I'm very close to the monitors but i keep the level low is it ok for the ears?

[for]

I have my monitors right behind my laptop left and right

i keep the level low is it ok for the ears?



also which frequencies are more harmful for the ears? the lows or highs?

[Stella645]

That depends what your idea of low level is.

You could try an app for your phone to get a level in db though on Android the reading may not be that accurate.

It's often said that 85db is danger level....but I have seen claims that anything over 70db for prolonged periods could be damaging.

From your description of your setup I'm guessing you probably are monitoring at less than 75db...if you're 2 foot from your monitors much more than this is pretty loud.

Any frequency at too high a level will damage your hearing. Even inaudible frequencies.

[valy]

All speakers have an optimal range. Listening to really large speakers at a very low level might not push them into their optimal range, but it doesn't sound like you have large speakers.

Download a free SPL meter for your phone and hold it where your head is, then play your music at the level you want to listen to it at. What does the meter say?

[DVDdoug]

An SPL meter is a good idea. But, I don't trust a phone app unless it's calibrated for your particular phone model, and even then the microphone sensitivity might vary from phone-to-phone.


I'd say most audio work can be done at low levels. Then when you're listening carefully for some little defect or little detail you'll need to crank it up (and maybe use headphones).


And when you're getting to the point of critical mixing or mastering Bob Katz recommends 85dB

also which frequencies are more harmful for the ears? the lows or highs?

That's a good question... Measurements for workplace safety regulations are A-weighted (which means you're mostly measuring mid-frequencies where the ear is most sensitive). Loud high-frequency sounds can be "uncomfortable" so intuitively it seems like high frequencies can do damage, and when your hearing is damaged it's the highs that go first. But, assuming you're working with normal program material (not test tones) regular A-weighting should be fine.

[valy]

Originally Posted by DVDdoug

An SPL meter is a good idea. But, I don't trust a phone app unless it's calibrated for your particular phone model, and even then the microphone sensitivity might vary from phone-to-phone.

It will get you in the ballpark, certainly enough to tell you if you are potentially causing hearing damage. Although, common sense should tell you that without a meter.

[valy]

Also, 85 dB seems way too loud unless you are in a large control room. I'd shoot for something in the 70s if working in a typical residential space, especially if you are very close to the monitors.

[lunker]

In his book on mastering, Katz recommends 83 dB SPL as a better reference for small rooms (Appendix 9, in the section "Why the K-system divorced from the theatre controversy")

But remember that 83 (or 85 if you prefer) dB SPL is not the target music volume! That is the reference level you use to calibrate the monitors to 0 dB RMS in the DAW (the actual dBFS level will depend on whether you calibrate it to -20 dBFS, -14 dBFS, -12 dBFS, or perhaps a non-standard value of your choosing). The music volume should vary, often going below 0 dB RMS with only the really loud parts reaching high SPL levels.

As you turn your monitors down, you compensate for it by turning up the music in the DAW. And if you turn the monitors down too much, you end raising the DAW levels so high that you need a lot of compression to keep the music from going over 0 dBFS. One of Katz's points is to turn the monitors up, so that you can turn the DAW down and not need as much compression to avoid going over 0 dBFS.

[valy]

I'm gain-staging my raw tracks to an RMS level of about -18 dBFS, and maintaining unity gain as I add processing to them. So the mix stays at a consistent volume. I'm not sure I understand the concept of turning it up in the DAW?

A VU meter lives on the first insert of my mix bus. I do check it periodically to make sure my gain isn't straying too much. If it is, I grab all the audio tracks and nudge them up or down to get back to 0 VU. If I've already gotten to the parallel compression stage, I adjust the gain directly from that VU meter instead.

[karbomusic]

Originally Posted by lunker

And if you turn the monitors down too much, you end raising the DAW levels so high that you need a lot of compression to keep the music from going over 0 dBFS. One of Katz's points is to turn the monitors up, so that you can turn the DAW down and not need as much compression to avoid going over 0 dBFS.

I have his book, great book. Just a quick note that if someone is compressing to keep overs down, because their monitors aren't turned up, maybe they are a tad clueless - not a disparaging remark, just that they probably need DAW 101 before they get that book LOL.

Maybe I'm old and cranky but damn, I don't think I've ever come close to not realizing my "amp" was the thing that needed to be turned up.