ER15 Hearing Protectors

Ronnie Robinson · Post by **Ronnie Robinson** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 1:35 pm

Is anybody using these ? They are expensive at about Ã‚Â£170 a pair and I gather gungy stuff is squirted into your ear so that a perfect mould can be made .The Ã‚Â£13 a pair types with filters made by Alpine just block too many important frequencies . Or can anyone suggest another make that works well ?

kmlabs · Post by **kmlabs** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 1:46 pm

I use Etymotic ER-20s, they're not perfect but they block a lot of volume without making everything too muffled...

irish_admiral · Post by **irish_admiral** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 7:13 pm

I've used the ER20s also. Knock a decent nuber of DBs off and don't mess with the sound much.

I wouldn't get full in-ear protectors if you sing as it messes with the resonance inside your skull! ER20s are pretty cheap...

Tiny Rocker · Post by **Tiny Rocker** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 8:13 pm

Yes, I use custom-molded earplugs with ER15 filters. I wrote about them at http://forum.orangeamps.com/viewtopic.p ... 764#308184.

The acoustics of your unamplified voice will sound rather different wearing good earplugs like these, but if you're hearing your vocals mainly through a monitor they'll sound as natural as anything can sound through earplugs (which is definitely not simply a quieter version of reality, albeit mental adjustment shouldn't take too long).

Ian

irish_admiral · Post by **irish_admiral** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 9:42 pm

Ian

What's your take on those then? I've tried a few IEMs with the buds that expand to fill your ear canal, and still didn't like the resonance I can feel in my skull when using them. Most other guys i've come across who've tried them said the same.

Prefer a pair of ordinary earphones for the IEMs.

hithere · Post by **hithere** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 2:08 am

I am also in the market for these, I had the hearos that look similar to the ers but I could never hear myself singing.

What are some good custom companies, all of them so obtrusive, or do some custom molds look similar to most' IEM?

Ronnie Robinson · Post by **Ronnie Robinson** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 10:46 am

Well Im not a singer.So what is the quality of the instrument ( band ) sounds? How do they compare with the cheaper versions ? As cheaper ear plugs with filters just did nt work for me too much of certain frequencies were blocked out and I struggled to hear my guitar - but could hear the bass and drums well enough . Thanks

Art · Post by **Art** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 5:28 pm

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by kmlabs
 I use Etymotic ER-20s, they're not perfect but they block a lot of volume without making everything too muffled...
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Same, they seem to bring everything down to a comfortable level whilst still leaving a good enough sound to play with. I even find that it helps me pick out seperate instruments better sometimes as my eardrums aren't being destroyed!

irish_admiral · Post by **irish_admiral** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 5:30 pm

The cheap ER15 plugs were pretty good for me. Reasonably consistent attenuation across the sound frequencies, and basically do enough to stop the principal wallop your eardrums get from the sound hitting you. I think they're well worth it as a pair to just stuff in your guitar case.

If you don't sing, the quality of the band sounds you get in moulded IEMs will be as good as the person providing your monitor mix. The mouldies attenuate brilliantly. However, if you don't normally have a dedicated monitor mix desk, it might not be advisable as there's no guarantee you'll get a good representation of the band sound. Plus it sounds a bit more sterile, and you may find you don't like it.

Tiny Rocker · Post by **Tiny Rocker** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 5:57 pm

Ronnie,

I haven't used my cheapie Etymotic (a.k.a. Elacin) ER20's since I got my custom-molded plugs made. From what I wrote in April last year it looks like I thought that my custom-molded plugs perform slightly better than the ER20's. The physical fit of my custom-molded plugs in my ears is definitely much more comfortable than the ER20's were, and I'm sure I must look less of a twit wearing them compared to the ER20's (which do stick out from the ears a bit).

As it sounds like you haven't tried the ER20's yet and they're SO much cheaper than custom-molded plugs, I'd suggest giving the ER20's a go first. They can apparently be had for just 7.99 GBP here: http://www.djmmusic.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=ER-20.

Ian

Tiny Rocker · Post by **Tiny Rocker** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 6:00 pm

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">What's your take on those then?<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Joe,

Sorry, I'm not sure what question you're asking. (I don't have any experience of IEM, by the way.)

Cheers,

Ian

drFaye · Post by **drFaye** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 11:21 pm

Check out sensaphonics' stuff if you're looking for some good ear plugs. If you're in the Chicago area you can just go to their offices and have a pair custom made; or if you live elsewhere you can have ear impressions made by any audiologist and then mail said impressions to sensaphonics. They also do all kinds of in ear monitors and cool stuff. http://www.sensaphonics.com/prod_erseries_customs.html

I have a pair of the ER series earplugs and you can replace the filters for like 9dB, 15dB, or 25dB reduction. The nice thing its a more even reduction across all frequencies so what you are playing sounds about the same as it's going to get with earplugs in (compared to s---ty, high-end-muffling $10 earplugs).

I'd definitely recommend them to anyone. Your hearing is extremely important when you are a musician; so is your tone. Don't lose either.

jord123 · Post by **jord123** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 11:51 pm

turn your amp down

ESBlonde · Post by **ESBlonde** » Mon Feb 09, 2009 9:53 am

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by jord123
 turn your amp down
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

and sack the drummist if they can't contol their volume and lack of dynamics. Your audience won't be anybodys audience in a few years if they get their hearing knackerred! We all end up getting older even though none of us thought about it when we were young, still its better that the alternative!

irish_admiral · Post by **irish_admiral** » Mon Feb 09, 2009 2:39 pm

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Tiny Rocker
 <blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">What's your take on those then?<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Joe,

Sorry, I'm not sure what question you're asking. (I don't have any experience of IEM, by the way.)

Cheers,

Ian
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">Ian, crossed wires there... I thought you sang with mouldies in.

ER15 Hearing Protectors

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