I'm hoping to find the ER20s somewhere or something similar. If not, I really like the CVS brand earplugs - they come with a little carrying case and cost around $6. I can't do foam plugs, they bother me too much.

quote:

Originally posted by in2muzikk Guitar Center should have HEAROS super soft foam plugs and maybe the flanged musician's earplugs. Many drugstores also carry the HEAROS ones. If using the flanged musicians' plugs for the first time, I recommend taking some foam ones as backup, as effectiveness of the flanged earplugs is largely dependent on fit and comfort. Hope this helps, enjoy EDC!

this is cool: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-...ted-mammal.html

quote:

In the Jan. 10 issue of Neuron, Massachusetts Eye and Ear and Harvard Medical School researchers demonstrate for the first time that hair cells can be regenerated in an adult mammalian ear by using a drug to stimulate resident cells to become new hair cells, resulting in partial recovery of hearing in mouse ears damaged by noise trauma. This finding holds great potential for future therapeutic application that may someday reverse deafness in humans. "Hair cells are the primary receptor cells for sound and are responsible for the sense of hearing," explains senior author, Dr. Albert Edge, of Harvard Medical School and Mass. Eye and Ear. "We show that hair cells can be generated in a damaged cochlea and that hair cell replacement leads to an improvement in hearing." Read more at: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-...mammal.html#jCp

Some new developments with smartphone sound pressure level apps: The CDC analyzed 130 iOS apps and selected the ten best for testing. The results are published in their "NIOSH Science Blog:"

http://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-.../09/sound-apps/

Although the CDC doesn't recommend or endorse any apps, they stated that two of them had the best accuracy over their testing range:

Soundmeter

SPLnFFT

The current version of SPLnFFT is reported to measure up to 130db:

http://www.safetyawakenings.com/the...ust-got-better/

If this information is accurate, then it may finally be possible to measure the sound level at nightclubs using an iPhone with this $3.99 app! Other apps generally state that the iPhone's mic input level gets too distorted around 100db, but some may be taking advantage of a gain adjustment setting to achieve the higher measurements.

Calibration is necessary with any of these apps to ensure accuracy, and it usually involves testing the iPhone with the app loaded against a test tone that has previously been calibrated. It's not a cheap process, so I doubt that many would do it, but the SPLnFFT app has measured well against professionally calibrated meters in some tests.

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Last edited by in2muzikk on Jul-28-2014 at 08:39

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02132130

the future is here

Well, after reading everything, it does indeed look promising if one person has already been "cured" of hearing loss. But looks like we'll need to wait until 2017 for results of the clinical trial, especially to make sure nobody dies, gets cancer, etc. from the treatments.

I'd also wonder about the quality of hearing after such restoration, and if exposure to loud noise afterwards brings back hearing loss all over again. And, of course, it's not all just "hearing loss," as many people also suffer from hyperacusis, tinnitus, etc.

But I really hope it works, and that the future is getting closer!

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Now nine years after starting this thread, something truly amazing has happened: I'm successfully wearing custom earplugs! I attended a Native Instruments workshop back in February, and ACS Custom had a booth there. ACS now has offices in Hollywood, San Francisco and New York. At the workshop, I spoke with Adam Rhodes, Director, at length about my difficulties with getting custom earplugs fitted properly.

He was confident that ACS Custom earplugs would work for me, and explained that they are made from a softer silicone that expands in the ear canal when warmed up, and they also have smaller filters, so the earplug seats deeper into the ear. He fitted me on the spot for them, and I received a good professional discount for attending the workshop. He even said they would keep working with me to make sure they were fitted properly, so what did I have to lose except my hearing?

Unlike any other custom earplugs I've had fitted in the past, they came in the mail, saving a trip back to the audiologist. The right earplug sealed really well, but not the left one, so I was halfway there.

Two more visits back to their office and four impressions later, I received a slightly longer version of the left earplug that goes a bit into the second ear canal. It seems that my left ear canal makes an odd twist and the eardrum isn't straight ahead, but off at an angle.

And I'm really happy to say that they work! I'm using the Pro 26 filter with them and have gone through a big three day music festival using them. Sound levels measured 103dbA to 105dbA on the various stages, and I didn't have any ringing in the ears afterwards!

Best of all, my impressions will be on file for four years, so that incredibly difficult to fit left earplug can be remade without another impression fitting, if ever needed. I can't recommend ACS Custom highly enough. Where others stop and give up, ACS Custom is committed to getting it right and stand behind their product. If they can fit me, they can probably fit virtually anyone!

Contact information for ACS Custom is on the first page of this thread under "3. Local (West Coast) Resources: Audiologists/Custom Earplug Vendors."

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Approximately how much was it in total?

quote:

Two more visits back to their office and four impressions later

Was $150 total with the producer discount. Then I went to IMSTA Festa and got a pair for free under the Music Cares charity program. All attendees were eligible.

If you're not in a hurry, check their website on black Friday after Thanksgiving. Historically, they have offered 35-40% discounts (one day only).

Regular price for a pair of their custom earplugs is $185. So also wise to compare that against what one's hearing is worth (priceless imo). 😀

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NIOSH has now come up with it's own Sound Meter app, available only for iOS (reasons for that explained within the article):

https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science.../01/17/slm-app/

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