Who can reccomend a good set of Noise Isolating earbuds??

[carlson_mn]

Been doing a lot of searching and can't make up my mind. Looked at a lot of different makes and models. Most likely the smaller the better to give good comfort under the helmet.

Looking for one that I don't have to turn the volume up all the way to enjoy music on the slab. Thanks!!! I know many of you have good experience.

 

[DrFaulken]

I have tried the Entymotic Research ER6i (my review), the Skullcandy Asym (based on the recommendations of this forum) and the Skullcandy TiTAN.

Here's my review of the Asym and TiTAN. I found both to be (in my ears) MUCH more comfortable than the ER6i, but the Asym's enclosure made it difficult to sustain a good fit once I put my helmet on. I tried the TiTANs and love them. I wear them every day on my ~50 mile highway commute.

Unfortunately since the Skullcandy earphones are consumer-oriented they do not have a proper NRR like the ER6i. I contacted Skullcandy and they said they had no test data and were not required to test them. Bummer. I normally wear Howard Leight NRR 33 foam plugs, so I am concerned about the Skullcandy's noise reduction qualities.

The size and shape of your ear canal will play the primary role in what you find comfortable. Some people have made the ER6i work for them. I found them literally painful. I have worn my TiTANs for three hours straight without noticing.

Here is the two-page thread about the Skullcandy Asym in case you haven't seen it yet.

 

[dcarver]

Interesting post just above mine, need to research more as I'm always willing try new ideas.

My personal favorite are the ER6, not ER6i by Etymotic.

If using a StarComm, the ER6 is a better choice, the impedance matches much better to the final op-amps in the StarComm and, additionally, they have better frequency response.

Wind noise reduction is slightly better with the i's, however.

 

[Auburn]

I have these by BigEar

BE-C1

These have the speakers built into the earplug, give you 30 db of noise attenuation, are custom fit to your ear, and are by far teh best I have ever tried. I use the Starcom 1 system with the remote volume control, and have the volume control set at 1/4 on or less and that is plenty loud with great stereo sound. It has the 1/8 plug on it so you can use it with your iPod when not on the bike. They are extremely comfortable.

They are not cheap, but they are worth every penny. The one thing I did have to do was shave some of the foam around the ear area of the helmet to make sure you don't get any pressure on your ear from teh foam. i didn't have to remove a lot, but did have to do more than how the helmet came.

You can check, and the should be at the motorcycle show again this year. That's where I got my molds taken. If you need them sooner, they can assist you with getting the molds done locally and then send them to BigEar.

 

[bramfrank]

If you want to do it right, get a set of Westone UM2 and use Shure's triple flange sleeves. If you really want to go wild, have a set of custom moulded sleeves made up.

Best pricing is on Ebay for the 'phones.

They rock - literally.

If you have the scratch, the UM3s are the only things that outperform the 2s.

 

[Allnight]

I went with the Etymotic Research hf2 because it's also a cell phone headset when in the cage.

Before this, I was using some 29db work plugs from the local hardware store. I thought they were great. Then the hf2's arrived, and they were about the same, but the music was harder to hear than I expected. A friend has the 6i's so I had higher expectations.

I switched the hf2 to one of the other included ear pads. (List of accessories, some included with the hf2.) It had the ER23-18 installed in the package. I tried the ER23-15SM that was included and it didn't block as much as the first set. I wasn't going to, but ended up trying the ER23-17 on. Wow. I can't hear the engine running. Even with no music or other sound being fed in. Absolutely incredible. And, I don't get the ear-ringing when I arrive home (20 mile ride home every day) that I had with the work plugs.

As a headset it works quite well, with one little wrinkle. The Palm Centro stupidly won't work with stereo headsets...they must be mono. If I pull the cord part way out of the phone, it works great, but pushed all the way in I can hear great but the mic doesn't work.

In summary: freighteningly (sp?) expensive to me, but well worth it.

 

[Pierre]

Very happy with my ER6i by Etymotic.

 

[RICLET]

I had a set of these made for me this spring

www.britears.com

Once I got used to putting them into my ears properly I have found them to be very comfortable. Expensive, BUT WORTH IT FOR ME

 

[carlson_mn]

Thanks for all the responses, much appreciated! Will be looking at a few of the ideas here.

 

[pmspaul]

I've been using shure earbuds for years. My current pair is the SE210. They come with multiple size and material sleeves to fit your ear. I picked mine up on ebay for considerably less.

https://store.shure.com/store/shure/en_US/D...uctID.105181400

They fit me well, fit easily and comfortably inside my Arai. I wear them when lawnmowing also. Sound quality is good. Mine came with a microphone adapter on the sub cord, so you can do phone calls while wearing them. If you keep the pickup clipped to your collar area, calls can be accepted and carried out even while on the bike. I just stuffed the pickup into my full face and had a nice little conversation. I've even taken calls while on the mower and the other party can hear me fine. Although the neighbors think you're just talking loudly to yourself...

 

[sporto]

Very happy with my ER6i by Etymotic.

+1 on the ER6i's. Been using mine for over 10,000 miles. Very good sound quality, fit deep enough into ear canal so donning helmet does not dislodge them. Blocks out ambient wind noise very nicely as well.

 

[cometman]

Interesting post just above mine, need to research more as I'm always willing try new ideas.My personal favorite are the ER6, not ER6i by Etymotic.

If using a StarComm, the ER6 is a better choice, the impedance matches much better to the final op-amps in the StarComm and, additionally, they have better frequency response.

Wind noise reduction is slightly better with the i's, however.

+1 on the ER6i. I use them just for music. Amazon for around 80 dollars.

However, after reading the post on the Skull Titans I am running not walking to Target to pick up a pair. Looks like they will work better.

 

[zenwhipper]

I've got the ER6i units and love them. Very quiet and stay in since the length of the units is short and just fit inside and nest up against the antitragus of my ear. With any ear buds, it also helps with quietness and keeping them in if you first moisten the rubber flanges by doing a quick tonque lick (ahhhh, ear wax never killed nobody!).

 

[tcfjr]

I've been using shure earbuds for years. My current pair is the SE210. They come with multiple size and material sleeves to fit your ear. I picked mine up on ebay for considerably less.

I'm a big fan of the Shure e2c's. The over-the-ear cord path makes them secure under the helmet, and they fit in the ear deep enough to make it easy (for me, at least) to put on and take off my helmet. The sound quality is excellent, noise isolation is actually better than the custom molds I got a few months ago, and they are pretty durable. They come with both foam and flange sleeves in various sizes, and replacement sleeves are available at a low cost. They run about $70 on Amazon or eBay.

 

[pmspaul]

I'm a big fan of the Shure e2c's. The over-the-ear cord path makes them secure under the helmet, and they fit in the ear deep enough to make it easy (for me, at least) to put on and take off my helmet. The sound quality is excellent, noise isolation is actually better than the custom molds I got a few months ago, and they are pretty durable. They come with both foam and flange sleeves in various sizes, and replacement sleeves are available at a low cost. They run about $70 on Amazon or eBay.

These were my last pair. My cord shorted out at the plug after years of use.

+1 on all of your observations.

The SE210's use the same over-the-ear cord path, but have an even lower profile in the ear than the e2c's did for me. So the helmet goes on easier for me without trying to knock them out. The sleeves that came on them are more comfortable than any of the e2c sleeves I tried. My $.02

 

[skifrik]

I had the Etymotic for a few years liked them. But this I got some custom ones made from earinc. I really like them perfect fit, really blocks out the wind noise.

 

[CraigRegs]

+1 on Etymotic ER6. Blocks enough ambient noise that I can play tunes at a reasonable level, and still hear enough of the environment around me.

Craig

 

[thomasz]

Yeah, I search this accessorygeeks.com that have lot of nice fashionable headsets with a low price. My sister just pick up one. You can drive or enjoy music at the same time when you drive moto. You can listen real sound, patented Voice Activity Sensor that feels your speech, magnetic USB cable and wall charger delivers 80 percent charge in 35 minutes (full charge in less than 1 hour), Bluetooth headset in black with military-grade noise elimination technology and invisible touch controls

 

[Joe2Lmaker]

iPlugz™

I had molds of my ears made at last year's Cycle World International Motorcycle Show. The earplugs/speakers came in plenty of time for this year's riding season.

They work well for me.