[willmax]

I've only been on a few all-day trips to this point on the Goldwing, and really have no complaints with riding all day, saving one--tinitus. My hearing isn't the best under ideal conditions, but after a day on the bike, I can't hear jack over the high-pitched ringing in my ears. I'm thinking of going with ear plugs, but want to be able to hear my wife through the helmet speakers. Any suggestions on ear plug types/brands?

 

[Retired Firefighter]

call a local hearing aid person in your area - explain your quest and he should be able to help you - I have done this and have had very nice soft custom fit devices made - I had these done with I was in the fire service and now use them for riding - work great and I can wear them all day.

 

[whacker]

I use the soft foam earplugs that are squeezed and inserted into the ear. Look at the db rating, I believe the lower the number the "better", noise is lowered to that level. I am primarily trying to reduce the boom of the air going by, I can still hear my music and co-rider, have to turn up the volume, but the wife has her own volume control.

 

[Chopin]

Welcome to the tinnitus family. Amazing how big our group is. Until I get the headsets I don't even try to use my audio system when on the move. As ear plugs annoy me, the only time I wear them is on the " Rolling Thunder " ride. I had a pair of ear muffs with a broken head band, so I put the fuzzy ear cover pads into the ear cavity of the helmet. Didn't help with the " ringing " but it cut down on the wind whistling.

 

[detdrbuzzard]

seeing as those expanding earplugs won't stay in my ears the headsets were a great investment for me. even with the radio off the wind noise is reduced

 

[Stratman]

I too suffer from chronic tinitus, partially caused from shoving my head in front of too many loud apmplifiers in my youth.
I have a pair of musicians earplgs which are form fitted and can be attenuated with various fillters. They fit flush on your ear and can be had at any hearing aid clinic.
You'll need to make an appointment as they need to "squirt" crap in your ear to make the impression.
Good luck,
Strat

 

[budoka]

Wow, we have quite a club building hear (LOL). I have the lovely ringing thanks to 27 years of standing at a high speed meat saw. (and way to many front row seats at rock concerts in my depraved youth). Bothers me most when I'm trying to be sneaky in the woods hunting with my bow or rifle. Never wear earplugs, but I should.

 

[dynodon]

I use musicians/high fidelity type universal earplugs. These reduce sound about 20db across the range. This means you still hear the highs and lows and everything in between, but it is now muted and although the full range is supposed to be there, the wind and road noise is almost totally gone!

here is a link to the plugs I use, they cost $13 a pair and are well worth it. You can look around the web site and find custom plugs.

http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/er20.html

As for comfort, most any plug will hurt for a while, but if you wear them for an hour the first day, and again the next few days, in short time (a week for me) I can wear them all day without any pain. But you can get custom made plugs, even those with the headsets built in!

As for foam plugs, I tried them, they are just as painful, but block TOO much sound and cut out almost all the highs. I find them OK for factory work, but not for riding when you need to hear all the sounds, and the headsets.

I find with these plugs the headsets for music and CB are MUCH clearer and easier to understand, and at the end of a ride, I am much more relaxed. After you get over the effect, you soon realize you can still hear what is going on around you, and things like sirens are still there, just muted. I find I am more aware wearing these. YMMV of course, but for the small $ give them a try.

 

[crownfire]

My ringing sounds just like cicadas in the summer time.

I work in a dirty environment and found that any type of plug that went into the ear canal would eventually end up giving me lots of problems. I found a great wax type plug that just covered the ear canal and stuck there. It was from a business in Oregon; Joes Ear Plugs. I looked today and couldn't find it but pretty close is this site:
http://www.earplugsonline.com/
They look the same and are from the same town. It cuts down the noise but you don't have any issues with pushing things into your ear canal. Just warm them in your hands for a minute (or from your pocket will be just right) then hold them over the canal for a second and they will stick. Push down on an edge to break the seal to remove. They can be used many times before they start to get nasty and I have never had one fall out. I use them while riding and around heavy equipment. You will have to turn up your volume a little but hearing the radio or CB is not a problem.

 

[willmax]

I use musicians/high fidelity type universal earplugs. These reduce sound about 20db across the range. This means you still hear the highs and lows and everything in between, but it is now muted and although the full range is supposed to be there, the wind and road noise is almost totally gone!

here is a link to the plugs I use, they cost $13 a pair and are well worth it. You can look around the web site and find custom plugs.

http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/er20.html

As for comfort, most any plug will hurt for a while, but if you wear them for an hour the first day, and again the next few days, in short time (a week for me) I can wear them all day without any pain. But you can get custom made plugs, even those with the headsets built in!

As for foam plugs, I tried them, they are just as painful, but block TOO much sound and cut out almost all the highs. I find them OK for factory work, but not for riding when you need to hear all the sounds, and the headsets.

I find with these plugs the headsets for music and CB are MUCH clearer and easier to understand, and at the end of a ride, I am much more relaxed. After you get over the effect, you soon realize you can still hear what is going on around you, and things like sirens are still there, just muted. I find I am more aware wearing these. YMMV of course, but for the small $ give them a try.

Dynodon: These might be what I'm looking for--I appreciate all the suggestions from the forum.

 

[DreamWeaver]

My only advice on this subject is to be aware of the states that consider ear plugs illegal. If you are driving in California and get pulled over, remove a helmet and pull ear plugs out of your ears; you have just bought a ticket. Strictly illegal in that state to wear ear plugs of any kind. Don't know about any other states.

 

[Chopin]

http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/er20.html
Well I'm going to give these a run for their money. According to their web site, three stores in my area sell these and one of them is at Dulles Airport where I can pick a pair up before I board the plane to Phoenix and enjoy a little riding in the helmet free state.

 

[dynodon]

Direct from CA law, yes, two earplugs are prohibited, but one is OK!

But they have exclusions, for the type of musicians earplugs I recommend, this would apply, allowing you to wear them on a motorcycle:

(d) A person wearing personal hearing protectors in the form of earplugs or molds that are specifically designed to attenuate injurious noise levels. The plugs or molds shall be designed in a manner so as to not inhibit the wearer's ability to hear a siren or horn from an emergency vehicle or a horn from another motor vehicle.

One reason I don't like the foam style plugs, they cut out too much, the musicians or motorcycle plugs let through all sounds, just at a lower level. Don't prevent you from hearing sirens or horns etc.

If riding in CA, I would recommend you print out this statute, and keep it with you. it is: V C Section 27400 Wearing of Headsets or Earplugs