So I like to protect my hearing as much as i can. I have a cross continental plane ride to Japan coming up and i usually put ear plugs in so that i don’t lose any more of hearing.
I was wondering if there was any earbuds that have the same level of noise cancelling as an ear plug would.
I know that most “noise cancelling” is all bullshit in terms of actually protecting your ears, i was wondering if there was any noise cancelling earbuds that worked on the same level as ear plugs (preferably ones that are cheapest, thanks!)
Why not just actual ear muffs if you don’t need to listen to anything. People use them in construction, so they should block out any sound for you.
Noise cancelling isn’t really bullshit, though? It lowers ambient noise so that you don’t need to turn your music up to drown it out.
There are two kinds of noise cancelling, active and passive.
Active uses built in processing and microphones to analyze the noise around you and then drown it out. (Think Apple Airpods Pros, or Samsung Galaxy Buds)
Passive noise cancelling, which is exactly what earplugs are. They plug your ears and then don’t let outside sound in.
In my experience, I have yet to have any IEM that passively cancels more noise than any active IEM, but my experience is limited. Personally, I’d recommend something like the Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 or Pro
Can sitting in a plain cause hearing damage? I think many people regularly experience louder environments than the ambient sound of a plane.
There is always the option to wear a pair of noise cancelling headphones over some earbuds/IEMs, which can also be noise cancelling. Alternatively, passive ear protection instead of headphones over your earbuds/IEMs.
Either way, you get two layers of noise isolation.
I just wear ear defenders over IEMs and get nearly 30db of isolation
This is an irrational fear. Think about how many people fly every day. Do you really believe all of them suffer permanent hearing loss every time they fly?
According to NIOSH studies it IS possible you may be exposed to dangerous noise levels without hearing protection on a trans ocean flight. Emphasis on maybe. Noise level in cabin is 80-85 db during flight. Maximum safe exposure time at 85db is 8 hours a day. So pretty much any form of active or passive noise attenuation, just a few dbs, is going to take you into the safe zone. Just get any IEMS that seal the ear canal any earplugs, any noise cancelling headphones and you should be good.
Purchasing expensive headphones just for one flight is a sign of an unhealthy obsession and irrational fear IMO.