For those who wear ear plugs at Coachella ...

[nathanfairchild]

i'm gonna hold on to hope that some day there will be a quick fix for al the damage i know that i'm cauing to my hearing. but fuck hearing when i'm old, by then it'll be nice not to hear people.

[rodStewart]

You guys convinced me. I'm getting some earplugs.

[Undies]

This thread has been helpful. I'm considering starting another thread titled, For those who wear seatbelts to Coachella.

[thombjork]

I use the green colored cvs brand and they work great. They attenuate without losing high end. I use em every show i go to.

I never feel like a tool wearing em thats just dumb. You can never get back hearing once youve lost it. The ear is a very, very sensitive organ.

I was so glad i had em for soundgarden. That show was fucking loud.

[sonnyboy11]

i'm gonna hold on to hope that some day there will be a quick fix for al the damage i know that i'm cauing to my hearing. but fuck hearing when i'm old, by then it'll be nice not to hear people.

I gotta look back at previous posts by you on this but hoping you're just messing around. Please be messing around. You will NOT feel this way when you are my age. YOU. WILL. NOT. Instead, you'll hope your ears would stop ringing constantly and the fact that people speaking to you requires all your focus to make sure you understand the conversation.

I just got these

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001EPQ842

Great set of ear plugs.

[ManImCool]

As mentioned earlier, I have the Etymotic Research plugs, and was not disappointed with my selective use of them at EDC Vegas.

[fredbull]

Has anybody tried both the hearos and the etymotic research earplugs? If so did you notice any differences?

[Premium Roast]

I can see wearing earplugs to cancel out your annoying chatty camping neighbours (I did this), but not a "just for the hell of it" preventative ear maintainance thing during a show. That's ridiculous. Take it all in and let it hit you hard.

[sonnyboy11]

I can see wearing earplugs to cancel out your annoying chatty camping neighbours (I did this), but not a "just for the hell of it" preventative ear maintainance thing during a show. That's ridiculous. Take it all in and let it hit you hard.

Dumbshiat. It'll "hit you hard" when you can't farkin hear anything and there's no reversing the damage your dumbass did to your hearing when you had the chance to prevent it with nothing more than a minor inconvenience that accompanies inserting an earplug.

What the F? Did common sense just up and die around here?

[Premium Roast]

Oh, go smoke some pole if you enjoy sticking things inside your holes so much.

Just not a fan of earplugs at shows as they are uncomfortable, ugly, and muffle it all. Sue me. Did John Lennon wear em while Yoko sang? No.

[JustSteve]

get the right earplugs and the music sounds better. you also hardly know they are there. thanks for the fail, though.

[Dede' Arneaux]

get the right earplugs and the music sounds better. you also hardly know they are there. thanks for the fail, though.

That'll be that George Martin Abbey Road ones is it? Do me a favour

[sonnyboy11]

Oh, go smoke some pole if you enjoy sticking things inside your holes so much.

Just not a fan of earplugs at shows as they are uncomfortable, ugly, and muffle it all. Sue me. Did John Lennon wear em while Yoko sang? No.

[Premium Roast]

No, just digesting one of your Mom’s pubic hairs. Tell her to trim once in a while.

[rodStewart]

Wow, you are hilarious!!!!

[spiggums]

I really should have gotten plugs before EDC.... so much fucking bass.

The bass isn't really the worst part. It's the high ends that tend to do the most damage. Either way, earplugs are a must.

Just not a fan of earplugs at shows as they are uncomfortable, ugly, and muffle it all. Sue me. Did John Lennon wear em while Yoko sang? No.

Clearly your experience is based more off the generic foam plugs you can buy at shows. But the reality is that there are plenty that are comfortable, visually discreet and don't leave the sound feeling muffled. It all depends on how much you're willing to spend. Although honestly, $120 (what I spent on my custom molded earplugs + hearing exam, which you wouldn't even notice I was wearing if you weren't looking specifically for earplugs) is a tiny amount when you consider the overall benefit from them.

For those with a brash, cavalier attitude on these things:
one - you're deluding yourself if you think that just cause you're "not close to the speakers" you're not doing any damage
two - this shit is permanent. there is no fix. Once any part of your hearing is gone, it's gone
three - think hearing aids are going to help you out in the end? A: they pretty much work by damaging your hearing further and B: they're costly (and health insurance plans will not pay for any of them).

And fuck, when I was in my teens... I wish someone had gotten through to me about this. Cause I'd done some pretty significant damage to my ears before I finally got around to getting proper earplugs (Had them for about 5 years or so now... so I was about 29 when I got them).

Bottom line: you want to act tough about how you're not using earplugs and others are. You want to think that somehow makes you more hardcore. That's great. But in the end, you'll wish you had been a little wiser about this.

[dcbell05]

Whenever I forget how helpful earplugs are, I take them out during the middle of a song in one ear. That is painful! Like going from a hto tub and jumping in freshly melted snow.
I usually just use cheap ones and I can still hear every word said. That music is pumped to be loud enough for the idiots who have already lost their hearing to be able to hear.

[Fourthisto]

Whenever I forget how helpful earplugs are, I take them out during the middle of a song in one ear. That is painful! Like going from a hto tub and jumping in freshly melted snow.

That's actually when you do the most damage to your hearing... a natural, gradual increase of volume/noise helps your ear prepare itself and let less long-term damage occur.

It is when it is caught off-guard by a very major and sudden increase in volume that without those preparations can cause very brutal levels of damage.

Just ask Pete Townshend.

[GuyInTucson]

Premium Roast, you are way too fucking cool for the rest of us.

[Premium Roast]

cheers mate

but, seriously, maybe it was a bit pompous to come into this particular thread to express how I felt, but was just showing a flipside of the coin. I don't care for earplugs as they are uncomfortable to me. Maybe if I went to a million shows a month and my hearing was waning things would be different.

[PenisMuncher]

They're a must if you're going to shows constantly. But if you're just going to a show every one or two months (which I know isn't the case for most people here) I don't think ear plugs are necessary. But personally, I just bought ear plugs because I go to a lot of shows and don't want to be def when I'm in my 40s.

[Premium Roast]

you cute and wise

[Panda421]

Oh, go smoke some pole if you enjoy sticking things inside your holes so much.

Just not a fan of earplugs at shows as they are uncomfortable, ugly, and muffle it all. Sue me. Did John Lennon wear em while Yoko sang? No.

So how did that turn out for Lennon? Just curious... I'll wait.

[lowfront]

I have etymotic plugs and have used them every coachella except for this year because my brother forgot his pair and i gave him mine.

at the time I didn't think it the music was loud...i was in sahara tent the whole time basically....

but i lost some hearing after 3 days of it for sure.....

my car stereo doesn't sound the same since this coachella....so guys wear ear plugs

[localdesertrat]

what?!?!? I'm having a problem hearing you with the ringing in my ears!

[baily]

You'd think it's common sense to wear em'

anyone worried about how ear plugs look in their ears during the show is retarded.

Consider that you aren't talking to anyone during the show and your head is bobbing up and down...no one would notice anyway.

save your hearing

the etymotic plugs I used were great...much better than the foam ones.

[Vic Viper]

honestly i just use whatever cheap brand i find at walgreens. i used to wear earplugs to sleep but stopped needing them (and sometimes they can get uncomfortable if you don't seat them properly) and started using them at shows.

typically i'll take them out if i'm near the sound booth (ideally the show sounds best for the sound guy) or even further back. i used to take them out for "special" acts, ones i was most excited to see. however, i forgot to take them out during several "special" sets at coachella and upon removing them part-way through the show was often shocked at how fucking loud everything was and how great it sounded before i removed the plugs. the dome especially.

[baily]

honestly i just use whatever cheap brand i find at walgreens. i used to wear earplugs to sleep but stopped needing them (and sometimes they can get uncomfortable if you don't seat them properly) and started using them at shows.

typically i'll take them out if i'm near the sound booth (ideally the show sounds best for the sound guy) or even further back. i used to take them out for "special" acts, ones i was most excited to see. however, i forgot to take them out during several "special" sets at coachella and upon removing them part-way through the show was often shocked at how fucking loud everything was and how great it sounded before i removed the plugs. the dome especially.

Agreed....once you pull em out you don't understand why everyone doesn't have a pair.

[n3glect]

It's clear that the takeaway from this thread is: the older members have learned this lesson the hard way.

We all thought we were the exception, or that "this gig is so good it is worth going deaf!", but then you hit 40 and you have to live with the consequences.

I'd argue that the music sounds better with the right type of plugs. The draw back is that you really notice the shortcomings of the pa at different venues.

Luckily with the upgrades to gobi and Mohave systems, it's no longer an issue at Coachella.

[sonicc]

Can anyone link me to some good earplugs? I personally need some, I DJ on the weekend sometimes and haven't been able to find some decent ones that remove the unnecessary sounds that damage your ears.