Rant about the racket made by scuba regulators!!!
- Thread starter reefrat
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There are swimmer ear plugs that have a small hole through the center. They cut down on bubble noise. I have mild tinnitus from being around motorcycles and airplanes and noisy stuff like that. I also am a life long swimmer and the bubbles exploding by my ears as I exhale while swimming irritates the tinnitus and is a partial cause. I bought some earplugs a few years back and it has been helpful. Perhaps ear plugs? Or wear a neoprene beanie. Or get a double hose Argonaut regulator (if) when they go back into production.
There is nothng that can be done that would not have an impact on WOB for a single hose regulator. There are side exhaust units, they can offer some relief, maybe. Also, being horizontal in the water with your head tilted back slightly will move the bubble path away from your ears.
James
There is nothng that can be done that would not have an impact on WOB for a single hose regulator. There are side exhaust units, they can offer some relief, maybe. Also, being horizontal in the water with your head tilted back slightly will move the bubble path away from your ears.
James
fmerkel
Contributor
Rusty Shackleford
Contributor
Wear a hood.
OP
reefrat
Contributor
I'd rather not wear earplugs if possible but I certainly do wear a hood on just about every dive. Argonaut Krakens are OK, I've owned two and found that I could seem to get closer to fish with my cameras, presumably because my upper body was blocking some of the noise/vibrations from the bubbles. However the Krakens did not seem to be any quieter to my hearing than a single hose- which was surprising.
The base Aqualung Titan reg has a baffled exhaust tee that the manufacturer has advertised as quieter and I remember reading a test by one of the magazines/websites where the test divers commented on how quiet the exhaust was. I have tried one and the exhaust noise did seem somehow smoother and quieter, why this is not a feature that they develop further or incorporate in their balanced second stages I don't know!
The base Aqualung Titan reg has a baffled exhaust tee that the manufacturer has advertised as quieter and I remember reading a test by one of the magazines/websites where the test divers commented on how quiet the exhaust was. I have tried one and the exhaust noise did seem somehow smoother and quieter, why this is not a feature that they develop further or incorporate in their balanced second stages I don't know!
I put one of those on a cyklon, and did a couple dives switching back and forth between cyklon with silencer and standard cyklon. Bubble size is reduced, but the volume remains the same.The device did not make a big difference IMO, the biggest factor has to do with exhalation technique. With or without the device, a slow & gentle exhale is not very noisy and a quick forceful exhale makes substantial noise.
Among reasons I like diving SP Air1 and pilots, the exhaust ports are located lower than most standard regulators making the bubble sensation and noise less noticeable. The bubbles move past my neck rather than near the ears.
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