Ear Filter product review

A while back someone posted a thread of a motoblogger on an NCX who in the process plugged his business Ear Filters - the blogger not the poster. It seemed like a pretty good idea - an ear plug that filtered certain noises instead of suppressing everything - and it also seemed improbable.

I like to listen to audio books when I ride and have wired my helmet with speakers. At speeds over 45 mph with my HJC Sy-Max III and stock NCX windshield, the narrator can get fairly indistinct with the wind noise in the helmet. To compensate for that, I use a amplifier - so just more noise and probably long term hearing damage. So for $7 for a couple pair and case, it was worth checking out.

The website was easy to navigate and process the order. The order showed up in pretty good time. The case for the plugs is well made and includes a keyring so its easily attached to the my bike keys. Pretty well thought out so far. The plugs themselves took me back for an instant. They are pretty airy and light, not at all like any earplug I have ever worn.

The ear filters let me listen without the amplifier. I was stunned. Its not a miracle but much of the wind noise is simply gone and while background noise remains, I can hear my audio book at a reasonable level and the audio remains distinct at highway speeds. Music sounds better too.

Final word, for the couple buck each pair costs, its not a bad product.

I assume they're disposable? Interesting product, sounds like they do the same thing as my Alpine Hearing Protection ( Alpine Hearing Protection: No.1 Earplugs ), cutting down but not totally blocking sounds.

As a disposable they come at a much lower price point, although for disposables they're expensive at about a buck a pair. I think I last paid around $25 for 200 pairs of the Moldex Pura-fit 6800's, currently my favorite disposable.

I like to use the Alpine's around town and for short trips as they're easier and quicker to insert than disposables, and I can hear enough with them in that I don't have to remove them if I go into a store, or whatever. If I'm going to be riding for longer I like the Pura-fit's for their greater sound isolation.

Steve

Ramseysteve said:

I assume they're disposable? Interesting product, sounds like they do the same thing as my Alpine Hearing Protection ( Alpine Hearing Protection: No.1 Earplugs ), cutting down but not totally blocking sounds.

As a disposable they come at a much lower price point, although for disposables they're expensive at about a buck a pair. I think I last paid around $25 for 200 pairs of the Moldex Pura-fit 6800's, currently my favorite disposable.

I like to use the Alpine's around town and for short trips as they're easier and quicker to insert than disposables, and I can hear enough with them in that I don't have to remove them if I go into a store, or whatever. If I'm going to be riding for longer I like the Pura-fit's for their greater sound isolation.

Steve

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The Ear Filter product claims to be multi-use. I have been using the same 4 plugs for about a week with no deterioration so far. A little soap and water and they are clean and ready to go. They aren't very dense so I expect them to go quickly once they start, though. Thanks for the heads up on the Alpine plugs. I'll give them a shot too.

If you can re-use them for just 3 or 4 go's then that's pretty good, justifies their price. I'll give them a go.

The Alpines are nice, but pricey. They come with two different actuators, Green and yellow. The Green ones have a slightly wider sound hole so allow more sound through. The yellow ones do cut down the amount of sound more, but don't create the level of isolation that good fitting foam disposables do.

Other than their price, the main issue with the Alpines is whether you find the silicone style plugs comfortable or not. No way to know without trying them unfortunately. My experience has been that once you've ridden with earplugs it's very uncomfortable to ride without them, so I'm constantly looking for upgrades.