What did you say? Alpine Musicsafe Pro Earplugs.

Posted February 5th, 2008 by Oliver Chesler
Filed Under: live performance

Alpine Musicsafe Earplugs

In about two weeks I start a string of live performances. Every weekend for a few months I will be in nightclubs or concert venues. I usually have to spend a long amount of time each night in the club and often near very loud speakers. I love the music and need to talk to people so I usually don’t wear earplugs.

I used to go to Sam Ash in NYC where they have a bin of free disposable earplugs you can Alpine Musicsafe Earplug Packagegrab from when you leave the store. But they were some sort of foam meets Play-Doh and completely muffled everything I heard.

Tinnitus can be a serious aliment and from everything I “hear” there is no reversing hearing damage. In fact, Pete Townsend said the only prescription for Tinnitus are anti-depressants! Yikes! I don’t have Tinnitus but certainly some high end bothers me. I also prefer eating in uncrowded restaurants. Surely these are signs I need to start protecting my ears.

These facts led me on a search for comfortable hearing protection. What I found was not only a comfy earplug but an earplug that lets some specific audio to enter the canal. This is great because it allows you to hear the music and conversations but blocks out the loudness.

Alpine MusicSafe Pro is supplied with three different exchangeable acoustic filter sets, that lower sound levels and prevent the user from excessive exposure, whilst keeping the frequency response of the music the same. The white filters offer the lowest level of attenuation i.e. for pubs, bars etc, the silver filters offer a medium attenuation i.e. for Live gigs, Musicians and Clubbers and the gold filters offer a high attenuation i.e. DJs. The filters are totally dependant on your listening enviroment select the filter you need to use carefully to ensure you get the right protection. - enhancedlistening.co.uk

Every now and then I will see someone in a club with toilet paper stuffed in their ears. I think these are a better choice.

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7 Responses to “What did you say? Alpine Musicsafe Pro Earplugs.”
  1. Kent Sandvik Says:
    February 5th, 2008 at 11:25 am

    Yes! It’s a must for anyone working and dealing in loud volume environments. It’s not fun mixing and mastering if you can’t hear anything above 12kHz…

  2. Mr eel Says:
    February 5th, 2008 at 6:40 pm

    I think it says a lot about the poor audio in a lot of concerts and clubs. Volume and bass are emphasised above everything else. I find it maddening, the the point where at the last few shows I attended I’ve left early.

    Just turning everything down would be a great start. I much prefer a clear and well designed system over a loud one.

    Must be getting old.

  3. Marcus Says:
    February 5th, 2008 at 8:07 pm

    My wife had to take medications to handle the tinnitus in her ear which she got during a concert back in 93.I guess the reason why people have to take anti-depressants is ’cause they go seek for help at a late stage and are just about to freakout due to that high pitched companion,at least it drove my wife almost nuts which finally even led her to suecidal thoughts.She then never went to a party without ear protection…I heard a few years back,actually I saw it on TV ,that they achieve good results using the same therapy they use on divers who came up too fast,sorry cant think of what that sickness was called again.Decompression?Is thats what its called?

  4. Oliver Chesler Says:
    February 6th, 2008 at 12:22 am

    Sorry to hear about your wife’s Tinnitus! Let that be a real warning to everyone. This is one of those problems that most of the time you don’t notice until it’s too late. Heed the warnings!

  5. Mark Says:
    February 6th, 2008 at 3:07 am

    If you’re not already familiar with them, you should also check out: http://www.etymotic.com/

    They also make outstanding earplugs for musicians that don’t drown out the treble and leave you with mush. Having a great set of earplugs is a must.

  6. Oliver Chesler Says:
    February 6th, 2008 at 4:44 am

    Hi Mark. I was trying to remember the name of Etymotic to add to the article! Big thanks for adding that link. I’ve heard about these often. These could be even better… in fact, they are more well known no?

  7. Mark Says:
    February 6th, 2008 at 6:07 pm

    Yeah, I think Etymotic is generally considered to be the leader in earplugs for musicians. Most of my friends who DJ (and myself) use these. They do some pricier high-end custom fitting stuff, but the basic ones are about the same cost as the Alpines. I’d guess that the two are probably pretty similar products.

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