Talk Morgan Forums Thread Like Summary - ear protection

been looking at getting some over the ears protectors used plugs but they make my ears sore .Just seen you can get get ear phone protectors with built in radio with stations you can pre select sounds like they would be good in the morgan and working outside.

Can they do an inverse version to block 'er indoors nagging...just asking for a friend

After reading this I purchased these https://au.loopearplugs.com/products/experience-plus?variant=47951806497106

Yesterday I went for a drive and not sure if I had a slight headache due to the cold or my cars noise. Today I did a 200km drive with the MG club and decided to use the earplugs. The car sounds so different, probably cuts out about half the volume of the fuel pump, exhaust and throttle bodies but the stereo was nice and clear. Overall while I like the sound of my car I feel for anything over 30 minutes I should probably use these ear plugs and I can still hear enough to enjoy blipping the accelerator

That seems a great solution.

I rely on a flying helmet.
It’s fabric with a wool lining. (From the local farm shop).
Warm, cosy and muffles the sound.

ps. Don’t worry Keith; it still allows me to hear police sirens.
Bud
4/4 - Stanley

These state-of-the-art earphones, for example from Apple, could be dangerous if you adjust them to create canceling sound against external noise, because then you are guaranteed not to hear a single siren, even if no music is played.
Thirty years ago, I also had a silicone impression made of my ear canal and used these earplugs very successfully in the rehearsal room. But I didn't like wearing them in the car.

Well, there is software that can remove a voice from other sounds, including music tracks. I don’t know if anyone’s put it in an earpiece yet though!

Picking up this old (and useful) thread to say that today I did some comparative testing with several custom-fit (ie moulds made by an audiologist) ear devices.

Goal is to protect my hearing on those (hopefully rare) occasions when I have to do a long stretch of motorway driving, eg to reposition the car for a drive in Yorkshire or whatever.

All these solutions let sirens etc through. They take a little getting used to -- and they remove most of the lovely Morgan engine noise which is unfortunate, but I'd pull them out once I get off the motorway. All have some wind noise with or without the side panels mounted.

1. Custom in-ear monitors from Ultimate Ears (US) - these have fabulous audiophile quality and near-complete sound isolation (I wear them on aircraft; their primary market is rock bands) but were problematic in the Morgan: wind noise striking the outside shell is very bad. Mine were attached to a small bluetooth box (Quedelix 5k) which allows some external sound to be mixed in. But the wind noise was too unpleasant, even when wearing a cloth cap with fold-down ears.

2. Musicians' earplugs from ACS (https://www.acscustom.com/uk/products/pro-series/). These have a small filter that "tunes" the sound it lets through. They were quite successful - no wind noise and a good reduction in road noise. Most importantly they cut out the high-pitched noise that makes UK motorway driving so horrible with the roof off. It think it would be possible to have a conversation wearing these but haven't tested yet.

3. Soft earplugs made for side sleepers from Ultimate Ear (nb singular - a UK company) (https://ultimateear.com/product-category/custom-sleeping-earplugs/). These are great for sleeping and produced almost the same effect as the musicians' earplugs, perhaps slightly duller sound.

4. Apple AirPods Pro 2, fitted into AirPod Gloves from Ultimate Ear (https://ultimateear.com/product/custom-apple-airpods/). Slightly strange gadget: the custom ear mould provides a little bit more sound isolation, but its primary goal is to hold the AirPods firmly into the ear -- I'm sure they would blow out in the wind without the "gloves". This was the winner for motorway driving. Apple's noise reduction is very good. Connected to an iPhone, I could hear music, podcasts, directions and speed camera warnings - and even answer the phone, a capability which was too modern for Morgan to include in my CX Plus Four. A quick click on the stalk and they can be switched into transparency mode which allows for conversation and returns some - just enough - of the outside sound -- good to do when you peel off the motorway and into a village. They do stick out a bit and perhaps a passing police office might want to have a chat -- but I don't see a problem as they reduce sound less than a conventional car would do. Somewhat clumsy to fit as you have to rotate the sleeves into your ear canal without rotating the AirPods themselves relative to the sleeves (there is a little hole which needs to match a microphone).

I've just received some custom earplugs from this UK firm: https://ultimateear.com - they make a wide range of specialist ear protection as well as earphones for music listening. Mine were for sleeping rather than Morganeering but I think there are several options on their website which could be helpful for driving - including a range of filtered plugs at various attenuation. Their process, which includes arranging for a local audiologist to take moulds, worked efficiently.

My Apple Watch keeps giving me alerts about dangerously high noise levels while driving the Morgan and I think it may have a point. In particular there is a lot of high-pitched noise on motorways (when they can't be avoided) which i suspect may be quite bad for hearing over the longer term.

https://www.flareaudio.com/en-eu/co...tection&filter.v.option.colour=Black

I use Flare earplugs for years now, they block the noise effectively, letting speech through quite clear though. I am very keen on my hearing, especially after I experienced an unilateral hearing problem some years ago, which proved to be caused by a left acoustic Schwannoma (treated by stereotactic RT with good results but ofcourse a remaining partial hearing loss left). It means that I have internal Lyric hearing aids just before the eardrums, and in noisy situations ear plugs to protect the ears, which looks like a bizarre situation but is practical for me. I still use my Flares in the Morgan with a cord in between so I have less chance to lose them, although I have a spare set with me. I tell the story because it makes you even more aware how important it is to preserve your hearing. In my case, to preserve what I thankfully still have, all-be-it less than ideal!