Hearing protection in the field?

I’m mostly a small game and upland bird hunter, and I want to protect my hearing as I get older. But I also want to be able to hear what’s around me in the woods. What are my options? I have regular ear muffs for the range and foam ear plugs for the range and motorcycling, but those are more constant noise situations. I’d prefer something not electronic if it’s possible, or if I have to go electric I want something with good fidelity that doesn’t make it sound like I’m wearing bad ear buds. What do you use, what should I be looking at?

 

I enjoy the over the ear electronic earmuffs. They don't bother me or affect my gun mount. They also sound great.

 

If you wanna hear anything, electronic is the tits. If not, a pair of foamies in a pocket does just fine too.

Howard Leight makes good electronic ones that are remarkably affordable. You can crank those things up to ultra hearing levels too, but they'll cut out just fine when the shooting starts. I like them better than the Sordins I've worn that are 5x the price.

 

https://www.decibullz.com/custom-molded-percussive-shooting-filters/

 

These have been great for me. You can crank them up and hear just about everything but they will cut out gunfire. I’ve used them everywhere from sitting in a deer stand to a 2 day carbine course.

Howard Leight by Honeywell Impact Sport Sound Amplification Electronic Shooting Earmuff

$60 Howard Leight by Honeywell Impact Sport Sound Amplification Electronic Shooting Earmuff, Green

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001T7QJ9O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_bH0-Eb7EY08EA

 

So at the end of the day. Is it the Howard Leight?

I was looking for something compact ish for cheek weld as much as possible but... and this is the old lazy part of me....

blue tooth for when I’m on a private rifle deck and want to either bs on the phone or listen to tunes.

I was looking at some of the peltor stuff as that’s what was used when I was working years ago. But so much has changed and 3m website sucks.

In the world of rechargeable batteries, iM surprised this stuff isn’t made with a rechargeable battery pack etc...

so yea, end of the day, anything anyone can recommend with blue tooth? I’ve made it this far in life, time for some Gucci gear.

 

My Howard leights were great but the cheek weld was an issue. Upgraded to the MSA sordin supreme pros and it’s a huge difference in sound and build quality as well as I’m able to get a great cheekweld

Sordin Supreme PRO X - Active Hearing Protection Noise Reduction Safety Ear Muffs with Gel Seals - Black Leather Headband and Cups

$281 Sordin Supreme Pro-X Ear Defenders for Hunting & Shooting - Active & Electronic - Leather Band & Gel Kits - Black Ear Muffs

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NNN91JT/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_2-rbFbF4VK11G

 

Wearing hearing protection while hunting is a pain in the ass. Just put a muffler on you rifle. https://silencerco.com/silencers/omega-300/ That's what I do, works great.

 

These don't have bluetooth, but it does have an audio input jack. I've been wearing these for a while now, really like them and they work very well.

$32 Walker's Razor Slim Electronic Muff, Black

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AAH8CMA?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_dt_b_product_details

 

I have multiple pairs of both the Howard leight and walkers razor . The walkers are more comfortable for long duration wear (on my noggin anyway ) and have a better set of electronics when it comes to using the input jack

But both work well for the money

 

That’s good to hear. Someone who has both!!!

 

I shot plenty of 155mm with out ear pro.

 

I was on the side of who called a lot of that in...
hence wanting ear pro to save what’s left lol!

 

I'll bet you say "HUH?" a lot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWWDKZ-kydE


I'm not sure why I bother with hearing protection any more, unless I'm just trying to save what's left. 45+ years of using a chain saw, 20 years of motorcycles, 8 years of jet engines (USAF vet), and 60 years of shooting, much of it unprotected. I say "HUH?" a whole lot.