Etymotic Research ER20 High-Fidelity Earplugs (Concerts, Musicians, Airplanes, Motorcycles, Sensitivity and Universal Hearing Protection) - Standard, Clear Stem w/ Blue Tip

Wore these to one concert so far, and it sounded good, much better than with cheap foam earplugs. Relatively even volume reduction across frequencies. Definitely going to keep using them to protect my ears.

I use these to block the TV noise in an adjacent room. It works well for my purpose.

They fit so well I wasn’t sure how well they did until I tried another pair.Love these!

I purchased my earplugs in November of 2011, and have worn them many times to clubs and EDM events. A few times, especially after I'd initially purchased them, I'd forget to bring them... but the ringing in my ears afterward, sometimes lasting for a day or two, was unpleasant enough that I never forget them any more. They are simply a part of getting ready to go out!I find the initial experience of inserting them to be a bit uncomfortable. There's a feeling of "pressure" as I push them in, but once they're in, I quickly forget about them. When my friends speak to me, I can hear them clearly -- in fact, it feels as if I can hear them more clearly than I can when I'm not wearing earplugs.Some reviewers have complained that they're too visible. I personally prefer the longer stems because it makes removing the earplugs very easy; and I've only ever had one person, who was sitting next to me and talking into my ear at the time, notice I was wearing them. I don't care whether they're noticeable or not -- I really love going out dancing, and I really love hearing, these earplugs at least limit the damage caused by the loud music. When I see someone else wearing earplugs, I just think they're an intelligent person. I don't think my experience is reduced in the slightest when I'm wearing these; I'm only sorry I didn't start wearing them years earlier.Sometimes I put the earplugs in before entering the venue, sometimes I put them in while I'm there. If I put them in while I'm listening to the music, it seems to me that the high tones are somewhat muffled, and the bass seems stronger, but the overall experience is still the same. I quickly forget I'm wearing them, and enjoy the heck out of several hours of dancing and music.I went to Denver's Decadence NYE party last week, wore them for five hours, enjoyed myself immensely... and then, unfortunately, lost them after I removed them and thought I'd replaced them in the carrying case. I simply won't go to loud clubs or concerts without hearing protection--it's utterly foolish, and I already know one guy with permanent tinnitus from years of raves and concerts. Because I don't want to be like him, I'm going to order a replacement set ASAP. Before making that purchase, I've been checking out a lot of other models and brands, and these get the best and most consistent reviews, both here and on other sites. I've been tempted to try other brands, particularly Alpine MusicSafe and DownBeats, but when I read the 1-star reviews, a significant number of people complain about difficulty--sometimes a lot of difficulty--removing the ear plugs. I don't want to deal with that. One reason I wear these consistently is because they're easy to insert and remove.I haven't had any problem wearing what are now called "standard fit" and what were, in 2011, called "small." As I mentioned, when I first insert them, there is a slightly uncomfortable initial feeling of pressure, but it quickly goes away and I forget I'm wearing them. Pulling gently on my ear to widen the opening as I insert the earplugs seems to help a bit with insertion, and allows me to gently push them in more deeply. I have never used them with the cord attached, and I've never had any trouble removing them, or having them stay in.I can't use these to muffle noises at night when I'm sleeping -- the stem doesn't stick out very far, but it does stick out far enough that as a side sleeper, the plugs shift uncomfortably as the stems and the pillow move against each other. For sleeping, I'd use standard drugstore-foam earplugs.I'm giving them four stars, not five, because as another reviewer pointed out, I'm confused as to whether or not these offer 20db protection or 12db protection; and I wish Etymotic would make that more clear. My guess is that they offer 12db of sound reduction, so I'm not sure why they're advertised as reducing sound by 20db. Regardless, when I wear them, I do not experience any ringing or high-pitched tones in my ears after the event. I think the only thing better would be to have some earplugs custom-molded and use interchangeable filters... those would be five-star earplugs, but they're a bit out of my price range.

I'm a concert photographer who has been working live shows for about two years now, and after last weekend when I went home with my ears ringing through the following day (permanent hearing damage, ugh), I decided to make the decision to invest in some good earplugs. I hate those cheap standard squishy ones since those feel uncomfortable, clogging up your ear to the point of total discomfort, and reduce your sense of hearing to garbage. Stumbled across these cheap babies and decided to take a shot.The complete package alone is pretty nice. They come in a cool, very compact semi-rigid case that comes on a beaded chain and it also includes a little cord that attaches both plugs so that you can wear these around your neck between songs, taking a break outside a club, etc.I don't have a concert to attend until Saturday, so I figure I would give them a thorough test run: Every day on my 30 minutes drive home from work, I wear these, just to get used to how they feel. They were a little jarring at first (I dislike things in my ears), but you get used to the feeling very quickly and not long after you truly forget they're there. I was paranoid about them falling out, but they're pretty snug and WITHOUT feeling like you have marshmallows in your ears. So, as far as comfort goes, they're a 10/10 stars for me. I also gave them a "head bang" test via some Pantera and Rammstein tunes, and they stayed in the whole time. Didn't slip once.Now comes the fun part: testing the sound quality and clarity. (Keeping in mind that I'm used to loud music.) My little Hyundai's radio starts becoming a little uncomfortably loud at about setting 20 if I'm listening to the radio and at 15 when I'm listening to my mp3 player via the auxiliary port. The max setting is 35, which I also call "beyond ungodly loud." I put in these earplugs and listened to the normal volume settings, and it did NOT sound the least bit muffled. I could still make out every instrumental part, it only sounded like the volume had been turned down a lot. Then I cranked the radio gradually until I maxed out at 35. (I knew it was loud given that everyone in my apartment complex that walked by and gave me a cold stare and a scowl.) The music was STILL clear, a little loud, but clear and not super uncomfortable. The only distortion I heard were from the crashes in a few Motley Crue songs, but I'm confident that it was merely the speakers in my Hyundai crying out for mercy. I listened to some Rush and Queensryche on every volume setting, namely songs I'm not super familiar with, and I could still make out and clearly identify each instrumental part. These babies do exactly as marketed: no sound is muffled, only made quieter. 10/10 stars for clarity of hearing.SO, to sum up:If you're like me and frequent loud concerts on a regular basis, are constantly exposed to loud sounds, and like me love getting right up front and by the house speakers at shows ... these are a must.The greatest asset to a musician or to a music lover is their sense of hearing: PROTECT IT, and as you age you can continue to enjoy your favorite music!