One of the unexpected casualties of the iPod age is banded, in-ear headphones. Sony used to make a set that really suited my ears, but they did not lend themselves to lazily twining around an MP3 player and throwing in a pocket. I’ve come around to ear buds, especially the higher-quality Bose and Sennhauser models, but I still find them hard to keep in the ears… there seems to be some sort of casual cocheal queefing that occurs that makes even the best ear buds plop out at the most inconvenient times.
Perhaps it’s simply an issue with the rubbery shape of most ear pieces. Acoustibuds offers threaded, snap-on pieces for most ear buds, and they boast improved fit and sound quality due to flexible, hypoellergenic fins and a twin-cone core design. Who knows if they actually do help keep ear buds in your slicked, greased up aural canals, but my instinct is that anything with ridges probably would, and if they can make those ridges comfortable, it’s worth a shot, especially for $13.
Acoustibuds [Official Site via Crave]
Just wear over the ear headphones if you want to. Actual tools don’t even consider that they look like tools.
Best value in earbuds: Etymotic Research 6i — often under $75. The ONLY downside is that they apply pressure to the ear canals. They do come with alternate tips, so maybe you can find a size that fits better.
Best value in CUSTOM earbuds: http://www.livewiresforyou.com/ — $250 plus a trip to the audiologist to have impressions taken.
I’ve had LiveWires for a couple of years, now, and they are superb. Because they are custom-molded, they do not apply pressure, so they are “all day comfy.” I can sleep with them in. They use a “wires over the back of the ear” design, so they stay in.
The only downside with them is that unless you get the optional upgrade to have a resistor added, they are SO sensitive that you will hear EVERY LAST BIT of nasty noise from the inside of your computer. (Or, you can get a volume control dingus at Radio Shirt.)
Want to bet they look like a used pipe cleaner filled with wax/skin after a day or so?
I still swear by my Sony MDR EX71 earbuds, but the crud that builds up on these smooth earbuds means that I clean them almost constantly.
These look like a straight ticket to yechhh…
My ears are too small for earbuds. Trying to keep them in a place where they don’t constantly fall out does nothing but make my ears sore. These look like they have potential.
I learn so much tangential info when I read your columns. It’s wonderful, but my office chair budget is completely blown and it’s only February.
“I’m kickin’ new flava in ya ear [Mack's the brand new flava in ya ear...]“
My only regret about the ubiquity of earbuds is that now, if you want to wear larger over-ear headphones that have better sound quality, you look like a complete tool in public.
Imagine how silly I’d feel walking around with these on: http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/518MXAHFEKL._SL500_AA280_.jpg
I could have totally gotten away with that in the 80′s. I’d have looked like a tool then, too, but no more than everyone else did back then
I just got a pair. They are going back. They are much too big for my ears & painful. Takes too long to wiggle them into your ear canal & then the pain starts, even after you take them out. I am STILL looking for earbuds for small ears. I swear the earbud makers are making them for 250# gorillas waaaaaa
You wrote this entire thing so you could say “casual cocheal queefing” didn’t you?
1. please don’t say bose makes good earbuds, all they do is good marketing. testdrive a pair of ultimate ears, or shures, and you’ll understand what earbuds should do.
2. my ultimate ears and shures I’ve owned have had 3 different sized “mushroom tips” a squeezable foam tip, and a triple flanged tip. Even the cheapest pairs do..
3. If you want your earbuds to stay in your ears, look into the designs where the cable goes over the top of your ears then behind, that way the weight of the cables isn’t trying it’s best to pull the earbuds down and out of your aural canal..
4. Sony EXR-MDR-xx phones do have a lot of bass, but that’s because they are trying to cover up the tinny highs and nonexistent midrange.
I’ve always wondered why earbud manufacturers didn’t make finned buds. Noise-suppressing earplug makers have been doing it for years, often in different sizes, and I find that these earplugs fit nicely and are comfortable. Here is an example:
http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/cb.aspx?a=279480&kwtid=208708
@PMH: I swear by mine too, along with my backup MDR-EX51LP, which are the same ear buds but with a standard length cable instead of the short cable and extension (it also is missing the large case but still comes with the small pill-shaped cover for the ear buds).
I got mine for $25, and they have better bass response than most ear buds costing over $100.