• ​In-ear monitors do not inherently protect your hearing. 
  • However, with a properly isolating seal and when used correctly, following safe listening practices, customm in-ear monitors offer excellent ambient isolation that allows for lower listening levels and some loud sound attenuation. 
  • All in-ear monitors block out some ambient sound; however, how much attenuation (reduction of the volume of external sound reaching the ear) in-ear monitors provide will vary. In order to obtain maximum attenuation:
    •  the IEMs should not have any open sound bores or open vents that would allow for unregulated amounts of external sound to enter the ear and 
    • the IEMs should have a properly isolating seal and should fit snuggly and deeply into your ear canal, which is why a proper fit is so important, making the ear mold impression and follow-up fitting process crucial.  
  • Tips:
    • ​See an audiologist and have your hearing tested every year (or sooner if you are having issues). 
    • Know how loud you are listening. In-ear monitors can absolutely harm your hearing. Some IEMs are capable of delivering up to 130 dB SPL to your ears! That's loud-really, really loud. Keep the volume down. 
      • How loud you can safely listen is a product of how loud the sound is, how long you are exposed to the loud sound, how often you are exposed to loud sounds, and individual risk factors. 
      • ​Ask us how we can help you find out exactly how loud you have your in-ear monitors turned up so we can make absolutely sure you are listening at safe volume levels. 
    • Re-train your ears. Using in-ear monitors is going to sound different. You will be more isolated on stage than you are used to and the monitor mix will sound different through in-ears than wedges, so you will need to re-train your ears to listen in this new way. In addition, it is important to know that if you are used to using floor wedges and switching to in-ear monitors, there is a tendency to turn the IEM volume up to the same, usually unsafe, level that your wedges were at without even realizing it, so you will need to re-train your ears to listen at lower volume levels.  
    • Wear both earpieces! Taking one earpiece out negates any isolation and attenuation you would have had for that open ear canal. When you take one ear piece out, the tendency is to raise the volume of the IEM still in your ear to compensate and hear the mix over the ambient sound. Now both ears are susceptible to damage from loud sounds.
    • Use either an internal or outboard compressor or peak limiter to help protect against bursts of feedback, transients and other sudden loud sounds that can occur during a performance. ​
    • Be aware of how the monitor mix and your monitoring system impacts the use of your in-ear monitors. 
    • The more isolation your IEMs provide, the more attenuation you'll have of the ambient sounds and the less you'll need to turn the volume up. The deeper in the ear canal that your IEMs fit, the greater the isolation. Silicone in-ear monitors can more comfortably go deeper in the ear canal and have a snugger fit than acrylic IEMs. Custom-fit in-ear monitors will provide better isolation than universal-fit earpieces. 
  • ​Ultimately, the goals should be to keep the stage volume as low as possible, to obtain as much attenuation as possible from your in-ear monitors to protect your hearing from ambient sound levels, to wear both IEM earpieces to protect both of your ears, and to  keep the volume of your IEMs in a safe listening range. 
  • At the end of the day, you are in charge of how loud you listen and in-ear monitors are capable of being just as damaging, if not more damaging, than floor wedges. Make protecting your hearing a priority.
  • Contact us to learn more and to make sure you are doing everything you can to protect your most valuable piece of gear-your ears. Our audiologist is happy to consult with you and answer any questions you have about safe listening with IEMs. ​

Contact us to schedule an appointment. 

Contact

SILICONE SUPERIORITY

DO IN-EAR MONITORS PROTECT YOUR HEARING?

Phone: 314-313-2289 (call or text)

e-mail: info@soundaccessStL.com

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SENSAPHONICS In-ear monitors

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​All Sensaphonics earphones are hand-built from soft-gel, medical-grade silicone, offering several distinct advantages: 

  • Superior long-wearing comfort
  • ​Maximum isolation (up to 37 dB) from ambient sound
  • Maintains a perfect seal even during excess jaw movement
  • ​Durability-silicone acts as a shock absorber for speakers
  • Never cracks, shrinks, or degrades in any way
  • ​Transparent earphones virtually disappear in the ear for improved cosmetics (or choose from a variety of custom colors)
  • ​Allows full-impact monitoring at lower volume levels for better performances and increased safety over hard-shell in-ear devices


​Reference: https://www.sensaphonics.com

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A Sensaphonics's Gold Circle Audiologist comes highly recommended by Sensaphonics. As a Gold Circle Audiologist, Dr. London Gleghorn, has been personally trained by Sensaphonics President, Dr. Michael Santucci, in meeting the hearing health and in-ear product needs of music industry clients. Dr. Gleghorn has had extensive personal experience working with musicians and sound engineers. 

Did you know you know? You need an ear mold impression to order custom-fit in-ear monitors.​​ 

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Sensaphoincs IEMS

Sound Access is proud to be an authorized dealer of Sensaphonics in-ear monitors.

In 1985 audiologist Michael Santucci founded Sensaphonics Hearing Conservation as a research and development company committed to controlling the damaging effects of loud sounds, especially regarding musicians and hearing loss. With the development of stereo, wireless in-ear monitor systems in the early 90's, Sensaphonics developed custom-fitted earphones designed to act as hearing protection. As the only custom earphones manufacturer founded and operated by a practicing audiologist, Sensaphonics is uniquely qualified to provide safe, high fidelity audio. Sensaphonics focuses on designing and building the best-sounding, most comfortable, and safest custom earphones available. 

Sensaphonics in-ear ear monitors feature precision balanced armature speakers, designed to deliver reference-quality audio in a sealed system. With a higher isolation and superior seal, Sensaphonics silicone earphones turn the ear canal into a tiny "isolation booth", virtually unaffected by the outside world. This combination maximizes the signal-to-noise ratio, allowing high resolution monitoring at safer volume settings. 
Reference: https://www.sensaphonics.com​​

SENSAPHONICS