Safe listening calculator

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1 Headphone

From the spec sheet: sensitivity as dB/mW or dB/V. Pick the unit it uses.

Ω impedance

2 Source output at full volume

What your phone, computer or amp can deliver at 100% volume, from its spec sheet. Not sure? Try 1 V.

V

3 What you play

Music is quieter than a full-scale tone (the worst case), so this defaults to typical music. Using an EQ app? Add its preamp.

Preamp is the gain slider in your EQ app, usually negative (for example −6). A boosted band is still louder by its own boost.

4 Volume slider type

Pick the system whose slider you use. Each one maps slider position to loudness differently.

5 Volume position

Move either slider, or tap how long you listen each day to set the loudest safe volume.

How long do you listen each day?

Estimated level at the ear

—dB SPL

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Daily limit

Safe listening time
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Slider attenuation
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Content + preamp
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Level at 100% volume
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Voltage
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Power
—

Level at each slider position

How this is calculated, and its limits
  1. Slider to gain. The slider type turns position into an attenuation in dB. Gain = 10^(dB ÷ 20).
  2. Voltage and power. Volts = max output voltage × gain. Power P = V² ÷ Z.
  3. Level. SPL = sensitivity (dB/mW) + 10·log10(P in mW) + content offset. A dB/V rating is converted first: dB/mW = dB/V − 10·log10(1000 ÷ Z).
  4. Safe time. Both limits halve the daily time for every 3 dB above their reference level: T = 8 h ÷ 2^((L − reference) ÷ 3). WHO / ITU's limit is 80 dBA for 40 hours a week, which this treats as 8 hours a day on five days. If you listen every day, your daily time at 80 dB is closer to 5.7 hours, so stay a few dB below it. NIOSH allows 85 dBA for 8 hours a day. At 70 dB and below there is no time limit (the EPA's level for protecting hearing over a lifetime). WHO is the stricter default.
  • It uses spec-sheet figures. It is a model, not a measurement. Only a calibrated meter or ear coupler measures the real level.
  • The Windows, Android and Apple curves are approximations. Microsoft and Apple do not publish theirs, and drivers and manufacturers change the real gain, including the minimum dB on Windows.
  • Bluetooth headphones and many wireless dongles add their own gain on top of the system slider, which this does not model.
  • Levels here are unweighted while both limits are in dBA, so the result is conservative for bass-heavy music.
  • Ear coupling shifts the level by a few dB. Limits are population averages, not medical advice. If your ears ring or sound muffled after listening, turn it down.

Built by M Shafri Syamsuddin · AI Engineer