Best ear protection?

[tickled pink]

Which is the best ear protection (muffs) for a guy that shoots a rifle and needs to get good cheek weld? Which one has good protection and is thin enough to get close to the rifle stock?

40gt

 

[Captain Moroni]

Re: Best ear protection?

Suppressor and Surefire ep3's. As far as muffs go I have the Peltors they are slim but don't offer the best protection.

 

[Nostradumbass]

Re: Best ear protection?

This topic has been discussed extensively here.......but if you really want the best electronic ears out there, go to Triad tactical and order you a pair of Sordin Supreme Pro X's. Been using them for the past few years with NO issues.

 

[fx77]

Re: Best ear protection?

Agree...MSA Sordin Supreme Pro X..had them 4 years...have met all expectations rifle handgun and shotgun...

 

[ronas]

Re: Best ear protection?

I have MSA Sordin Supreme III Pro+ part #75200 and the MSA Sordin Supreme Pro-X part #75302-X. Both have the optional gel ear pads.

The MSA Sordin Supreme III Pro+ elimate more offensive sound than the Pro X.

 

[Big Bo]

Re: Best ear protection?

Ear plugs (foam)and muffs.

 

[Furtaker_.223]

Re: Best ear protection?

I have the peltors. I like them. It makes it nice to where you do not have to talk loud to someone. Howard leight makes a good pair as well. You can hook up an ipod to them.

 

[thefitter]

Re: Best ear protection?

I still use the GI issue plugs I've had for over 30 years. Never got used to muffs. With the plugs I can really feel my breathing and pulse.

I also prefer NOT to hear some of the conversations around me when I'm at the range.

 

[crumpmd]

Re: Best ear protection?

+1 on plugs and muffs. Use good plugs, in deep. Get the Sordin, or Leight or Peltor amplified muffs. You can turn them off if people are talking and disturbing you.

 

[clmayfield]

Re: Best ear protection?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: thefitter</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
I also prefer NOT to hear some of the conversations around me when I'm at the range.</div></div>

Yeah... sometimes I start laughing and end up pulling a shot. I have been asked before if my 22LR is a Barret 50BMG. And that is only the beginning...

Back to topic:

Plugs plus muffs are best, but if you go with only one, the plugs by themselves offer far more protection (and I mean much more) than muffs. If you are worried about cheek weld, get some foam ear plugs at your local drug store. Just buy the ones with the highest NRR rating.

I just bought these:

http://www.silentear.com/

And while I like the reusability of them, foam works better and is cheaper. You just have to replenish a lot and know how to insert them properly (roll them up and stick them as far down into your ear canal as possible before they expand again).

 

[scotharr]

Re: Best ear protection?

Foam ear plugs. Tell me what has better than 33dB of protection and costs .08 ea.

 

[LawnMM]

Re: Best ear protection?

Does anybody make a set that have any kind of noise cancelling technology with them? I know several sets will amplify sound so you can hear conversations and what not but cut off the loud. Do any block out all of it?

 

[DirtyRod]

Re: Best ear protection?

Pro Ears. Hit the Pro Ears site. Mine work exactly like the demos on the site. Doesn't cut sound out and pistol and rifle shots sound no louder than the conversations.

 

[k2peaker]

Re: Best ear protection?

Asking for the "absolute best", i.e., price no object?

The ESP electronic ones are great but their cheapest model is $795 MSRP. In the ear, 25 dB reduction, custom molded to your ears, comfortable when shooting long guns.
I have two pairs of ProEars and love them for USPSA shooting, prefer not to have muffs on for rifle/shotgun. The sporting clays models help with cheek weld positioning but aren't as comfortable as the ESP in-the-ear, imo.

 

[SmokinAce]

Re: Best ear protection?

surefire EP6 or foams is what I generally run.

 

[JSF]

Re: Best ear protection?

I have some ear plugs that were custom fit to my ears. They were not expensive either. They are not the electric ones. You can hear normally with them, but, they have a tube with a flap in them that will close when a gun is fired. They take a mold of your ear and make them to fit. Most comfortable plugs I have used. I think they are around $80-100. Well worth it. I'm not sure of the price because my wife works for ENT doctors and they did mine for cheap.

 

[ISBe]

Re: Best ear protection?

+1 for the foam ear plugs.

 

[fw707]

Re: Best ear protection?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Big Bo</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Ear plugs (foam)and muffs. </div></div>

Both for me too. Foam plugs and Peltor Tac 6 muffs.

I don't want the crickets to get any louder.

 

[Pierced Armor]

Re: Best ear protection?

MSA Sordin Supreme Pro X

I've tried about everything out there and these are deffinetly my favorites. I know have three pairs with comms, in case I have friends along.

PA

 

[magic647]

Re: Best ear protection?

+1 on the Sordins...best you can get

 

[Bearwalk]

Re: Best ear protection?

I have been happy with my electronic Browning muffs for about 6 years now. About 30 db of of noise reduction as I recall. Battery life has been phenomenal - as in hundreds of hours between charges. I also wear plugs underneath while at the range. Can't wear enough protection these days...

 

[HotrRod308]

Re: Best ear protection?

I like the foam ear plugs for when I want the best protection against the big boomers. Howard Leights when I need to be able to hear range commands.

 

[PLeighton]

Re: Best ear protection?

Surefire EP3 when shooting bolt guns.
Howard Leights when doing pistol, carbine, & shotgun work.

 

[427Cobra]

Re: Best ear protection?

The Safety people at my work(Southwest Airlines) always preach ear plugs, the noise protection from any kind of ear muff is not even close, and according to them there is no added benefit to wearing plugs and muffs at the same time, its which ever is highest is all the protection you get. I wear plugs most of the time, and some HL Sport muffs with the volume turned all the way up so I can have a conversations with people while unsurpressed weapons are going off.

 

[Lindy]

Re: Best ear protection?

People around aircraft are working in an environment characterized by a relatively high level of sound at a level which doesn't change very much.

That is not the environment shooters are in. The mastoid bone in the head transmits impulse noise at a high level very well, and muffs offer some protection from that transmission mode, which plugs do not.

Around really loud weapons, it makes sense to wear plugs under muffs, because you get a higher level of protection from both direct noise and bone conduction. And I do.

 

[drmarc]

Re: Best ear protection?

As usual Lindy is right on the money with his advice!

 

[netranger6]

Re: Best ear protection?

I use cigarette butss. J/K. Plugs for me, firing ear only.

 

[bigmike2121]

Re: Best ear protection?

In a pinch? at the pistol range, grab yourself a cpl of 9 mm or 45 shell casings!!! better than nothing!

 

[mcimma]

Re: Best ear protection?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: SmokinAce</div><div class="ubbcode-body">surefire EP6 or foams is what I generally run. </div></div>

Same here, no issues.....

 

[clmayfield]

Re: Best ear protection?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Carter Mayfield</div><div class="ubbcode-body">

Plugs plus muffs are best, but if you go with only one, the plugs by themselves offer far more protection (and I mean much more) than muffs. If you are worried about cheek weld, get some foam ear plugs at your local drug store. Just buy the ones with the highest NRR rating.

I just bought these:

http://www.silentear.com/

And while I like the reusability of them, foam works better and is cheaper. You just have to replenish a lot and know how to insert them properly (roll them up and stick them as far down into your ear canal as possible before they expand again).</div></div>

I finally got a hold of some Howard Leight Super Leight Foam Plugs and they work better than anything I have ever used. I think part of the issue is that I have a very large ear canal that is difficult to get a good seal on. These sealed better than anything I have used before. I couldn't hear anything.

That is obviously good and bad, but the way that my ears have been ringing, I need something with more protection.

Interestingly, I feel like I was more tuned into my shooting with all of the hearing protection. Loud noises cause me to flinch (especially people shooting around me). With these Leights, everyone was blocked out. I am going to buy a couple hundred pair and see how long they last.

 

[RELOOP]

Re: Best ear protection?

if I have to dispatch a deer on duty I strip two .40 rds from a mag and use as quick ear protection, works great

 

[Fred_C_Dobbs]

Re: Best ear protection?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: 427Cobra</div><div class="ubbcode-body">...and according to them there is no added benefit to wearing plugs and muffs at the same time, its which ever is highest is all the protection you get....</div></div>
I can't agree with that. I always wear polyurethane earplugs at the range. If there's a centerfire shooter in either of the lanes next to me, I put on cups, too. I definitely have less tendency to flinch from <span style="text-decoration: underline">their</span> report when I'm wearing the cups.

 

[JasonB]

Re: Best ear protection?

The behind the head sordin supreme pro-x I've had with the gel inserts are great... No feed back from electric devices in the area... Comfortable, and reduces noise. Unfortunately this will be the 2nd time in two years they have gone back for repair.

 

[Triad]

Re: Best ear protection?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: 427Cobra</div><div class="ubbcode-body">and according to them there is no added benefit to wearing plugs and muffs at the same time, its which ever is highest is all the protection you get.</div></div>

I spoke with an Audiologist(MD)two weeks ago and asked him about doubling up. He said by all means, DO IT. While the protection levels are not combined, there is an increase in protection. Not only that, but as mentioned, there is increased protection from conducted sound when the near surface bones behind the ear are covered.

 

[clmayfield]

Re: Best ear protection?


<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: 427Cobra</div><div class="ubbcode-body">The Safety people at my work(Southwest Airlines) always preach ear plugs, the noise protection from any kind of ear muff is not even close, and according to them there is no added benefit to wearing plugs and muffs at the same time, its which ever is highest is all the protection you get.</div></div>

Plugs are generally better than muffs, though I found some muffs that have as high a rating as plugs that I am going to check out. In Canada, they actually derate ear plug noise reduction because so many people apply them incorrectly. Ear muffs are generally always used correctly.

Now... muffs plus ear plugs yield about a 3 dB reduction compared to one of them alone... but don't discount that. dB's are on a logarithmic scale, so you are getting a 50% reduction in sound from an additional 3 dB of reduction.

So... if you wear 33 dB plugs and 33 dB muffs, you will get 36 dB, not 66 dB of reduction. But 36 dB is quite a bit. In fact, it is just about the max you can get.

 

[clmayfield]

Re: Best ear protection?

BTW... has anyone tried Pro Ears Pro Mag Gold? These have the highest NRR I have seen in a cup with active circuitry.

While everyone quibbles over Peltor vs Sordin, these seem like the best (on paper, at least). I was wondering if anyone had used them or if people were scared off because they are not being used. I bought the passive version for $30 and if it doesn't mess with my cheek weld, I might pony up and pay $280 to test them out.

 

[Carnivore]

Re: Best ear protection?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Lindy</div><div class="ubbcode-body">People around aircraft are working in an environment characterized by a relatively high level of sound at a level which doesn't change very much.

That is not the environment shooters are in. The mastoid bone in the head transmits impulse noise at a high level very well, and muffs offer some protection from that transmission mode, which plugs do not.

Around really loud weapons, it makes sense to wear plugs under muffs, because you get a higher level of protection from both direct noise and bone conduction. And I do.
</div></div>


WHAT DID YOU SAY???????
Sordin Pro-X and Ear Plugs and still headed to a hearing aid and can't figure out what is going on. I only shoot my rifle with a can on it with no problems, but everyone else with the muzzle brakes are killing my hearing.

 

[PRDRIVER]

Re: Best ear protection?

Howard Leight - Impact Sport Model. These are way better the the Peltor units that I owned before, plus they are less expensive.

For in the Ear, I like the Surefire ear plugs.

 

[salmonaxe]

Re: Best ear protection?

I was really surprised,that Howard Leight electronic muffs are as good as they are. Way better than the Peltor tacticals I used to use, and I liked them even better than the peltor comtacs I tried.

Even the small surefire plugs were too big for me. Hurt like hell after 5 minutes.

Foam plugs work great, and I used to wear them exclusively. I tried to never remove them with dirty hands and used new ones for each outing. Still over time the frequency that I used them started to give my inner ear problems. I'm not sure, but I think it was the tight fit combined with the compression and suction force of inserting and removing them. I went to the doctor about the inner ear business and found out that I have perfect hearing despite having tinnitus. Weird huh? Since I didn't have any outward signs of infection, there was little he could do but speculate on the cause. The only other test was some crazy thing that sounded like they pumped you full of some crazy drug, spun you around in one of those NASA chair things while observing eye movement. It sounded so horrible that I didn't do it. So I stopped the use of the plugs and the dizziness went away.

 

[One-Eyed Jack]

Re: Best ear protection?

Ear protection has a noise reduction rating ("NRR"), so you can quantitatively compare effectiveness. The higher the NRR number (measured in decibels), the better they work.

I use Mack's shooting earplugs - they are comfortable (they are not the cheap foam type), have a string that connects the plugs to each other so you won't lose them, and have a noise reduction rating of NRR27 (equal to -27dB in noise reduction). That's pretty high, check other devices and compare. And they cost only about $3/pair. You can also double up with ear plugs and ear muffs if you're so inclined.

For comparison, the Peltor 7S earmuffs have a NRR of -24dB, the Howard Leight Leightning ear muffs are rated at -23dB, the Sordin Supreme Pros at -18dB, and the Surefire EP3s at -24dB. Each -3dB in noise reduction is equivalent to cutting the noise energy in half. The inexpensive Mack's are at least 2x more effective than any of these electronic ear muffs or the Surefire plugs.

Mack's ear seals for shooters

 

[geometro]

Re: Best ear protection?

After reading the various reviews, my conclusion is it was either the Sordin + gel pads for comfort or the Hower Leight Impact for value.

Now with the discussion of using ear plugs with conjunction with ear muffs, seems like a prudent idea.

With Sordin Supreme Pros are about 2 and a half bills street price, without the gel pads, I believe, and Howard Leights are about $40-50 it comes down to how much you have budgeted for ears and what is comfort worth to you, I suppose.

Since the earmuffs all attenuate sound about the same amount, I'm in the camp of the more economical earmuffs that are comfortable enough to wear, low enough profile to shoot with and earplugs.

 

[breezernate]

Re: Best ear protection?

I like my thin Peltor 6S muffs. Fat muffs get in the way.
Plugs underneath make em even better.

 

[LoneWolfUSMC]

Re: Best ear protection?

Most of the time I use a set of Peltor Sporttac's.

http://www.8541tactical.com/tacsport_review.php

They work very well and have great battery life. However they can be lacking when I am inside a structure with a braked rifle or when I am on the line with an extremely loud braked shorty (Smith Brakes suck!).

When I find myself in those situations I put in some Howard Leight "Laser Lite" plugs.

http://www.howardleight.com/earplugs/laser-lite

They are ridiculously cheap and the most comfortable plugs I have found. They fit my three year old too.

I don't normally double up unless I am wearing a balaclava. When I do, the muffs can slip around. So I wear plugs for the NRR and use muffs to amplify range commands. This isn't ideal, but it works. I am about to just cut the ears out of my balaclava.

I am going to give the Howard Leight ears a try soon. They may be a good option for my wife who doesn't spend a lot of time on the range. I don't really want to drop a couple of benjamins on ears that will get worn a couple times a year.

 

[edward r homeyer]

Re: Best ear protection?

Whatever you decide to use, always throw a hand full of disposable foam ear pro in your glove box, console and range bag.
Murphy always misplaces my peltors or my surefire ear pro when I need them most.

 

[LoneWolfUSMC]

Re: Best ear protection?

Exactly.

Oh, and thanks to the forum for causing me to spend more money. This thread reminded me that I needed a patch cord and some new ear seals for my Peltors. This of course led me to adding a set of Howard Leight Impact muffs so I could review them.

I guess I will see where they stack up in a week or two. They may even be here in time for training this month.

 

[Fred_C_Dobbs]

Re: Best ear protection?

I have a pair of Howard Leights that I never wear because their attenuation is too low. They're okay if there are no other centerfire shooters around but if there are, I have to wear earplugs underneath. But with earplugs underneath, their amplification is too weak to understand conversation, which makes the electronic function useless. So they stay in the range bag and I wear an old pair of Silencio cups instead.

 

[One-Eyed Jack]

Re: Best ear protection?

While I usually wear a pair of Mack's plugs, I will wear the Peltor shotgun muffs when it's cold, just to keep my ears warm.

 

[Cmonroe]

Re: Best ear protection?

Spend three days straight in a pair of Howard's and you will gladly spend the money on Sordins and never look back.

 

[crazedone2]

Re: Best ear protection?

I also like the surefire ep3s. they work well, and they dont get in the way of a good cheek weld

 

[frankythefly]

Re: Best ear protection?

I like the free plugs that you get when you go through SRP I have 20-30 of the big blue ones and cant hear a thing with them, they are kind of nerdy so I only wear them when no one is looking