Just how loud does music have to be to damage your hearing?!
Question: Long or repeated exposure to sounds above 85 decibels can produce permanent hearing loss. A refrigerator hums at about 40 db, and normal conversation is about 60 db. Explosions (firecrackers, firearms) can be in the 120-150 db range, so at close proximity to your ear, they can do permanent damage at one exposure. So the louder the sound, the less time you need to be exposed to it to cause permanent damage. If you can't speak in a normal voice above the sound of the music, then it's too loud.
Answers: Long or repeated exposure to sounds above 85 decibels can produce permanent hearing loss. A refrigerator hums at about 40 db, and normal conversation is about 60 db. Explosions (firecrackers, firearms) can be in the 120-150 db range, so at close proximity to your ear, they can do permanent damage at one exposure. So the louder the sound, the less time you need to be exposed to it to cause permanent damage. If you can't speak in a normal voice above the sound of the music, then it's too loud.
40 db