Ear Plugs

[joeystrange]

What's everybody's opinion on ear plugs?

I know that all musicians probably [i]should[/i] have them but who has experience of them?

I've used cheap, crappy ones before and they make everything sound absolutely horrible and I just can't do it, no matter how hard I try. I'd love a set of moulded ones with decent filtering but they're a lot of money. Well, they're more money than I can spare anyway.

My other issue is that I find it really hard to 'get into' what I'm/the band is playing if it's too quiet and I often wonder if this would be the case with ear plugs or if I'm just being stupid.

So, what do people think?

[OliverBlackman]

you can still hear with good clarity. It just lowers the volume and takes out higher frequencies. I've had them for a year and they're the best thing I've ever bought.

[JakeBrownBass]

.

Edited January 19, 2013 by JakeBrownBass

[joeystrange]

[quote name='OliverBlackman' timestamp='1342802057' post='1741280']
you can still hear with good clarity. It just lowers the volume and takes out higher frequencies. I've had them for a year and they're the best thing I've ever bought.
[/quote]

What attenuation are they? I just don't want some that will make everything just sound like the music is just playing in the background.


[quote name='JakeBrownBass' timestamp='1342802172' post='1741286']
[url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/533-ear-plugs/"]http://basschat.co.u.../533-ear-plugs/[/url]

14 pages worth of info.

I've got a pair of ACS 15 and they're great for me.
[/quote]

Dammit. I should stop being so lazy.
I'll have a read of that, thanks.

Edited July 20, 2012 by joeystrange

[rogerstodge]

If you're young and just starting out get some plugs !! Otherwise you'll end up with tinnitus like 30% of bass chatters

[scalpy]

I'm in that 30%. Get used to them, when it's 4 in the morning and you can't sleep because your ears are howling "I can't it into the music" seems like the dumbest excuse not to have ear goggles.

Edited July 20, 2012 by scalpy

[chris_b]

[quote name='joeystrange' timestamp='1342801608' post='1741272']
....they're more money than I can spare anyway....
[/quote]

So you [i]can[/i] afford to go deaf then!

[discreet]

I use ER20s from Splugz... they are a tenner - you can probably find them a bit cheaper on the Bay.

[url="http://www.splugz.co.uk/"]http://www.splugz.co.uk/[/url]

You can hear everything, have conversations at normal levels and they don't insulate you from the environment. They filter out SPLs that would damage your hearing. Worth getting if only as a stop-gap while you consider more expensive alternatives.

You really MUST use something though. It's just not worth damaging your hearing and tinnitus can be a waking nightmare.

Edited July 20, 2012 by discreet

[Coilte]

People have no hesitation in spending a lot of money on other bass "accessories" while neglecting to invest in the most important one of all, i.e. custom earplugs. Your hearing is priceless, so look after it. Buy the best ear plugs you can afford. With the custom ones, everything is clear, just with the volume lowered. If you cant afford those, get wax ones. "Quies" are good.

Use some sort of hearing protection. Once you acquire tinnitus, the ringing in the ears is with you 24/7/365, and there is no known cure. I have read where some people have admitted they would rather be deaf, to get some relief from the constant ringing.

[mrtcat]

[quote name='JakeBrownBass' timestamp='1342802172' post='1741286']
I've got a pair of ACS 15 and they're great for me.
[/quote]

+1 ACS plugs are great. £130 may seem like a lot but if you get tinnitus or worse you'd give anything to be able to go back in time and buy some.

I took a few months to get used to them as initially you can feel a little detached from the music but you MUST persevere as you will get used to them and then you're set for a lifetime of playing. Too many folk have had to give up due to ear problems. Plugs should be as impoprtant as an amp and a bass to you.

I always keep some cheap spares in guitar cases, amp bag, glovebox and microphone case - onceyou get used to them you'll never know how you lived without them. If you take bass playing seriously then you have to take looking after your hearing seriously too.

[SpaceChick]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1342804604' post='1741344']
I use ER20s from Splugz... they are a tenner - you can probably find them a bit cheaper on the Bay.

[url="http://www.splugz.co.uk/"]http://www.splugz.co.uk/[/url]

You can hear everything, have conversations at normal levels and they don't insulate you from the environment. They filter out SPLs that would damage your hearing. Worth getting if only as a stop-gap while you consider more expensive alternatives.

You really MUST use something though. It's just not worth damaging your hearing and tinnitus can be a waking nightmare.
[/quote]

+1 to this

They are fab

[Muzz]

I've got a pair of the ER20s, and they were good to start with, but I've moved up (too late for tinnitus, mind, tho I'm blaming 30 years of motorcycling without earplugs, too) to ACS15s, and they're really, really good. You have to have them in for a few minutes to get over the slight sense of dislocation, but it's only an adjustment for your head to make: I usually put mine in as we're setting up, that way by the time we start playing I've pretty much forgotten I've got them in.

They're good for going to loud pub gigs, too - went to see a friend's very loud rock covers band the other week, and I was able to spot what was wrong with the bass (way too shy in the low mids) when my mate, tho he could tell something was up, couldn't tell what exactly because of the wall of noise from the cymbals and geetars masking everything.

Best £148 I've spent.

[uncle psychosis]

[quote name='joeystrange' timestamp='1342801608' post='1741272']
I've used cheap, crappy ones before and they make everything sound absolutely horrible and I just can't do it, no matter how hard I try. I'd love a set of moulded ones with decent filtering but they're a lot of money. Well, they're more money than I can spare anyway. [/quote]

If you permanently damage your hearing then [i]everything[/i] will sound absolutely horrible [b]all the time. [/b]

[quote]My other issue is that I find it really hard to 'get into' what I'm/the band is playing if it's too quiet and I often wonder if this would be the case with ear plugs or if I'm just being stupid.
[/quote]

You're just being stupid

Seriously, though, after about five minutes of wearing mine (I have etymotic er20s) you're barely aware of wearing them. Everything still seems loud, just not so ridiculously painful.

[LiamPodmore]

I really can't afford a set of custom plugs yet, and stock ones don't seem to fit my ears right at all anymore, so i'm using strangely, my bog standard earphones. Judging from what my old plugs gave me in terms of isolation (Before they just stopped fitting my ears that is) these are giving me about 15db, which is just right. It's not the best of solutions, but it works, and it's not cost me any extra, so it'll do for now. It's quite funny when people see the cables and think i have IEM too.

Liam

[Bassmurf]

After a couple of rehearsals with my new (and very loud) band, these are doing the job for me

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Alpine-Music-Safe-Filter-Plugs/dp/B000VO8PR0/ref=sr_1_1?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1342809406&sr=1-1

[joeystrange]

Thanks for all the feedback.
I've looked into the ACS15s before and they seem pretty good, I just can't afford them right now. They're definitely next on my list though.

Time to get saving!

[uncle psychosis]

[quote name='joeystrange' timestamp='1342809497' post='1741430']
Thanks for all the feedback.
I've looked into the ACS15s before and they seem pretty good, I just can't afford them right now. They're definitely next on my list though.

Time to get saving!
[/quote]

Get yourself a pair of the £10/15 ones in the meantime. Well worth it.

[lurksalot]

ER20's here also , though strangely , we seem louder at rehearsal , so regularly use them then, but at gigs I don't seem to need them the same , maybe its an adrenalin thing .

[chrismuzz]

I got some ER20s from DJM music for under a tenner and I'm glad of em. Only used them for two gigs so far so am still getting used to the different sound (very small increase in bass and a little loss of very high frequencies). But already feeling the benefits as my ears aren't ringing at all at the end of the night! Im told 'the real deal' have a much flatter response too

Edited July 20, 2012 by chrismuzz

[Beer of the Bass]

I've been using ER20s for a few years, but have recently changed to Alpine Music Safe from my local drum shop. They're similar to the ER20s but I find them a little more comfortable, easier to clean as the rubber part can be removed from the filter, and they come with three different levels of filter. They're a bit more fiddly to put in though, as the stems are shorter.

[louisthebass]

[quote name='Coilte' timestamp='1342805110' post='1741353'].

Use some sort of hearing protection. Once you acquire tinnitus, the ringing in the ears is with you 24/7/365, and there is no known cure. I have read where some people have admitted they would rather be deaf, to get some relief from the constant ringing.
[/quote]

Totally agree with this, but the only thing with tinnitus is that even if you go deaf, it doesn't go away .

I started using plugs about 3 years ago, and have never regretted it. I've got a set of Alpines that have done ok so far, but a set of mouldeds are on my wanted list.

[jbn4001]

If I ever play in a loud band or go to a loud gig, I use ER25 custom moulded earplugs.

Story follows.. but short version is :GET SOME EARPLUGS AND USE THEM!!!!

Why? Because 8-9 yrs ago, I was playing in a loud band. The guitarist's amp was way louder than mine. Instead of saying "please play quieter", what did I do? I went into a music shop to find a louder amp. In the soundproofed booth, i.e. a dinky little room.. I was a total d**khead and I cranked the sh*t out of several amps/cabs. In one afternoon, I trashed my hearing (to an extent) irreversibly. I now have quite bad tinnitus and hyperacusis (intolerance to high frequencies). The latter is really weird.. if I listen to music through speakers (rather than a live band) .. I find the high frequencies from cymbals and the like make my ears ache badly, coupled with a strange burning sensation. The ER25s have been a life saver for me as it means I can listen to music a) a lot quieter and they roll off the high frequencies to the point where they don't irritate my ears. When listening to mp3 player, I have to have the treble turned all the way down to lowest setting.. and yet to my ears , it's still really trebly.


If you're young and you can afford a bass or bass amp, you can afford earplugs -- get earplugs and protect your hearing. Hearing is priceless. Custom earplugs can be had for less than the price of a decent combo. Regular earplugs can be had for less than the price of a set of strings. When I hear people listening to mp3 players mega loud (something I never did, despite my idiocy with the aforementioned amp testing) I can't help but think we'll have a nation full of people with major hearing problems by the time they're in their late 20s. Madness.

Hear endeth the old man rant.

[woodyratm]

[quote name='jbn4001' timestamp='1342817128' post='1741582']
If I ever play in a loud band or go to a loud gig, I use ER25 custom moulded earplugs.

Story follows.. but short version is :GET SOME EARPLUGS AND USE THEM!!!!

Why? Because 8-9 yrs ago, I was playing in a loud band. The guitarist's amp was way louder than mine. Instead of saying "please play quieter", what did I do? I went into a music shop to find a louder amp. In the soundproofed booth, i.e. a dinky little room.. I was a total d**khead and I cranked the sh*t out of several amps/cabs. In one afternoon, I trashed my hearing (to an extent) irreversibly. I now have quite bad tinnitus and hyperacusis (intolerance to high frequencies). The latter is really weird.. if I listen to music through speakers (rather than a live band) .. I find the high frequencies from cymbals and the like make my ears ache badly, coupled with a strange burning sensation. The ER25s have been a life saver for me as it means I can listen to music a) a lot quieter and they roll off the high frequencies to the point where they don't irritate my ears. When listening to mp3 player, I have to have the treble turned all the way down to lowest setting.. and yet to my ears , it's still really trebly.


If you're young and you can afford a bass or bass amp, you can afford earplugs -- get earplugs and protect your hearing. Hearing is priceless. Custom earplugs can be had for less than the price of a decent combo. Regular earplugs can be had for less than the price of a set of strings. When I hear people listening to mp3 players mega loud (something I never did, despite my idiocy with the aforementioned amp testing) I can't help but think we'll have a nation full of people with major hearing problems by the time they're in their late 20s. Madness.

Hear endeth the old man rant.
[/quote]

Sadly this is true i'm 23 and hearing loss was picked up on.

Im thinking IEM or custom plugs. I have the ER20 (15s maybe?) but they seem to make my ears itch. Also become a pain in pubs/clubs where i cant talk..

Are the ACS15 ones good enough for live and otherwise? Looking at the pro ones since they're vented? Would these be good enough ? I want ones i can wear and not feel a) underwater like my bass is boomy c) be able to hold conversation.