The 5 Best Earplugs for Drummers (2024)
Ear protection is absolutely essential for every drummer. Hearing damage and tinnitus can really affect the quality of your personal and professional life. It is something that you can learn to accept, however, the most important action is always to limit any further damage.
Hearing is a musician’s bread and butter. That’s why every musician has to take all the necessary measures to protect their hearing throughout their career.
Exposing your ears to loud music (particularly loud drums) during rehearsals, gigs, and concerts could damage the way you hear and perceive music. Because of that, getting equipped with the best possible earplugs is a must in every environment in which music volume keeps extending 80 dBs for a longer period of time.
I personally wear either a set of in-ear monitors while playing gigs or a set of musicians’ earplugs like below.
When you’re choosing earplugs for your ears, you need to check the ergonomic features of the given set as well as the level of protection they ensure.
My top recommended earplugs are the Eargasm High Fidelity Earplugs. These are very popular earplugs that ensure good-quality noise protection.
My second recommended earplugs are the Alpine MusicSafe Pro. These are affordable earplugs with 3 levels of noise reduction.
Contents
The 5 Best Earplugs for Drummers (2024)
Let’s compare these in more detail.
1. Eargasm High Fidelity Earplugs
The Eargasm High-Fidelity Earplugs are a wise choice for all sorts of music events. Also, they’ll protect your hearing from noise in everyday life, from your work environment, and from public transportation sounds.
The ergonomic requirements are met with the soft silicone material that has hypoallergenic features. Since they fit softly into the ears, these earplugs can be worn for a long time without any pain or itching.
The manufacturer has anticipated that people have different ear sizes, as well. That’s why every Eargasm set comes with two different types of shells. These add-ons will help you adjust the thickness of earplugs to your ears. Still, if you have significantly smaller ears, think about getting the smaller version of the Eargasm earplugs.
As for the sound quality, these plugs provide a high-fidelity sound, just like their name says, by eliminating the noise, only to sharpen the quality of sound from the source.
Unlike cheap foam plugs, these earplugs won’t hush the music or lower the quality of the sound. To top it all off, the aluminum case comes with waterproof rubber, so your earplugs are always protected from dust, moisture, and unwanted rubbish.
2. Alpine MusicSafe Pro
The Alpine MusicSafe Pro earplugs are battle-tested, popular earplugs for any occasion. Their sound absorption ability is superb while retaining high-fidelity sound. This is a safe and recommended pick by many musicians and music fans alike.
The earplugs come with three filter sets for different noise reduction levels that include 16, 19, and 22 dB so you can choose the right amount of noise reduction you prefer for any given situation. Plus, they come in black and transparent models.
These earplugs are certified and tested according to proper regulations to ensure quality sound and noise reduction levels. They are made from hypoallergenic material to ensure a safe and allergy-free experience.
Drummers will seriously benefit from these affordable earplugs. You can also use them for concerts or any loud environments you plan to visit. They are non-intrusive and look pretty appealing. Overall, they are good-quality, high-fidelity, and reliable earplugs.
3. Earasers Musicians Plugs Medium
The Earasers Musicians Plugs (Medium) are a reasonable all-around solution for different noise environments. With more than 40 years of tradition in manufacturing music equipment and top-notch sound features, Earasers suits various ear types.
No matter if you’re a music fan who often goes to concerts or a musician, this set of earplugs will protect your hearing while retaining sound quality.
The Earasers earplugs don’t muffle music and keep the sound genuine while reducing the level of harmful noise. This is achieved by filtering out the unnecessary buzz and isolating the pure sound of music.
To cut a long story short, these Earaser plugs ensure a high level of protection and high-fidelity sound, thanks to the special V-filter. As such, these earplugs help musicians concentrate on the tones they play, as well as feel them more precisely when played with the rest of the band.
4. EARPEACE High Fidelity Earplugs
The EARPEACE High Fidelity Earplugs are super-discreet and comfortable earplugs for the modern musician. These cost-effective plugs are made from ultra-soft, hypoallergenic silicone and additionally, they are reusable.
In addition to being nearly invisible in your ear, these earplugs also offer good noise reduction levels and high-fidelity sound. They come with three filters for different noise reduction levels including Medium, High, and Max levels up to 26 dB.
I know that size is a general problem for most musicians but these plugs come in two different sizes to ensure a perfect fit. Naturally, they also come with an aluminum case for safe storage and carrying around.
In a nutshell, this is a good choice if you’re after something affordable but flexible at the same time. With multiple noise reduction levels and two sizes, it’s worth considering.
5. Loop Earplugs (Quiet)
I received a pair of these for free from Loop; however, it was my own decision to include them on this list.
They have a few different product options, but their Loop Quiet earplugs offer quite a lot of protection while including 12 different silicone and foam tips to ensure a good fit in your ears. I often find it difficult to get a good seal with earplugs on my right ear. I was happy to say that these do the job very nicely.
I found there to be a significant reduction in volume. To achieve this, it appears that they are blocking the sound rather than filtering it. However, as someone who has to deal with tinnitus, I appreciate a heavy amount of volume reduction when drumming. Therefore, I have found these to be a good option.
They’re pretty stylish, so if you want to wear earplugs that have cool aesthetic qualities, then these are the ones to check out.
If you’re planning to buy a set of Loop earplugs for drumming, then I think you should go for their “Quiet” option. The “Experience” and “Experience Pro” earplugs have a lower amount of hearing protection (though they do seem to filter the sound a bit better).
Day-To-Day Hearing Protection
Apart from music events, sound engineers, producers, and musicians need to take good care of their hearing in other situations, as well.
For instance, if you’re passing by a construction site, the level of noise might be unbearable. Similarly, long traffic jams can also lead to honking, revving, and other high-intensity sounds that could put your hearing at risk.
Because of that, you should always keep a pair of earplugs with you for everyday situations. I always have a set of earplugs attached in a handy case on my keyring. That way, you’ll be able to insulate your hearing from the outer world in case the noise becomes too intensive or threatening to your hearing.
Rehearsals, Gigs, Concerts
Many amateur musicians underestimate the loudness they’re exposed to during gigs. No matter if you’re a musician or just a gig-goer, think how many times you went to bed with a ringing sound in your ears after a gig.
The situation can be just as bad in rehearsal studios, and this is exactly where you could significantly damage your hearing if you don’t protect your ears properly. This is also the reason why many drummers wear headphones even for live performances.
Conclusion
The modern world is polluted with noise. Cars, construction machines, loud music in cafes and the streets, as well as loud concerts and gigs, all pose a threat to our hearing.
We should all make an effort to protect ourselves from such loud sounds. If you’re a musician who makes a living through hearing, you must always stay cautious and keep your hearing safe from any potential outside risks.
My top recommended earplugs are the Eargasm High Fidelity Earplugs, a very popular set of earplugs that ensure good quality noise protection.
My second recommended earplugs are the Alpine MusicSafe Pro, an affordable earplug set with 3 levels of noise reduction.
