Originally posted on April 4, 2019 @ 2:19 am
When I did my bachelor’s degree, I lived in an lower-level apartment off campus. Even outside the dorms and college life, it was noisy.
My neighbors sounded like a herd of elephants traipsing upstairs most of the time. I sought out the best earplugs for studying. I needed quiet time.
I tried many different brands and types — at various pricepoints. My favorite are HEAROS.
Find customer reviews of total silence ear plugs on Amazon.
Ultimate Softness HEAROS review
For a long time, I bought the 99-cent foam disposable earplugs at the hardware store. They were never comfortable.
The Ultimate Softness HEAROS earplugs are soft and comfortable. I wore mine for 1 to 2-hour stretches when I studied and tried them while playing the bass guitar. I don’t have any experience sleeping with earplugs.
The Ultimate Softs have a noise rating reduction of 32 decibels. The conical shape can be molded to the inside of the ear and provides a tight seal.
Noise isolation was good, which was important while I was studying. The sound of the footfalls was muted and not a distraction.
I could never hear the water heater or my electric heater running in that apartment when I had those earplugs in my ears.
I used the Ultimate Soft HEAROS earplugs in the library and lounge while studying, too. They were completely isolating. The outside environment was mute.
The only real sound I heard was a constant ringing in my ears due to too many loud rock concerts and bicycling in windy conditions. (I have tinnitus, which is accentuated when I use ear plugs.)
To me, the Ultimate Softs are good ear plugs for quiet study.
I did read that HEAROS came out with the Xtreme Protection, as well.
The Xtreme have a noise reduction rating of 33 decibels. HEAROS notes they are good for NASCAR events. (If you live in a party dorm or a frat house and need to study for school, maybe the extra noise reduction will help.)
Although I did use the disposables while playing the bass guitar, I much preferred the reusable Hearos for that instance. Let’s take a look at those.
High Fidelity HEAROS reusable earplugs review
When I started playing bass guitar a few years back, I picked up a pair of reusable High Fidelity HEAROS.
I liked the noise reduction of the Ultimate Softs, but they had too much of it for playing music.
I did not want ear plugs that block all sound. (Instruments are not noise pollution — just a little too loud at times.)
HEAROS notes that they have a noise reduction rate of 12 decibels. That works well for me.
These earplugs reduce the noise and don’t muffle the music. I like the flat attenuation of sound waves. They still allow the upper and lower notes through — just at a way lower volume.
I do use one earplug in my left ear when cycling to mute passing vehicles. They do not block out traffic noise completely.
Note: It is not safe to bicycle with ear plugs even if the laws in your state indicate you can wear them. They block out way too much background noise — i.e., approaching cars — in my opinion. Don’t try this at home.
Super quiet earplugs for studying
I prefer the disposable HEAROS ear plugs for quiet study. They block out a ton of noise and are super comfortable.
But, I like the reusable High Fidelity set for different purposes — i.e., playing instruments because they are not total sound blocking ear plugs. I, also, like that I can wash them and reuse them.
