ear phones

[zorkler]

has anyone tryed the earphones that are made by takeing a mold of you ear and then fitting a speaker inside the mold i read about it in hot bike mag. yesterday and it looks like a good idea but pricey 200 beans .

 

[3dogs]

Yes, I have a pair. They work good for cell phone conversation but not so good for music. I find that at speed (above 70 mph) I have to have the volume turned way up. If I slow down, it's too loud. Also the music quality, especially the low freq response/bass is not good at Interstate speeds. You can hear that music is playing, but you don't care because is sounds like shit.

 

[Bounce]

Hmm...

Could be... (11/2002 date on the page and I now have another set with a shorter cord - both still work great!) My experiences are just the opposite of 3Dogs. I have to keep mine on nearly the lowest volume to keep from being too loud.

Might I recommend you book mark the web site?

 

[MixedUpMitch]

I went as far as getting the impressions made at my local ENT office but never went any further. Why, you ask? I read a thread about the Etymotic ER6i ear plugs and bought a pair. Cost around $100. Very good audio quality and if inserted properly, cancel almost ALL outside sound. Kinda' dangerous as you can barely hear the engine running let alone the crazy cagers on the road.

I used mine on a 3000 miler from PA to Nova Scotia. Worked great with my XM and iRiver MP3 player. Wouldn't think of leaving the house without them. Also great for cutting the grass, almost no lawnmower noise!

 

[SkooterG]

I too tried the custom molded earbud speakers and they did not work for me. Tried two different types, and had each re-done several times, but they just would not block out the ambient noise. Still, many others swear by them.

I eventually went with the Etymotic ER-6 earbud speakers and have been happy with them. Cheaper too at around $100.

 

[zorkler]

the 2 companys i am looking at are hearing dynamics 200 beans , and competition sports monitors by earinc. at 175 plus & handling . the reasons i am asking is cash is in shorts supply and dont want to shell out 200 bucks and its sounds like shit . thnaks for the feedback and keep warm

 

[gasman]

I have the custom molded units and my wife has the Etymotic's, when my crap out I'm getting the Ety's. JB

 

[skyway]

I eventually went with the Etymotic ER-6 earbud speakers and have been happy with them. Cheaper too at around $100.

I also have a set of these because with the custom molded I would get a lot of pain putting on/taking off helmet. With the ER-6 no more pain and they stay in place and provide very good sound quality. Also the ER-6 and not the ER-6i's can be modified into custom molded if you want to eventually go that route. So the ER-6 really are a win win situation for testing the water.

$90.00 at Amazon.com or if you score a credit card at the time of purchase at buy.com ($25.00 discount) $65.00 get's you in the game.

 

[ian]

I've had Westones for over a year and would buy them again. I run my MP3 volume slightly over half at any speed. Cost me $175. Ian, Iowa

 

[Unicycle52]

I am seriously considering these: https://www.earplugco.com/prod01.htm

 

[MikeRocchio]

I just got the ER6i's from amazon.com and they Kick A$$!

I would highly recommend them!

 

[SkooterG]

I've had Westones for over a year and would buy them again. I run my MP3 volume slightly over half at any speed. Cost me $175. Ian, Iowa

I am seriously considering these: https://www.earplugco.com/prod01.htm

I have a fair amount of knowledge in this area, but am not all knowing and powerful....yet. So, if someone can correct any of the info I am going to write, or add more, feel free.

While trying to get the custom molded earbuds to work for me, I did a fair amount of research. Most of ALL earbud speakers sold to the motorcycle market are actually MADE in one of two different labs: Westone or Challenger. There are however, many, many various re-sellers that take your money and your custom mold, and then send your ear molds to one of the two labs to have the speakers installed. Of the two labs, Challenger labs does probably about 90% or so of the motorcycle custom molded earbud speakers. These are the models that Bounce and Unicycle52 refer to above. The Westone labs model are the ones tha Ian refers to above.

I initially went with the Westone model because of their slick website and good marketing. After several attempts, I was completely unsatisfied due to poor noise attenuation, and the pain and effort of putting on and removing the helmet with them. (Some helmets are obviously better or worse, and my Shoei X-11 closed face is on the worse side IMHO) You see, the Westone models are made of a vinyl material that is fairly hard.

So I did some more research and found out the ones that Challenger Labs makes are more of a silicon rubber and softer. So I tried these. They were much better IMHO than the Westones due to being more comfortable (still not meeting my expectatins however) and providing better noise attenuation. But the noise attenutation was still un-acceptable, even after a couple different trys. (Re-doing the custom molds). Still, if you go the cutom molded route, I highly recommend going with the Challenger Labs models, and NOT the Westones. The softer silicon make a far better earbud speaker IMHO.

Now some people swear by these things as witnessed my Bounce and Ian above, so YMMV, and diffrent strokes for different folks. This is kinda like a tire, windshied, or oil thread. Different things work for different people. I am guessing based on different ear shapes, helmets, and of course expectations. So as far as the custom molded ones are concerned, you roll the dice for $150 - $200.

After going through a lot of frustration, a friend let me try his Etymotic ER-6 earbuds. Hallelujah! Houston, we have lift off! Though not perfect, these worked very well for me. Excellent noise attenuation, and a comfort score of 7 out of 10. And cheaper too!!!!

I have had one person tell me the ER-6s are not as robust, as the cord on theirs eventually pulled out, and when that happens, there is no repair, just replacement. Well, so far I have put mine through hell, and no problems.....yet.

As for comfort, it depends, and I have not quite figured it all out yet. I have worn them for over 12 hours straight with no comfort issues, yet at times after only a couple hourse, I start getting an ache in my ear. So far, it seems to be dependent on placement in my ear, and also whether the helmet is putting pressure on my ear. My Shoei X-11 closed face doesn't really have an ear pocket, and so its with that helmet that I tend to get pain, though for some reason, not always. My HJC flip face helmet has a huge ear pocket and I rarely get discomfort while wearing that helmet.

Still, I would not call them unlimited in terms of the time you can have them in your ear. But I am also still experimenting somewhat and finding out what works best. But due to my participation in 24 hr rallies, and hopeful future participation in multi-day rallies, I plan on installing helmet speakers in my HJC flip face which is the helmet I use for rallies. That way, when I decide not to use the Etymotics and give my ears a "break", I can put the foam earplugs in and use the helmet speakers, though sound quality I am sure will be somewhat degraded.

So, based on my experiences, I would go with the Etymotics rather than the custom molded speakers. For me, the Etymotics were more comfortable, attenuated noise like earbud speakers are supposed to do, and are more flexible overall, and of course cheaper!

I have rarely heard anyone complain about the Etymotics, whereas like me, others have had poor results with the custom molded jobbies. Still, many swear by them.

Its your $$$$, throw it where you like.

 

[Bounce]

As for comfort, it depends, and I have not quite figured it all out yet. I have worn them for over 12 hours straight with no comfort issues, yet at times after only a couple hourse, I start getting an ache in my ear. So far, it seems to be dependent on placement in my ear, and also whether the helmet is putting pressure on my ear.

Yep. I found that I had a limit to the time I could wear them comfortably too.

I think it was about the 8th or 9th consecutive 20 hour day (Buxton, Maine) when I noticed that they were a little tender during the 2003 Iron Butt Rally. I got a tip from another rider to pre-lube them with baby oil (very very lightly) and it went away for the remaining 2 or 3 days.

 

[stryg8r]

I'm one of those that swear by the custom molded ear plugs. For me the decision to try them was more about comfort than sound quality. I was using earbud type in ear speakers, but experienced enough discomfort after wearing them a couple of hours that I would have to stop and remove them. This was due to them protruding just a little from my ear canal and my Shoei would put a slight pressure on them. It didn't seem like much pressure at first, but after a couple of hours it would become excruciating.

Previous to the ear buds I had tried in helmet speaker with ear plugs. I could never get enough volume out of them to get decent sound.

I purchased the custom molded ear plugs with speakers from "Now Hear This" at one of the International Motorcycle shows a couple years ago. These must be the Challenger ones as they are pretty soft. I can wear these all day with no discomfort. They don't protrude from my ear canal so there is no pressure exerted from the helmet. Noise attenuation and sound quality are both excellent IMHO as I now run my mix-it at about a quarter volume.

I would suggest checking out the "Now Hear This" booth at one of the Motorcycle shows. International Motorcycle Shows

You'll get a chance to touch, feel, and listen to them before you buy. If you decide to purchase they'll make a mold right there and mail your ear plugs to you in a few weeks.

Derek

 

[tripletango]

has anyone tryed the earphones that are made by takeing a mold of you ear and then fitting a speaker inside the mold i read about it in hot bike mag. yesterday and it looks like a good idea but pricey 200 beans .

Yes I have a pair hooked up to my XM. They are great. Plenty of volume good for music even have base! The inserts are transducers rather than speakers.

They take a bit of getting used to though as they fit tightly and cause some irritation after a while until you get your ears broken in.

 

[Penforhire]

I have a pair. Cost me maybe $150 beans (still a lot of cash). They were made by one of the audiologists travelling with the Cycle World IMS show. I saw enough of the construction to know she made them herself, not by Westone or Challenger (though i have no idea who sold her the speakers).

Anyway, they do sort of break in going from a very snug fit to comfy. My experience is I have to turn down all my audio settings versus the AutoCom helmet speakers heard through plain silicone plugs. I don't wear non-custom plugs any more. I find the silicone to be all-day comfortable and I can put 'em in or out in seconds (always fussing with foamies to get 'em in right).

The plain-plug solution may work better for me because I can hear more ambient noise (mine may have a looser fit now).

 

[Bounce]

I have a pair. Cost me maybe $150 beans (still a lot of cash). They were made by one of the audiologists travelling with the Cycle World IMS show. I saw enough of the construction to know she made them herself, not by Westone or Challenger (though i have no idea who sold her the speakers).

+1 here and that's the one's documented in my previous post.