What noise canceling headphones should I buy?

[crandress]

I am looking for some good electronic noise reduction headphones/ear muffs, the ones that amplify voices and range sounds, but block or reduce the gunshots. What do you guys recommend? I don't mind spending if they last and are good,but I have to buy three, one for me and one for each of my sons, so if they don't work well, it will be costly. What should we buy or what should we consider?

Thanks - Chris

 

[basicblur]

Ain't no expert, and I'm sure others can point you in the direction of more economical models, 'specially since you need 3 pairs, but I have the Peltor 7S.
Prices seem to have gone up since I bought mine-got a couple of pairs-bought one pair from Amazon and the other from Midway when they were on sale.

Guess that'll get you started?

EDIT: I see the Peltor 6S units go for 'bout half the price of the 7S style.
One downside to the 7S is they can get in the way when using with rifles.
Mebbe someone will chime in with info on the cheaper mechanical type units-I've never tried them.
Might be a good idea to buy one electronic (if that's the way you go) and one of the mechanical style-if they do what you want, they could save you quite a bit of $$$ when buying for three!

 

[sledhead76]

I bought the pro ears stalker gold, they were a little pricey, but work amazingly. Amplifies voices very well, and so comfortable that you'll forget you are wearing them. My dad tried them and liked them enough that he bought a set too. Shop around online, there are some big discrepancies in price on these. Be sure and have extra batteries on hand, if you leave them on accidentally, they're just an expensive pair of earmuffs.

 

[sledhead76]

A little more on these.... when shopping, what you want to look for is the noise reduction rating, it'll say NRR 27 or 33 or whatever it is for that set, the higher the better. I think a lot of people tend to cut corners when it gets to this aspect of the hobby, but personally I think this is where the money should get spent first. You can always upgrade a gun later, hearing loss is forever.

 

[crandress]

Thank you! More suggestions welcome.

Chris

 

[Sock Puppet]

I really like my Peltor Tactical 6S. I can't remeber where I bought them, but I remember finding them on sale for a really good price.

 

[trickyasafox]

I have Howard Leights, I love em- bout 50 dollars if I recall

 

[MrCleanOK]

I use MSA-Sordin Supreme Pro X's. They are comfortable, have great response time, no noticeable clipping. They're one of the best muffs you can get, and that's what I was looking for. They are spendy, but there are more economical models of MSA-Sordin muffs that probably work nearly as well.

 

[BADUNAME37]

ProEars
Five year warranty, excellent earmuffs with excellent microphone and amplifying system built into each cup (seperate from each other).
http://www.proears.com/

 

[basicblur]

Regarding the Peltor 6S-I see a lot of folks at Amazon really complain about changing the battery on the 6S models. Seems a number of 'em are complaining 'bout it being difficult to do without breaking the muffs.

Don't know a thing about the 6S units except that they're 'bout half the price of the 7S units, but reading the negative reviews at Amazon regarding the battery compartment did jar my memory a bit. I think battery change complaints influenced my decision to pay extra for the 7S model.

If you read the reviews, make sure you're reading the correct review-they kinda have the 7S and 6S reviews lumped together, but the 'headline' in each review seems to specify if the review is for the 6S or 7S model.

 

[DoubleTapDrew]

Another vote for the Howard Leight Impact Sport muffs. The peltors may be better (haven't tried any) but I have no complaints with the impact sports, and you can get all 3 sets for the price of one set of peltor 7s

 

[jcwit]

Howard Leigth was recommened to me by an Army Pistol instructor. On that advice they mst be bood, and they are.

 

[Sock Puppet]

Regarding the Peltor 6S-I see a lot of folks at Amazon really complain about changing the battery on the 6S models. Seems a number of 'em are complaining 'bout it being difficult to do without breaking the muffs.

I've changed mine several times without issue. The directions are pretty clear and I've never felt I was in danger of breaking them.

 

[basicblur]

I've changed mine several times without issue. The directions are pretty clear and I've never felt I was in danger of breaking them.

Yeah, ya gotta take some of those Amazon reviews with a grain of salt, as some of those folks apparently have little/no mechanical aptitude.

It just appeared there was a relatively high percentage of folks griping 'bout the battery compartment.

 

[basicblur]

The Howard Leights do look good-there's a video review by a shooter/audio engineer at Amazon.
They also look like they may be slim enough to not interfere with shooting long guns?

EDIT: Well I see while typing this and listening/watching the review, he covers the long rifle interference @ the 5:15 mark.

The Howard Leights do look a lot more promising than my Peltors!

 

[forgetitohio]

I use Pro Ear Linear Elite from Brownell's a few yrs. back.
They're very light weight and batteries last a long time.(they have auto shut-down)
I can hear range comands very well. Don't buy the type that cut out all sound when you shoot.
You could miss something said like "cease fire".

It would indeed be a tragedy if the history of the human race proved to be nothing more than the story of an ape playing with a box of matches on a petrol dump. - David Ormsby Gore

 

[hso]

Stick with hearing protection made by a company that makes hearing protection for industrial use. Peltor and Howard Leight are well known manufacturers in use all over the world.

I have Peltors and I've used Leights that my friends have. While I don't worry about breaking my Peltors changing batteries, the Leights are every bit as effective and they are easier to change batteries (minor annoyance).

Whatever you pick, double up with plugs under muffs. Protect the hearing your kids have and preserve what you have left. Foam plugs are fine when properly inserted.

 

[jbkebert]

I have a pair of Howard Leights that are branded field and stream sold a Dicks sporting goods. I needed a extra set and picked these up. They work very very well. There is a external jack that i have started using while mowing the yard. i connect my kids i-pod to the ear muffs it cancells out the noise of my mower and plays tunes with pretty good sound quality. We mow a shy 3 acers around the house. Music helps the time go by. I have also listened to music while at the range. nice product for $79 currently on sale for $59

 

[MrCleanOK]

Stick with hearing protection made by a company that makes hearing protection for industrial use. Peltor and Howard Leight are well known manufacturers in use all over the world.

hso is right. And MSA-Sordin is also a primarily industrial PPE manufacturer.

 

[inherentical]

I use MSA Sordin Supreme Pro X's, and replaced the ear muff seals with the gel version.

 

[SentinelStrategic]

I have used both the Peltors and the Howard Leights, and they're both good quality. They are easy to maintain and they work well. The HLs are less expensive. If your goal is significant noise reduction, you'll have to combine muffs with ear plugs. Otherwise, electronic muffs - or any muffs for that matter- have their limitations to how much noise they will reduce.

I currently run TCI DEHP Pro-X muffs, which are the same as the MSA Sordin Supreme Pro-X, but built specifically for TCI with their communications equipment. I also run the gel ear seals, they make a world of difference. The audio quality is 10x better with those high-end muffs than they are with the Peltors or HLs. However, the noise reduction is not much more significant. I just get a better seal around my glasses frames. With that said, I would never spend $279 on a pair of muffs for my kids unless they were older and more dedicated to not only shooting, but to taking care of their equipment.