doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Game ear suggestions

As suprising as it may be,and I suspect there may be just a few others here with the same thing,I have upon reaching 50 and enjoying shooting sports for most of my adult life,developed some hearing issues.Not counting the ones my wife complains about,my main one is the direction and volume of sounds.Been toying with one of those game ears for hunting,mostly for deer but will use to help hear the bells on the dogs while missing partridge.
Question is,which one.There are the in the ear ones and the muffs.What have others found work best for them?Also best place to buy them.
Thanks in advance,
Dave K

In-canal, Starkey Magnum Ear, from your audiologist.

If you don't have an audiologist, you will need one soon enough.

In-canal, Starkey Magnum Ear, from your audiologist.

If you don't have an audiologist, you will need one soon enough.

Sorry about the double post. Site is giving me the "this page cannot be displayed" message when I hit "submit."

The two custom in-ear ones (EAR ad the other one that I forget right now) are very good, espcially the newer digital models BUT they are EXPENSIVE.

A few years ago I paid around $600 for a pair of analog ones and the digitals were about $2k.

Essentially they are very high quality custom adjustable hearng aids with ultra-high speed cutoffs to protect hearing when loud noises are encountered. They provide plenty of protection for shotguns but may not be enough for magnum handguns/rifles in close quarters.

I also have a pair of Peltor electronic muffs that work well and sound natural. they are a lot cheaper. downside is you have to wear plastic earmuffs. not bad in cold weather but will cook your brain when you get heated up. they may not fit well with your hat on.

I've tried three brands and found E.S.P. to be the best for hunting. They located the microphone toward the front and therefore it does not pick up wind noise. I have the analog model and it is just fine. Another brand that I tried was very brassy and rattling leaf noise would drown out everything.

Thanks for all the good posts,will certainly have to look into this further than I first thought.I see no one seems to have gone the Walkers Game ear route which you hear about the most,I am guessing its just like everything else in you get what you pay for.

Walker outside the ear units work well but are annoying and uncomfortable. You will go thrugh a lot of their foam plugs since ear wax makes them dirty fast and they cannot be cleaned easily.

Walker in the ear units are nice but are made of hard plastic. They either fit or they don't. It is a lot of money to find out the hard way that your canals are too small,etc to get a good fit.

I have Sport Ear in the ear type which are similar to the Walkers but are of a softer material. A little better for fit. They are color coded for each ear.

Over the ear muffs with electonics are the best because they cover the bones around your ears which transmits sound also. They are horrible in the summer or even warm days. Mine cost aruond $60 and work well. Unless you get the best, ones that attenuate but do not clip, pistol shooting is out because of multiple shots keep them turned off for the duration of the string of shots. If you are talking to someone, you will miss half a sentence.

If you plan to have them a long time and don't want to spend too much money (they are all expensive) the analog fitted in the ear seem to be the best bet. ESP and E.A.R are two names that come to mind.

Best,
Milt

Get top of the line Pro-Ears and you'll never regret it.

I have had a Walker game ear for years. I agree; they are not very good. They definitely amplify woods sounds but are uncomfortable, ESPECIALLY with the cheap yellow ear plugs that come with them. The first thing I did was to toss them and make up a new one using a pink/orange Howard Leight tapered foam plug, which are the best available. V comfortable. The unit still seemed a PITA. I was hunting in fairly populated area and every 747 that came over blasted my hearing. I never seem to wear it anymore. I've gotten more use out of it in large lecture halls where I have to sit in the back and just use it as a regular hearing aid. It works great there. They'd be better used in both ears while hunting also as you hear well from the woods on the side of the unit but not from the other which seems very odd at the time. I bought the Peltor tactical muffs when they first came available and absolutely love them but want to go for an in the ear unit now so I can fit a fur hat on while shooting in the winter.