Loudest sound fortunate enough to Not be next to:
1/4 mi. from me, a local cranking up an Allison 12 on his dragboat, straight exhausts. Even at my young age (Jr. High), I knew I shouldn’t (and wouldn’t) be next to it. Even at idle, the popping sounded like cannon shots....
Loudest sound I made on a personal level, Work-Related Division:
’Breaking up’ a 4’ x 8’ sheet of 1" thick brass on a panel saw for a client who could afford such cut into graphics (before CNC, we did it that way). 5hp Dayton motor on the rails, DC driven, pnematic ’hold-downs’ up to max.
Best speed was +/- 2" minute, since you couldn’t raise the saw to take multiple passes at it. Had cut aluminum sheets of similar thickness and Knew this would be slower and louder for a good while, and not pleasant to be around. Went into the office for a heads’ up: "If you’ve got a good reason or merely an excuse to leave the building, I’d recommend you do it." How long? "Best guess, 2 hours."
Closed the 3" fire door between offices and shop. Earplugs AND Earphones. Constant spraying of cutting fluid helped damp ’blade screech’, but still....🙄
The architects office next door asked wtf I was trying to kill, and could I be a little quieter about it.
"No, and I’d be the first to do so....."
"Oh..."
My tinnitus is better of late, my aids are dialed in to compensate....Phonex Audeos’.
Loudest concert?
Relatively recent: Smashing Pumpkins at the Orange Peel here in AVL, starting their latest tour at the time, sold out in less than an hour.
Wayyy too small a venue, a tighter-than SRO crowd, so loud from note one that it was hard to distinguish one song from the next. Yelling Into the Ear of one next to you brought 🤷♂️/🤷♀️🙄 mostly....
Only respite was to exit to the ’smokers’ gulag’, where it was still loud...but you could at least hear someone next to you....kinda....
We left early.....
Most of the damage to my hearing occurred from work-related machinery, even with the use of ’phones.
Concert sound systems, as a rule, didn’t make my ears freak.
The howling of the audience, the ’dirty white noise’ they could amass...
Would. My ears would give a ’pop’, and I knew I was done for the night.
Lately, I pull my aids and insert Vibes (re-usable) or Hearos (’roadie’ grade) plugs, but carry both....and stay back aways from the stacks.
I still go, but I’m picky ’bout it....
The local symphony is an ’aids event’, however.
Yup, surprise, I do ’do symphonic events’. Always a pleasant event to ’dress down’ for.... ;)