones (which Apple is trying to compare these to) they're nothing special, but for earbuds they are indeed pretty good.

aerius wrote:

Embracer Of Darkness wrote:I use earphones which "plug" into your ears. I use them as loud as they will go, which is generally loud enough for someone to hear on the opposite side of a classroom in my college. I am not deaf, nor has my hearing gone any worse than it ever was.

Just my 2c, and I will slap anyone who says listening to music loud will make me deaf.

Hearing loss is generally unnoticeable it's pretty far progressed. If you got your hearing tested I'd bet you have a nice dip in your hearing sensitivity centered around the 1-2kHz range. Happens to lots of people and they don't notice it until the day they're going "Huh? Whuh? I can't hear ya!" like grandpa. The fact that you can listen to earphones that loud without pain means you already have hearing damage.

Bah, you people with your "hearing damage" and "hearing tests". No problems I tells ya'! Besides, I never said it didn't hurt.

tyty. Anyone know where I could get a 30gb iPob for less than $400US (average going price on ebay).