In ear moulded electronic ear defence

Rob79

Well-Known Member
I noticed Jims good thread on ear protection. Can anyone recommend where/which company make 'made to measure type' in ear electronic ear defence that will give the same sort of protection as Peltors or similar large over ear type electronic ear protectors that amplify sound?

I mostly stalk with a moderator in the UK and don't tend to use ear defence for that, but id like to be able to use the small ones on occasion on the continent and elsewhere globally without a moderator

thanks

Rob
 
Thanks, i see there are 2 models of custom moulded ones, which one do you recommend, the £399 CENS digital 1 or the £529 CENS digital 2?
 
Nothing that goes in the ear will offer as good a protection as over the ear protection as the bones in the ear are not covered like an over ear protection does.
 
I use the digital 1. I have no need for the various programmes on the more expensive ones. I do also wear electronic over ears ones as well at the range
s
 
Having recently done some research on in-ear units and opened a comparison thread there may be some information there useful to you....

Siemens SecureEar @ 35dB - Cens Mino @ 31dB - Cens Proflex 1e @ 25dB SNR - £325-ish


£325 The Cens Proflex Digital 1e affords up to SNR 25dB passive protection. Apart from the Minos, all Cens models are only SNR 25dB
£299 The Cens Minos provides up to SNR 31dB.
£325 The Siemens SecurEar up to SNR 35dB (available through Specsavers)
£349 Custom fit Digital no rating I could find
£253 3M Peltor LEP-100 EU up to SNR 32dB - 39dB depending on choice of ear tips.


The advantage of the 3M Peltor LEPs is a no brainer for me. Off the shelf, no made to measure, choose most comfortable tips to suit your ears. Not only the least expensive but the best passive protection. They also have rechargeable Li-ion batteries, a 90 minute charge for a 16 hour life. Cleverly, they can be charged up on the go in the supplied carry case with either 3xAA batteries or a USB lead from the lighter socket in the car. Three volume levels...low one cuts out some background noise, mid one is normal hearing and top one enhances environmental listening.

I have just bought some which arrived today and have been wearing a pair for the last 6 hours to try them out and have found them comfortable and fine driving around, on-site and in the forge. Conversation easy, and I asked if I was whispering or shouting and everybody said I was speaking clearly!

At the range I will wear muffs over the top but stalking with my moderated rifle they will be fine.

Alan
 
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Alan,


Please can you tell me where you got them for £253.00, that appears to be a very good price ?

Amazon direct...there were a couple of their market traders had them up over £400, and elsewhere on the internet they were nearer the £500 so it did look an excellent price. I bought them mainly as PPE for work which means I can get the VAT back as well.

The construction looks fine and the storage carry case / charger system I think is brilliant...plugs and case are a fetching shade of hi-ish viz yellow in case you drop one! I wore mine today with the neck string attached but there was no hint of them coming out so may not bother again.

3M Peltor 7100075598 Level Dependent Earplug Kit: Amazon.co.uk: Business, Industry Science

Alan
 
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I'm derailing the thread slightly here, but does anyone have any experience of "passive" custom made plugs? The type that filter loud noises but allow normal conversation?
I have a pair of off-the-shelf non-moulded ones that I like but I fancy something more comfortable.
 
The passive ones are comfortable but I hate the dumbed up feel by they give you ... ok for work but useless for being out stalking ... can’t hear a thing apart from your own breathing etc ... I want the exact opposite when out with rifle I want to hear what’s around me
Passive mounded ... yes comfy I have two pairs ... yes for clays or the range
Useless for stalking or walked up etc

Paul
 
The passive ones are comfortable but I hate the dumbed up feel by they give you ... ok for work but useless for being out stalking ... can’t hear a thing apart from your own breathing etc ... I want the exact opposite when out with rifle I want to hear what’s around me
Passive mounded ... yes comfy I have two pairs ... yes for clays or the range
Useless for stalking or walked up etc

Paul

Are we definitely talking about the same thing? The ones I'm talking about have some kind of pressure sensitive device that closes for a loud noise but stays open for normal sounds. They're not perfect but you can still hear a pheasant's wingbeats when it flushes up, or a rabbit bolting through the wood. 100 times better than the type I used to have for motorcycling which made you feel like you were trapped inside your own head.
 
Are we definitely talking about the same thing? The ones I'm talking about have some kind of pressure sensitive device that closes for a loud noise but stays open for normal sounds. They're not perfect but you can still hear a pheasant's wingbeats when it flushes up, or a rabbit bolting through the wood. 100 times better than the type I used to have for motorcycling which made you feel like you were trapped inside your own head.

Are you sure such a thing exists? I did look for them a few years ago but when I delved deeper did not manage to find them. Maybe someone does need to invent them.

I have tried these EARPRO EarPro EP3 Sonic Defenders® Earplugs from SureFire and some others by 3M Peltor. They are basically an ear plug with a thin (capillary) tube running through which allows some sound in but just reduces the amount of air moving in the ear canal. The "flap" is a manually operated plug to fill up the hole for louder environments, it is not a diaphragm which is automatically activated by pressure.

Beware the marketing of many of these devices which take some licence in their description...this one for instance refers to "Noise Cancelling Technology" by which they mean a standard wad of acoustic foam, but they even go so far as to use the word electronic when there is none involved at all...

Homitt Sound Hearing Protection Ear Defenders with Noise Cancelling Technology for Shooting, Hunting, Working or Construction - Red and Black: Amazon.co.uk: DIY Tools

Anything stuck in your ear will reduce the environmental sound, which is not ideal for stalking. A passive/mechanical valve (if one exists) or capillary tube cannot then amplify low volume noises...electronic is the only way to both amplify your rabbit bolt and reduce the rifle report.

Alan
 
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Are you sure such a thing exists? I did look for them a few years ago but when I delved deeper did not manage to find them. Maybe someone does need to invent them.

I have tried these EARPRO EarPro EP3 Sonic Defenders® Earplugs from SureFire and some others by 3M Peltor. They are basically an ear plug with a thin (capillary) tube running through which allows some sound in but just reduces the amount of air moving in the ear canal. The "flap" is a manually operated plug to fill up the hole for louder environments, it is not a diaphragm which is automatically activated by pressure.

Beware the marketing of many of these devices which take some licence in their description...this one for instance refers to "Noise Cancelling Technology" by which they mean a standard wad of acoustic foam, but they even go so far as to use the word electronic when there is none involved at all...

Homitt Sound Hearing Protection Ear Defenders with Noise Cancelling Technology for Shooting, Hunting, Working or Construction - Red and Black: Amazon.co.uk: DIY Tools

Anything stuck in your ear will reduce the environmental sound, which is not ideal for stalking. A passive/mechanical valve (if one exists) or capillary tube cannot then amplify low volume noises...electronic is the only way to both amplify your rabbit bolt and reduce the rifle report.

Alan

The ones I have (a pair of shooter's aid plugs which I have modified for comfort using the soft rubbery part from an old pair of earbud headphones) use a diaphragm as you describe to close the tube based on sound pressure. They can be annoyingly affected wind, etc and as I said aren't perfect, but I find I'm able to hear most of what I would do without them in. They work very well for cancelling the report of a shotgun being fired nearby.
What I want, if indeed there is such a thing, is the same device put into a pair of custom-fitted plugs.
 
The ones I have (a pair of shooter's aid plugs which I have modified for comfort using the soft rubbery part from an old pair of earbud headphones) use a diaphragm as you describe to close the tube based on sound pressure. They can be annoyingly affected wind, etc and as I said aren't perfect, but I find I'm able to hear most of what I would do without them in. They work very well for cancelling the report of a shotgun being fired nearby.
What I want, if indeed there is such a thing, is the same device put into a pair of custom-fitted plugs.

I was responding to your Pheasant wings and Rabbit bolt comment rather than the custom fit bit...but if you are prepared for the reduction in ambient sound then both Cens and Custom Fit do the moulded ones.

The Cens modules look like a diaphragm housing.

Hearing Protection Passive Earplugs

Custom Fit Guards | Custom Hearing Protection | Custom Ear Plugs

The Custom Fit ones have a rocker switch to activate what I guess is a secondary plug though it may push on a diaphragm to seal.

Alan
 
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Interesting - how do these compare to EMTEC passive in-ear plugs?

A brief look at the EMTEC site shows that they will attenuate the environmental noise by 25dB which is about the same as the CENS passive ones. They all manage to reduce the high volume crack by more than 25dB active or passive.

So you will be able to hear conversation but it will be quieter. Pheasant wings not so much.

The EARPRO EP3 are a fair bit better attenuation though, they manage NRR24. Most other acoustic PPE devices I have found with NRR24 are rated around SNR 32dB. It needs someone with more knowledge than I to convert accurately from one rating system to the other.

Alan
 
Interesting - how do these compare to EMTEC passive in-ear plugs?

I have a pair of Emtecs for clay shooting.
Plus side is they are super comfortable, all day long in fact.
Downside is you can't hear conversation through them, despite many insisting you can.

I used to wear Sonic's for clays and got fed up coming home with a headache, the Emtec's stopped that.
 
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