David Byrne on CD vs LP sound

[ryanosaur]

D: To be fair... Davis Byrne is probably can't hear the noise (or high frequencies) because was a rocker and he probably ruined his hearing, plus he's 73 years old! Neil Young also seems to think he's an "audiophile" but I suspect his hearing isn't perfect either.

...I'm "no kid" myself and I've lost some "high frequency response".

This.
My life performing on stage was relatively short, but between practice sessions and performances, even with some hearing protection, I know I suffered.

There should be a study of professional musicians and hearing loss the way they study concussions in football players. Hell, in the EU, full orchestra practice is nerfed for that very reason: hazardous to their health!

There should also be the thread crossover to how our hearing is affected by cocaine use. Oh wait, that thread was about cannabis. Huh. Oh well.

 

[Robin L]

D: To be fair... Davis Byrne is probably can't hear the noise (or high frequencies) because was a rocker and he probably ruined his hearing, plus he's 73 years old! Neil Young also seems to think he's an "audiophile" but I suspect his hearing isn't perfect either.

...I'm "no kid" myself and I've lost some "high frequency response".

I lost 1/2 an octave on top when I went to a Neil Young concert around 1978 at the "Fabulous Forum", a sonic atrocity in Inglewood intended for basketball. No longer could hear flyback transformers from that moment on. Halycon daze of yore. Nobody even thought of ear protection back then.

You can only imagine what that did to Ol' Shaky's eardrums.

 

[respice finem]

Hearing protection is rather problematic for musicians, they need to hear what they are doing.

...There should be a study of professional musicians and hearing loss...

Actually, there is one:

A scoping review of the prevalence of musicians’ hearing loss - PMC

Hearing loss is the most commonly recognized occupational disease in Germany. Musicians are also affected, as playing classical music can expose them to high or very high sound volumes. With this scoping review, we aimed to assess the prevalence of ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[ryanosaur]

Hearing protection is rather problematic for musicians, they need to hear what they are doing.


Actually, there is one:

A scoping review of the prevalence of musicians’ hearing loss - PMC

Hearing loss is the most commonly recognized occupational disease in Germany. Musicians are also affected, as playing classical music can expose them to high or very high sound volumes. With this scoping review, we aimed to assess the prevalence of ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Sorry, that was meant more as social commentary about how athletes are revered far more than the artists.

And yes. Hearing protection mostly blows when it comes to being useful to performing musicians, even in a practice room.

But how many “concussion proof” football helmets are designed, manufactured and sold every year?

Society tends to care more about its gladiator caste than its artists.

*steps off soapbox

 

[respice finem]

Sorry, that was meant more as social commentary about how athletes are revered far more than the artists.

And yes. Hearing protection mostly blows when it comes to being useful to performing musicians, even in a practice room.

But how many “concussion proof” football helmets are designed, manufactured and sold every year?

Society tends to care more about its gladiator caste than its artists.

*steps off soapbox

As a sidenote: I stopped going to rock concerts after getting near-deaf for a day... Before I need hearing protection going there, I can buy the CD or Blu-Ray later and listen at a sane level. It's all gotten insane IMHO.

 

[Robin L]

As a sidenote: I stopped going to rock concerts after getting near-deaf for a day... Before I need hearing protection going there, I can buy the CD or Blu-Ray later and listen at a sane level. It's all gotten insane IMHO.

It's been insane for at least 50 years:

According to records, these are officially the 10 loudest concerts of all time

Motörhead, Deep Purple and Manowar have all broken records – and people’s eardrums, probably

www.loudersound.com

The Who – The Valley, London, 1976​

One year after Deep Purple terrorised the ears of Guinness’s judging panel, hard rock legends The Who smashed their record like a dropped vinyl. On May 31, 1976, at Charlton Athletic Football Club (AKA “The Valley”), the sound was registered at a whopping 126 decibels – and that reading was taken at a 100-foot distance from the speakers. No wonder Pete Townshend is basically deaf.

 

[DVDdoug]

There should be a study of professional musicians and hearing loss the way they study concussions in football players. Hell, in the EU, full orchestra practice is nerfed for that very reason: hazardous to their health!

I read and article about that once... Maybe in a hi-fi magazine? I think it was rock musicians and there were graphs that were pretty dramatic but I don't know how extensive or rigorous the study was. I might have a copy of it a folder... somewhere... Since it interested me enough to remember it might have been interesting enough to save.

Oh... they should include audio engineers and producers too. Somebody (Floyd Toole?) said they tend to listen/monitor LOUD. I read Geoff Emerick's book (Engineer for The Beatles) and he said Phil Spector was producing one of the albums and he kept turning-up the monitors and the engineer (it wasn't Geoff Emerick) kept turning it back down. In those days they had rules and the producer wasn't supposed to touch anything.

With in-ears musicians shouldn't have to monitor as loud but I suspect most still do.

No wonder Pete Townshend is basically deaf.

I suspect it was cumulative but he blames it on when Keith Moon put a "bomb" in his drum kit. (video)

...And Spinal Tap was "one of England's loudest bands."

 

[respice finem]

It's been insane for at least 50 years:

According to records, these are officially the 10 loudest concerts of all time

Motörhead, Deep Purple and Manowar have all broken records – and people’s eardrums, probably

www.loudersound.com

The Who – The Valley, London, 1976​

One year after Deep Purple terrorised the ears of Guinness’s judging panel, hard rock legends The Who smashed their record like a dropped vinyl. On May 31, 1976, at Charlton Athletic Football Club (AKA “The Valley”), the sound was registered at a whopping 126 decibels – and that reading was taken at a 100-foot distance from the speakers. No wonder Pete Townshend is basically deaf.

Most of the time, when I was younger, the existing max SPL regulations were generally enforced at big events, in Poland at least. Now these are (similar) EU regulations, but every so often, existing only "on paper"... Anyway, home listening FTW. My hearing is aging anyway, I don't have to further harm it.

 

[Beave]

What do you think of the parts of the book that aren't engineering?

I really enjoyed the rest of it - but I have to admit, after reading the chapter on digital audio, I couldn't help but wonder if he was that wrong on some of the other subjects too (and that I just wasn't well-educated enough on those subjects to know that he was wrong on them).

 

[antcollinet]

He missed sampling theorem 101

Monty video time:

Yay - this video can never be posted too many times.

 

[antcollinet]

Digital and hi-res vs. analog topics are like a Bat Signal

No, it is fundamental misunderstanding of how digital audio works that is the batsignal.

knee jerk posting of neckbeard philosopher Monty Montgomery’s videos for the billionth time.

Care to explain how the style of his beard has anything to do with the validity of the video content. Of perhaps you can explain how the video content doesn't help to explain how digital audio really works, for the benefit of those spouting audiophile mythology - or perhaps more importantly for the benefit of those listening to them?

 

[antcollinet]

It's been insane for at least 50 years:

According to records, these are officially the 10 loudest concerts of all time

Motörhead, Deep Purple and Manowar have all broken records – and people’s eardrums, probably

www.loudersound.com

The Who – The Valley, London, 1976​

One year after Deep Purple terrorised the ears of Guinness’s judging panel, hard rock legends The Who smashed their record like a dropped vinyl. On May 31, 1976, at Charlton Athletic Football Club (AKA “The Valley”), the sound was registered at a whopping 126 decibels – and that reading was taken at a 100-foot distance from the speakers. No wonder Pete Townshend is basically deaf.

Motorhead - Leicester De Montford Hall - 1982. Life long tinnitus since.

 

[RexrothPigeon]

D: To be fair... Davis Byrne is probably can't hear the noise (or high frequencies) because was a rocker and he probably ruined his hearing, plus he's 73 years old! Neil Young also seems to think he's an "audiophile" but I suspect his hearing isn't perfect either.

...I'm "no kid" myself and I've lost some "high frequency response".

Yes, his hearing is shot to shit

 

[beeface]

he's a musician, not an engineer. he's susceptible to the same misinformation as everyone else

Neil Young is perhaps the most famous example

 

[Beave]

he's a musician, not an engineer. he's susceptible to the same misinformation as everyone else

Neil Young is perhaps the most famous example

Sure, of course. And if he passed on that misinformation to a friend or family member, it's a very minor offense.

But when he writes an entire chapter full of that misinformation in his book about "How Music Works," well, that's a bigger problem.

 

[beeface]

Sure, of course. And if he passed on that misinformation to a friend or family member, it's a very minor offense.

But when he writes an entire chapter full of that misinformation in his book about "How Music Works," well, that's a bigger problem.

true

his mate Eno seems more technical, you'd think he'd steer him on the right path

 

[CtheArgie]

D: To be fair... Davis Byrne is probably can't hear the noise (or high frequencies) because was a rocker and he probably ruined his hearing, plus he's 73 years old! Neil Young also seems to think he's an "audiophile" but I suspect his hearing isn't perfect either.

...I'm "no kid" myself and I've lost some "high frequency response".

Actually, my friend at a studio where he recently recorded did confirm to me Young is very deaf. Even though he kept insisting on certain recording idiosyncrasies. Such as sending the signal to an open reel recording head, picking the sound from the playing head and then digitize that to 96/24…. Those few cm on tape made it an “analog” recording.

 

[MRC01]

Hearing protection is rather problematic for musicians, they need to hear what they are doing.
...

Which is why many use musician's earplugs, for example deep insertion custom molds with filters. They have relatively flat frequency response which reduces the volume without muffling the sound.

 

[Chrispy]

Meh

 

[DWPress]

Deer hunting, wood shops and chainsaws took out my upper frequencies early in life but the Buthole Surfers drove the last coffin nail in 1988. Basketball arena, the promoters left early shortly after Gibby's girlfriend took her clothes off and fireballs started toward the ceiling from the drum kit. Lots of acid....

Yup, I'll still enjoy David Byrne and the Heads despite going to press with such an uninformed chapter.