Ear Protection for Practices / Gigs

W

Witterings

Silver Member
Hi all,
What does everybody else do for ear protection at gigs, if I'm practicing at home I use ER20's which are great and have Shure sound isolating earphones for playing along to music.
When I go to practices we're in a small room and I tend not wear them because as it's a small I try and play more quietly and think if I had them in I'd struggle to hear the vocals but also I'd probably play a lot louder if I was wearing plugs.
When we do small gigs in pubs etc (not big enough for in ear monitors) again I don't wear anything as I worry that I wouldn't be able to hear the rest of the band clearly.
I do find though there's a very obvious difference in sound that I hear and I'm more accustomed to hearing my drums with plugs than without.
I'l love to hear what others do and if you wear plugs do you find it affects how clearly you can hear the band ???
Any feedback much appreciated !!!!
 
When I practice I wear earplugs and they are really good.. and I even sometimes wear earplugs + ear protectors. Why? 1) Protects your hearing and 2) Makes your drums sound like they have been mixed with PC :p I use Peltor universal hearing protectors with possibility to connect mp3. They are very good!
 
I would seriously look into some custom ear plugs made by audiologists. I looked into them a few years ago and you can get them with different sound deadening discs, anywhere from a 15-30db reduction and you can swap the discs out.. The cool think was they were what the audiologist told me was a flat eq. So it didn't accentuate hi's or lows but rather a flat spectrum so tone wise things sounded correct.
 
All the above advice and learn to keep the stage volume down. Work with your bandmates and sound people to get the stage volume down as low as possible. It always astounds me that guys get on stage, crank their foldback monitors up, and then put in earplugs... Eh?
 
At home I wear the Vic Firth headphones. They let me play louder. Outside, I just wear some cheap foam earplugs that I get from the hospital. I would wear the Vic Firth's, but they muffle too much for my tastes. Earplugs are just right but they make you hot.
 
dpk204 said:
At home I wear the Vic Firth headphones. They let me play louder. Outside, I just wear some cheap foam earplugs that I get from the hospital. I would wear the Vic Firth's, but they muffle too much for my tastes. Earplugs are just right but they make you hot.
Click to expand...

Never had a problem with ear plugs making me hot. I wear them in the summer for cutting grass, using the weedeater, powerblower, using power tools in general and yes playing my drums. Headphones on the other hand are just like ear muffs you wear in the winter, they trap the heat and make you hot.
 
Witterings said:
Hi all,
What does everybody else do for ear protection at gigs, if I'm practicing at home I use ER20's which are great and have Shure sound isolating earphones for playing along to music.
When I go to practices we're in a small room and I tend not wear them because as it's a small I try and play more quietly and think if I had them in I'd struggle to hear the vocals but also I'd probably play a lot louder if I was wearing plugs.
When we do small gigs in pubs etc (not big enough for in ear monitors) again I don't wear anything as I worry that I wouldn't be able to hear the rest of the band clearly.
I do find though there's a very obvious difference in sound that I hear and I'm more accustomed to hearing my drums with plugs than without.
I'l love to hear what others do and if you wear plugs do you find it affects how clearly you can hear the band ???
Any feedback much appreciated !!!!
Click to expand...

I actually think wearing earplugs at rehearsals helps me hear the band more clearly. The reverberations of the sound off of all the walls and the overall "room sound" can tire your ears out very quickly and all you hear is a muddy mess. I use these for both rehearsals and on stage: http://www.walgreens.com/store/cata...lugs-w--Removable-Cord/ID=prod1707479-product. They sound fairly flat to my ears, and cut out a lot of the "room noise" in my opinion. Plus they are cheap and I can get them at the Walgreen's less than a mile from my house. I've tried the foam ear plugs but they are too dense and eliminate a lot of the important frequencies and make everything sound dull, but then again, that's what they are designed for.

I've tried these as well, they sound about about the same, but I have to drive across town or order them online: http://accessories.musiciansfriend.com/product/Hearos-Rock-n-Roll-Ear-Plugs?sku=421210
 
if you have the money and gear purchases in ear monitors. blocks out all outside sound but sounds like you listening to a cd as you play
 
custom fit 25 db reduction plugs for practice and small clubs, JHAudio JH-16s for bigger venues.


F
 
phfreq said:
been using the etyplugs.

http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/er20.aspx

Can't say enough good words about it. Clearly hear the drums and other musicians, lowered volume, relatively cheap, comes with case and chord. Best small ear plugs I've used so far.
Click to expand...
+1 on these guys.

I had custom ones fitted at the audiologist and I seriously couldn't tell the difference, so when my dog chewed up my $150 earplugs, I didn't sweat it. The other thing about the uber expensive audiologist ones is that they are fitted, so whenever I moved my jaw, my ear canal shape would change just enough to let sound in around them (not through them) which was very disconcerting and annoying (and defeated their purpose).
 
I wear these ALL OF THE TIME when I'm playing, practicing or listening to other bands.
earplugs.jpg


Dan
 
konaboy said:
I would seriously look into some custom ear plugs made by audiologists. I looked into them a few years ago and you can get them with different sound deadening discs, anywhere from a 15-30db reduction and you can swap the discs out.. The cool think was they were what the audiologist told me was a flat eq. So it didn't accentuate hi's or lows but rather a flat spectrum so tone wise things sounded correct.
Click to expand...

I have had two different sets of these. The first set I got through the Kaise audiologist and they were made by Westone. Not very comfortable and they still sounded funny even though they are supposed to be flat. Unfortunately, they sucked the tone right out of a snare drum and the wash of cymbals so I couldn't tell how I was hitting things. Pulled all the meat out of a guitar's tone as well and were very frustrating to play with.

So I went back to hunks of cotton until I noticed my tinitus getting worse.

MikeM said:
The other thing about the uber expensive audiologist ones is that they are fitted, so whenever I moved my jaw, my ear canal shape would change just enough to let sound in around them (not through them) which was very disconcerting and annoying (and defeated their purpose).
Click to expand...

My second set (which I use every time I'm around live music or anything loud) was made by Sensaphonics. Unlike the Westones, they are very soft. And the Sensaphonics qualified audiologist knew how to get me to hold my jaw during the moldmaking so that when I sing, they don't leak. They are also comfortable enough to wear all night. Sometimes I even leave them in for the drive home to cut the noise of the car and give my ears a bit of rest.

As with the Westones, which also use the same Etymotic filters, they are not perfectly flat. But the Sensaphonics folks pay more attention to the inner channel or something because with the same filters, they sound more natural than the Westones (I've tried going back and forth snapping the filters into either earpiece). Unfortunately, of the 3 filters available, the most useful one at 15 dB affects the body of the snare the most. Sounds kind of scooped. Like you dropped the midrange by a couple of dB. Not a full on smiley face, but enough mid cut to make things sound different. The 9 dB inserts are the ones I use most often. Even though that's more level at my ears than I should be exposing them to. But they sound more natural and I find it easier to play. I've also tried 25 dB inserts. Great for concerts, and more neutral than the 15 dB, but there is so much attenuation, it sounds like the rest of the band and your kit is in the next room.

An important note on IEMs. IEM's do not block out everything. Good molded ones like the Sensaphonics I have, cut about 30 dB in the midrange and highs. So you can still hear loud things around them. And they only cut about 10 dB or so in the low bass. So if you have a high stage volume, whatever you are trying to listen to in the IEM needs to be louder than the stage volume less the 10-30 dB attenuation. So if you have a 115 dB stage volume with big amps and a Bonham kit, your ears are getting 85 DB even with the IEMs off. Then if you want to mask all that ambient sound and only notice the IEMs, you have to get them 6-9 dB hotter, which means now your ears are getting 91-94 dB which is still plenty loud. And enough to cause damage over 3 hour a night gigs.
 
I use the ER20s, but usually for listening tasks in between "absolutely must hear the natural sound," and "don't really care about sound quality, and it's frikken loud in here." Which isn't that often. The ER's squirm loose on me, and I gradually start bearing more of the brunt of the volume. If I don't notice before the pain sets in, I can suffer more damage. I had a bad hit on my left ear during a prolonged practice last December. Ended up with my left (previously better) ear with a couple months of very loud tinnitus, which eventually faded to a noticeable high end and overall volume drop. Since my right ear was kind of crap before, and is now my better ear, it's rather depressing. Since then, I stick to foamies or muffs as much as i can stand.
 
Ultimate Ears, amazing custom monitors. When I practice with a loud band, I attach a mic to my minidisc and hook the earphones up to it. Now I can get the room sound volume I want.

To get mine made, the audiologist had to clean my ears first. The result was that I improved quite a bit on my left ear! And, yes, I do shower and such, but, well, I guess my left ear is just very narrow....

Casper
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top