Hearing Protection Question

chiller

chiller

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I know about ear plugs, who doesn't ? I also know about the custom molded ones you can get (I have both types myself)...

However, I'm curious if anyone knows of a product that can provide hearing protection WITHOUT having to put it into the ear canal ? I'm asking since I did not have an answer when speaking to someone today that is NOT able to have an ear plug in the ear canal due to medical reasons but is interested in riding so would like to preserve there hearing and would obviously need a helmet.

Does such a product exist that can cover the outside of the ear for protection but be slim enough to fit in a helmet ? I know construction guys have those giant over the ear muff looking things.

Thanks.
 
I use these in my non Sena helmets.. It works pretty well.. better than anything else I have tried.

Not in ear really. Just like headphones. Not like an earplug where you would pinch it to put it in your ear canal. Also I can listen to music, with pretty good clarity.

bose-quietcomfort-20-2-thumb-620x374-60556.jpg
 
We've got a pair of Bose QuietComfort headphones in the house. There is no way to fit them in a helmet, bit they use active noise cancelation rather than passive cancelation. Active cancelation uses microphones to listen to the ambient sound around your head and generates sound waves to cancel out that ambient noise. It works best with steady droning sounds like aircraft noise, so presumably the idea would work well with wind noise if you could get them in an ear bud or helmet speaker format.

Edit: those ear buds pictured above would be the in-ear version that you want. I don't think they existed when we got our over-the-ear model.
 
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I've got the custom in-ear silicone plugs from the show a couple years ago from Nu-Life Hearing Centre.


Give them a call and see if they can make them without the deep ear canal.
 
Just because i'm cheap, here's an idea that will only cost about 6$.
Lay down with your head on the side, have a friend, (a good friend :p), put a piece of cling wrap over your ear, then fill it with clear silicone and wait awhile i guess. (watch a movie or something) Repeat other side.
Custom Chiller earplugs! Retail $29.99 CALL NOW!!!
 
Duct tape.... Will also help with those hairs that grow out of your ears as you get older. LoL
In all seriousness, your friend would probably best be served with a premium full-face helmet that fits well, a quiet bike (oem muffler / intake), and the right windshield.
 
AGAVE said:
Just because i'm cheap, here's an idea that will only cost about 6$.
Lay down with your head on the side, have a friend, (a good friend :p), put a piece of cling wrap over your ear, then fill it with clear silicone and wait awhile i guess. (watch a movie or something) Repeat other side.
Custom Chiller earplugs! Retail $29.99 CALL NOW!!!
Click to expand...

LOL, that might actually work ...
 
I've used two-part silicone available from arts stores to make custom earplugs. I was playing around with both regular earplugs and embedded ear bud speakers. Just filling up the space in the outer ear with silicone does help, but you'd need something to hold the plug against the ear to keep it sealed against the ear. Petroleum jelly would help with the seal, but you'd also need some mechanical way to keep the plug in place (foam squished between plug and helmet, elastic band around head, duct tape...)
 
If you're a Costco member you can get custom ear plugs for $80 and there are a huge variety of styles and applications to choose from. The technician who does the mold could probably limit the penetration of the mold gel into the ear canal although this would likely reduce the sound attenuation effectiveness of the ear plug they make from the mold.
 
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