Benefits of Active Noise Canceling to Prevent Excessive Noise Exposure via Personal Listening Devices (PLDs): Prospective Study (Preprint)

BACKGROUND The use of personal listening devices (PLDs) has increased greatly, among which wireless earbuds are the most popular. However, as this usage increases, concerns about noise-induced hearing loss have also increased. One of the topics of concern is that, as background noise increases, earbud volume also frequently increases as well. To address this issue, many of the latest earbuds models are equipped with an active noise canceling (ANC) function. OBJECTIVE This study aims to measure the ANC function of four of the latest wireless earbuds, both subjectively and objectively, to determine if they effectively reduce excessive noise exposure. METHODS A total of 47 participants with normal hearing was enrolled in this study. Before the experiment, all participants underwent pure-tone audiometry to verify their hearing ability. Participants performed preferred listening levels (PLLs) and real ear measurement (REM) tests in noisy environments using the four most popular wireless earbuds, with and without the ANC function activated. RESULTS The results showed that all four earbuds reduced volume levels in the PLL and REM tests when ANC was activated compared to when it was deactivated (P<.001). Among the four earbuds, C showed the most significant difference with use ANC in both the PLL and REM tests. CONCLUSIONS Although the effectiveness of ANC varies slightly among the four latest earbuds, it is generally considered beneficial for protecting hearing in excessively noisy environments. These earbuds significantly reduced the volume in the low-frequency range.