Ear-plugs

[Silver Penguin]

I've read that the use of ear plugs to reduce wind noise is a good idea. So far, I haven't had any success with them.

What do ear-plug-users recommend?

Jill

 

[DevGuy]

I never travel without them. I've tried different types in the past but bought a set of custom made plugs at a bike show 3 or 4 years ago. These fit comfortably inside the ear and block many of the higher frequencies but still let me hear all the sounds I need to.

I commute all year and the ride is part highway, mostly city and I worry about my hearing being reduced over time so I use and will continue to use the earplugs.

The difference between custom plugs and the foam ones you stuff into your ears is huge though. Don't use the disposable ones as a guide as you'll find ones made for you to be way more comfortable.

Darcy

 

[Bike Effects]

Always wear foam ear plugs. I buy them in bulk at the drug store. Much less tiring while riding and I can still hear the tunes from the Starcom.

 

[gypsy]

Jill I never wore ear plugs until a few years ago. I was amazed the difference they made in my attentiveness and ability to ride longer hours. I had some very nice and expensive ones but I kept losing them so now I use the cheap drugstore ones that I can buy in bulk.

gypsy

 

[FJRJeff]

I just started using them this past year. Have enough ringing from too many concerts when I was younger, don't need to make it worse now that I'm getting older. I bought some Hear-O's at the local bike shop, reusable foam. They seem to block enough noise while still allowing me to hear traffic. Only problem is the tight fit of the Shoei.

 

[Silver Penguin]

I never travel without them. I've tried different types in the past but bought a set of custom made plugs at a bike show 3 or 4 years ago. These fit comfortably inside the ear and block many of the higher frequencies but still let me hear all the sounds I need to.
I commute all year and the ride is part highway, mostly city and I worry about my hearing being reduced over time so I use and will continue to use the earplugs.

The difference between custom plugs and the foam ones you stuff into your ears is huge though. Don't use the disposable ones as a guide as you'll find ones made for you to be way more comfortable.

Darcy

You describe my feelings exactly - I do a lot of highway riding and worry about the potential for long term hearing loss.

I haven't yet come to terms with using drug store earplugs. Perhaps I'm just not inserting them correctly. Other than a bike show, do you know where custom plugs are available? Do they supply a generic plug then somehow 'lock' in the shape of your ear?

Jill

 

[fretbender]

I don't know about availability of generic lock in type earplugs. . .seems like a bit of a contradiction really. FWIW, I've got an appointment set up with an audiologist to get fitted for the custom molded Westone MH-1's which, I am told, are quite the impressive & comfortable set up to use under a helmet. (They are a earplug/speaker unit) The audiologist is only charging $30 to take the impression. I can't wait to try them out as I've just been using various disposable earplugs and humming to myself for entertainment.

 

[Ignacio]

I currently use the cheapy disposable orange plugs and very good luck with them being the best at reducing outside noise. I've found them to be reasonably comfortable for long rides--having a bit of soreness on 24 hour rides, but have learned how far to put them in and which ones work best for me.

I can't imagine riding more than 30 miles now without plugs. They just help reduce fatigue so much.

I've also tried the soft rubber plugs and found the one set I tried to make my ears more sore more quickly and not as much protection as the foam ones.

I've tried a set of custom plugs with speakers built in from Aerostich and the fit fine, but didn't really go in the ear canal and didn't drop noise nearly as much as the foam plugs.

Finally, I'm willing to give the rubber plugs one more try, but want to listen to music and other things while riding pretty badly. I ordered a set of Etymotic ER-6 off eBay for $95 and crossing my fingers because so many others rave about them.

 

[FJRMGM]

used to wear the soft foam disposable but had a set custom made by an audiologist friend and they are like a good pair of gloves - comfortable and you don't know you have them in.

 

[Groo]

Etymotic ER-6is... work great at reducing road/wind noise, and are awesome for listening to audio (XM radio, V1 radar alerts, GPS navigation directions).

 

[OrangevaleFJR]

Always wear foam ear plugs. I buy them in bulk at the drug store. Much less tiring while riding and I can still hear the tunes from the Starcom.

+1 on all counts - I am considering going to a hearing aid shop to have custom ones plugs made.

 

[SkooterG]

I don't know about availability of generic lock in type earplugs. . .seems like a bit of a contradiction really.  FWIW, I've got an appointment set up with an audiologist to get fitted for the custom molded Westone MH-1's which, I am told, are quite the impressive & comfortable set up to use under a helmet.  (They are a earplug/speaker unit)  The audiologist is only charging $30 to take the impression.  I can't wait to try them out as I've just been using various disposable earplugs and humming to myself for entertainment.

Good luck.

I was very disappointed in the Westone custom molded earbud speakers. I hope your experience is better.

After the Westones, I tried the Precision Labs Challenger custom molded earbud speakers. Whereas the Westone's were a hard vinyl type material, the Challengers were more of a silicon rubber - softer, so more comfortable and a better seal.

Still, I ended up using neither as the custom molded did not give a good enough seal and so did not attenuate enough ambient noise. Also fairly uncomfortable in a tight fitting helmet.

I use the yellow foam earplugs normally, and the Etymotic ER-6 earbud speakers for when I want tunes.

Still, some swear by the custom molded jobbies, so results are very individual.

 

[Knifemaker]

Finally, I'm willing to give the rubber plugs one more try, but want to listen to music and other things while riding pretty badly. I ordered a set of Etymotic ER-6 off eBay for $95 and crossing my fingers because so many others rave about them.

I have been using the ER6i's for awhile now, not sure what the diffrence in the 6 and 6i are, but they work great not only as headphones for music but for cancelling noise.(sometimes I just turn off my XM radio)

I got mine from here:

https://www.erwincomputers.com/etreer6iisea.html

KM

 

[tcfjr]

Finally, I'm willing to give the rubber plugs one more try, but want to listen to music and other things while riding pretty badly.  I ordered a set of Etymotic ER-6 off eBay for $95 and crossing my fingers because so many others rave about them.

I've been using a set of Shure e2c's for a couple of years now, with great success. I got a new set off the 'net for $63 a few weeks ago, and they now come with some additional soft rubber sleeves that work really well for me - great sound isolation, day-long comfort, and good sound quality. I use them even when I'm not listening to music and/or the V-1.

 

[boardsNbikes]

Hint: once you find a brand and model of ear plugs you like, order them in bulk from an online industrial supply shop. They become incredibly cheap. I bought 200 Howard Leight plugs for $24 plus shipping.

 

[fretbender]

I was very disappointed in the Westone custom molded earbud speakers. I hope your experience is better.

Me too. I've seen lots of reviews on the MH-1's and it seems like people either love or hate them, but I see more positive reviews. Biggest of all is that I have a friend that has used them for over a year now and loves them. Says they rock compared to the etymotic -Er6's that I was first looking at. I guess time will tell what my individual result is, eh?

 

[Bugnatr]

What? (sorry couldn't resist) I use the Westone custom earplugs. Contact your local hearing shops. They injected a goo which makes a mold of your ears first then ship out to have earplugs made for you ears only. I ordered 2 pairs for about 150 ish. Well worth every cent, never ride street or dirt without them and I still can hear the valentine speaker in my helmet. Once your hearing is gone, thats it! Mine is going so I want to save what is left, really helps lessen the ringing after a long ride.

 

[boogahboogah]

+1 for the Etymotic 6i's - Absolutely great sound, almost no noise gets through. If you don't play the MP3 player at +10, you can still hear enough outside sound so you don't get totally disconnected. Just have to wet the earplug a little bit so the plug slides easier. I find I listen to the music at a lower volume because the background noise is gone. The 6 is a different earphone than the 6i, the 6i is especially designed for our noisy environment.

When the MP3 player died, had to find some earplugs. The yellow EAR foam plugs work fine. You roll & roll then between thumb & forefinger so the ear plug gets scrunched down to 1/4 size. Then you pull the big flap part of your ear towards the back of your head (straightens out the ear canal), & slide the foam plug in quick before it grows back to normal size. When the plug tries to expand back to normal size it fills the ear canal, which is what cuts down the noise. Works well, reusable a few times before they get grungy, and very cheap when you buy in bulk.

Bought a bulk box of 50 individually wrapped pairs for 1/10th the price of twosie/threesie packs.

AOSafety Disposable E-A-R Plugs, part number 90579, 29Db attenuation (pretty good for so cheap)

 

[mech 1 twa]

I like MACK's plugs. Foam. Green color. Seem to last longer than others I've tried.

It really depends on the size of ear opening you have. Buy several brands and find what fits, works for you.

Its better with plugs, noise lower. Wind noise can cause a lot of hearing loss.

I use a Starcom system, music and voice still good with plugs.

Some Walmarts sell them, drug section.