This is interesting. I think mine's too quiet as it is!

In another ridiculous move the EU has passed legislation to restrict Ipods and MP3 players to just 80db, this is no more than average road side noise. In other words if you were walking down a busy street you wouldn't hear the fu*ing thing.

Up until now MP3 players could be turned up to 125 DB, so if someone would have to bring in an unrestricted one if they wanted to have it loud. I'm sure there will be was and means to "crack" the volume control electronically or mechanically.
http://www.thetechherald.com/article.ph ... 0-decibels

80dB is not unreasonable. Apparently long term exposure to 78dB can cause hearing damage, and 80dB is almost twice as loud as that. Apparently a normal TV set is 60dB. 80dB is 100 times as loud as that.

It is all made silly by the variation in specifications of different headphones anyway. Also, don't turn it up to mask the traffic, get some decent sealed in-ear monitors. You know, like these:

It doesn't restrict it to 80, it only makes that the default value. You'll still be able to put it higher if you want. Big deal.

And then maybe in ten years you'll be able to hear when we talk to you.

And the EU bureaucrats save the the world once more!

Since when did it just become Ok to listen to headphones while driving?

i don't think he meant road side as in while driving.

I just meant in general. I see at least a dozen people a day with head phones (not bluetooth, although im sure a couple are phones) in both ears while driving.

oh. wow, yeah i don't think there's any way that's legal. if it is, it shouldn't be. def. a public safety issue there.

This is not in perceived loudness, though. I have a major problem with people using the decibel system to describe loudness in terms of multiples without giving reference to other noises.

If a TV is 60dB, and a motorcycle is 100dB, that is 10,000 times louder. It's absurd to say that a motorcycle sounds 10,000 times louder than a TV.

Yeah this is a non-issue it seems.

A bit ago the EU mandated all cell phones must be able to use the same charger or something like that. they should do that here.

i've noticed this before too in the last year or so. once the radio broke in my car so i tried driving with earbuds in. i lasted like 5 minutes before i was scared shitless that i'd crash.

Well they need to be protected from themselves when they don't know any better! It's just benevolent government in action.

I don't see the problem.
you can blast music in the car and won't hear traffic any better.
And afaik, deaf people are allowed to drive.

if you don't rely on your hearing but your EYES whilst driving, it's not a problem (I cycle every day with earphones.. not only can I still hear traffic, but the few times I didn't wear them and did rely on my ears, I almost crashed in other cyclists passing me or decelerating cars (they don't make much noise)).
There's actually been a study that showed that pedestrians wearing headphones were LESS likely to get run over precisely for the same reason. (and people talking on the phone on the other hand far more likely)

and deaf people have special indicators on their cars.

and headphones filter out ambient sound, as well as masking it. a loud stereo just masks it. totally different things.

No way will you be hearing as much outside noises wearing headphones than from just listening with the car stereo.

Yup. Headphones while driving COMPLETELY changes your awareness of what's around you.

You think the government should mandate people to act a certain way in order to keep others what you would deem reasonably safe?