No two electronic ear muffs for shooting are exactly the same. These advanced high-tech hunter's hearing protectors are available in a huge variety of different models and come with a wide selection of features to choose from, which can make picking the best electronic ear muffs for your unique ears a challenge.
To help you understand the complex world of electronic shooter's ear muffs more clearly, I've assembled the following checklist to guide you through some of the most basic and essential features you'll want to consider when choosing the best electronic shooter's ear muffs for your hunting and shooting activities this season.
Amplification, Situational Awareness, and Safety
The key difference between an electronic shooter's ear muff and a regular old passive (non-electronic) ear muff is electronic sound amplification. Wearing ear plugs or passive ear muffs, you protect your hearing but sacrifice the ability to clearly hear what is going on around you. Electronic ear muffs solve this problem. With microphones on the outsides of the ear cups, and speakers inside each ear cup, electronic shooter's ear muffs "listen" to ambient noises and play those sounds back so you can clearly hear voices, game sound, and other relatively quiet ambient noises. On the bright side, all electronic ear muffs for shooting provide some form of amplification of safe sounds: from the humble Rifleman EXS to the top-of-the-line Pro Ears Pro Mag Gold, all electronic shooter's ear muffs provide sound amplification.
Hearing protection with sound amplification has many benefits:
- The ability to clearly hear voices
- Amplification of quiet game sound
- Increased prey detection range
- Improved situational awareness
- Drastically improved overall safety
How much amplification a particular ear muff provides is an important factor to consider when choosing the best electronic ear muff for you. The quality of the amplified sound is also an important consideration. Some electronic muffs, such as the Hyskore Stereo Electronic Hearing Protector, provide very basic sound amplification, while other muffs feature multiple microphones on each ear cup or employ cutting-edge amplification circuitry (like that used in the Peltor SportTac) to provide true-stereo surround sound for amazingly clear and natural hearing.
The Clipping Issue and Audio Compression Technology
Electronic ear muffs for shooting all amplify ambient sounds -- so for these ear muffs to protect you from dangerously loud gunshot noises, the sound amplification obviously has to shut down immediately when a blast noise reaches the ear muffs. So when a gunshot is fired, the amplification shuts off quickly (in a few milliseconds), allowing the ear muffs to provide their full rated NRR hearing protection.
As you may have gathered by now, this means that gunfire sounds will cause the audio you're hearing through your electronic ear muffs to shut down for a brief moment, "clipping" out the sound and, with it, your ability to hear ambient noises. The experience is a bit like a cell phone that is cutting in and out. Also called the "Dead Stop-Gap", clipping can sometimes present a serious problem, especially when you are out with other hunters or shooting at a range, where hearing voices is critical for your safety (and the safety of those around you).
Fortunately, Audio Compression Technology has evolved to solve the clipping issue. Instead of shutting down, the amplifier operates continuously -- and when a hazardously loud gunshot noise occurs, the amplifier circuit modifies the incoming sound stream, rebalancing the audio so the dangerous noise's volume is turned down, while safe, low-volume sounds continue to be audible through the electronic ear muff's speakers.
The following video from Pro Ears provides an excellent demonstration of the difference between electronic ear muffs with clipping, and electronic muffs with audio compression technology: Watch the Video Now!
Whether clipping is an issue you can deal with, or whether you need electronic shooter's ear muffs with audio compression technology mostly depends on what types of situations in which you will be shooting and hunting. Personal preference may also play a role here, however, as you may simply prefer to opt for electronic ear muffs without clipping to achieve a better overall auditory experience.
Hearing Protection: Noise Reduction Rating
Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) is important no matter what kind of hearing protection you are choosing, and electronic ear muffs for shooting are no exception. No matter what other features an electronic ear muff offers, the amount of hearing protection you'll receive from the ear muff depends on its NRR. The higher the NRR, the more protection you get. So as you evaluate the many features available in electronic ear muffs for shooting, always remember to consider NRR when choosing the best electronic ear muffs for your hunting and shooting activities.
Comfort: Ear Pads, Weight, and Profile
For your electronic ear muffs to be effective at protecting your hearing, the ear pads must provide a good seal all the way around the ear without actually touching the ear at all. The ear pads should be soft, so they may conform well to the shape of your head and provide an effective seal against sound. Any tiny gap where the ear pads do not seal against your skin can dangerously reduce the amount of hearing protection your ear muffs provide. In addition to ensuring the ear muffs are giving you their full NRR hearing protection, soft ear pads and a good seal around the ears also makes wearing electronic shooter's ear muffs a much more pleasant and comfortable experience, especially if you will be wearing the ear muffs for extended periods of time.
The weight of the ear muffs also has an effect on how comfortable they are to wear -- and the shape and profile of the ear muffs is an equally important consideration. Some ear muffs are very light-weight and low-profile with a slim fit, while others can be heavier and bulkier all around. Generally speaking, lighter-weight, lower-profile electronic ear muffs do not provide as much noise protection as their heavier counterparts.
To choose the best electronic ear muffs for you, you will need to strike a balance between a comfortable fitting ear muff and one that provides enough protection to adequately defend your ears from hazardous gunshot blast noises. Consider the acoustics of the space in which you'll be shooting, whether there will be other shooters nearby, and what position you'll most frequently be in while you shoot. Also consider whether you will be wearing a hat or cap while hunting: if so, a lower-profile ear muff is more likely to fit comfortably underneath your favorite hunting headgear. When in doubt, err on the side of caution: the most important thing is to make sure you have enough hearing protection to prevent permanent hearing loss from too much exposure to blast noises.
Color
Color isn't just a stylistic choice -- it is also a functional feature you should take into account when choosing your electronic ear muffs for shooting. For hunters, a bright safety orange may be the best choice during gun seasons; for other game, camouflage may be necessary for effective concealment. Fortunately, electronic shooter's ear muffs are available in a wide range of colors, from bright neon to convincing camo, so you can choose the color that best meets your unique needs.
Of course, if you'll exclusively be sport shooting or firing your weapon at a gun range, color becomes less a functional feature, and more a matter of personal taste. In those cases, why not choose a color you like? Your hearing protection ear muffs could also double as a stylish accessory that might make you the envy of your local gun club!
The Pro Ears Pro Mag Gold is a great example of an electronic shooter's ear muff that is available in a wide assortment of different colors:
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In conclusion, there is a lot to think about when it comes to choosing the right electronic shooter's ear muff. Considering the amount of amplification, clipping vs compression, NRR, comfort, and color are an excellent list of features to evaluate to get you started on the path to finding the best shooting ear muff for your unique ears. For even more information about electronic ear muffs, how they work, and how to choose, check out the Electronic Ear Muffs Resource.
If you have any questions or need advice on which electronic ear muffs for shooting to choose, don't hesitate to give us a call. We love hearing from you!
Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom Bergman, Marketing Director
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I didn't even know that there were electronic ear muffs. Sheesh. Can you find these using the best electronic deals online? I mean, I know you probably could, but where did you get yours? My uncle wants to take me hunting next summer, and I'm supposed to find the equipment before then.
Posted by: billshields2 | 12/10/2012 at 07:47 PM
Well, I got mine from Ear Plug Superstore. But you can find electronic ear muffs for hunting in many online stores! Just type "electronic ear muffs for hunting" into Google and see what you get -- there's a model of electronic ear muff available to fit most any budget, and shopping online will give you access to more choices (and more information) than venturing to your local sports and outdoors brick and mortar store will. And of course, our prices at http://www.earplugstore.com/earmuffs.html are quite fair and we're happy to answer any questions! ;) Either way, happy hunting.
Posted by: Tom Bergman | 12/11/2012 at 07:41 AM