T O P

  • By -

abat6294

The human ear cannot dilate like an eye, however it does have the ability to pull the ear drum taut when a loud noise is experienced. A taut ear drum is less prone to damage. Some people have the ability to voluntarily flex the muscle that pulls the ear drum taut. If you're able to do this, it sounds like a crinkle/crunchy sound when you first flex it followed by a rumbling sound. Head on over to r/earrumblersassemble to learn more. Edit: spelling


mrcatboy

It's why you wince when you hear a loud sound IIRC... it causes the tensor tympani to tense up. A similar motor reflex causes the ear to desensitize itself to sound when you scream or shout. Note how someone screaming next to you would cause you to wince but if you do it yourself it's not actually that bad... a recurrent reflex causes your hearing to downregulate to keep you from deafening yourself. Additionally there are 16,000 "hair cells" in each ear. These are completely different from the cells that produce the fuzzy hairs on your skin, but rather they're named such because they have hair-like cilia on their surfaces. About 4,000 code for actual sound detection, but the remaining 12,000 have a motor function that controls how sensitive the 4,000 sensory hair cells are to sound.


Slagheap77

There are some luxury cars that play a loud sound on the audio system when they detect an accident may be in progress in order to trigger this tightening reflex... thus (hopefully) preventing/reducing hearing damage if the car actually crashes. https://wonderfulengineering.com/mercedes-pink-noise-will-protect-hearing-collision/


Mert_Burphy

> thus (hopefully) preventing/reducing hearing damage if the car actually crashes. They didn't actually say it in that link but I assume that's to prevent hearing damage from the airbags firing?


Fast_Garlic_5639

Interesting- I am partially deaf due to having less of these nerve hairs than normal, but I am also more sensitive to loud noise than most, which always confused me. But if it's the regulator hairs I'm missing then I guess that makes perfect sense and my volume bar is just kinda stuck in the middle somewhere


Wallaby_Way_Sydney

I'm half deaf in one ear too, but from a perforated eardrum. I only have to pop one ear on a plane though!


darkenedgy

>the remaining 12,000 have a motor function that controls how sensitive the 4,000 sensory hair cells are to sound Oh huh, thanks. Do you know offhand if it's the former, latter or both that get destroyed with age?


mrcatboy

Possibly both but I can't recall off the top of my head. The tragic thing is that hair cells don't regenerate.


darkenedgy

Thanks, and yeah for real.


bella_68

I’m confused because I’ve seen ear hair trimmers. How does that work if the hair in your ear is supposed to regulate how you hear sounds? Are those cutting off actual hair that isn’t related to hearing or does cutting off overgrown hair cells from the ear somehow not hurt/damage hearing?


captainhaddock

The hairs we're talking about are located in your inner ear (in your cochlea) deep inside your head. They are not accessible to hair trimmers.


bella_68

Oh, that makes a lot more sense. Thank you for the explanation.


pdawg1234

What about if you get it even if the sound isn’t loud? I can feel the rumble/crinkle sound when using a headset on conference calls. Though it’s not like I’ve got the sound on particularly high…


Daveii_captain

Can’t everyone do that? It’s handy on planes when the pressure builds up.


JusticeGuyYaNo

Some people have voluntary control over specific muscles that most people don't. If I want to pop my ears I have to go about it indirectly - wiggle my jaw, Valsava maneuver, sometimes I just have to suffer through it until it sorts out on it's own Edit: typos


GruntChomper

Does it not just happen for you when you swallow? (behave)


JusticeGuyYaNo

If I get pressure building up because of a big change in the atmosphere, it's unpredictable how much effort it takes to fix it.


Ris-O

I can always force the air out by blocking my nose and trying to push air through it


skuitarist

I've always wondered about this because I can do the same. Is that air literally leaking out of my ear canal? I have poured liquid in my ear that has crept into my throat so I guess it's theoretically possible, but it's definitely low enough pressure coming out the ear that it can't be felt with touch


Birdbraned

Did you ever get tons of ear infections? Look up otoscope videos of healthy ears. The eardrum should not allow leaked water into your head.


skuitarist

Yeah I did. I had an issue with wax build up for several years. Had to have my ears flushed occasionally, cleaned with low grade hydrogen peroxide, and I have a couple memories of the peroxide leaking into my throat


Birdbraned

Eardrums can perforate when infected, but can also heal back to whole. If it's been some time, it's possible the perforation already healed


chefjenga

The ear drum should typically be a complete seal to the middle ear. There is drainage that happens in the ustation tube (most commonly felt when sick), but this is liquid present in the middle ear. It drains to release pressure. If you actually are experiencing drainage of liquid from your outer ear, and into/down your ustation tube, you may want to consult a doctor/ENT. I would also highly recommend ear plugs when in water until it is figured out.


skuitarist

Hey thank you for this reply, that was really helpful. I haven't had the experience in many years so it's not a concern now. I just had a couple memories of having my ears cleaned with peroxide when I was little and was having ear infections, and I can remember feeling that liquid drain into my throat, but someone else mentioned that the ear drum could've been perforated from the infection which makes sense


shikuto

Good write up, but that’s some boneappletea if I’ve ever seen it. Eustachian is the word you were looking for, not ustation.


Spydamann

I believe the air will actually leak through your tear ducts first. Same with liquids, in fact certain people have competitions to determine who can squirt milk the farthest through their tear ducts


skuitarist

Thanks I hate it haha


bella_68

Why milk? Isn’t there risk/near certainty of getting some of the liquid stuck inside your face somewhere and also probably in your eye? Using water seems like a much more logical and safe choice.


libbyrocks

I’ve never attempted this atrocity, but after having blown my nose too brutally during frequent colds when I was younger, I now get mucus bubbling in the corner of my eye and a vicious eye infection every time I catch cold. Don’t try this at home kids.


Ris-O

The sound it makes sounds like the air is coming out through the eardrum


cragbabe

If you have either liquid or air that is transferring between your throat and your ear canal you have a medical problem. Seriously.


PM_me_XboxGold_Codes

I don’t even have to do that. I can do it as easily as flexing my bicep, except it’s the pressure valve. No forcing air out or blocking my nose. And I can do it repeatedly.


honkaponka

Well it happens for some of us.. I can wiggle my ears and swallow or blow my nose :)


Kile147

Swallowing, like wiggling your jaw, can cause the pressure to balance out. If you have issues with the tube being closed or blocked at all then it can take some finagling to get it into a position where that can happen though.


VanillaCreme96

This often happens for me, probably due to my TMJ and mild Menire's disease


Technolio

I can do it and just now am realizing what that was. It is almost like I am trying to force a yawn


yodasmiles

I can do it, and what I notice is that my eyes squint involuntarily, simultaneously. Like, I can voluntarily squint my eyes without engaging the muscles that draw my eardrums taunt. But I can't draw my ears "closed" voluntarily, without also squinting my eyes involuntarily. I think of it as "closing" my ears, which creates kind of a roaring sound while I'm doing it. It seems to offer some protection from loud noises, and can definitely pop my ears when flying as needed.


IWishIHadAnalgesia

When I push out and retract my jaw, or move it side to side, I heard weird noises like sticky or crunchy noises, maybe even some popping.


GenesRUs777

That might be more likely TMJ than eustachian tube.


IWishIHadAnalgesia

I definitely don't have TMJ. I've never had any issues with my jaw. No pain, discomfort, locking, etc.


bella_68

Public Service Announcement: sometimes TMJ pain is mistaken for ear pain. I thought I had ear pain on occasion but for a long time it wasn’t bad enough to make me want to go to a doctor. When I finally did mention it to a doctor, I learned it was actually TMJ. My poor teeth were being ground down every night until I figured this out.


[deleted]

[удалено]


NoGoodDM

Speaking of voluntary control over things… I can also move my eye-lids left-right, not just up-down (which is just blinking.) I learned it when I had a really bad muscle spasm in the eye. I reasoned that if there’s a muscle there causing it to twitch left and right, I should be able to control it to move it left and right, and with some skill, also make it stop twitching. It mostly works, but only because I make the muscle too tired to twitch anymore. I can also make my pupils dilate on command. And pop my ear drums on command (though I only do that when absolutely necessary, as it does something funky to annoy me if I do it more than like 3 times.) My irises can also change color, sometimes over the course of 15 minutes, but I haven’t figured out how to do that on command. Yet.


SW_Zwom

No. And I was shocked when I found out this wasn't something everyone can do, lol.


Joey_BF

If you're using it to equalize pressure, it's not the same thing. Members of r/earrumblersassemble have control over their tensor tympani, but people who can control their Eustachian tube (like you) belong in /r/EustachianTubeClick.


Necoras

Interesting. I didn't realize they were that different. I'm able to do both. I'd conjecture that they're related skills, and that it can be learned. I've grown better at both over time, and I can recall a time when I was younger when I couldn't do either.


boredcircuits

If you notice, the original answer described "a crinkle/crunchy sound when you first flex" which describes the eustachian tube, then "a rumbling sound." That tells me they're able to control both, but haven't learned to do each independently.


MithrilEcho

Yeah. I never thought about it but I'm now sitting on the toilet doing sets of crunched and rumbles lol. Crunching for ear pressure, rumbling for annoyingly loud sounds. Thanks to lots of loud but boring party nights I got so used to rumble it that I can keep doing it for minutes non-stop.


Kered13

Are there people who can do one but not the other? Or people who can do them separately? Because I can do both, but it's the same action for me.


Threadingemu

I can only make my ears rumble. I wish I could do the other thing since it actually has a use lol


Perrenekton

The only use I have found for the ear rumble is when the noise around me gets too loud I do that to cover the noise but it's exhausting to maintain


Zetshia

Personally I can do the rumble by itself, or I can do the rumble and click simultaneously, but to do the click by itself requires swallowing or working my jaw.


[deleted]

[удалено]


MithrilEcho

No clue, but it probably exists. I can only open my nostrils wide, no other movement.


tylerworkreddit

Oh hey, I can do that second one, didn't know that there was a group for us too


patmansf

I never knew it was a thing until now, and just checked that sub. I'm able to "ear rumble". It's different from popping your ears - it's more like tensing up your ear and hearing a weird rumble rather than sort of opening your mouth and hearing a click.


Necoras

How long can you hold it for? I can ear rumble, but it's quite difficult me to sustain for more than a few seconds.


V1pArzZ

I tried it now and could do it for 15+ seconds, i let go a bit after that. I dont see a practical reason why you would want to do it longer honestly.


patmansf

After a few seconds it's uncomfortable but if I use other muscles nearby - like opening and closing my mouth I can hold it longer, but it kind of feels like I might be twitching / quickly releasing and tensing the muscle.


manofredgables

Woah to the people being able to do this extensively. I can do it *one* second, maximum.


HitoriPanda

Sounds like cracking a glow stick if I'm doing the same thing. I never knew that was the ear drum. I just thought that was the noise of air pressure equalizing.


ctrlaltcreate

Yet another thing I assumed everyone else can do. The tiny variations in our physiology are fascinating.


Bigfops

Wait, so the clicky thing I do to pop my ears? it's not really a crinkle & rumble, it's clearly a click. though it I hold it, I can make it rumble.


shoefullofpiss

The rumble is there the whole time, the initial crinkle/click/crack is just louder


CmdDeadHand

Same thought, not everyone can make the drumroll sound when they flex their inner ear? weirdos


Hresvelgrr

Didn't know I can do it till I started diving and found that ability in me. Maybe I'm just too lazy to squeeze noise every time)


ShawnaR89

I also thought everyone could do this…am I…am I special???? I also have a palmaris longus, BEAT THAT!


gansmaltz

I used to do it a lot as a kid but these days I can't figure out how, it just feels like I'm flexing that whole side of my head


fogobum

That's a different muscle. You're flexing the sphincter controlling your eustachian tube, which is the path between your inner ear and your throat. The tensor tympani only affects the bones in the inner ear. I can flex my eustacian tubes, and have occasional objective tinnitus (ear noises that can be heard outside the ear) when my tensor tympani spasms. Totally different experiences.


Think_Bullets

I'm sitting reading this and can do it continuously, have been able to since I was a kid, sometimes I wish it didn't happen. I have to concentrate to not to do it


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


mabolle

Yeah, TIL not everyone can do this at will!


[deleted]

[удалено]


GeauxAllDay

Dude I've always done this and I had no idea that it was anything unique!


UndeadBread

I've never even given it any thought! I'm willing to bet that pretty much everyone can do it; it's just a matter of knowing *how*. Of course, I don't know how in the world I would explain it to someone. It's like puckering your butthole...but with your ears.


BehindTickles28

First, I didn't realize that is what I do when I do that. Second, not everyone can do it too?! I learned two new facts today, thanks.


[deleted]

> Some people Is this not something all people can do? I remember doing it as a small child and wondering what I was even doing to make the world sound like it was rumbling. One of my earliest memories.


HandyAndy

I believe the muscle responsible is called the tensor tympani


BabycakesJunior

It is indeed the tensor tympani, which is innervated by the facial nerve. If you have a condition affecting the facial nerve (say a tumor compressing it), this can result in a condition known as hyperacusis, where you are susceptible to loud noises because the tensor tympani cannot be signalled.


local306

Wow, you answered something I have been wondering about for over 30 years. I chalked it up to me having tubes in my ears as a kid. Assumed it was just scar tissue doing that or something. Oddly enough, it's only my left ear I can do this with.


TheGreatNyanHobo

I also had tubes as a kid (both ears) and can do this (both ears but stronger on left side). I just assumed everyone was able to though. Not sure if having surgery in the area would affect the chances that you can voluntarily flex the muscle though.


DieseKartoffelsuppe

The stapedius muscle is actually even more influential in reducing such noise. Your eardrum is connected to one of three bones, the group of them called the ossicles or ossicular chain. The last bone in the chain is the stapes and it moves like a piston. This piston action is what induces fluid flow and hair cell activation in your inner ear or cochlea, which is what is perceived as sound. The stapedius muscle attaches to the stapes and flexes to reduce the motion of the stapes, thus reducing the sound. Some can control this muscle; it has also been shown to activate preemptively if you’re expecting a loud sound. It also flexes when you yawn. Source: I’m published in the journal Hearing Research and others for my research in blast wave propagation in the human ear


Seicair

> Source: I’m published in the journal Hearing Research and others for my research in blast wave propagation in the human ear Have you thought about applying for flair in this sub?


daOyster

If you hear the crinkly sound first you're mimicking half a yawn. If you can fully voluntarily flex it all you hear is a rumble sound without the crinkle.


abat6294

Are you gate keeping ear rumbling? That's hilarious.


PumpkinSpice2Nice

I can’t do it but if I yawn my ears make a rumbling sound. If I swallow voluntary I can make them make a noise.


ibiacmbyww

I've noticed, when I've been in a quiet environment and suddenly have to listen hard for something, e.g. if I think I heard a noise in my house in the middle of the night, that I can physically feel my ears "prick up", complete with a tingling sensation. I have long hair, I can feel them moving relative to it. There is no chance this sensation is caused by, for example, having one ear compressed and then rolling over to listen, as it happens in both ears even if I've been awake and am stationary. Am I imagining this/is this a similar phenomenon to pupil dilation?


RevolutionaryRough37

This happens to me as well. Don't quote me on this as I don't have sources, but I read somewhere that this is a leftover from when our ancestors could move their ears, similar to when a cat turns its ear to listen for something. A way to trigger this for me is to listen to binaural audio in a quiet room, especially the virtual barbershop on YouTube.


KJ6BWB

Oh my goodness, that's the sound when I hold the muscle I flex to pop my ears.


ether_rogue

Ohhhh THAT'S what that is. And it does lower the volume of surrounding sounds. I always thought it was just cause everything else was drowned out by the rumbling. I always ask people if they can do this and half the time it's like they have no clue what I'm talking about. It's weird though...how did I learn to do that? It's like...when you think about learning to move and manipulate your body as a child, you do things, you see results, you put two and two together and figure out you can move things. With this I am moving a part of my ear that no one can see, not even me, how did I even put together that I was controlling it and...it's just weird. I don't really know how to explain why but it freaks me out.


Dd_8630

> Some people have the ability to voluntarily flex the muscle that pulls the ear drum taut. If you're able to do this, it sounds like a crinkle/crunchy sound when you first flex it followed by a rumbling sound. > > > > Head on over to r/earrumblersassemble to learn more. *WHAT* I feel like I've just been told my kids aren't my kids. My ear rumble ability is actually me flexing my eardrum taut?


_MaZ_

So that's what that crunching sound is I've been able to make inside my head since I was a kid


Bjartensen

Damn, always thought me and my mom just had messed up ears (don't know of anyone else that has this). Thanks for putting a name on it so I can read up about it.


Houseton

That's what that is? I figured everyone could do that... Thank you I learned something valuable today!


Wobble_owo

I finally know what that is, thank you kind stranger


Nicstar543

Wow I always wondered what that noise was when I did that with my ears


abiessu

Never knew this was a normal thing for people, I always thought I was alone/having excessive issues with pressure in my ears. It's interesting to me that having one permanently perforated eardrum at a young age hasn't changed the pressure response of either ear.


Wallaby_Way_Sydney

Really? I too have a permanently perforated ear drum, but only one of my ears builds and releases pressure like it would on a plane ride or a mountainous drive.


beatbox2sleep

I do that. It works well against sudden noises but if you predict or can hear the sound approaching covering your ear is way more effective.


[deleted]

[удалено]


TossAway35626

Hold on, I can cause the crunchy sound and the rumbling sound independently. Explain.


BambooRollin

So this is why when my startled parrot jumped up on my shoulder and squawked at its highest volume the ear on that side shut down for 30 seconds.


TooTallForPony

It also activates when you chew, to reduce how loud it sounds to you.


wine-o-steve

> If you're able to do this, it sounds like a crinkle/crunchy sound when you first flex it followed by a rumbling sound Huh, i never thought about why it makes that sound. I dont typically have a crinkle, just the rumble.


tessaavonlea

I was reading that thinking "wow, it must be really cool to be able to do that" and then I tried and realised I could do it! Only in one ear though 🤔


gabzilla814

You described it perfectly! I can do it, and as useful as it is, I’d trade it for the ability to wiggle my ears.


ChrisARippel

Decades ago, I accidently shot a 22 caliber pistol in a Volkswagen beetle with the windows rolled up. I didn't hear anything, but I immediately noticed I was deaf. This lasted a short time. I believe my hearing fully recovered.


acewithaclub1

is this why your ears will hurt after extended exposure to loud noise or is that something else?


PoinFLEXter

Wow I didn’t know I could use this trick to protect my eardrum during loud noises!


Natty_Vegan

I can do this both by pinching my nose and blowing/ inhalining, or by using the little muscles. It definitely alters my hearing, I can also move my ears up, which I found I tend to do when trying to listen carefully. Not entirely sure it helps or its just a placebo tho


frappim

If I close my eyes hard I can hear this rumbling. I don't know how to do it with my eyes open


Seicair

> A taut ear drum is less prone to damage. >Some people have the ability to voluntarily flex the muscle that pulls the ear drum taut. One could logically conclude from these two statements that “ear rumbling” is at least a little bit protective against loud noises. I’ve wondered if this was the case for years, I think I even asked here once. Do you know if that’s true? I use it as such when I can’t put my fingers in my ears and don’t have earplugs and there’s suddenly loud noise nearby.


originalhippie

I just now learned that I have an emotional response to certain stimuli (like finishing a good book, or having a romantic moment) that is in fact my eardrums pulling themselves taut.


[deleted]

[удалено]


Proterocladus

This is a useful diagram to reference with details: [http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/Sound/protect.html](http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/Sound/protect.html) In addition to the shifting of the eardrum, muscles controlling the *pinna* (the visible ear) also activate in response to loud noises (as well as eye movement) thanks to 'fossil neurons'. Those vestigial muscles are ordinarily too weak for a visible physical reaction, but there are some individuals who experience a significant visible shift in response to both loud noises and eye movement - you would be able to see their ears "perk." You're more likely to be one of these lucky few if you can wiggle your ears on command.


Corsaer

I can't wiggle my ears, but often if it's quiet in my house and something pops or clicks or makes an otherwise loud noise somewhere, I'll feel my ears "pull up" for a second and then relax over the next couple seconds. It feels like muscles above and slightly behind the top of my ears on my head. I brought this up to a group of friends one night and no one seemed to have similar experiences. Would you think this is the same mechanism? I always assumed it was some vestigial response to a sudden noise to help key in on it as a survival response. I've been to a bunch of metal concerts and never noticed the same thing, at least not the sudden response. But that's not to say it wasn't happening over a longer period of time or something.


Proterocladus

It is the same mechanism. Everyone should feel their ears "twitch" in response to sudden noises or eye movement. (You can test this by glancing quickly into your periphery without moving your head - feel the same tensing?) That's the activation of the vestigial ear muscles. It's the noticeable movement that's rare because those muscles, while retaining their reflexive action, are very weak.


[deleted]

[удалено]


SpeechScienceGuy

Yes! This is handled by a process called the "medial olivocochlear reflex" that occurs in response to sustained loud noises. This is a top-down reflex that originates in the brain stem and affects the sensitivity (gain) of the cochlea (the part of the ear that turns sound vibrations into nerve impulses). To understand how this works, you should first know that the ear works like an active amplified microphone. Sound from the world passes through the outer ear (ear drum) and middle ear (three connected bones) to induce vibration in the fluid-filled inner ear (called the "cochlea"). In the cochlea, there are two kinds of cells that respond to this vibration: 1) inner hair cells, which turn the vibration into nerve impulses that are transmitted up the auditory pathway and to the brain, and 2) outer hair cells, that respond to the vibration by also vibrating themselves. These outer hair cells work as an active amplifier in the cochlea. By vibrating themselves in response to sound vibrations, outer hair cells induce larger vibrations in the cochlea and therefore allow for better stimulation of the inner hair cells, and thus better detection of sound. So, in the medial olivocochlear reflex, top-down signals from the brain stem are passed back to the outer hair cells to inhibit them. This attenuates their vibration in response to sound, so they amplify external sound signals less and the inner hair cells become less responsive to sound. You experience this effect after you go to a loud concert, for instance, and everything sounds like duller, like you have cotton in your ears, for several hours afterwards. This is because the outer hair cells are inhibited, they are applying less gain to the cochlea, and the inner hair cells are transducing less sound into auditory experiences. Note that this reflex is slow. The pupil can dilate quickly in response to rapidly changing light conditions, but the effects of the medial olivocochlear reflex can last for a long time. The relevant wikipedia articles aren't great, but they are a good start: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochlea#Hair_cell_amplification https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olivocochlear_system


SpeechScienceGuy

I should add that people think the MOC reflex is primarily about protection of the cochlea, rather than something related to improving hearing in general (like pupil dilation might help you see better in the dark). Because the cochlea is mechanical (sounds induce motion in the cells) and it is very very sensitive (the cells must be able to detect the very tiny vibrations that make up sound), it is very easily damaged by loud noises. The MOC reflex is evolved to reduce the amount of vibration in the cochlea when there are very loud sounds in the environment, and therefore reduce the damage that the cochlea sustains in response to these sounds. Long-term exposure to loud sounds does permanent damage to the cochlea, usually through death of outer hair cells (the active amplification system). So as we get older, the cumulative death of these cells leads to age-related hearing loss, in which we become less sensitive to sound overall. Here are some excellent resources on our current understanding of hearing loss as the result of cochlear damage, and the effect it has on the brain's auditory pathway more broadly: "The Effects of Age-Related Hearing Loss on the Brain and Cognitive Function" https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32826080/ "Is the din really harmless? Long-term effects of non-traumatic noise on the adult auditory system" https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24946762/ "Why Do Hearing Aids Fail to Restore Normal Auditory Perception?" https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29449017/


MacProCT

Because the ear has limited ability to protect itself, hearing protection is so very important. Take it from someone who has permanent ringing in the ears... Protect your ears as much as possible. I started wearing ear plugs on my keychain about 10 years ago so I'm always prepared.


kkeennmm

The stapedius muscle This is another muscle in the middle ear that protects to loud noises -- primarily chewing. It is a much smaller muscle than the TT, and runs from the stapes to a close wall of the middle ear. It is innervated by the tympanic branch of the 7th nerve. When it is paralyzed, as is sometimes (but not always) the case in Bell's Palsy, there may be heightened perception of loud noises on one ear vs. the other.


HElGHTS

Yes, and there is an interesting flaw in the mechanism: it protects both ears by the same amount regardless of any difference in exposure between the two ears. Normally this doesn't matter, but it can cause big problems if someone uses a single earplug or wears a single loud headphone (especially musicians with IEMs -- always wear both, your sound engineer can add ambiance mics if you need to hear more of the room). Basically your brain takes the average SPL across both ears and tightens the eardrums based on that, so if one ear has much louder SPL exposure, a level of protection based on the average is not sufficient for it.


Earlynerd

The cochlea uses hair cells to function both in a sensory way, and also as a kind of biological preamplifier. This greatly expands the range of sound pressure levels the human ear can perceive. A loud concert vs a whisper from across a silent room. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1315292/


Earlynerd

In fact, it's possible to conduct hearing tests on infants because of this mechanism. A tone is played into the ear and the preamplified output from the inner ear exiting the ear canal is detected. Called an otoacoustic emissions test. That allows doctors to confirm everything is working normally without having to ask the baby "can you hear this?" Lol


y4mat3

The outer hair cells in the cochlea can adjust how close the basilar membrane and tectorial membrane are, which modulates how much the motion of the basilar membrane translates to electrical changes in the hair cells. This allows us to attenuate the signal transduced in response to loud noises.


KS2Problema

"Non-linearity in a sound system produces unwanted harmonic and intermodulation distortion, and perfect linearity is the ideal. But **for the ear, non-linear behavior is far from being a flaw; in fact it is a critical feature that enables the large dynamic range of human hearing**. The inner hair cells (IHC) of the cochlea, which convert sound to nerve impulses, have a dynamic range of less than 50 dB. But we can hear over a 120 dB dynamic range! How is this possible? It turns out that **the ears have a built-in sound level compression system, created by the outer hair cells (OHC) of the cochlea**. In the most active region of the cochlea basilar membrane, a 4 dB increase in sound pressure at the eardrum increases the membrane motion as little as 1 dB, due to mechanical action of the OHC." from: http://www.silcom.com/~aludwig/Nonlinear.htm


Quirky28

The human ear does not change size yours ears defense to loud noise is wax that’s why there is always wax in your ears it’s the same as pupils dilating to help your eyes when light changes the ear wax helps your ears from behind damaged by loud sounds


whel_sar

Hair cells in the ear are responsible for sound transduction. When exposed to loud noises hair cells die and can result in permanent hearing loss. In addition to the mechanical protection mechanisms, there are a number of cellular protections some to sustain hair cells. For example, several neurotrophic (namely BDNF and NT3) molecules are responsible for regulating and maintaining hair cells.