Ultimate Hearing Moulded Ear Plugs
 

Hi everyone,

I bought a pair of moulded ear plugs (with speakers) from their stand at the Birmingham NEC last year to go with my intercom system. I have now been using them daily on the trip for the past 4 months, in the time between buying them and the beginning of the trip I only used them a few times to try and conserve them. About a week or so ago one of the headphones stopped working then a couple of days ago the other stopped working too, both with the same fault, the outer cover and wire have become separated just where the wires join the ear plugs.

I'm a bit miffed as these cost me £140 for each pair (I also got my girlfriend a pair) has anyone else had similar problems before I speak to Ultimate.

Thanks again,

Christopher

Yep, though my speakers never stopped working. On my Americas trip, the wires got exposed where it meets the earplugs so when I got back, I had to send them back for repairs which cost £40, wasn't happy about that. That was probably due to the way I was taking them out more than anything.

On my last trip of only 5 months, the wire has become exposed again, this time around the plug. A lot of this has to do with how you use it as I reckon the last problem was due to me carrying my MP3 player in my trouser pocket.

I also noticed that one of the ear plugs stopped fitting correctly and I started getting a bit of wind noise unless I messed around with the plug shoving it further into my ear. But they are 2 years old and have had a lot of use. I still have the moulds so will probably send them back again.

As far as sound quality goes, I thought they were great although they do take a bit of getting used to at first.

That's a very common problem, see UKGSer thread. Although I only use mine on long trips, and am careful with how I look after them, mine have become detached three times. The first repair was free-of-charge, the second cost me £60 (surcharge for quick turnaround).

They then failed a third time and I sent them back with a 'most unhappy' letter. They repaired them foc but took five weeks or so to do it which meant I had to leave for a four week trip without them!

The latest repair has included a stress reducing outer cable which hopefully will mean it will last a bit longer.

Tim

If you have any tips on how to get a repair carried out free of charge Tim, I'm all ears! (if you pardon the pun)

Oh well it seems I should maybe try and get them repaired, not sure how easy that is going to be though as I am already in Turkey, certainly not going to write off £140 though. I'm a bit miffed really that they didn't have some sort of stress reducing thingy as standard ......

Which Legal Service (part of the Consumer Association) says you can safely ignore limiting warranty and guarantee terms and instead rely on 'breach of contract' provisions within the Sale of Goods Act. This has a limit of six years.

You have a right to quality goods and services!

Tim

What do you think guys, is it worth it ?

I am going to head off with the misses (so £280 for both of us) and was looking at these very carefully. I normally wear earplugs and was going to buy the standard moulded plugs. Then the idea of an intercom was bought up, being concerned about hearing damage these seemed the perfect answer as I thought the "in helmet speaker" type intercom would lead to me going deaf in one ear. The trip would be around 4 months, using the the bike most of the time.

MikeS when you say "A lot of this has to do with how you use it" do you mean don't pull them out by the wire ? Does the helmet make a difference ? I have a Shoei XR-1000 with the whisper strip (so its tight to get on and off anyway)

Cheers

Yeah, just try and be careful when taking them out not to pull the cable. And as I was using my mp3 in my trouser pocket a lot, it went for the cable around the plug end. But it does take quite a few months to do any real damage. It took me a while to get used to them initially though and got quite sore ears after 2 or 3 hours but now can use them for a whole day sometimes.

ultimate
 

Had similar problems after a couple of years of not much use the speakers just gave up so sent back for repair, 95 pounds! later which I consider very expensive. The trouble was they came back very poorly finished with one plug incorrectly moulded and splitting so sent back yet again with complaints about quality. Waiting for reply. This whole saga does question the quality of this product.

:(

I too was looking at buying a couple of those moulded ear plugs with speakers, but I have to admit that I have too much to fiddle with on my bikes to have time to fiddle with the ear plugs as well. I think I'll stick to the disposable ear plugs. Besides I'm too forgetful so I'm sure I'd leave my expensive ear plugs somewhere and never find them. Like I've done with a countless number of sunglasses...

custom ear protection
 

Hi all, I have found this thread very interesting. I have just been moulded for a pair of ear plugs at the NEC from 'Custom Ear Protection'. This company had their stand right next to Ultimate ear protection and they were considerably cheaper for what seems like an identical product.

I know that in this life you only get what you pay for but as this is my first pair of moulded plugs and I want to try the concept out, then I thought that the cheaper option would be satisfactory. The standard moulded plug without any speakers, just the basic plug is £45.00 per pair with Custom as opposed to £70.00 with Ultimate.

I am still awaiting delivery of my plugs as they were very busy and stated that it would be three weeks for delivery so I cant comment on quality yet.

I have had second thoughts about my decision to have the straight forward basic plug though, I wonder if it will be too good at blocking out the sound?. They did also offer a pair with an atenuator built in which would let some noise in. I looked at these and thought that if mine were too good at blocking the noise then I could drill a small hole of about 2mm through the plug to allow some more natural (sirens etc) sound through. The difference in the cost to have the built in 'hole' was £25.00 per pair.

Does anyone have any experience of this company, based in Dorset, or of the effectiveness of the full plug....and what do you think of my idea to drill a hole in the plug, if neccessary?

Lee

Ultimate Ear (full ear squigeey ones)
 

I ordered a set of custom plugs from Ultimate Ear. They said they were busy and I still don't understand how in this day and age it takes over 5 weeks to make them (a gumshield takes less than a week from the dentist). I was expecting the plugs, when they did arrive, to offer slightly less sound protection than say, Max1 disposable plugs, but more a consistent application, cheaper useage and cleaner than reusing foam plugs. The answer is never quite that clear. The plugs are slightly noisier (as expected - read any of the comprehensive reviews available on the web) but even the full ear ones aren't absolutely guaranteed to fit as snugly as you'd hope (this will depend on your own ears and not how it feels when they are being formed whilst fitting). I just wanted to post this in case you're hoping for some miracle solution or something to take on a trip etc.. I will continue to test the plugs and will be taking it up with the company if I have to.
Safe riding!

Hi edteamslr, I did think that they would be better than disposable ear plugs in terms of comfort and noise. Do you think they are more comfortable than disposable? I would be using them almost daily.

Thanks for the info.

Hi
in relation to Custom in Dorset i am now on my second set of basic ear plugs - the first ones having lasted 4 1/2 years . Antoine ( the owner) says about four years is around the right time to change them . They were starting to get a bit noisy so the difference between them and the new ones was massive !!
Have no problem recommending this company at all :thumbup1:

We're using a Starcom 1 intercom with Green Leopard ear plugs - which are quite different. (plugs available from Fil - "schiannini" here on the HUBB)

The earplugs have a hole for a plastic pipe, a "sound pipe" which leads down to the mcrophones in the cable. So the stress is on a piece of plastic pipe which can easily be cut/shortened if needed. The negative is it does pull out very occasionally - but is easy to fix - just push it back in!

I'm happy with them, work well.

Fil will be at the UK Meeting supplying them.

so how effective?
 

So how effective should the 'custom' ear plugs (same as ultimate squigees) be when in use. I must admit to being concerned that they will be too good and blank out too much noise. I am eagerly awaiting their delivery.

When the moulding compound was injected into my ears it was super quiet and quite pressurised.

Thanks
Lee

How much is too much?
 

It's a good question. There is no doubt that (fitting issues aside) you will get excellent sound reduction from a set of custom plugs. By talking to different bikers it is immediately apparent that each person's sensitivity to sound varies ENORMOUSLY. Some people can ride without plugs for hours on the motorway and not suffer remarkable discomfort (ignoring the longterm damage that is statistically likely for a minute) when others can only stand minutes of riding at speed without plugs of some sort (me). A relevant example of this during the fitting of custom plugs. Some report incredible sound reduction whilst I myself found it to be no quieter than that which you'd experience from a really good set of plugs. It is colder and slimier though. If you're worried about them covering up too much sound then you can test this by putting a good set of Max foam plugs in your ears and go for a ride. The custom plugs will not be better than that (they are the same at low freqs but slightly less effective at high freqs - read up on SNR and NMR and compare what the different manufacturers quote).

My advice for anyone thinking of getting these plugs is to accept that you may be writing-off say, £50, to get them made only to find that they don't work or that they are the best things ever. They are comfortable, clean, convenient etc but, on the flip-side, they may not work for you. Just don't get £170 headphones made up until you know that they will fit and that you like them or you may be wasting your money. Good luck everyone.

In relation to custom ear plugs what you wont hear is - at low speed transmission and chain noise , at high speed deafening wind noise . You can still hear car horns and sirens so i wouldnt bother with the little pipe that can be added . They are far superior to any other ear plug i have ever worn , you can wear them all day without discomfort - so well handy if you have a noisey hotel room , they are easy to keep clean plus i use them for them for shooting as well . All in all well worth the cash :thumbup1:

CUSTOM plugs
 

The plugs have arrived, I am very pleased with the quality and finish on the plugs. The fit is nothing less than perfect and they seem comfortable, although I have only worn them for a little while at home.

With regards to the quantity of noise that is stopped, I can no longer hear my wife talking to me and I have a vague notion that I have two kids somewhere in the house. I can hear Sky Sports fine though.....strange that..

Joking aside, i am very pleased and hope to get a good ride in over the christmas break so I can road test them then aswell.

The verdict
 

Altogether very pleased.

Good comfort for 4 hours, good level of wind noise reduction and a funky blue colour to match my bike.

The verdict is that these plugs by Custom Made Ear Protection are good value for money and do the job well. What more can you want in a set of plugs?

Lee :thumbup1:

How do you intergrate ear plugs with speakers into a radio comms system with PTT button and mic? The only way I've seen, to avoid wires hanging all over is a throat mic with extra phones jack. How did you all do it?:confused1:

I'm not sure we all do, I couldn't be bothered with that kind of stuff, I just had earphones and an old mp3 player in my top pocket for listening to music on the long stretches.

while I'm here
 

Another piece of advice.
When the UK police have their earplugs made (some forces, with UtimateEar I gather) they do a 'Helmet on' impression. They squirt the goo in, put a plastic bag skullcap on and then your favourite lid.

I would say - ask for this and don't be fobbed-off. These things are supposed to go under a lid so get your money's worth and have it done in a way that will guarantee that when the lining is pressed on your head the ear plugs will still fit perfectly. They don't tell you but this is not always the case. Don't have the worry of will-it won't-it...cover your bases and do it!

I use basic soft plug's & have a autocom on my bike i can here it right through my plugs.
I also mark my plugs L & R at the base (opposite that do not go in ear), and keep them in a container to save possibility of ear infection