Q. What are the best ear plugs for bird hunting? What brand and model has the best transmission of sound for allowing the hunter to locate birds directionally, whether flushing or pass shooting, and still reasonable comfort?
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A. If you want a really great solution that lets you hear better than you can with the open ear, but which still automatically provides full protection against gun blast noise, the best choice will actually be an electronic shooting ear muff. There are many choices, ranging from around $20 up to several hundred. As you pay more, you can expect better sound quality, faster response time when the noise strikes the protector, greater durability, and more features. The Pro Ears Stalker Gold is a high-rated, high-end electronic earmuff with powerful sound amplification for accurate directional hearing. It would be an enormous asset while bird-hunting. And in fact, the entire Pro Ears Gold Series of shooter's muffs are excellent choices for serious hunters of all kinds. The high-end electric muffs are all fitted with plush, padded ear cups that should be quite comfortable.
But comfort is also a very personal issue; you may prefer an in-ear solution instead of an over-the-ear device, for instance. If you prefer ear plugs to ear muffs, hunter's hearing aids provide similar big perks for shooters in an extremely low-profile design. Like earmuffs designed for hunters, hunting hearing aids amplify safe sound while protecting your ears from blast noise. Each type of electronic shooting hearing protector has pros and cons, so you will want to explore the options.
All of these electronic shooting products will help you locate birds much more easily than you could with your naked ears alone; look for directional microphones and strong sound amplification to help you pinpoint your quarry effectively. The only big downsides of these electronic ear muffs and plugs is that they are generally more expensive than most passive (non-electronic) solutions, and they all require batteries/to be charged up before use.
If you are seeking a solution that does not require batteries, the absolute best passive ear plug for bird hunting would be the Westone Style 39 Hunter passive custom ear plug. These earplugs are custom-molded to fit your ears and your ears alone, and while the process takes a few weeks, the end result is unparalleled in terms of both comfort and effectiveness. These offer some of the lowest sound resistance at low volumes, so you can pick up on subtle game sounds - and of course any loud noise triggers their non-linear acoustic filters to reduce the noise.
As far as universal-fit ear plugs go (the least expensive solution by far!), I like the valved shooting plugs with variable protection like the EP4 PLUS, which let you block the filter for a solid plug protection, or leave the filter open for variable noise protection. These let you hear about half the volume you would with the open ear, and give you reasonable protection from gun blast when you shoot... not as good as the protection a solid plug could provide, but generally enough that your ears won't ring after a hunting session. And the open filter allows you to hear clearly, so you can locate those birds.
Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
Tom Bergman, Vice President
Ear Plug Superstore
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