r/guns • u/LowLimitPlayer • 10h ago
Earbuds or Headphones
I am new to r/guns and the whole gun shooting scene (Hi everyone) I’m going to the range more with my buddies and I want to get a bunch of gear.
Wondering what headphones are best for sound reduction that are comfortable; but not bulky enough to get caught on the stock. I borrow my friends and his has a mic on it and my other friend wears earbuds and I’ve never particularly worn their earbuds but I can imagine them being more comfortable and tactically better.
I know both can work if you’re shooting rifles and snipers but which is better for sound reduction and more practical in weekly use?
PS. Need cool eyewear too if yall got any recommendations.
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u/Slowreloader 10h ago
Use both, especially if you go to an indoor range. Even outdoors can be useful. Like for when some idiot shooting a 300 win mag with a muzzle break decides to shoot next to you even when there are 20 other lanes open.
Walker Razors for earmuffs and Beretta Evo Earplugs is what I use.
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u/Fermooto 10h ago
Both, I always double up. Especially true if you are shooting under a covering or indoors.
Consider that most electronic headphone noise reduction ratings are not really great + you create leakage by wearing eyepro. Foam earplugs can be inserted non-ideally meaning they do not meet their full advertised NRR, they can also migrate out of your ear due to movement, sweat, etc.
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u/dreadstrong97 10h ago
If im indoors, i do ear plugs plus electronic over the ear headphones. I do not like shooting indoors with only one set of ear pro.
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u/LowLimitPlayer 10h ago
Great to know. Thanks!
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u/dreadstrong97 10h ago
Ofc. For me, it's too goddamn loud with only one set, and I cant hear anyone talk to me wothout the electronics. Remember, better safe than sorry. Your hearing will not come back once you lose it.
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u/Txcavediver 10h ago
Buy decent over the ear and a pack of disposable ear plugs and double up until you determine you don’t need both.
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u/BourbonBrassArms 10h ago
I use walkers disrupter bluetooth noise-cancelling earplugs. They work well for me especially since I wear glasses and those can sometimes break the seal on headphones. That said I also keep a walkers razor slim as well as they still work and I have a tendency to forget to charge one or the other.
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u/Piss-Off-Fool 9h ago
Foam earplugs and headphones. Your hearing is precious, once it’s gone, there’s no getting it back.
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u/honeybadger2112 9h ago
I wear external electronic muffs as well as foam disposable earplugs. Often called double hearing protection. In my opinion everyone should double up, but especially if they shoot a lot, shoot at indoor ranges, or shoot loud guns like rifles and shotguns. Hearing damage is cumulative and permanent. If you shoot 10,000 rounds a year like I do (or the other cases I mentioned), you are going to want the maximum hearing protection possible.
By the way, frequent indoor range use can cause brain damage similar to CTE or breaching syndrome that special operators get. It has to do with the sound waves interacting with your head than it has to do with your hearing. But that's a topic for another day.
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u/Seldon14 9h ago
As some others have said, if you are going to a public range Id always double up, plugs and over ear. If you are shooting on private land outdoors and know what the gun line up is going to be sometimes just over ear, but I'd have plugs on standby.
For in ear I usually just use those kind of ribbed rubbery ones, as they are easy in and out.
For over ear I've been using the same pair of Howard Leigh Impact Sport for close to 16 years. Replaced the wore out foam with gel cups at some point(if you end up shooting a lot, Id just to this right off the bat, much more comfortable and better seal against your eye pro.) and put some electrical tape over where the outer wire coating was starting to split.
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u/Videopro524 8h ago
I am a hearing instrument specialist. I don’t like the term headphones because those for listening to music, they are not hearing protection.
For shooting I recommend over the ear hearing protection. Because behind the ear is the Mastoid Bone. It has air pockets that can transmit sound directly to the cochlea. Especially with concussive nature of firearms. Whether electronic or regular, get something with 25dB to 30dB of sound reduction, or more.
You can double down with plugs and over the ear hearing protection, it cannot hurt. However I had heard there were minimal gains. Unless the plugs are cheap foam. Sometimes those don’t seal right.
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u/Inviction_ 6h ago
Either plugs or both. Depends how I'm feeling. Exclusively both when I'm indoors
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u/59Bassman 10h ago
Both here. I wear custom molded plugs plus amplified muffs. It allows me to still hear if the range officer gives a command, and it helps a lot on an indoor range when someone wants to shoot an AR10 with a muzzle brake….at 25 yards.