Noise, hearing protection

I sit 6" from my laser watching YouTube videos while cutting and I can hear it clearly. My S&A 5200 is quiet, my after market exhaust fan is quiet and my air pump (stock) is not very loud and it’s on the floor behind the laser.

I can run the laser and have a clear conversation with someone 10’ away without raising my voice. It’s not loud. If I have my fan on (to cool the room) it’s much louder than everything on the laser. Oh, and I have a CNC in the same room, when it’s on I ‘must’ wear hearing protection, it’s like a jet engine with the router and dust collection on.

Sorry, for the ‘slang’

I ‘pitched’ into the trash, so to speak. As in ‘discarding it altogether’. I still have it, figure it’s got to be good for something. Haven’t found anything it’s actually good for except being in my way.

By ‘sliced bread’ I mean that I though, with my meager education on how lasers worked that the honeycomb would be a great thing for a laser bed air flow…

If you think about it, where can the air flow with the least resistance? The laser kerf or through those big holes in the honeycomb? Air assist helps with the cut, but not afterwards.

I posted the pictures to show the residue left over from 4 project cuts of plywood. With a honeycomb bed, all of that material is in the holes. Not only does it stink, you can’t get it out without soaking it.

If you still believe in them, see how it works in Russ’ video, <18 min but have to listen to some British humor.

I still keep moving mine around, hoping to find something useful to do with it.

:smiley_cat:

To answer the original question, I’ve never been too bothered by the laser noise. I can talk to someone if they’re 6 feet away. However watching videos on the computer next to the laser wasn’t really an option as I’d have to crank the volume all the way up. I recently was given some AirPods Pro which have noise cancelling. GAME CHANGER! Now I can listen to anything I like! And the laser is reduced to a really quiet hum. Interestingly, the higher frequencies come through a bit more, so I can hear the ‘scratchy’ noises of engraving lines, and the hiss of the air assist. It also means my husband has to really yell to get my attention… Of course you can turn off the full noise canceling, so you have options. I like them.

To remain aware of your surroundings maybe you could try a Bluetooth speaker. It would also save your husband from a sore throat :grinning:

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