🎧 Your aim is cracked, your comms are clean… but your ears won’t stop ringing after scrims. In this episode, Dr. Brian James breaks down what gamers really need to know about tinnitus and hearing loss.

We’ll cover what’s actually happening inside your ears during long, loud gaming sessions, why gamers and esports players have a higher risk of tinnitus, how loud is “too loud” for gaming headsets, and how long you can safely listen at different dB levels. You’ll also hear a practical Safe Listening Checklist for Gamers, red-flag symptoms that mean it’s time to see an audiologist, and how esports-focused hearing care can protect both your performance and your long-term hearing.

Gaming is your passion—this episode helps you keep playing (and competing) for years to come.

🔗 Learn more or schedule a baseline hearing test at: esportsaudiology.com

Your trio probably isn’t losing because of bad aim—it’s losing because of bad comms.

In this episode of The Vault Gaming Center Podcast, Dr. Brian James breaks down a simple, repeatable system to make better calls in Fortnite trios so your team stops dying in chaos and starts winning with control.

You’ll learn:

• How to set clear trio roles: IGL, Fragger, Support

• The “Target + Location + Intent” formula for every call

• How to keep comms short, calm, and clear in off-spawn fights

• What to say (and what not to say) during mid-game rotations

• Endgame callouts that are actually usable under pressure

• The only three things your trio should always be calling: position, resources, and threats

This episode is perfect for Fortnite players who feel like they “play well but still lose” and want their trios to sound more like a team and less like open-mic chaos.

Full guide + video on our site: https://www.thevaultohio.com/post/how-to-make-better-calls-in-fortnite-trioss

🎮 Visit The Vault Gaming Center (Portsmouth, Ohio)
Play Fortnite, join events, and game with friends in a family-friendly esports venue:
https://www.thevaultohio.com

🎧 More from Dr. Brian James:
Esports Audiology – hearing health & audio optimization for gamers:
https://www.esportsaudiology.com

Esports as a Real Athletic Path (for Students Who Don’t Fit Traditional Sports)

Episode description (Spotify):
Not every athlete lives under Friday night lights. Some of them are in a computer lab, a library, or their bedroom queuing up ranked.

In this episode, clinical audiologist and esports program co-founder Dr. Brian James, AuD, CCC-A makes the case that esports is a real athletic path for students who don’t fit the traditional sports mold—especially those who are smaller-bodied, neurodivergent, managing health conditions, or just not into cleats and contact drills.

We break down:

• How well-run school esports programs build teamwork, resilience, leadership, and self-control—the same “soft skills” colleges and employers want

• Why esports can be a lifeline for marginalized students who never saw themselves as “athletes”

• How structure (coaches, GPA rules, practice schedules) is the difference between healthy esports and “endless solo queue until 2 a.m.”

• The growing ecosystem of college scholarships, majors, and careers tied to competitive gaming

Whether you’re a parent, teacher, coach, or school leader, this episode gives you language, examples, and talking points to answer the big questions:

“Is this really a sport?”
“Will this hurt their grades?”
“Can this actually help them get to college?”

Esports isn’t a consolation prize. For the right student, it’s where they finally get to say: “I am an athlete.”