Hearing protection

[Spike56]

Seems most of you are lucky to be able to wear muff type protection. I can but only in the cooler months in Texas. I have a pair of muffs with a radio, but wearing these when it is 10,000 degrees outside is an issue - every uncomfortable. Most of the time, I have to use a pair of simple plugs to avoid a sweating head, plus wearing a straw hat to keep the sun off my ears and neck makes it impossible to use the muff style protector. Ugh !

 

[bdhsfz6]

Seems most of you are lucky to be able to wear muff type protection. I can but only in the cooler months in Texas. I have a pair of muffs with a radio, but wearing these when it is 10,000 degrees outside is an issue - every uncomfortable. Most of the time, I have to use a pair of simple plugs to avoid a sweating head, plus wearing a straw hat to keep the sun off my ears and neck makes it impossible to use the muff style protector. Ugh !

Try a pair of these:

The best noise-canceling earbuds in 2025: Tested and reviewed

Silence the world around you with the best noise-cancelling earbuds recommended by our audio experts

www.tomsguide.com

I use Apple AirPods and they work very well. Definitely better than plain earplugs. I like that they are Bluetooth enabled so I can listen to music.

 

[RalphVa]

Seems most of you are lucky to be able to wear muff type protection. I can but only in the cooler months in Texas. I have a pair of muffs with a radio, but wearing these when it is 10,000 degrees outside is an issue - every uncomfortable. Most of the time, I have to use a pair of simple plugs to avoid a sweating head, plus wearing a straw hat to keep the sun off my ears and neck makes it impossible to use the muff style protector. Ugh !

I have a floppy hat that the muffs will go over. Yeah, the muffing isn't quite as good as with no hat, but almost.

 

[WM75Guy]

I just bought a set of 3M Connect+ Gel headphones. Very comfortable to wear compared to a non-gel set. Bluetooth enabled, one button operation, and 23dB noise cancelling. So far they work great.

 

[rScotty]

I use noise-canceling headphones for ear protection. But sometimes they aren’t enough. I know that some of my friends have hearing aids that help with tinnitus and protect the ears. I was tested by the ear doctor staten island to know whether my hearing is okay. They’ll help to choose the best ear protection for you.

I used noise-cancelling headphones for years. They did work great to cut out the tractor noise, but I started to wonder if they were doing my ears any long term good.
The way noise cancelling works is it "cancels" the noise by adding the same noise back into your ear - but this time out of phase with the incoming noise and so sound-wise they sum to zero.
That does make it so that you don't hear anything - but the energy inside the headphones and against your ear has just doubled..... What does that do? Anything?

And then there is playing music through the headphones to drown out the sound of the tractor. It works too, but in that case there isn't any doubt that the damage to your hearing is just that much higher.

I just had my hearing tested. It's about half gone. Amazingly, that's still good enough for most conversations.

rScotty

 

[gsganzer]

I've had good luck with these custom molded from Sensaphonics. They're pricey, but I bill them to my business as safety gear. What I like about them is you can buy additional filters for different levels of noise reduction. They also work with any hats, sunglasses etc.

Sensaphonics ER Series Earplugs

My local hearing store did the molds and keep it for when I order new ones.

 

[Spike56]

Try a pair of these:

The best noise-canceling earbuds in 2025: Tested and reviewed

Silence the world around you with the best noise-cancelling earbuds recommended by our audio experts

www.tomsguide.com

I use Apple AirPods and they work very well. Definitely better than plain earplugs. I like that they are Bluetooth enabled so I can listen to music.

The noise cancelling earbud are too $$. Probably nice, but...
I have Apple AirPods. Are you saying they can cancel out noise or just drowned out the noise with music ?

 

[bdhsfz6]

I have the Apple AirPods Pro which have true noise cancelling:

AirPods Pro 3

AirPods Pro 3 — The world’s best in-ear Active Noise Cancellation, heart rate sensing during workouts, and an improved hearing health experience.

www.apple.com

Definitely not cheap but they work very well for folks who cannot wear headphones.

 

[Jstpssng]

Seems most of you are lucky to be able to wear muff type protection. I can but only in the cooler months in Texas. I have a pair of muffs with a radio, but wearing these when it is 10,000 degrees outside is an issue - every uncomfortable. Most of the time, I have to use a pair of simple plugs to avoid a sweating head, plus wearing a straw hat to keep the sun off my ears and neck makes it impossible to use the muff style protector. Ugh !

I found a brand/style of ear plugs which I really like, so bought a box of them. I keep several pair in each truck, as well as wearing them on my tractor and around other noisy engines. If I'm running chainsaw I wear them under the ear muffs, otherwise I will still hear the saw running when I go to bed that night.

 

[Spike56]

I have the Apple AirPods Pro which have true noise cancelling:

AirPods Pro 3

AirPods Pro 3 — The world’s best in-ear Active Noise Cancellation, heart rate sensing during workouts, and an improved hearing health experience.

www.apple.com

Definitely not cheap but they work very well for folks who cannot wear headphones.

My version of Airpods do not have noise cancellation feature. I was wondering if these really protected your hearing or not. Found a couple of "maybe someone who knows" articles on the web, one of which is below:

" You may be considering using noise-cancelling headphones or earbuds in your labs or shops to listen to music during work, but please remember that noise-cancelling headphones and earbuds are not hearing protection devices, although they may look similar in some cases. Using noise-cancelling earbuds or headphones in place of hearing protection may cause permanent hearing impairment because these devices do not protect against occupational noise exposure"

So while I would like to listen to music, my main objective is to protect what little hearing I have left. Guess will have to stick with the ear plugs ?

 

[bdhsfz6]

My version of Airpods do not have noise cancellation feature. I was wondering if these really protected your hearing or not. Found a couple of "maybe someone who knows" articles on the web, one of which is below:

" You may be considering using noise-cancelling headphones or earbuds in your labs or shops to listen to music during work, but please remember that noise-cancelling headphones and earbuds are not hearing protection devices, although they may look similar in some cases. Using noise-cancelling earbuds or headphones in place of hearing protection may cause permanent hearing impairment because these devices do not protect against occupational noise exposure"

So while I would like to listen to music, my main objective is to protect what little hearing I have left. Guess will have to stick with the ear plugs ?

It depends on how you use them and the type of noise involved.

Can Noise-Canceling Headphones Stop Hearing Loss? What to Know

Yes and no.

www.cnet.com

These devices do a great job of suppressing loud hum and drone but, as you say, they don't do much for sudden percussion from gunfire or heavy machinery.

I use mine while on a tractor, in an airplane or a noisy vehicle where the sound frequency is fairly constant They are only marginally effective for variable frequency sound like loud rock music.

 

[Spike56]

It depends on how you use them and the type of noise involved.

Can Noise-Canceling Headphones Stop Hearing Loss? What to Know

Yes and no.

www.cnet.com

These devices do a great job of suppressing loud hum and drone but, as you say, they don't do much for sudden percussion from gunfire or heavy machinery.

I use mine while on a tractor, in an airplane or a noisy vehicle where the sound frequency is fairly constant They are only marginally effective for variable frequency sound like loud rock music.

bdhsfz6,
The article you referenced was about noise cancelling headphones, not ear pods / air pods ? Yes, for noise cancelling headset type protection, that's in question also I suppose, depending how you use them. For me, specifically the issue is while mowing with my ZTR. I just use plugs for now, as mentioned because a headset style w/ radio which I have one, is very hot to wear most of the year here, and does not fit well with my wide brim hat. Tried wearing this turned sideways so antenna is to the rear.... not a good fit.
I use the silicon ones on a string. Work good and much less fatigue feeling while / after mowing. Was just looking for a reasonably prices alternative. See they for make silicon one's with bluetooth..... still researching.


Can AirPods be used as hearing protection?

Apple does not list hearing protection as one of the benefits that their AirPods have to offer. Therefore, they should not be used as a replacement for specifically designed ear defenders or protectors. However, to an extent, they may offer some protection.

 

[mrmikey]

Can AirPods be used as hearing protection?

I would say unless they have a NRR rating as the ISPO Tunes ones do, no.
I've got the wired version of the ISO Tunes and they're great, both for blocking noise, ability to stream music, answer the phone and so on

 

[90cummins]

I have always used ear protection but I now use ear plugs in addition to my ear muffs when I'm mowing with my Kubota ZD 1211.
The drone from the mower deck is annoying..
I find no difference between regular ear muffs or shooting ear muffs with Bluetooth.

90cummins

 

[Spike56]

I would say unless they have a NRR rating as the ISPO Tunes ones do, no.
I've got the wired version of the ISO Tunes and they're great, both for blocking noise, ability to stream music, answer the phone and so on

View attachment 752212

perhaps these ? 29dB reduction ?

https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-headphones-earplugs-29db-reduction-sweatproof/dp/B089VVNRF6/ref=psdc_2266981011_t2_B081K6KPS2?th=1

 

[mrmikey]

perhaps these ? 29dB reduction ?
https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-he...VVNRF6/ref=psdc_2266981011_t2_B081K6KPS2?th=1

Over the past years I've tried multiple ear plugs, muffs you name it I've tried it and yes, mostly cheap off brand ones. Every one hurt my ears especially the ribbed ones like in your pic and they didn't block sound for crap. As for them having a NRR of 29, I'd take that with a grain of salt.
I finally bit the bullet with a pair of bluetooth/fm ear muffs from Lee Valley, they were great...but I sweated like a stuck pig with them on, other than that they were awesome...My daughter claimed them for herself so she could mow and still hear the phone, listen to tunes, she loves them, I lost them LOL.
I ended up going with the ISO Tunes and they are great, have different size pieces for the ears so you can get a good fit, block the noise and sound great. Only complaint I have is the foam tips are expensive but that's the only complaint.
I was going to try the wireless ones but I must have odd shaped ear holes and the couple of wireless pairs I had wouldn't stay in unless I drove them in 'till they bottomed out on my brain, not comfortable at all ;-).........M

 

[Spike56]

Over the past years I've tried multiple ear plugs, muffs you name it I've tried it and yes, mostly cheap off brand ones. Every one hurt my ears especially the ribbed ones like in your pic and they didn't block sound for crap. As for them having a NRR of 29, I'd take that with a grain of salt.
I finally bit the bullet with a pair of bluetooth/fm ear muffs from Lee Valley, they were great...but I sweated like a stuck pig with them on, other than that they were awesome...My daughter claimed them for herself so she could mow and still hear the phone, listen to tunes, she loves them, I lost them LOL.
I ended up going with the ISO Tunes and they are great, have different size pieces for the ears so you can get a good fit, block the noise and sound great. Only complaint I have is the foam tips are expensive but that's the only complaint.
I was going to try the wireless ones but I must have odd shaped ear holes and the couple of wireless pairs I had wouldn't stay in unless I drove them in 'till they bottomed out on my brain, not comfortable at all ;-).........M

Thanks for the info. Still undecided and looking. The silicon ribbed ones work great for me - Im probably the the one with off shaped earholes. The foam were such a pain to get in with a tight fit.
I see a Pro2 and Xtra model on Amazon. Which do you have ?

 

[mrmikey]

I see a Pro2 and Xtra model on Amazon. Which do you have ?

I've got the Pro 2. I will attest to their customer service. I had complained to them about the plastic insert breaking in the foam earpiece, no questions asked, they sent me a package of them. It always seemed to be left side, figured out afterward, when I put them in, I turned/screwed them into my ear, so the left one overtightened and the right one would loosen. Once I pre loosened the left side , all was good.

The foam were such a pain to get in with a tight fit.

You want a snug fit, loose and they won't do their thing. Too tight and you've got an hour before it drives you bonkers. Easiest way I find to put them in is to reach over the top of your head with the opposite side hand, pull up slightly on the top of your ear and insert them. A little bit of silicone lube helps too, I won't mention the name as I'll probably never hear the end of it but it contains two letters ;-)
Here's the US pricing from Iso's site:

 

[Spike56]

I've got the Pro 2. I will attest to their customer service. I had complained to them about the plastic insert breaking in the foam earpiece, no questions asked, they sent me a package of them. It always seemed to be left side, figured out afterward, when I put them in, I turned/screwed them into my ear, so the left one overtightened and the right one would loosen. Once I pre loosened the left side , all was good.

You want a snug fit, loose and they won't do their thing. Too tight and you've got an hour before it drives you bonkers. Easiest way I find to put them in is to reach over the top of your head with the opposite side hand, pull up slightly on the top of your ear and insert them. A little bit of silicone lube helps too, I won't mention the name as I'll probably never hear the end of it but it contains two letters ;-)
Here's the US pricing from Iso's site:

View attachment 752298

>> A little bit of silicone lube helps too, I won't mention the name as I'll probably never hear the end of it but it contains two letters ;-)

LOL, now that's funny !

 

[RalphVa]

Try some ginkgo biloba for the tinnitus. I take 30 mg 3 times/day. Watch for triggers. Could be additives in some foods or maybe some foods.