By Gregory Scott
Restaurants and bars are simply too loud. In New York City, restaurants, on average, have decibel levels (77 dBA) that make conversation very difficult. And bars are even worse with sound levels (81 dBA) that put people in danger of noise-induced hearing loss.
When you go out, do you strain to hear a friend, family member, date or business partner? Do you wish venues were quieter to carry a conversation? Looking for a polite way to ask managers to reduce their noise levels? Do you seek a way to find out where the quieter spots are in your city?
These questions have been on my mind the past few years. As someone with hearing loss, I am sensitive to loud venues and have often struggled to hear companions in noisy bars and restaurants.
I recall many times sitting at a restaurant table feeling completely lost in the conversation while others conversed and connected with each other. I would often nod my head in unison with the conversation, pretending to hear my companions when I could not, and then idly pass the time by entertaining myself with whatever fiction entered my head. At home, I would google “quiet spots,” which was often a fruitless endeavor. A place listed as quiet would often be blasting with music when I arrived with my date. This type of setting was not a great environment to talk in and get to know someone.
To overcome these issues, a free iPhone decibel meter app called SoundPrint has been created primarily for the hearing-impaired community, but even those with typical hearing can benefit. SoundPrint is also helpful for the blind, those with autism, or those who simply prefer quiet environments.
SoundPrint allows you to discover the quieter venues in your city. Using the app’s internal decibel meter, you can measure the actual noise level of any venue, which is then submitted to a SoundPrint database that anyone can access to find out if a certain venue is quiet or loud. A database for your city is created and, with each submission, is enriched and becomes more valuable. In addition, submitting SoundPrint measurements is an effective way to tell venue managers that you and others care about noise levels and that they should mitigate the increasing din.
An initial trial in New York City has begun and to date, 3,000+ venues have been measured, many of which have been measured three times or more. This has resulted in an invaluable curated list of 30 local quiet spots where one can actually hear others! No longer am I just sitting at a restaurant table unable to participate; rather I am engaged in the conversation and able to connect with companions.
The goal is to generate a similar list for other cities and let venue managers know that we care about noise. Join the SoundPrint community by measuring a venue when you are out. By doing so, you are helping each other discover which venues are quiet and noisy.
Gregory Scott is the founder of the SoundPrint app and is involved in the New York City hearing-impaired community. For more information, and to join the newsletter, visit SoundPrint's website and download the app. SoundPrint is only available for the iPhone, but venues are searchable on the app’s website. Greg is looking for SoundPrint ambassadors for other cities outside of New York (greg@soundprint.co).
