Can you hear me now? Is Princess cranking up the volume to excessive levels?

[Princess Chatterer]

Since Carnival bought Princess I suspected that Princess cruise directors were turning up the loudness in the theaters and deck parties. To find out if this was true I brought along my sound level meter on my last two Princess cruises. Admittedly my meter isn't National Bureau of Standards certified but I had compared it with a more expensive calibrated meter and my calibration appeared to be on the money. In the Princess Theater and Vista Lounge on the Grand this November and in the Princess Theater and Universe Lounge last February on the Island Princess I measured sound levels bumping up to between 90 and 95 decibels. The big shock was the sound level at the Island night party on the aft deck of the Grand in November. Standing at the rail next to the passengers and cruise directors staff one level up from the aft pool where the band was located I measured a constant 105 decibels from the band. You had to shout to the person next to you to be heard because it was so loud. So what you ask? Well the U. S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration requires that workers be exposed to no more than 1/2 hour at 105 decibels per day or there is an expectation that a worker's hearing will be permantly injured. In the case of the Grand Princess the passengers at the party, the servers and the band were all at serious risk for permanent hearing loss IMHO. I reported my concern to the Grand Princess environmental officer and to the captain and on the Island Princess to the cruise director who couldn't care less. The stage manager on the Grand told me that complaints about the loudness in the Princess Theatre are on his list of the top five complaints from passengers.

 

Now will Princess cruise directors turn down the volume? So far I see no evidence of any true concern. I'll report back at the end of the month about how loud it gets on the Diamond Princess. Meanwhile, listen up if you still can and please take some ear plugs with you on your next Princess cruise.

[LARGIN]

Wokie. How bout booking a cruise on the Caribbean and telling us how loud MUTS gets?

[Princess Chatterer]

The MUTS audio level on the Grand was perfectly fine.

[Colo Cruiser]

I prefer to sit and relax and leave my electronic testing equipment at home. :)

[dosi]

I found the noise level on my two Carnival cruises to be less than that on my Princess Star cruise so I am not sure that the loudness issue can be attributed to the Carnival purchase. Out of curiousity why would one own a sound level meter??

 

Additionally I think part of the "benefit" of being foreign flagged is not having to worry about US Safety standards for occupational safety. I am NOT saying Princess doesn't care about their employees so put the flamethrowers down, I am just saying I don't think that foreign flagged cruise ships have to meet the same guidelines as American based companies.

[Princess Chatterer]

I bought the sound level meter to measure sound levels in Tulsa's Performing Arts Center and at Cinemark. Levels in excess of 90 decibels seem to hurt my ears. What's odd is that I'm a little hard of hearing. Not having cruised on Carnival I'm not a judge of Carnival. I am only a Princess cruise critic and have noticed a change. It seems to me that either Princess is getting louder or I'm growing less tolerant or both. At 105 decibels it doesn't matter what I think. It does matter, at least in the United States, what OSHA thinks.

[msiowa]

On the Caribbean Princess over New Year's I found the sound level of MUTS to be excessive. It just blared.

 

However, they are able to contain it very well so that you do not hear it when you are not in the MUTS pool area. I was impressed by that.

 

Maybe I have sensitive ears (I don't think so) but I found sitting at the MUTS pool, or even walking through that area to get to the buffet, uncomfortable.

 

Happy sailing.

Joanie

[crisp1]

What really gets under my skin is not so much the volume as the distortion and or mix. On the Conquest on New Years Eve, they pushed the equipment way over the line ( but most of the pax didn't notice/ mind). Did anyone catch the pregame shows before superbowl? I would have been fired if I let that mix be broadcast. Louder is not always better.

[bottledweller]

JEEZ! Get a life

[dbeckett]

Not so much about getting a life more a case of saving your hearing.

 

The only time I did not have my moulded ear plugs with me was on my first princess cruise - since then they have been on a number of cruises. I wear them everynight at the show - it surprises me that more people don't.

 

If you have to raise your voice so that someone standing next to you can hear, then the noise it loud enough to merit hearing protection. I haven't taken my noise meter (yes, I'm a Safety Officer) with me on a cruise but then I know it is loud enough for me to wear my plugs

[Cruisin' Chick]

I vote with the "louder isn't better" crowd. And I grew up with the Beatles, etc.

[srpilo]

I bought the sound level meter to measure sound levels in Tulsa's Performing Arts Center and at Cinemark. Levels in excess of 90 decibels seem to hurt my ears. What's odd is that I'm a little hard of hearing. Not having cruised on Carnival I'm not a judge of Carnival. I am only a Princess cruise critic and have noticed a change. It seems to me that either Princess is getting louder or I'm growing less tolerant or both. At 105 decibels it doesn't matter what I think. It does matter, at least in the United States, what OSHA thinks.

 

 

Just Curious..

 

You don't happen to be a "Personal Injury Attorney" do you ?...... Ummm?

 

Srpilo

[pejay]

On the Caribbean Princess over New Year's I found the sound level of MUTS to be excessive. It just blared.

 

However, they are able to contain it very well so that you do not hear it when you are not in the MUTS pool area. I was impressed by that.

 

Maybe I have sensitive ears (I don't think so) but I found sitting at the MUTS pool, or even walking through that area to get to the buffet, uncomfortable.

 

Happy sailing.

Joanie

 

I also found the sound level of MUTS to be excessive. I was glad that it was just confined to one pool area.

 

Just got off the Star and didn't go to the musicals just because they are usually so loud that if I don't have a headache before the show, I sure will after. Maybe I lost out just assuming that the Star was as loud as the CP and Golden?

[soft69]

This is a silly thing to disagree about. Too loud is simply "too loud". It does seem that the music is getting louder. Most of us don't go to the Wheel House Lounge to hear loud music. We go there to relax and enjoy soft music that is well done. Most of the loud groups are trying to hide their poor, or lack of talent.

[rob.potter]

WHAT?

SO LOUDER ISN'T BETTER?

[NASH99]

Maybe Princess has it just right. Princess is now marketing to cruiser's of all ages. They may think the older cliental may be hearing challenged and they know the younger ones are eating and drinking up the delectable decibels. I will be one the Star soon and will report my findings on that ship.

Steve

[gary]

does the Star have MUTS yet?

[DanJ]

What was that old rock'n roll marketing slogan?

 

"If it's too loud, you're too old" LOL I am getting old though LOL

[Times Prince]

I don't carry a sound meter, but many of the deck parties on the aft deck of the Grand are just as loud as before the buyout. Same physical effects on my ears.

 

Also MUTS can be loud or pleasing depending on where you sit. Deck 15 above the pool deck was perfect - good angle of sight, and not as loud due to less enclosed seating - and we saw several action movies during our New Year's cruise. We'd recommend seating up there.

[WCAB]

I do not understand why there is an assumption that all of us want noise. My husband and I have walked out of some very nice resturants because we could not carry on a conversation over the music, usually hard rock, while trying to have a nice dinner.

 

Coming from a stressful job, I look forward to some quiet time to recharge and relax.

 

I find that a lot of people have become so used to contant stimulation, through media, radio and other entertaintment, that it gives them an odd sense of being uncomfortable when it becomes quiet.

 

Carol

[Nancyquilts]

It's not just Princess. I think one qualification for a "sound engineer" at the evening programs is deafness. We don't like earplugs, so if you see two strange looking people with large "ear muffs" during the programs, it's just us with our sound suppressors. They're used for target shooting, and knock 23 decibels off the top. We still hear everything quite well. Nancy

[jwave]

I admit it I am old and out of touch at 41. But what is MUTS?

 

Thanks

[DanJ]

movies under the stars

[bottomline]

My wife and I use ear plugs on all Princess ships.

We always mention the excessive sound level

on the questionaire at the end of the cruise.

If more passengers would express their displeasure

in the questionaire, I am sure Princess would turn

the volume down. Princess would please their passengers

and there is no cost attached to it.

[donna5]

WCAB

I'm with you. We don't go to places that are noisy and if they have the music too loud, I ask if they can turn it down. If they don't we leave. You wouldn't believe the people that seem relieved when they do turn it down.

 

bottomline

I do the same thing-on the questionaire I complain about the loud music near the pool. On the last two--it was nice and not too loud in the morning and then they really cranked it up around 11AM I think. You can't even talk to each other at the pool.

 

Have you notice when the Captain is on the PA you can hardly him in your room or around the ship and then when the Cruise Directors Staff gets on to get you to go to a function where you may have to buy something you can really hear it?