Ear Monitors - getting a quieter sound?

Tony Ludwig

Tony Ludwig

Blues Junior
BGU-ers,

have a question....I want to get something that will protect my ears when playing especially when it is loud.
I don't now much about Ear Monitors, but I have seen some from Fender and thought these might be good as ear plugs replacements...
Also, if Griff's setup at BGU Live can be extended with a wireless transmitter, would it be advantageous for us to connect and use?
looking to understand....
thanks,
Tony
 
J

Jalapeno

Student Of The Blues
Tony I started using in-ear monitors in about 2013 (when I was playing bass and singing backup in a band) and these are my thoughts on them.

1. If you are going to get some buy high quality, multi-driver IEM's to make them worth while. The cheap ones really don't work much better than ear buds and the good ones are several hundred dollars to start.
2. to work properly they have to seal in your ears, any bleed of ambient sound will mean you'll need to boost the volume which is counter productive to protect from hearing loss
3. when you do get a pair with a good seal you become isolated and can't hear conversations unless someone is speaking into a microphone. My unit (it is an audio technica) has a jack for an ambient mic with a volume control so I can hear what is going on around me between songs. But that mic was 2/3 the cost of the whole unit. I had to get an ambient mic because the fit in my ears was tight to seal them and every time someone talked to me I had to pull one of the monitors out of my ear and after about two sets my ear holes got really sore. Plus it is a pain to have to keep putting them back in properly to get a good seal again.
4. If you have waxy ears you'll need to clean them, a lot. (maybe that's just me :) )
5. at a BGU event everyone who want to use them should have their own IEM's for hygiene reasons alone :) Also Griff would have to take time to sound check each person to make sure they hear what they need.

IEM's are great but they can be a pain too. Like anything you need to balance the pros and cons. If the pros out weigh the cons then go for it because good ones can really help. I stopped using them at gigs when I was in the band just to simplify setting up and just ended up using them at rehearsals. Our rehearsals tended to be louder than gigs anyway. :)

Anyway, that's my thoughts.

Eric
 
Norfolk Bill

Norfolk Bill

norfolk uk, just knoodling along
iem seems an expensive option for what should be a cheap inexpensive fix,,,,earplugs
 
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Momantai

Momantai

Red nose, red guitar
I play drums in a band and use “passive” earplugs which were designed to simply lower soundlevels in a music environment. They enable me to follow normal conversations but seem to limit volume levels above a certain level. They have been “tailored” to fit my ears and work great. No need for electronics is a plus. I also use them when going to (very) loud concerts.

Edit: they cost around $150 here in The Netherlands. The brand is Elacin, but maybe not available in other countries.
 
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A

Al Holloway

Devizes UK
Momantai said:
I play drums in a band and use “passive” earplugs which were designed to simply lower soundlevels in a music environment. They enable me to follow normal conversations but seem to limit volume levels above a certain level. They have been “tailored” to fit my ears and work great. No need for electronics is a plus. I also use them when going to (very) loud concerts.
Click to expand...
Man you need to hit harder. When I used to play in my 20's I used full on industrial ear defenders.:eek:

cheers

Al.
 
Momantai

Momantai

Red nose, red guitar
Ok, I’m not a shredder.... more the jazzy type. :cool:
And, by the way, playing soft on drums (like those tasty ghost notes) is way more difficult than smashing the kit. :sneaky:
 
Tony Ludwig

Tony Ludwig

Blues Junior
Jalapeno said:
Tony I started using in-ear monitors in about 2013 (when I was playing bass and singing backup in a band) and these are my thoughts on them.

1. If you are going to get some buy high quality, multi-driver IEM's to make them worth while. The cheap ones really don't work much better than ear buds and the good ones are several hundred dollars to start.
2. to work properly they have to seal in your ears, any bleed of ambient sound will mean you'll need to boost the volume which is counter productive to protect from hearing loss
3. when you do get a pair with a good seal you become isolated and can't hear conversations unless someone is speaking into a microphone. My unit (it is an audio technica) has a jack for an ambient mic with a volume control so I can hear what is going on around me between songs. But that mic was 2/3 the cost of the whole unit. I had to get an ambient mic because the fit in my ears was tight to seal them and every time someone talked to me I had to pull one of the monitors out of my ear and after about two sets my ear holes got really sore. Plus it is a pain to have to keep putting them back in properly to get a good seal again.
4. If you have waxy ears you'll need to clean them, a lot. (maybe that's just me :) )
5. at a BGU event everyone who want to use them should have their own IEM's for hygiene reasons alone :) Also Griff would have to take time to sound check each person to make sure they hear what they need.

IEM's are great but they can be a pain too. Like anything you need to balance the pros and cons. If the pros out weigh the cons then go for it because good ones can really help. I stopped using them at gigs when I was in the band just to simplify setting up and just ended up using them at rehearsals. Our rehearsals tended to be louder than gigs anyway. :)

Anyway, that's my thoughts.

Eric
Click to expand...
Eric,

appreciate the feedback....makes great sense. A point i didn't think about "bad sinus" contributing to waxy ears...
So the followup question is this....if IEM's are not the answer, is there a type of earplugs that may lower the noise level however let you hear what is going on around you?

thanks,
Tony
 
TwoNotesSolo

TwoNotesSolo

Student Of The Blues
I carry a pair of ear-peace in a canister on my keychain. They are cheap and do help, but I think they affect how the music sounds, besides being decide for music either "flat" frequency response.
 
MarkDyson

MarkDyson

Blues Hound Wannabe
billrand said:
i would have thought cheap disposable foam earplus would do the job,,,same things are used for shooters or work ppe
Click to expand...

I used those for many, many years flying in the USAF. Thing is, in my late 50s I'm still experiencing significant hearing loss and it appears to be directly related to my airborne years. Not sure they were effective.
 
Momantai

Momantai

Red nose, red guitar
Disposable foam plugs may work for loud tools (electric drills, routers, lawnmowers etc) but not in a music environment. Their frequency response is bad. That’s why I chose (less cheap) tailor made plugs/filters. Only the volume is affected not the sound.
 
aleclee

aleclee

Tribe of One
I have IEMs that I used with my old band. I still use them when I travel and am trying to save space over my Bose noise-cancelling headphones. As cool as they are to use on stage, they do add a level of complexity and significant expense in adding to a rig.

If you are regularly exposed to loud music and want to protect yourself without throwing a blanket over timbre, I'd suggest custom molded earplugs. You can get them from your local audiologist or from companies like 64 Audio (though you still need to visit the audiologist to get the molds made). While they cost a lot more than off-the-shelf plugs (though cheaper than IEMs), they have a number of advantages:
  • Better fit (duh): This translates to better isolation and getting the level of protection you want.
  • Better sound: Most custom plugs are made for "balanced" sound as opposed to keeping everything out. "Musicians' earplugs" are definitely better than foamies but not as good as custom molds IMO.
  • Interchangeable filters: Many custom plugs allow you to swap out filters, allowing you to adjust the level of attenuation (e.g., watching a jazz trio as opposed to a metal band).
  • Comfort: Maybe I'm not a great example because I have odd-shaped ear canals but IME there's no comparison between the comfort of a custom mold vs off-the-shelf. My IEMs are made of hard acrylic but are still more comfortable than a non-custom silicone plug. I've worn them on cross-country flights with the only discomfort coming on takeoff and landing due to the near-perfect seal. A silicone molded earplug might be nearly unnoticeable were it not for the attenuated sound.
An earplug that's not in your ear does you no good. I don't at all mind wearing my custom plugs so I consider them a great investment. Custom plugs are waaaay cheaper than hearing aids and your ears are one piece of equipment that you can't replace.
 
Momantai

Momantai

Red nose, red guitar
As Aleclee says. Custom molded plugs is the way to go. Not as expensive as monitors, no interfacing to any equipment and way better than foam or other general purpose plugs.
Take good care of your ears, you only have one pair and if you damage them there won’t be any repair possible !
 
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