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Affordable electronic ears?


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Seems my Peltors are in need of repair once again and Im exploring options. When I shot yrs ago, there was two choices Peltor and Pro ears. Now I see a lot of different types.

Whats good for the price point?

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I know that you are looking for affordable electronic ears, but after buying Peltors 6s' once a year for 3 years as they keep failing on me after being exposed to the Northwest rain through a shooting season, I opted to plunk down the money and get the waterproof but dramatically more expensive MSA Sordins. I figured that if I got at least 4 years of use out of them, it was the same cost as buying a 6s a year. So far, I'm halfway through year 3 now and they are still going strong. I'm also using less batteries running these.

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Howard Leight Impact Sport. $50. They have a jack for audio input if you want to listen to your iPod while cutting the grass. Very popular around here. Half my squad had them last weekend.

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+1 for the Howard Leight electronics.very affordable and mine are still running after 2 years ( but I don't shoot in the rain).

They are low-profile enough that I can shoot rifle without a problem.

Don't know if this is a problem unique to the HL brand or common to all electronics, but: the DB reduction is not strong enough (~20 Db) for High-powered rifle or indoor ranges. So, I always double-up with musician's earplugs underneath and the electronic earmuffs over that. That combo works great for me.

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Thanks. I think HL it will be. Their non electronic muffs are by far my favorites for pistol when shooting alone. Only reason I wear elecs is to be able to converse with other shooters.

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+1 for the Howard Leight electronics.very affordable and mine are still running after 2 years ( but I don't shoot in the rain).

They are low-profile enough that I can shoot rifle without a problem.

Don't know if this is a problem unique to the HL brand or common to all electronics, but: the DB reduction is not strong enough (~20 Db) for High-powered rifle or indoor ranges. So, I always double-up with musician's earplugs underneath and the electronic earmuffs over that. That combo works great for me.

+1 I also use the HLs...but I agree the DB reduction isn't enough unless you double plug. The combo works well for me.

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I know that you are looking for affordable electronic ears, but after buying Peltors 6s' once a year for 3 years as they keep failing on me after being exposed to the Northwest rain through a shooting season, I opted to plunk down the money and get the waterproof but dramatically more expensive MSA Sordins. I figured that if I got at least 4 years of use out of them, it was the same cost as buying a 6s a year. So far, I'm halfway through year 3 now and they are still going strong. I'm also using less batteries running these.

+1! I like the Peltors and keep a couple of old sets around for loaners or rain use, but if I took the $60-160/pair I paid for the 4 sets of Peltors I went through before I bought a set of Pro Ears Gold, I would have had enough money left over to pay for 1/2 a set of the ESP in-ear protectors I use during hot weather.Throw in the longer life of the N cell batteries, and it makes economic sense to buy the vest on the front end.

From another perspective, ask anyone who has permanent hearing loss or tinnitus - $300-$1000 is not a lot of money to protect your hearing.

BB

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+1 for the Howard Leight electronics.very affordable and mine are still running after 2 years ( but I don't shoot in the rain).

They are low-profile enough that I can shoot rifle without a problem.

Don't know if this is a problem unique to the HL brand or common to all electronics, but: the DB reduction is not strong enough (~20 Db) for High-powered rifle or indoor ranges. So, I always double-up with musician's earplugs underneath and the electronic earmuffs over that. That combo works great for me.

+1 I also use the HLs...but I agree the DB reduction isn't enough unless you double plug. The combo works well for me.

I also use the HL's. They have been completly reliable for the last year including shooting a match under a light drizzle. I also agree about the DB reduction when shooting in close proximity of open pistols or high power rifles. . For USPSA and 3gun I double plug, for IDPA the HL's seem quiet enough. I stopped shooting Indoors over a year ago. The last time was on a rainy Saturday I wanted to sight in a Buckmark @ 25 yards. The Gentleman with the 4" 44mag in the next lane made it rather difficult.

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I agree with the comments on the Howard Leight Impact ear muffs. Recently switched to them after my Peltor 6S muffs died on me. I liked the Peltors, but the batteries are extremely difficult to change, they are easy to get turned on accidentally, the battery life wasn't that great, and towards the end, they developed "crackling" and "hissing" noises in one side. (Now that I think about it, why did I like them?)

Battery replacement in the Howard Leight Impacts are significantly easier than the Peltors, amplification volume and quality are superior in the Howard Leights, and they don't tend to get turned on accidentally. And they have an "auto off" feature. Jury is still out on battery life . . . .haven't had them long enough to decide how they compare to the Peltors.

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I agree with the other you can not put a price on your hearing. It is amazing how we will spend $3000 on an open pistol but think $300 is crazy for hearing protection. I have MSA Sordins and they have not let me down yet and they are comfortable as well.

Edited by spartacuslv
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I agree with the other you can not put a price on your hearing.

+1 to that... Damage is cumulative and you won't notice it until its too late.

But you don't need to spend alot of money, the Electronic earmuffs + Earplugs is a very affordable combination that still allows the wearer to hear range commands.

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ok now I'm sucked in. The best electronic muffs I've tried are those cheap cladwells. I've got some peltors that ride in the truck of the car for spares and loaners. For a new open shooter I always recommend plugs and muffs, and if you got holes yeah, do it. If I ro you I need a basket ball mouth piece to keep my teeth from rattling. Howard lights are good as well all of the $20 seem to work just fine.

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Caldwell E-MAX Low Profile Electronic Earmuffs here, about 25 bones everywhere. No complaints. I have always double plugged and that works great with these. Can hear range commands easily, but yet effectively attenuates the blast level to something hardly flinch worthy.

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