Night club aims to prevent hearing loss and tinnitus
The idea is to lower the volume while improving the sound quality. The Swedish Institute for the Work Environment, Arbetslivsinstitutet, is behind the project.
Small venues are particularly hazardous to your hearing because the audience is close to the music, making the noise extremely intense. Many night club guests endanger their hearing because they are unaware of the real noise intensity in their club.
The project is designed to investigate if it is possible to improve the sound quality through modifications to the facilities and to determine the cost.
A Gothenburg, Sweden venue with a 250 guest maximum capacity will be the first club to be remodeled.
â€Acoustic as well as technical changes are involved. Some rebuilding will be carried out, such as changes in the stage and bar configuration,†said project manager Kim Kähäri of the Arbetslivsinstitutet to the Swedish journal for hearing impaired people, Auris.
Opinion polls will be taken among musicians, employees and guests before and after the project is carried out. They will be asked to assess the sound quality and how it may be affected by the lowering of the volume.
Source: Auris 2004, No. 5.
