[citrus]

so about a week ago I was using a pair of GR07 Bass Edition headphones along with a Macbook Pro to listen to music via VLC Media Player. these headphones were connected through this (http://us.hifimediy.com/Digital_to_analog_converters/HiFimeDIY_Sabre_Tiny_USB_DAC) USB DAC, and it made it so that at 20-30% volume was a comfortable level on VLC. I don't remember exactly what happened, but I put on a song and tried scrolling upward, not realizing that the mouse was hovering over the volume bar control and thus increasing the volume to 200% (VLC is capable of going past 100%). I probably only had the headphones in for another second before I took them off. There was no ringing in my ears, but even though several days have elapsed there are still occasionally tiny bits of pain and my ears seem to be getting fatigued much faster than before. They also feel somewhat dulled still, and I can't tolerate the same volumes that I listened to before.
 
Do I just need to give my ears more time to recover, or is this a permanent issue? I've had similar accidents like this occur in the past but I don't recall the effects lasting more than one or two days. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Filter500]

I would be a little concerned since it was a week ago and not a day or two.  I remember going to a very loud rock concert in '99 where I was up front and not wearing earplugs, and it took a week for my ears to recover.  I may have some permanent damage from that, and I have tinnitus (which is partially caused by wax buildup, I think).  If your exposure was brief, you should be okay, but I would see a doctor sometime soon if it persists.  Those little accidents with noise happen to me too now and then, and I always get concerned, because sound and enjoying music is so important to me.  My best advice is to have a doctor look at your ears and evaluate you.

 

[haloxt]

After an experience like this with a sound card, I decided to almost always rely upon hardware volume control while keeping software volume control at 100%. Even if you don't manually accidentally raise the volume, it is possible for some programs and websites to change microsoft's master volume up to 100%. Decibel levels of 140+ can cause permanent hearing loss after any length of exposure, and IEM's can possibly go that high.
 
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/noise/signs.htm
 
Here's some nutrients known to help protect the ears from age-related and noise-induced hearing loss, and a few of them can have a positive effect even after noise-induced hearing loss, i.e. N-acetyl cysteine and acetyl-L-carnitine. If I were you I wouldn't stress out over this, real or imagined hearing loss and tinnitus can also be caused by stress.
 
http://www.lef.org/protocols/eye_ear/tinnitus_07.htm

 

[haloxt]

Also, try listening at low volume. It may not be as exciting as medium volume but once your mind adapts to it, it can be enjoyable and a lot less fatiguing than medium or high volume

 

[citrus]

thanks for the tips guys. made an appointment with an audiologist, hoping I didn't get any permanent damage from this. it's scary how easily and fast something like this can happen.

 

[Kunlun]

Glad to see you'll be seeing an audiologist.

I've been told cumulative noise exposure can lead to hearing loss just as an acute event like you had. I would definitely give your ears a break until you see that doctor. Also avoid other sources of noise, wear earplugs if you are exposed to loud train noises on commute to work, for example.