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Ear plugs when riding?

lkchris said:
Seems unlikely studio quality or audiophile quality sound is going to happen in a motorcycle helmet with bike in motion.

You can--like me--just listen to 50s on 5 (now 72) where that music wasn't recorded to a high sophistication level in the first place.

Really cool book called Brain Rules points out that the human brain is incapable of multitasking. That means simultaneously ... of course sequentially happens. So, in the same moment in time you're either hearing the fine nuances of the music or you're comprehending the road in front of you ... but not both. It's not an audiophile listening environment.

My earplugs are 3M E-A-Rsoft Yellow Neon Blasts rated 33db from a box of 200 pairs I bought from Amazon several years ago. Any stop along the way where I take them out ... they are replaced by new ones, as it seems to me most plugs like this are one time use only. I can hear Sirius just fine.

I had some custom plugs made once, but for me something hard in my ears is not compatible for comfort with wearing a helmet.

PS: I got tinnitus in 1969 following a bout of pneumonia. Dr at the time advised sleeping with radio on.
Click to expand...

Incorrect, we humans multitask all the time. We can simultaneously apply the front brake and rear brake, we can simultaneously pull the clutch lever and shift gears with out left foot, all while listening to music piped to the helmet while keeping our eyes on the road.

Looking down to see the garmin, our brains can still do all the above without crashing. Music isn't a distraction, some people find it so, others do not. 300K down the road in 50 years, 1/2 of that listening to music either through the dash board or through the helmet. If my brain couldn't multitask, I'd have crashed long before this.

If we couldn't multitask or operate machinery while listening to music, the NTSB would have banned radios from cages decades ago.
 
Woodbutcher said:
I use the Hearos blue foam plugs and can hear my Sena 20 just fine. Much nicer riding with earplugs, I am much less tired when I get off the bike
Click to expand...

I've used those squishy blue plugs with a Freecom 1 headsets inside a Shoei helmet for a few years now. Had my listening tested by an audiologist last year and passed with flying colors. Around the block or across the country, those blue plugs go in my ears, whatever bike I ride. But it does increase my listening pleasure with the RT's windshield in the up position to take down the wind noise.

BTW Those plugs also drown out the noise of a fellow-campers C-PAP machine in the tent next door.

YMMV.
 
I like these because:
- They provide excellent audio isolation and thus protect your hearing.
- They come with a bunch of earplugs so you can find the right fit.
- They are right angle at the earbuds so the wire is directed downward.
- They are small.
- They do not have a right angle audio plug making them easier to plug in to the jack on my helmet.
- They have superior strain relief at the audio plug.
- They have a short cord.

https://h2oaudio.com/products/surge-s-waterproof-headphones-short-cord
 
RadioFlyer said:
I like these because:
- They provide excellent audio isolation and thus protect your hearing.
- They come with a bunch of earplugs so you can find the right fit.
- They are right angle at the earbuds so the wire is directed downward.
- They are small.
- They do not have a right angle audio plug making them easier to plug in to the jack on my helmet.
- They have superior strain relief at the audio plug.
- They have a short cord.

https://h2oaudio.com/products/surge-s-waterproof-headphones-short-cord
Click to expand...

thanks,I'm going to try these. They are on Amazon for $39, same as their website, but with free, no questions asked returns.
 
brownie0486 said:
Incorrect, we humans multitask all the time. We can simultaneously apply the front brake and rear brake, we can simultaneously pull the clutch lever and shift gears with out left foot, all while listening to music piped to the helmet while keeping our eyes on the road.

Looking down to see the garmin, our brains can still do all the above without crashing. Music isn't a distraction, some people find it so, others do not. 300K down the road in 50 years, 1/2 of that listening to music either through the dash board or through the helmet. If my brain couldn't multitask, I'd have crashed long before this.

If we couldn't multitask or operate machinery while listening to music, the NTSB would have banned radios from cages decades ago.
Click to expand...

Look up the book ... it's written by a Harvard brain surgeon. You're describing sequential actions, not simultaneous actions.
 
S Plugs

We tried several mold-them-yourself versions before settling on "S Plugs" <https://www.plugup.com/the_S_plug_stereo_earbuds_s/67.htm> There are no doubt other good options. The vendor of these is an audiologist who also makes custom molded plugs, but these work well enough for us. You will be able to hear much better (via Cardo or Sena devices) with these. We just could not hear well enough relying only on the (Cardo) speakers in the helmet, that had to have the volume cranked up too high. Currently, I do not even install the helmet speakers anymore.
 
I've used Howard Leight Max Lite or Laser Lite uncorded for the last 15 years. Once I mistakenly bought a box of corded ones and just cut the cords off where it exits the plug.
 
Eargasm ear plugs

Big fan of Eargasm ear plugs. Been riding with them for 5 years - first with Sena and now with Cardo. Allows music and coms through while blocking the damaging noise. No cords to worry about. They come in different sizes. All-day comfortable for me.
 
I have to give another vote to the Eargasm ear plugs. Both my wife and I use them and have no problem listening to music through the Cardio units or communicating with each other.
 
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