So from the perspective of a former competitive shooter, these are intriguing. An NRR of 20 dB, regardless of spectrum, sucks and is in no way suitable for sustained exposure. However, these would combine very well with active muffs like Sordins. I currently use conventional plugs (29 dB, $20/200 pair bucket) under the Sordins and it’s a little too much.
JonDinKCYou're right that 20dB is not enough for shooting, but that's not what these were meant for. These are meant mainly for concerts, hence the emphasis on the retention of sound clarity.
JonDinKCEver stood in front of the speakers in a metal show in a closed club ? I guess not.
It can actually be painful, not just protection from long term harm, in this volumes you can feel your ears pressurising and it's damn awful.
JonDinKCKeep in mind that your plugs also serve as a backup if the seal on your muffs gets broken. A device designed to allow some noise through wont cut it if your muffs fail.
JonDinKCIt can make the sound clearer (loud sounds cause your ears to tense up for protection causing the sound to become muffled) and, more importantly, it saves you from damaging your hearing.
I can't think of any good reason not to wear earplugs. They're fairly cheap and take almost no time to put them in.
JonDinKCYou don’t have to apologize to us, but hearing loss is not a matter of ”mind over matter.”
94 dB or louder, about the volume of a gas lawnmower, will cause moderate to severe permanent hearing loss the longer you hear it sustained over an hour. Rock concerts can hit peak volumes up to 115 dB (or more, if they’re insane and you’re close to the PA speakers). At over 103 dB, you can start to cause Noise Induced Hearing damage after 7.5 minutes, at 115 dB sustained it takes just about 30 seconds. You probably won’t go deaf, not right away, but you’ll lose some higher frequencies, it’ll get harder to make out what words people are saying in crowded spaces, and the more you do it the more you’ll hear a ringing sound in the background... eventually all the time. It’s permanent and irreversible, no pill or surgery can bring back your full hearing. Hearing aids don’t make sound clearer, just louder, and they’re thousands of dollars.
Source:
http://dangerousdecibels.org/education/information-center/
And besides all that, like I_Need_Money said, your ears actually tense up and produce extra earwax to try and protect you from harm, and actually will muffle the music you came to hear. Most career musicians wear hearing protection on stage... why wouldn’t you?
JonDinKCAfter too many years of insufficient hearing protection at racetracks, shooting ranges, and concerts small and large - this "p****y".
I'm already living with distracting constant tinnitus, I'd like to keep what hearing I have left.
JonDinKCBtw, Etymotic makes a model of active earplugs for shooters: https://www.etymotic.com/consumer/hearing-protection/gsp15.html
The earplug provides 30-40 dB of isolation, but the speakers inside playback safe sounds normally and blasts at quieter safe volumes. This way, you can talk at shooting ranges without shouting, and if you’re hunting you can still hear the environment/prey.
They’re a bit pricey at $300 though, and once you ”activate“ the batteries they drain regardless (like all hearing aids). It’s a luxury compared to cheap earplugs and muffs, but for a regular hunter or competition shooter it might be worth it.