Good Earplugs for Clubbing?

[Adin]

Hey people! about 4 months ago i got tinnitus as well as hyperacusis which both are ranging between very mild and more moderate from day to day. I have actively avoided going to concerts, clubbing, etc. Since the onset in fear of worsening my symptoms.

But one week from now, one of my friends are turning 18. And me and some friends will celebrate him by, well. Going out clubbing.

All of us are already written on the vip list, and drinks have been paid for in advance by my other friend. Everyone of my friends will be there, so cancelling is not an option. What i'm wondering is if any of you have any general tips to minimize the risks of my symptoms worsening, and especially if you know of any good earplugs that lowers the volume equally across the whole frequency range. I don't have the time or money right now to get me a pair of those custom molded earplugs (Even if i know those would be optimal.)

I'm willing to pay maybe upwards of 70-100 dollars, or maybe a little bit more if it makes a huge difference.

I do have a couple pairs of those basic yellow ones at home, but i think the audio in those are absolutely awful. The higher frequencies are muffled almost completely while the lower frequencies stay pretty much the same as without earplugs. So an upgrade would doubtlessly be beneficial.

Thanks in advance

 

[Michael Leigh]

HI @Adin
Someone that has tinnitus I believe they should try and live a normal life as they possibly can. This includes going out to clubs, concerts and other venues of entertainment where music is played if they wish to. For some, tinnitus can be difficult to live with without putting further restrictions on their life. However, I also believe taking the necessary precautions is absolutely vital in preventing noise trauma to the inner ear which could make the tinnitus louder and more intrusive.

Unfortunately, in some instances a person can be left in a hit or a miss situation, as there no way of knowing if they have put themselves in harms way until after enjoying a night out, find their tinnitus has become louder and more intrusive over the coming days. One hopes this will be a temporary spike but there is no guarantee this new level of intensity won't become permanent and could require a visit to ENT. Sorry to sound so sobering but these are the facts as I see it.

One way of protecting yourself from inner ear damage is to wear noise-reducing earplugs when going to nightclubs or concerts. They will reduce external sounds, in this case music and fortunately won't impair sound quality, which is so important to most people attending these venues. The earplugs are available in various degrees of attenuation from as little as 9 decibels right up to 25 and even higher. If money is no object, one can buy custom moulded earplugs with the full knowledge they are getting the best ear protection that they can afford.

A word of caution to anyone that might not be in the know. I believe no level of ear protection is one hundred percent safe; so one still needs to be careful when attending nightclubs and concerts and not get carried away in thinking, wearing earplugs is perfectly safe and anything goes. You can stand next to the speakers or right up near to the stage where the music is booming out. Some people might not be aware, if music is loud enough it can still be transferred to the inner ear and reach the cochlea and cause damage via the Mastoid bone. This is a hard piece of bone behind each ear. It is honeycombed and has air pockets within it. Please don't think that it's only midrange and high frequencies that can cause harm. Low bass frequencies, which cause vibrations, will do the same.

Go out and enjoy yourself and have fun but at the same time be prudent and respect your ears.
Michael
PS: further reading is available at:
https://www.britannica.com/science/ear/Transmission-of-sound-by-bone-conduction

 

[lolkas]

Hey people! about 4 months ago i got tinnitus as well as hyperacusis which both are ranging between very mild and more moderate from day to day. I have actively avoided going to concerts, clubbing, etc. Since the onset in fear of worsening my symptoms.

But one week from now, one of my friends are turning 18. And me and some friends will celebrate him by, well. Going out clubbing.

All of us are already written on the vip list, and drinks have been paid for in advance by my other friend. Everyone of my friends will be there, so cancelling is not an option. What i'm wondering is if any of you have any general tips to minimize the risks of my symptoms worsening, and especially if you know of any good earplugs that lowers the volume equally across the whole frequency range. I don't have the time or money right now to get me a pair of those custom molded earplugs (Even if i know those would be optimal.)

I'm willing to pay maybe upwards of 70-100 dollars, or maybe a little bit more if it makes a huge difference.

I do have a couple pairs of those basic yellow ones at home, but i think the audio in those are absolutely awful. The higher frequencies are muffled almost completely while the lower frequencies stay pretty much the same as without earplugs. So an upgrade would doubtlessly be beneficial.

Thanks in advance

Hmm, well my advise for you (in ~$100 range) will be - LiveMus!c HearSafe Ear Plugs (lookup on amazon). They have 29DB filter and i would strongly recommend having these in. Also, get yourself jar/bag of 33Db reduction foam earplugs (get color you like, i would say purple or something like that would be more suitable for clubs) nad bring like 3 pairs with you (make sure you put pair in your pants/jacket pocket) so you wont have at least a pair on you.

Pay attention to levels of music, if you find it to be even remotely close to still being loud - get out, swap with 33DB reduction foam earplugs and go back in. Also, before you sit down - check where their speakers are positioned and make sure you are not sitting right next to them.

If it would still be too loud - its up to you to stay or leave.

I have been to clubs and worn 33DB foam earplugs (make sure you insert them correctly and all the way in, check instructions online how to properly use foam earplugs) - no increase in tinnitus or spikes, however i have been smart about my positioning in club`s in relation to speakers and how long i have been inside (max 2h).

P.S.

Don`t feel silly or anything like that using earplugs. If you cannot hear someone talking to you - come closer, too much loud noise around you anyways.

Do not yell/scream with any types of earplugs - occlusion effect might cough up with you an you might damage your hearing or get a spike.

 

[maltese]

What i'm wondering is if any of you have any general tips to minimize the risks of my symptoms worsening

Tip from someone who has T from a club: don't go lol.

But seriously: see those big black noisy things? These are speakers and stay as far from them as only possible. I might be wrong, but as far as I know nothing will give as good protection as old, good foam 33dB plugs. And maybe even ear muffs on top of that. It still doesn't protect you 100% because your bones will still conduct noise, but I probably won't convince you to not go so let's not be paranoid.

If you want sound quality - musician earplugs with 25dB reduction at least.

And BTW, if you really have moderate hyperacusis then you probably won't manage to stay in that club lol.

Break every now and then. And limit yourself to an hour, or less I'd say. You're still in early stages.

Protect your ears, have fun.

 

[Krish230]

Hey people! about 4 months ago i got tinnitus as well as hyperacusis which both are ranging between very mild and more moderate from day to day. I have actively avoided going to concerts, clubbing, etc. Since the onset in fear of worsening my symptoms.

But one week from now, one of my friends are turning 18. And me and some friends will celebrate him by, well. Going out clubbing.

All of us are already written on the vip list, and drinks have been paid for in advance by my other friend. Everyone of my friends will be there, so cancelling is not an option. What i'm wondering is if any of you have any general tips to minimize the risks of my symptoms worsening, and especially if you know of any good earplugs that lowers the volume equally across the whole frequency range. I don't have the time or money right now to get me a pair of those custom molded earplugs (Even if i know those would be optimal.)

I'm willing to pay maybe upwards of 70-100 dollars, or maybe a little bit more if it makes a huge difference.

I do have a couple pairs of those basic yellow ones at home, but i think the audio in those are absolutely awful. The higher frequencies are muffled almost completely while the lower frequencies stay pretty much the same as without earplugs. So an upgrade would doubtlessly be beneficial.

Thanks in advance

Hey Adin!

I'd just like to give you a word of caution before you go out. I got tinnitus on 2nd October from an extremely loud club night. Mild hyperacusis followed but went within a week, and my T had virtually disappeared 4 weeks later. Stayed away from loud places during that time. Went out on 31st October on another club night, with 15Db ear plugs in, and my T has come back really badly, louder than it ever had previously been.

As others have said, I'd recommend ear plugs with 25dB reduction minimum. Please be careful though as I thought I would be safe with the ear plugs I had in!

Just picked up these Isolate ear plugs from Flare Audio with 33Db reduction (they're made of titanium). And they're truly amazing!! Not cheap but totally worth it in my opinion. Sound quality is also quite reasonable.
https://flareaudio.com/products/earfoams/isolate/

 

[Adin]

Thanks everyone for your tips. I'll definentally check out the ones you linked @lolkas. They look very discrete, and also looks to be the type of ones that usually fits my ears the best judging from former in ear headphones i've owned. I'll be as cautious as i possibly can and take breaks AT LEAST every hour. Even though my tinnitus most probably is from tmd and not noise induced according to the doctors i've seen, i feel that i can't be carefull enough when it comes to protection. I wish you all the best of luck with your own symptoms

 

[lolkas]

Hey Adin!

I'd just like to give you a word of caution before you go out. I got tinnitus on 2nd October from an extremely loud club night. Mild hyperacusis followed but went within a week, and my T had virtually disappeared 4 weeks later. Stayed away from loud places during that time. Went out on 31st October on another club night, with 15Db ear plugs in, and my T has come back really badly, louder than it ever had previously been.

As others have said, I'd recommend ear plugs with 25dB reduction minimum. Please be careful though as I thought I would be safe with the ear plugs I had in!

Just picked up these Isolate ear plugs from Flare Audio with 33Db reduction (they're made of titanium). And they're truly amazing!! Not cheap but totally worth it in my opinion. Sound quality is also quite reasonable.
https://flareaudio.com/products/earfoams/isolate/

well, i dont think they are really 33Db bro, i checked comments and not that good for money. better get box of 300 pairs foam earplugs that give you minimum of 33DB (actually more, depends of freq)

 

[lolkas]

Thanks everyone for your tips. I'll definentally check out the ones you linked @lolkas. They look very discrete, and also looks to be the type of ones that usually fits my ears the best judging from former in ear headphones i've owned. I'll be as cautious as i possibly can and take breaks AT LEAST every hour. Even though my tinnitus most probably is from tmd and not noise induced according to the doctors i've seen, i feel that i can't be carefull enough when it comes to protection. I wish you all the best of luck with your own symptoms

U have it in both ears or one ?

 

[Krish230]

well, i dont think they are really 33Db bro, i checked comments and not that good for money. better get box of 300 pairs foam earplugs that give you minimum of 33DB (actually more, depends of freq)

"ISOLATE® Aluminium SNR35. L=29 M=32 H=35
ISOLATE® PRO Titanium SNR36. L=31 M=33 H=35"

Took this from Flare Audio's kickstarter page.


They are definitely not cheap but I find them much more comfortable to wear for extended periods of time than foam earplugs.

 

[Hopeful1]

I suspect ear plugs dont protect as i have seen many in forum and my personal experience.

Only go of you think few hours of fun is worth possibly life time of extra misery and dont count on ear plugs.

Source: Personal experience.

 

[Adin]

U have it in both ears or one ?

I have H in both ears. T is in both ears most of the time. But sometimes (Maybe twice or thrice a month) it disapears completely for about 30 min. Often it is so quiet i can't even hear it, but when my jaw tenses up more than usual the ringing is MUCH louder as well as a false screeching tone appearing in my left ear. My left ear is generally louder than my right ear. But to answer your question, it is 90% of the time in both ears

 

[Michael Leigh]

I have H in both ears. T is in both ears most of the time.

@maltese advice was very good Adin and if I were you I would follow it. Just be careful .

 

[lolkas]

I have H in both ears. T is in both ears most of the time. But sometimes (Maybe twice or thrice a month) it disapears completely for about 30 min. Often it is so quiet i can't even hear it, but when my jaw tenses up more than usual the ringing is MUCH louder as well as a false screeching tone appearing in my left ear. My left ear is generally louder than my right ear. But to answer your question, it is 90% of the time in both ears

Dude, dont f**k around with this, would regret for life.

I am not kidding, bwfore you even enter that building - plugup (make sure they are properly in) and go before your friends. Check were woofers/speakers are and make sure you are at least on distance from them and not in direct positioning.

Do not scream/yell with plugs in as well.

 

[Fangen]

To be honest, I am always trying to live as normal as I even with T.
But I really really want to raise concern to the night club. I got my from a concert for 1,5 hours, and it is probably much shorter than the time you will spend at the club. I assume you will be there for a few hours minimum and even if you take breaks, your ears are still taking a beating.

I don't want to scare you but please think about the club thing, are there any regulations on how loud the club can be? Have you been there before? Are the noise level okay or are they amping up as much as they can? Is the club layout open so the the noise doesn't bounce to much between the walls? I used to club when I was younger and never had any plugs, ears ringed afterwards and it was no problem until last year. I wish I had been smarter.

A nightclub is not what a normal ear can endure, so please think about the risk you are putting yourself in. Being from someone that got T from loud noises, it is not worth it. I would never set my foot in a night club again, nor a concert even if it was my favorite band and I would never be able to see them again. My hearing is going to be with me for the rest of my life, it is not worth to get worsen for a night of fun. But the decision is yours, and whatever you do, take all precautions you can to protect yourself.

 

[CDNThailand]

Hey Adin!

I'd just like to give you a word of caution before you go out. I got tinnitus on 2nd October from an extremely loud club night. Mild hyperacusis followed but went within a week, and my T had virtually disappeared 4 weeks later. Stayed away from loud places during that time. Went out on 31st October on another club night, with 15Db ear plugs in, and my T has come back really badly, louder than it ever had previously been.

As others have said, I'd recommend ear plugs with 25dB reduction minimum. Please be careful though as I thought I would be safe with the ear plugs I had in!

Just picked up these Isolate ear plugs from Flare Audio with 33Db reduction (they're made of titanium). And they're truly amazing!! Not cheap but totally worth it in my opinion. Sound quality is also quite reasonable.
https://flareaudio.com/products/earfoams/isolate/

Did you levels ever come back down?

 

[bill 112]

I wouldn't go either,I made that mistake back in 2012 after my friends who have T convinced me to go and that I would be fine.I wore earplugs,not great ones at that and my T ramped up for about 4 months along with mild H for about 3 months that I didn't even know was at the time.

Don't do it,it's not worth the hardship on your life if it goes wrong.

 

[SilverSpiral]

Sad to say, I have to caution as well, I got my horrible T and H from the one single time I ever went to a bar without earplugs, I think the sound was rediculous for that night, but I can not know, as I had never been to an event without them. I would do anything to take back going out that night.

 

[maltese]

Do you really think a person with even mild H will endure entering a nightclub, earplugs or not? These places are >100dB.


BTW, serious question. You're saying shouting in plugs is not safe... Is talking for longer time ok? Eating? How do you even communicate in a club without shouting?

 

[Adin]

Damn, all your horror stories are really making me reconcider. I have actually been to a Concert after the onset. Didn't notice any type of worsening in my symptoms, but i was super carefull. Stood in the far back, had earplugs inserted deep in both ears and the volume never exceeded 95db according to my db meter app. But maybe clubbing is different? I fear that my judgement will dip after a few drinks resulting in being less cautious with noise. As i said, i have to show up since my friend have already payed for everything in advance. But i might leave 2-3 hours earlier than the rest, because the thought of permanently worsening my symptoms is unbareable. I probably wont stand being in the club very long if my H is bad on that day in the first place, so my friends will just have to understand what is best for my health. I'll be sure to bring some extra earplugs for my friends so they won't find themselves in my awfull situation. Thanks again for the heads up people, can't thank you guys enough!

 

[bill 112]

Sad to say, I have to caution as well, I got my horrible T and H from the one single time I ever went to a bar without earplugs, I think the sound was rediculous for that night, but I can not know, as I had never been to an event without them. I would do anything to take back going out that night.

Bar or a nightclub?How loud are the bars where your from?

 

[SilverSpiral]

Bar or a nightclub?How loud are the bars where your from?

Bar.

 

[Bobby B]

"ISOLATE® Aluminium SNR35. L=29 M=32 H=35
ISOLATE® PRO Titanium SNR36. L=31 M=33 H=35"

Took this from Flare Audio's kickstarter page.


They are definitely not cheap but I find them much more comfortable to wear for extended periods of time than foam earplugs.

@Krish230
did you actually buy and used those Isolate plugs ? how do they compare to foam plugs for sound reduction ? the NRR is about the same as plain good foam plugs like the moldex meteors or similar

 

[Krish230]

@Krish230
did you actually buy and used those Isolate plugs ? how do they compare to foam plugs for sound reduction ? the NRR is about the same as plain good foam plugs like the moldex meteors or similar

Yeah, they arrived about a week ago so haven't had much time to test them out.

Definitely finding them a lot better than the foams I use, but those only have a 20Db rating. But it would be interesting to compare 33Db foams like the meteors with the Isolates and see if there's any difference in noise reduction.

The main thing I'm liking about the Isolates is that they don't hurt my ears at all after 2 hours of use, foams usually make my ear canal really sore if I wear them for ages. And I guess the isolates are a bit more discreet than my foams which are bright yellow.

 

[Adin]

A bit of an update: Tonight is the night i'm going out clubbing. My friend who knows the manager told me that the vip area (The area i will spend most of the time in) Will be substantially more quiet than the actuall dancefloor, to the point where normal conversation shouldn't be an issue, which is a HUGE relief for me . I decided to go with good old foam earplugs this time, since i couldn't find any higher quality ones that isolated more than 24db across the frequenzy range where i live. So i will gladly sacrifice sound quality for safety this time. Another friend of mine who is not much into clubbing will probably leave early along with me, so i even have company home which is a nice bonus.

I will post an update tomorrow and say how it went, if i experience any spikes or worsening of my symptoms, but i have high hopes that it shouldn't be a problem as long as i stay on my guard. Have a good weekend everyone!

 

[Fangen]

A bit of an update: Tonight is the night i'm going out clubbing. My friend who knows the manager told me that the vip area (The area i will spend most of the time in) Will be substantially more quiet than the actuall dancefloor, to the point where normal conversation shouldn't be an issue, which is a HUGE relief for me . I decided to go with good old foam earplugs this time, since i couldn't find any higher quality ones that isolated more than 24db across the frequenzy range where i live. So i will gladly sacrifice sound quality for safety this time. Another friend of mine who is not much into clubbing will probably leave early along with me, so i even have company home which is a nice bonus.

I will post an update tomorrow and say how it went, if i experience any spikes or worsening of my symptoms, but i have high hopes that it shouldn't be a problem as long as i stay on my guard. Have a good weekend everyone!

Wish you the best of luck and stay safe! Let us know how you feel later, and make sure to have fun (in safe levels!)

 

[Adin]

I forgot to write yesterday, so here comes my delayed update : Overal I'd say it went pretty good judging from circumstances. I arrived at the club with my friends around 23:00. As we waited to be let in I became super nervous and really started concidering going home instead, but instead of letting fear ruin my night I put in a pair of foam earplugs and went inside. At first i was positively surprised by the volume in the club. Sure, it was loud, but not unmanageable at all. However, what i did not know was that this was only the first layer of the club, and the place we were heading was an isolated area a bit further into the club, and as soon as i sat my foot in there i got a shock. It must have been at least 15db louder in there. Peoples drinks were vibrating from the booming bass, and although i tried to position myself as far from the speakers as i possibly could in the vip area, the noise was way too loud for me to have a good time at all. So i let my friends have all my drinks since i didn't want to lose my judgement in that environment.

I was there for a bit over two hours, but out of that time i spent at least 30 minutes either outside smoking or at the mens room. I had a real hard time getting a good seal from the foam earplugs after the first insertion, so throughout the night i had a fear of not protecting myself well enough. I left with two of my friends who was not very much into clubbing and went home to sleep. The day after i tried to check if any of my symptoms had been worsened, but I couldn't distinguish any type of change from my T's normal behavior which was a huge relief. Later that same day i met up with a couple of friends that was also at the club. Pretty much all of them laughed about how they haven't been able to hear all day from the loud club the day before, which really upset me. I offered everyone i knew earplugs and not a single one accepted. They all seem to think that they are immune to T, H and hearing loss even when they have seen what T and H have done to me.

I think this was the last time clubbing for me. The risk is just not worth it in my eyes. I'm just glad I made it out in one piece from this night