I’ve got a pair of “Pro Ear 300” (about $150-$175) and I wear earplugs under them. Too late I ruined my hearing decades ago but I really wish I would have used hearing protection during my young and fooling years.. The powered models that amplify voices but muffle gun blast are simply AWESOME. I can hear conversation at the range but remain protected. Older shooters preach gun safety and hearing protection to young shooters.. Remember you can ruin your hearing for life with just one rifle-blast and even a $.25 cent earplug will provide 25-30dp protection.
Passive earmuffs provide you better protection. I do not know why people buy earmuffs 25 or 27 db if they could buy up to 30 db or more. Even 30 db is not enough to protect your hearing against handgun.
Please do all you can to keep your hearing, im 16 and was born with hearing loss, I've always wondered what it's like to hear normal, trust me, hearing loss sucks and it sticks with you forever
Agree 100% with your assessment of the sound quality. I have both the Howard Leights and the Walker Razor. Both are great, but the Impact Sport sounds much more natural. Besides the compression on my ears, I've forgotten I was wearing them. Very clean sound. Even used them while hunting once and had no trouble pinpointing the location of squirrels running up and down trees.
i own a couple pairs of Howard Leight Impact Sports that I got for shooting USPSA pistol competitions. I've been with multiple other people using them. Please be aware that MOST people, when shooting them with a rifle, will experience a problem where the stock of the rifle tends to interfere with the corner of the earmuff portion, breaking the seal, and allowing a lot of sound in.
I hade my own hearing protection made by my Ear Doctor. I was actually being fitted for a real hearing aid for my left ear. The Dr. worked two putties together that would end up being a silicone like solid. He packed my left ear, and in a few minutes, he had a mold of my inner ear. So I asked him about wanting to have ear plugs for shooting and he packed both ears for free but left a very small tube in it. Then he trimmed the tube that went into my ear flush with the ear plug and the end sticking out about 1/2". He said, "they will be your pull handles". I asked him why the tubes at all. He said, "the concussion of the bang is limited by the small tube diameter. Yet you will be able to speak and hear from those around you.
Im glad you mentioned hunting. I use the walkers for hunting. It's cold when I hunt. I hate being cold. They protect my hearing, help hear things better than my human ear. And they keep my ears warm.... Win. Win. Win.
Brilliant topic, I am a huge fan of electronic hearing protection. I personally have 5 pairs, 2 in my range back, one in my chainsaw carry box and two in my work shop. As a range officer when instructing newbie's I tell them that the first thing that they should buy is a "good set" of electronic hearing protection. I have been wearing them for nearly 20 years and started because of the decline in my hearing. Great channel with excellent content, cheers
Thanks for coming in. I really appreciate the comment. And I agree with your follow-up comment. Backup batteries in the range bag are a very good idea!
@@backfire No worries, it just happened to be a topic very close to my heart. Even after wearing good hearing protection for the last 20 years I am still profoundly deaf in my left ear. and have severe tinnitus in both ears because of the years I spent with sub par plugs or nothing when I first joined the ADF,
@@crharper25 There are countless brand on the market now, But I use Deben as my main set. But Walkers and Earmor are great brands, If they are for range use, stay away from Bluetooth units that have you plugged into your phone. Really distracting and dangerous in my opinion
When I was old enough to go to the range myself, my dad got me a pair of Howard Leights Impact Sport. I've used my olive green pair for almost 4 years with no issues, battery change once a year. My only issue is they and most electronic muffs I've tried, are uncomfortable after an hour or so of wearing. I have a larger head, so not only is the headband compressing, but my ears begin to sweat (since they sit on-ear) and I worry about them slipping off-ear a bit and affecting my hearing. I'd love a fully over-ear electronic ear muff with a deeper ear cup. Audibly though, my Howard Leights have been stellar, super easy controls too.
The only muffs here worth buying are the HL Impact Sports because they have directional audio. None of the other over ear pairs mentioned have directional audio - although the intentionally misleading marketing of the Walker Razors ("omnidirectional mics") would lead consumers to believe otherwise. It's worth pointing out that NONE of these sets have a high enough decibel reduction for either indoor pistol shooting or repetitive rifle firing. In both cases, these muffs should be "doubled up" with foamies. I use HL Impact Sports every day at work and frequently for shooting and hunting. I highly recommend them. I do a lot of duck hunting and they allow me to hear my calls while not deafening myself while shooting 10-15 shells every morning. I have also had the very popular Walkers. They did not perform nearly as well as the HL's and the lack of directional audio was disorienting. They should be avoided.
Thanks for this. I have the Howards, and I don't like them. They do their job, really well, and if I use pistols, I don't have a problem, but with a rifle, the butt stock of the gun always pushes the headphones up enough to cancel out any noice cancelation. I'm getting rid of them, and sticking with traditional, cheesy earplugs. Thanks for the work y'all do, though!
Wear foam inserts with an over the ear headsets. No reason not to. You can still hear speaking voice etc. For range purposes there is no reason not to double up.
I have a pair of the Howard Leights , They would be 8 years old and still going strong. Love how i can hook up my phone with an audio cable and listen to music/make or receive a phone call while im at the range
Honestly, I'm planning on hunting this season with a Mosin Type 53 sporter, which has insane concussion. I'll need exactly this, which is why this video was so useful to me.
For many years I have worn Sordin Supreme Pro for 8+ hours hours at a time while shooting and/or RO'ing PRS matches. I also use them for hunting as well. 3M makes gel replacement cups that make all the difference for comfort and fit with eye glasses. The 3m cups are available for many different brands not just sordin.
I bought some WildEars a handful of years ago. They are in ear custom molded hearing pro. I wear them all the time when hunting. And can wear them all day without issue.
I can't get good cheek weld with the over the ear muffs so I'm always using the little yellow flange 3M plugs if I'm shooting rifles. Hopefully those plugs take a pretty big step in price and quality quickly.
I have the Sordin supreme pro x with the gel cups. They are pricey but worth it in my opinion. Comfortable for wearing all day and boosts sounds a lot for hunting.
Personally depends on what I’m shooting. I’ve got custom fit plugs that are great for shotguns. Then when I shoot handguns and rifles I will put muff over my custom fit pair. Lots of protection. Never been a fan of all the electric ones. I just don’t care for them cutting on and off.
Howard Leights for the directional mics, Walker Razors are great, super sensitive mics-but I don't like omni directional mics. I like to know which direction the sound is coming from.
I’ve been using Walkers Bluetooth for some time now and love them but they are not perfect. I hope to find in ear Bluetooth headphones that don’t interfere with my rifle stock. Walkers do interfere but I like BT and used them around the house, lawnmower, chainsaw etc.
Disagree. The Walkers have no directional stereo audio. They have 'omnidirectional microphones' (the mics pick up sounds from all directions) but they play back mono audio. The HL's are much better because they have directional, stereo audio. You can actually tell where sounds are coming from.
Warning ⚠️ I bought a very expensive MSA Sordin Supreme Pro, which only has an NRR of 18 db. I now have permanent hearing loss in the right ear because of this devise, after just one day at the range. The so called “cheap” earplugs are usually rated at over 30 NRR. Much safer option.
@@JRasS14 They absolutely suck if you shoot magnum caliber rifles. I now wear them with earplugs underneath. I did not realized their published numbers were so low. Big mistake.
@@falba1492 Well yeah. Any big calibers either need foamies or double up on the ear pro. That’s a given. For smaller calibers, they do just fine with the 18dB NRR unless you’re indoors which changes the volume of gunshots and adds concussion.
Those of us with severe tinnitus understand the importance of protecting your hearing when you are young. We never worried about it in the day. Hearing protection? What's that? Now my head screams at me 24/7, no cure. Don't scrimp on hearing protection.
I own and use the howard leights regularly while hunting. especially on driven hunts. I love them. they are absolutely worth every cent! around here the 3m peltor and the Sordin are popular. with 200 euros a piece (yes I come from over the pond with the stupid gun laws,... tell me about it, I envy the states) I really dont notice a difference high enough to warrant 150 bucks more in price.
Owning both the expensive stuff and the cheap stuff I can attest to the difference, but not as much in hearing protection as in full sound awareness. The noise reduction rating (NRR) is usually just as good on the cheap stuff. Where the difference lies is in that the expensive 3M comtacs (or sordins) are much better at reproducing and often amplifying the sound around. I can hear people whispering 50 feet away in my comacts if I have them turned up, and unlike the cheap stuff that often just cuts the external sound after a certain decible, the more expensive stuff reduces the noise but keeps going. Plus they often have the electronics in them for radios/microphones...so all the kinds of things you would want for an actual firefight, but don't really need for an afternoon of plinking. So long story short, way awesome, but unnecessary for the vast majority of shooters.
Thanks for the analysis. If you're interested in foam plugs that work amazingly well, I'd recommend a brand called Mack's. They're significantly quieter than any over-the-ear systems I've ever tried. They're also super-comfy and inexpensive.
I'm wearing my Caldwell e-max pros right now. They still inhanse or block out ambient noise while using as headphones. That alone makes them better than the walkers your showing.
I had first bought the Howard Leight's model (same in this test), but they didn't seem to fit well. They have great sound, though. I've kept them because I figured they'd fit well with a hat. I next bought the Walker's earmuff's (same in this test) and found that they fit well, but the sound was really bad. Sound seemed to almost come in only one ear, and volume level was much lower. Also the range was not as good, so voices could not be picked out as well. I'll be sending the Walker's back. I suppose I'll have to live with the sometimes annoying adjustments while wearing the HLs, because the sound quality is just too good to continue trying to go through different options.
Great review! I do wish you had given a separate rating for while wearing glasses. Lots of ear muffs turn into torture devices when you put on shooting glasses. I would also really like emphasize how good the Howard Leights are when it comes to battery life. Batteries last forever in these muffs. The 3 hr power down feature is brilliant! Cheers!
Sorry, I almost forgot, I have in my range bag, my battery bag. Which contains batteries for my hearing protection as well as flashlights etc. Its no good having expensive hearing protection if you don't have batteries. Cheers
I highly recommend the Venture Gear AmpBT Earmuff - 4 microphone active noise cancelation. You can control ambient feed through the earphones. They have BlueTooth and I use them for yard work, as well. Or, to ignore a noisy household. If someone wants to talk to me, I can just turn up the mic feed.
How are they for canceling out gunfire? I have some Walker Razor muffs that I like the way they fit but they allow too much noise after the shot. They block the actual shot but then they’re right back on and sometimes it’s just not enough. I bought a set of the Caldwell ones that he had in the video and the noise cancellation is better but the actual muffs aren’t that comfortable and interfere with a rifle stock more.
@@scotteger6271 I have used only these so I can't compare to others. I walked into a range (Dec 2020) the very first time I ever shot a real gun and picked these off the shelf, slapped the batteries in, and into the range I went. They were intuitive to use and they work fine for me. I actually bought a second pair, and the customer service is really good. I have used them a bunch of times indoor shooting and outdoor shooting, no problems. I have the second pair so I can take others who may not have earpro. The one friend was really blown away by them, really enjoyed shooting my rifles and shotgun. Also, I think they are economical - good features and quality for the price.
I didn't do much research on this subject other than I knew I needed protection , 1st I got foam plugs & couple wks ago bought Walkers Razor slims, haven't tried yet but need another set. Very informative, Thanks.
Good review. I purchased a set of Soundgear plugs two years ago (they are developed/manufactured by Starkey Hearing), I've been impressed by them and they are enjoyable to wear during pheasant hunts where I need to pick up on the location of my dog as well as block the sound of shotgun blasts.
You should have made a wooden head with two opossing horn-shaped funnels that meet in the middle to a internal chamber where the mic is inserted from the bottom up. You seal the bottom and do an audio test using each earmuff set.
The problem I have with the walker over ear is they have mixed together sound channels (sounds from both mics go through each ear at the same volume) functionally removing spatial hearing. Kinda a nice thing to have when hunting. The impact sport don't have that issue.
My hearing protection used to be sticking a couple spent cartridges in my ears 😂 These days I mostly use foamies, but I’m not generally shooting much super loud ammo.
I bartend for a living and the music can be very loud. It makes hearing customers difficult. Would any of these work for dampening the loud music while still being able to hear the people that are ordering drinks?
I have the walker passive Bluetooth headset and I love them very good on blocking out loud sounds like gunshots or sirens I paid 45 dollars for them about 20 dollars less than the walker patriot
His top two choices are the two my friend brought to an outdoor range the other day. Neither are good enough for anything above 9mm. His ears are still ringing from the ar15. I'm currently testing the peltor sport tactical 300 and the walker's xcel. My ears are slightly too big for the peltor's narrow ear cup opening. The Xcel have a lot of static on any volume setting other than the 1st or 2nd level. The Akt1 may be the way to go, but I have not tried those yet.
I could be wrong but go look at the ratings for your regular ear plugs and then look at the non electronic ear muffs and I think you'll find the ear plugs are rated higher than you muffs
I hope someone makes an ultamate set of ear muffs with a type c rechargeable battery with a disposable option.and has a phone call bluetooth and a setting switch for sound amplification for hunting. And regular conversation mode
Yada yada. What is the NRR ? Noise reduction rating. That's what Osha standards are. My foam earplugs are rated 35 NRR. And they are better than non electronic earmuffs. And the comfort of not sweating. Aaand, I've worked 40 years in a high volume hydraulic pump whining machine shop.
The electronic ear muffs are great for those of us with friends we shoot with and/or at an outdoor range. They may not meet federal 4 letter bureaucracy standards but they have their place just like foam earplugs.
Can you comment on “directional” hearing? On pheasant hunts I found that not every electronic hearing protection will give you a correct sense of where the sound is coming from!!
The Walker over ear he likes so much do not give directional hearing the impact sport do. Can't speak for the others as I don't own them. (I suspect the in ear ones are spatial) Also the walkers suck at wind noise. I use the walkers at the range (more comfortable and don't really need spatial sound) hunting the impact sport for sure.
How many people had to turn this video up to stop that annoying ringing? Walker has a quad microphone BT enabled over ear set that I use almost daily in the he shop and mowing
I tried crack about a month ago. It freaked me out and I found some of the muffs like you are showing I thought they were music and it would chill me out. Nope freaked outmore then smoked more crack to chill out nope didn’t work then I see the gun & shot all the light bulbs out around this girls place where we were. They got mad & told me to go home so I did
unfortunately most interesting decibel test whent dud .. :) I use indoor range and I wear regular foam plugs and walkers razors on top of that.. you can hear conversation loud enough and fully comfortable with guys shooting 30 06, 5.57, 7.62 even with muzzle break .. .
most of the headphone reviews are soft selling leights or walkers. 1 dude didn't do that but the price point was out of reach. yet, he was a pro shooter etc. so, they don't play with their hearing usually.
I’ve got a pair of “Pro Ear 300” (about $150-$175) and I wear earplugs under them. Too late I ruined my hearing decades ago but I really wish I would have used hearing protection during my young and fooling years.. The powered models that amplify voices but muffle gun blast are simply AWESOME. I can hear conversation at the range but remain protected. Older shooters preach gun safety and hearing protection to young shooters.. Remember you can ruin your hearing for life with just one rifle-blast and even a $.25 cent earplug will provide 25-30dp protection.
Tks for share
I have the same story. Wish I’d been smarter.
Thank you for that note.
Passive earmuffs provide you better protection. I do not know why people buy earmuffs 25 or 27 db if they could buy up to 30 db or more. Even 30 db is not enough to protect your hearing against handgun.
I have tinnitus, and some days I question my existence. For the love of God please wear ear protection.
Please do all you can to keep your hearing, im 16 and was born with hearing loss, I've always wondered what it's like to hear normal, trust me, hearing loss sucks and it sticks with you forever
Agree 100% with your assessment of the sound quality. I have both the Howard Leights and the Walker Razor. Both are great, but the Impact Sport sounds much more natural. Besides the compression on my ears, I've forgotten I was wearing them. Very clean sound. Even used them while hunting once and had no trouble pinpointing the location of squirrels running up and down trees.
i own a couple pairs of Howard Leight Impact Sports that I got for shooting USPSA pistol competitions. I've been with multiple other people using them. Please be aware that MOST people, when shooting them with a rifle, will experience a problem where the stock of the rifle tends to interfere with the corner of the earmuff portion, breaking the seal, and allowing a lot of sound in.
I experience this with the Howard Leight and rifles. When they seal great. Severe ear ringing when they don't.
Fuck me, is there any muff that sctually fuckin work at all?
I hade my own hearing protection made by my Ear Doctor. I was actually being fitted for a real hearing aid for my left ear. The Dr. worked two putties together that would end up being a silicone like solid. He packed my left ear, and in a few minutes, he had a mold of my inner ear. So I asked him about wanting to have ear plugs for shooting and he packed both ears for free but left a very small tube in it. Then he trimmed the tube that went into my ear flush with the ear plug and the end sticking out about 1/2". He said, "they will be your pull handles". I asked him why the tubes at all. He said, "the concussion of the bang is limited by the small tube diameter. Yet you will be able to speak and hear from those around you.
Im glad you mentioned hunting. I use the walkers for hunting. It's cold when I hunt. I hate being cold. They protect my hearing, help hear things better than my human ear. And they keep my ears warm.... Win. Win. Win.
Brilliant topic, I am a huge fan of electronic hearing protection. I personally have 5 pairs, 2 in my range back, one in my chainsaw carry box and two in my work shop. As a range officer when instructing newbie's I tell them that the first thing that they should buy is a "good set" of electronic hearing protection. I have been wearing them for nearly 20 years and started because of the decline in my hearing. Great channel with excellent content, cheers
Thanks for coming in. I really appreciate the comment. And I agree with your follow-up comment. Backup batteries in the range bag are a very good idea!
@@backfire No worries, it just happened to be a topic very close to my heart. Even after wearing good hearing protection for the last 20 years I am still profoundly deaf in my left ear. and have severe tinnitus in both ears because of the years I spent with sub par plugs or nothing when I first joined the ADF,
Which exact pair of hearing protection would you recommend??
@@crharper25 There are countless brand on the market now, But I use Deben as my main set. But Walkers and Earmor are great brands, If they are for range use, stay away from Bluetooth units that have you plugged into your phone. Really distracting and dangerous in my opinion
When I was old enough to go to the range myself, my dad got me a pair of Howard Leights Impact Sport. I've used my olive green pair for almost 4 years with no issues, battery change once a year. My only issue is they and most electronic muffs I've tried, are uncomfortable after an hour or so of wearing. I have a larger head, so not only is the headband compressing, but my ears begin to sweat (since they sit on-ear) and I worry about them slipping off-ear a bit and affecting my hearing. I'd love a fully over-ear electronic ear muff with a deeper ear cup. Audibly though, my Howard Leights have been stellar, super easy controls too.
I have the Walkers Patriot myself and like them alot. When sitting in the deer blind I wear them, usually over a toque for hours.
The only muffs here worth buying are the HL Impact Sports because they have directional audio. None of the other over ear pairs mentioned have directional audio - although the intentionally misleading marketing of the Walker Razors ("omnidirectional mics") would lead consumers to believe otherwise.
It's worth pointing out that NONE of these sets have a high enough decibel reduction for either indoor pistol shooting or repetitive rifle firing. In both cases, these muffs should be "doubled up" with foamies.
I use HL Impact Sports every day at work and frequently for shooting and hunting. I highly recommend them. I do a lot of duck hunting and they allow me to hear my calls while not deafening myself while shooting 10-15 shells every morning.
I have also had the very popular Walkers. They did not perform nearly as well as the HL's and the lack of directional audio was disorienting. They should be avoided.
Do they block out shot gun blasts???
Thanks for this. I have the Howards, and I don't like them. They do their job, really well, and if I use pistols, I don't have a problem, but with a rifle, the butt stock of the gun always pushes the headphones up enough to cancel out any noice cancelation. I'm getting rid of them, and sticking with traditional, cheesy earplugs. Thanks for the work y'all do, though!
Wear foam inserts with an over the ear headsets. No reason not to. You can still hear speaking voice etc. For range purposes there is no reason not to double up.
I love these reviews! They're always so informative.
I have a pair of the Howard Leights , They would be 8 years old and still going strong. Love how i can hook up my phone with an audio cable and listen to music/make or receive a phone call while im at the range
Honestly, I'm planning on hunting this season with a Mosin Type 53 sporter, which has insane concussion. I'll need exactly this, which is why this video was so useful to me.
For many years I have worn Sordin Supreme Pro for 8+ hours hours at a time while shooting and/or RO'ing PRS matches. I also use them for hunting as well. 3M makes gel replacement cups that make all the difference for comfort and fit with eye glasses. The 3m cups are available for many different brands not just sordin.
Sordins seem to be extremely well recieved by guys who also use high-end stuff like ComTacs and even OpsCore AMPs.
You should try the Walker's Excel. Quad microphones for directional audio, bluetooth integration, and deep earcups. Also rated for more DB reduction.
Used impact sport and my ears are still ringing. They don’t seal well enough around your ears. Can’t believe they still sell them.
I bought some WildEars a handful of years ago. They are in ear custom molded hearing pro. I wear them all the time when hunting. And can wear them all day without issue.
I can't get good cheek weld with the over the ear muffs so I'm always using the little yellow flange 3M plugs if I'm shooting rifles. Hopefully those plugs take a pretty big step in price and quality quickly.
I like the Howard Leights for deer hunting with friends - and they keep my ears warm in winter. All head phones get sweaty in warm weather.
Same as my experience.
I have the Sordin supreme pro x with the gel cups. They are pricey but worth it in my opinion. Comfortable for wearing all day and boosts sounds a lot for hunting.
Sweet been wanting a comparison of ear pro from yall
This was an awesome review. Great job. So thorough.
Personally depends on what I’m shooting. I’ve got custom fit plugs that are great for shotguns.
Then when I shoot handguns and rifles I will put muff over my custom fit pair. Lots of protection. Never been a fan of all the electric ones. I just don’t care for them cutting on and off.
Howard Leights for the directional mics, Walker Razors are great, super sensitive mics-but I don't like omni directional mics. I like to know which direction the sound is coming from.
I’ve been using Walkers Bluetooth for some time now and love them but they are not perfect. I hope to find in ear Bluetooth headphones that don’t interfere with my rifle stock. Walkers do interfere but I like BT and used them around the house, lawnmower, chainsaw etc.
Great video, exactly what I need this morning!
Love my Walker’s Razor muffs too👍🏻
Same here as well, got mine on sale on midway and I’ll never go back to anything else
Disagree. The Walkers have no directional stereo audio. They have 'omnidirectional microphones' (the mics pick up sounds from all directions) but they play back mono audio.
The HL's are much better because they have directional, stereo audio. You can actually tell where sounds are coming from.
My audiologist told me the best way to protect your hearing is to put in the ear bud style in, then put muffs over them... use both.
Warning ⚠️ I bought a very expensive MSA Sordin Supreme Pro, which only has an NRR of 18 db. I now have permanent hearing loss in the right ear because of this devise, after just one day at the range.
The so called “cheap” earplugs are usually rated at over 30 NRR. Much safer option.
Msa doesn’t fluff their numbers, they preform better than all of these. I had them for years before finally upgrading to a microphone setup.
@@JRasS14 They absolutely suck if you shoot magnum caliber rifles. I now wear them with earplugs underneath. I did not realized their published numbers were so low. Big mistake.
@@falba1492 Well yeah. Any big calibers either need foamies or double up on the ear pro. That’s a given. For smaller calibers, they do just fine with the 18dB NRR unless you’re indoors which changes the volume of gunshots and adds concussion.
what?
Love the video - Greetings from South Africa
Those of us with severe tinnitus understand the importance of protecting your hearing when you are young. We never worried about it in the day. Hearing protection? What's that? Now my head screams at me 24/7, no cure. Don't scrimp on hearing protection.
I own and use the howard leights regularly while hunting. especially on driven hunts. I love them. they are absolutely worth every cent! around here the 3m peltor and the Sordin are popular. with 200 euros a piece (yes I come from over the pond with the stupid gun laws,... tell me about it, I envy the states) I really dont notice a difference high enough to warrant 150 bucks more in price.
Owning both the expensive stuff and the cheap stuff I can attest to the difference, but not as much in hearing protection as in full sound awareness. The noise reduction rating (NRR) is usually just as good on the cheap stuff. Where the difference lies is in that the expensive 3M comtacs (or sordins) are much better at reproducing and often amplifying the sound around. I can hear people whispering 50 feet away in my comacts if I have them turned up, and unlike the cheap stuff that often just cuts the external sound after a certain decible, the more expensive stuff reduces the noise but keeps going. Plus they often have the electronics in them for radios/microphones...so all the kinds of things you would want for an actual firefight, but don't really need for an afternoon of plinking. So long story short, way awesome, but unnecessary for the vast majority of shooters.
@@spencertressaadams8427 I mean the howard leights can do all of that. the sordins etc maybe a bit better but you have your Aux-input etc as well.
Thanks for the analysis. If you're interested in foam plugs that work amazingly well, I'd recommend a brand called Mack's. They're significantly quieter than any over-the-ear systems I've ever tried. They're also super-comfy and inexpensive.
Mp
I'm wearing my Caldwell e-max pros right now. They still inhanse or block out ambient noise while using as headphones. That alone makes them better than the walkers your showing.
I had first bought the Howard Leight's model (same in this test), but they didn't seem to fit well. They have great sound, though. I've kept them because I figured they'd fit well with a hat. I next bought the Walker's earmuff's (same in this test) and found that they fit well, but the sound was really bad. Sound seemed to almost come in only one ear, and volume level was much lower. Also the range was not as good, so voices could not be picked out as well. I'll be sending the Walker's back. I suppose I'll have to live with the sometimes annoying adjustments while wearing the HLs, because the sound quality is just too good to continue trying to go through different options.
Buy gel cups for the Howard's on Amazon for cheap
Great review! I do wish you had given a separate rating for while wearing glasses. Lots of ear muffs turn into torture devices when you put on shooting glasses.
I would also really like emphasize how good the Howard Leights are when it comes to battery life. Batteries last forever in these muffs. The 3 hr power down feature is brilliant! Cheers!
Agreed!
Sorry, I almost forgot, I have in my range bag, my battery bag. Which contains batteries for my hearing protection as well as flashlights etc. Its no good having expensive hearing protection if you don't have batteries. Cheers
The Howard and walkers are designed for under a Kevlar helmet ive used both under that application and I would rather the walker's
That Joey test was pretty funny. He doesn’t have any ear holes! Haha!
I highly recommend the Venture Gear AmpBT Earmuff - 4 microphone active noise cancelation. You can control ambient feed through the earphones. They have BlueTooth and I use them for yard work, as well. Or, to ignore a noisy household. If someone wants to talk to me, I can just turn up the mic feed.
How are they for canceling out gunfire? I have some Walker Razor muffs that I like the way they fit but they allow too much noise after the shot. They block the actual shot but then they’re right back on and sometimes it’s just not enough. I bought a set of the Caldwell ones that he had in the video and the noise cancellation is better but the actual muffs aren’t that comfortable and interfere with a rifle stock more.
@@scotteger6271 I have used only these so I can't compare to others. I walked into a range (Dec 2020) the very first time I ever shot a real gun and picked these off the shelf, slapped the batteries in, and into the range I went. They were intuitive to use and they work fine for me. I actually bought a second pair, and the customer service is really good. I have used them a bunch of times indoor shooting and outdoor shooting, no problems. I have the second pair so I can take others who may not have earpro. The one friend was really blown away by them, really enjoyed shooting my rifles and shotgun. Also, I think they are economical - good features and quality for the price.
@@theplinkerslodge6361 thank you for the info I might give them a try
I didn't do much research on this subject other than I knew I needed protection , 1st I got foam plugs & couple wks ago bought Walkers Razor slims, haven't tried yet but need another set. Very informative, Thanks.
You should do a review on the 6.8 western or 270 wsm or 7mm SAUM
Which one is the best for indoor range?
What model of Axils do you use?
Good review. I purchased a set of Soundgear plugs two years ago (they are developed/manufactured by Starkey Hearing), I've been impressed by them and they are enjoyable to wear during pheasant hunts where I need to pick up on the location of my dog as well as block the sound of shotgun blasts.
Muzzelloader review next?
You should have made a wooden head with two opossing horn-shaped funnels that meet in the middle to a internal chamber where the mic is inserted from the bottom up. You seal the bottom and do an audio test using each earmuff set.
I've yet to upgrade past those little foam ones that don't really fit in an ear canal.
The problem I have with the walker over ear is they have mixed together sound channels (sounds from both mics go through each ear at the same volume) functionally removing spatial hearing. Kinda a nice thing to have when hunting.
The impact sport don't have that issue.
Walkers Razor $44.00 nice ear pro for the indoor range I use.
My hearing protection used to be sticking a couple spent cartridges in my ears 😂 These days I mostly use foamies, but I’m not generally shooting much super loud ammo.
I bartend for a living and the music can be very loud. It makes hearing customers difficult. Would any of these work for dampening the loud music while still being able to hear the people that are ordering drinks?
I would send you my CA ridgeline 300 win mag for review? Haven’t seen anything from then on the channel yet
Is there a difference between hunting use and shooting use?
What about the most important thing…protection?
There is a war in Ukraine. About 90% of soldiers are Walker's Razor's users.
America, thanx for support!❤
You should do this again including the ear armor ear pro
you want to use both types they block different frequencies
Honey well vs the 3M Peltor range vs the Sordens?
I have the walker passive Bluetooth headset and I love them very good on blocking out loud sounds like gunshots or sirens I paid 45 dollars for them about 20 dollars less than the walker patriot
Would love to see a mavin optics review.
You’ll should review the save 110 storm lightweight
Quick question if it says 25NRR how much noise is it bringing down ?
His top two choices are the two my friend brought to an outdoor range the other day. Neither are good enough for anything above 9mm. His ears are still ringing from the ar15. I'm currently testing the peltor sport tactical 300 and the walker's xcel. My ears are slightly too big for the peltor's narrow ear cup opening. The Xcel have a lot of static on any volume setting other than the 1st or 2nd level. The Akt1 may be the way to go, but I have not tried those yet.
Generally you should wear in ear plugs under your over ear protection
Howard Leights...hands down
I could be wrong but go look at the ratings for your regular ear plugs and then look at the non electronic ear muffs and I think you'll find the ear plugs are rated higher than you muffs
I hope someone makes an ultamate set of ear muffs with a type c rechargeable battery with a disposable option.and has a phone call bluetooth and a setting switch for sound amplification for hunting. And regular conversation mode
Yada yada. What is the NRR ? Noise reduction rating. That's what Osha standards are. My foam earplugs are rated 35 NRR. And they are better than non electronic earmuffs. And the comfort of not sweating. Aaand, I've worked 40 years in a high volume hydraulic pump whining machine shop.
The electronic ear muffs are great for those of us with friends we shoot with and/or at an outdoor range. They may not meet federal 4 letter bureaucracy standards but they have their place just like foam earplugs.
Walker Razor makes my jaw sore... but it's really slim so it doen'st interfere with a stock.
Why no Peltor models?
Thanks for understandable English language.
Great reviews
Very informative. Thanks
good stuff thanks!
Can you comment on “directional” hearing? On pheasant hunts I found that not every electronic hearing protection will give you a correct sense of where the sound is coming from!!
The Walker over ear he likes so much do not give directional hearing the impact sport do. Can't speak for the others as I don't own them. (I suspect the in ear ones are spatial)
Also the walkers suck at wind noise. I use the walkers at the range (more comfortable and don't really need spatial sound) hunting the impact sport for sure.
Peltor sport has Bluetooth. Works okay…good enough for listening to books while mowing lawn. Music quality is poor, but voice and ambient is good.
Just picked a set up of the Walker Patriots for $40 on Amazon
What’s your review on it after one year of use?
@@eso1666 love them! Use them often at the range and going to race tracks. So probably 3-5 times a month. Still haven’t needed to change the batteries
How many people had to turn this video up to stop that annoying ringing?
Walker has a quad microphone BT enabled over ear set that I use almost daily in the he shop and mowing
Very very nice video.
Dont know if youve heard it before, but you look like Matt Damon 😂
Have a nice day 😊
10 bucks at a hardware store, good enough for lawn mowing good enough for shooting. That said if i got a good pair and used it i would be happy lol
Peltor Comtac 3s tho. 😻😻
Try out the Opsmen m31
Springtime in Idaho is right. I think Mother Nature skipped ahead a couple of months.
Does anyone still make electric sound-amplifying ear muffs that have directional sound?
It’s funny I usually prefer over the head because inner ear hurts me after a while.
Hello from Pocatello!
I tried crack about a month ago. It freaked me out and I found some of the muffs like you are showing I thought they were music and it would chill me out. Nope freaked outmore then smoked more crack to chill out nope didn’t work then I see the gun & shot all the light bulbs out around this girls place where we were. They got mad & told me to go home so I did
Would love for you guys to test the sound gear phantoms. Might best the best thing out there, but can’t find any decent reviews
I find my cheap ones react to slow so they amplify the sound and then cut off as the shots finished.
Quality content
unfortunately most interesting decibel test whent dud .. :) I use indoor range and I wear regular foam plugs and walkers razors on top of that.. you can hear conversation loud enough and fully comfortable with guys shooting 30 06, 5.57, 7.62 even with muzzle break .. .
most of the headphone reviews are soft selling leights or walkers. 1 dude didn't do that but the price point was out of reach. yet, he was a pro shooter etc. so, they don't play with their hearing usually.
The earbud ones are OK but way too much goofing around I prefer the regular muffs
Walkers all the way. For price and functionality. No sense in spending a pile of cash for the same quality of product and noise suppression.
Might need to look into diabetes protection
Got damn
Surprised that you didn't pick up a pair of peltors for this review... 🤔
My walkers bt comms are pretty swooft . Holding up nicely so far