Next weekend I might be seeing three shows in three consecutive nights, and I know my ears are gonna take a beating. It's Devin Townsend after all!

Anyhow, I'm thinking of wearing plugs but have never bought or tried them before. Any recommendations? Will the standard foam ones from the drug store suffice for the occasion?

Rev, you're out all the time... do you wear plugs?

I bought ones from the audiologist. There are purple 32 or 33Db ones at walmart that I liked.

Earplugs? LOL

wat?!

i cant play or watch a band play without them

WAT?!

I have a bag of those burple earplugs in my car so that I always have them for shows if need be. They do the job, and should be fine for DT.

I would invest in the custom ones if I didn't think I'd lose them after a couple shows. The standard foam ones muffle to a certain decibel level of sound while the more expensive ones filter by frequency.

Check out Hearos. I've had my pair for about a year an they work great. More of an attenuator than a plug. Much less high end frequency loss. When I get back to my desk I will post a link.

^^this^^ best 15 bucks you will ever spend you wear them at a show and you can actually hear the guitars, the cheap ones sound like there's a low pass filter on your life.

^^this^^ best 15 bucks you will ever spend you wear them at a show and you can actually hear the guitars, the cheap ones sound like there's a low pass filter on your life.

I suppose I should give in to the pussification of metal and get some ear plugs

i buy the construction quality ones from Home Depot, they work just fine. i can hear everything and they are cheap.

i wish i hadn't been so careless and naive over the last decade, my hearing has taken an irreversible beating. i can't sit through a band any longer without them.

^^^YES!!! these are THE BEST. I've been using them almost everyday for a year. I can't play drums or see a band play without them. They don't block out high frequencies, they just lower the decibel level and level out the frequencies...I can actually hear more of the band with these in, all the things that get lost to your human ears at higher decibels...basically get these or gtfo.

http://www.amazon.com/Hearos-High-Fidelity-Plugs-Package/dp/B0037KM8QY

I use Macks Earplugs myself, but I'm starting to consider the Hearos

lol. i'd still like to hear metal when/if i hit 70.

I could care less about hearing loss... Who gives a fuck?

i dunno, drummers and musicians

Hah, a low pass filter on your life, so true. It's why I've never been able to use earplugs, but I suppose I should give the Hearos a try someday. Oddly enough, despite over a decade on stage without earplugs, I'm so hypersensitive to noise that I can practically hear an ant fart from across the house when I'm trying to sleep, and I can hear the low-end vibrations of a car coming from a mile down the road.

seeing my dad now scares me, he played drums in a band for almost 20 years and he can't hear a thing now. my girlfriend is very soft spoken and he told me "i hope she doesn't think i'm being rude when i just stare blankly at her when she talks, i can't hear a word she says".

Fact: they'll have a cure for deafness by 2020

I used to buy the expensive kind that have the filter in them, but i lose them too easily—no ear plug is meant to stay in well when headbanging. I usually use those cheap foam ones that you can buy in bulk.

Though I've devised a way to make them from paper towels or napkins, because I often forget to bring them. Tear off about a 1.5x5 inch strip (depending on ply), fold it twice in a manner so that it's approx 0.5x5 inches, then roll it up tight (I imagine most RTTP kids are experienced in rolling), stick it in your mouth or wet it under a faucet to seal it. If it's too big, you can always unravel a bit and tear it off.

Metal's three attributes: LOUD, FAST, HEAVY

Anyone who wants to diminish any three of those aspects = PUSSY

in the meantime, hearing aids work

For someone like myself, who wants to make a career someday out of my ears, it makes sense. Total sense.

only setting the volume knob to 11 is real.

those things are disgusting.

i'd rather be a giant gaping vagina and able to hear the music i love in 20 years.

I like the yellow E.A.R. foam plugs. I do have some custom ones but they don't block out as much (and I prefer higher protection over being able to hear some high freqs).

Gosh darnit I can abuse my body with every drug known to man but by golly NOT MY EARS! SACRED GROUND!!!

you can't be a METAL head if you block the METAL from going into your head.

the hearos earplugs are like suction cups. they don't come out. i have trouble getting them out. they also attract earwax well.

hopefully you all realize I'm joking. My lame attempt at being the new beelze has failed

Areeelze fo realze

Here's a thought on ear plugs... fuck ear plugs.

vocalists always say that

I suppose if all I could hear is the inside of my head screaming, I'd agree.

honestly, I use them about 50% of the time. Depends on the band and the sound.
the loudest show i went to this year was woods of Ypres. I didn't have plugs and my hears were humming for 3 weeks

earplug eliminate all the excess white noise so you can actually make out whats going on...

I blame scooped mids.

always cuts out the high frequencies for me. i'm gonna see if my health ins will cover some custom ones.

sometime I think they block out too much noise.. Especially for raw black metal

Blocking too much noise = they be in yo ears too fah

I know I should use them, but I have a hard time hearing what I'm playing with them in. I suppose I should look into some fancy jobbies, but meh, I'm comfortable with my partial deafness. I do use shooting muffs (I said muff, heh) when I target or clay shoot. Handguns are especially uncomfortable on the ears.

I've lost too much hearing already, Hearos or the purple cheapies it is.

All I ever hear is screaming inside my head anyways.

i can't wear them while singing and it sucks, because it's usually in the practice space where the sound is horrendously loud. if i don't use expensive ones then all i hear is my skull rattling.

Cool Hot Topic shirt slogan bro..

I'd buy that for a dollar.