Warning to headphone users.

[Kurt]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

Thanks for caring...there's not enough people left in the totalbf2 forums that are like you. I'll keep what you said in mind when playing BF2..

Yeah, I'll second that. Cheers fella.

[Elushion]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

As many people mock, I wouldnt. My brother is 19 and has played the computer since he was 5, he wore a headset. Guess what he now has tinnitus, and guess what the doctor sayed was the cause? Wearing a headset.

[imported_DANK]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEPPPP.........

I keep half of the headphone on my ear so I do not get the full blast right into my ear but still can hear everything.

[Suntzu69]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEPPPP.........

I keep half of the headphone on my ear so I do not get the full blast right into my ear but still can hear everything.

I do this sometimes as well..

[redrider]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

Bitvomit is right. I would like to add that the worst thing is loud noise over an extended time! I am also one who has had a lot of this. I spent 4 years working on the flight line, in the US airforce, at an Air Base, Travis, that mainly had a squadron of about 120 C-5 transport aircraft. (They have 4 engines like the one an F-16 has) Since then I have worked mainly industrial type jobs and at times the noise level is quite loud.

The main thing I have noticed is that I now have to look at people, when they speak, to hear them and understand them. I can tell you most people wont worry untill its to late. Sad isnt it (and I always have wore my hearing protection). Anyway good luck. . . . .I SAID GOOD LUCK, THERE. . . . . .LOL. . . . .Red

[disfigured]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

It's definately a concern we should all be thinking about.

As for speakers vs. headphones, hands down headphones can do the most damage the fastest, if abused. It's the relationship of the ear to the source of sound that makes the difference.

My problem is I'm addicted to the damn things. Been playing with them for years, and can't stand speakers, not matter how awesome the set up. There simply isn't anything thing better for FPS's for directional and enviroment sound then a good soundcard and good headphones.

Had a freind over the other day and was showing him BF2, I had speakers on and my headphones off so I could talk to him. I felt disorientated and lost while trying to play.

I'm guilty of turning up the volume to high, and will "tone" it back now that I've been reminded.

Being 43 and having attended rock concerts for years during my H.S years and 20's, it's a quite possible I've already done some damage. I can remember my ears ringing till the next morning after some shows.

[mlonghurst69]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

Have to say I agree with the loss of hearing thing and headphones.....been playing games for about 6 years now....most of the time (previously) with headphones......and I have tinitus.....a constant ringing in my ears and find it hard to focus on converstaions at times.............I was also in the forces (UK) and been in numerous combat situations.......but they were short lived and not constant as with the games........switched to speakers......although that won't help me regain the loss of hearing.....

[Eternal-Souljah]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

I don't really use headphones that often, have some good speakers, with nice base for music and BF2 and other games. Also I do listen to music but not like 24/7, I have an IPOD Nano, and a PSP with a 1GB stick for a ton of music on that, but the speakers on the PSP don't seem to be very loud, the Ipod speakers are pretty loud.

[Sung_Do_Chuck]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

I don't play as much with headphones, too. When I use them I turn volume very low....
It's important to be carefull with your healthiness!

[RotJ]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

You don't need the volume turned high in Battlefield 2, because there isn't a huge dynamic range in the audio. In Counter-Strike, for example, you would need to turn the volume up so that gunshots approach 100 dB in order to effectively hear footsteps.

[Pyryck]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

I have selective hearing...

My ex's have accused me of that for years...having selective hearing...:hmm:

Hmm, let's see...headphones or 7.1 set up?

After several years of Rem 870,m16,9mm,.45cal,.50cal,m60,3"50,20mm,Superturbo charged diesels,helo turbine engines, ships whistle and bell with a few concerts thrown in along the way after 6 teenage years of brass playing almost daily...yep, tinnitus is a pain in the ear...:cry:

[Suntzu69]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

What creates part of the problem in my opinion is that often times, the low frequency (bass) sounds are much less pronounced with headphones than with a full sound system (7.1, 5.1, etc.). Therefore, at the same db rating, you are getting MORE high frequency sounds to your ears and less lower frequencies. High frequency audio damages your ears much more than lower frequency, and so a lower DB rating actually damages your ear more than it should if you had the broad band of frequencies flowing to your ear at the same DB rating.

In other words, you need to put headphone volume up higher (on the high frequencies that are damaging) to feel that the volume is at a decent level. If you had the lower frequencies in there, less volume would feel louder and you would naturally turn it down reducing the high frequencies flowing to your ears. I would like to see how the physical damage compares when you have a higher quality set of headphones vs. cheap $5 headphones at the same total DB volume as your usual speakers. In my experience, higher quality headphones tend to have a broader range of frequency output.

[Black_05_TL_6sd]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

Tell that to my case of Nintendo thumb!

I lost partial feeling in my thumb for months because I over did that friken gamepad.

Boy do I remeber those days!! I would play MB as soon as I got home, and leave it paused when I went to bed or went some where. The left thumb was numb half the time. I ended up go with the joystick for the NES. This made things a lot easier and saved me money in the long run as I kept going through game pads. Mike Tysons punchout was the other great one!!!

But back on topic. This is something that is going to cause problems in the long run, ever time you put the headphones on and start playing you run the risk of damaging your ears. I to have lost some hearing from car stereo systems over the years. I can still hear fairly well, but there are times that I can tell I can't hear as well as I used to. I play with a full surround system and love it, but the wife hates it. So my volume is kept at a medium volume. You may not think it will happen to you, but it will, just play it safe and turn the volume back a little. That way you won't be wearing a hearing aid before your parents!!

[Flares]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

Keep the volume down to a sane level and you should be OK... I've used headphones most of the time during gaming for many years, and haven't had a problem. Invest in good headphones with a wide frequency response. When gaming my Windows volume is only set to 18%, and the game to 100 (or less if using TS). Basically loud enough to hear footsteps but not so loud that an arty strike is deafening. Making my ears work rather than feeding them an insane volume.
If that strategy fails, and I do go deaf in my later years it won't matter too much I'll be too old to care.

[Rambo-82(NOR)]

Re: Warning to headphone users.

I use Cerwin Vega clsc-215 when im playing.. but i dont play at full volume of course.. I have a headset too ,but i feel like in a box when using them.. only use the microphone attached to it...