Bluetooth earmuffs

[Martin Sculburg]

Hi, guys!

Looking for opinions here.

I had a gift card to Lowes, even though I dislike the store I bought their Bluetooth earmuffs for like $79.

Put them on and was immediately disappointed. Not comfortable and the Bluetooth setting was way too quite. Will be returning tomorrow...

Willing to pay the extra $25 for the Bluetooth feature. Anyone got some suggestions on good ones?

I paid attention to this list of muffs: https://homecarechoices.org/bluetoot...ng-protection/. And also noticed this option: https://youtu.be/XVA8NJXZYcI.

So what would you say? Personal experience: likes, dislikes, waiting vs. reality?

I'll be glad to read all your stories and suggestions.

Thank you!

[Patrick Kane]

Martin,

I unfortunately do not have any recommendations to offer, but i am also interested in upgrading my hearing protection with a bluetooth set. I currently use the 3M/Peltor red and black cheapies that were like $15.

[ChrisA Edwards]

I bought a set of these MPOW ($49) about a year ago, they have decent volume and clear audio.

I have a pair of Sony MDR-10RBT, which cost 5 times the amount of the MPOW, but the MPOW out perform them in noisy areas.

The MPOW also have active noise cancelling which you can turn on or off and you can hear the noise cancelling difference as soon as you turn it on.

I'm very pleased with the MPOW, thy last all day on a charge while I bluetooth audio from my iPhone, which I leave plugged into a charger while in the garage.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[Bradley Gray]

I have wireless bluetooth earbuds that I wear inside regular earmuffs - works great!

[Bruce Page]

I also have a pair of MPOW blue tooth head phones. They are good at reducing general shop noise; Table saw. DC, shop vac, but lacking in really loud noise protection like aggressive cutting on my cnc router, my PC7518 table router, or my leaf blower. For those things I wear my 3M Pelter X5 ear muffs with 31 dB reduction.

[Neil Gaskin]

We have several pair of 3m work tunes in the shop. They work well.

[johnny means]

We issued the 3M Work Tunes at work. They work well enough, but no one is going to mistake them for audiophile level equipment. I like that they also have AM/FM built in.

[Jim Becker]

I use the 3M WorkTunes headphones with the Bluetooth feature...they get a lot of use in the shop when I'm running my CNC and J/P and also when I'm out mowing on my ZTR. I'm very happy with them for the most part. I'd prefer better bass response, but I've found that almost all of these things underperform in that respect. I even sent back a set of IsoTunes for that reason...I found the sound to be pretty horrible and tinny.

[Roger Feeley]

Jim,

Can you tell me what happens when you have the headphones paired with your phone and you receive an incoming call while listening to the FM radio?
That's what I want. I want to put on my headphones and turn on the radio and listen while I work. But, when there is an incoming call, I want to be notified. I don't care if the headphones stream the phone call. I just want to know when I get the call. I'm perfectly happy finishing my cut, powering down the machine, powering down the dust collector, turning off the other radio in the room and then returning the call.

My understanding from the folks at 3M is that the only indication I would get for an incoming call is that the FM radio would drop out. That, to me, is not sufficient.

I use the FM Worktunes all the time in my shop and like them a lot. But what they lack is a way for me to know that I've received a call when running a machine.

So, here's the test:
-- make sure the worktunes are paired with your phone.
-- put them in FM mode
-- have someone call you

[Rod Sheridan]

We have several pair of 3m work tunes in the shop. They work well.

I also own a pair and use them in the shop and when using the snow blower......Rod

[Yonak Hawkins]

Martin, I use Sony MDR-10RBT over-the-ear headphones. They work well for me. One thing that's important to look for is a unit that will receive two signals at the same time. That way, I can listen to the source : music, radio or TV and I will hear my phone ring and answer it through the headphones (if I can get the dust mask off fast enough).

[George Liverman]

I also use the 3M WorkTunes, both in the shop and while on the lawn tractor. They pair easily and I find them to be comfortable to wear for long periods. Agree that they're not audiophile, but they are acceptable and for $50 bucks on Amazon, quite reasonable.

[Patrick Kane]

I worry about active noise cancellation, because it just tricks your ear into not "hearing" the sound by mirroring the sound wave of the disturbance, correct? Atleast, that is my ignorant and probably incorrect understanding of the technology. I guess what im getting at is active noise cancellation doesnt protect your body from harmful exposure to high decibel ratings. What i currently wear is rated to 32-34 dB reduction. I notice the wortktunes are only 24dB. Is this significant from a longterm perspective?

[Chris Schoenthal]

I guess I've got a little different take on hearing protection. Having done many stupid things in my youth (not worn protection in the shop and while shooting, rock concerts that were too loud, being in a jazz band in front of the lead trumpet, etc.), I've developed tinnitus. I don't want to have everything muted when wearing headphones, so I bought several of the HF electronic ear muffs ($15) to keep around the shop. They kick in on anything over 85 db and are rated at 24 db reduction. However, they amplify ​surrounding sounds under normal conditions. Most of the time I have a radio on in the shop and when I'm operating a machine, I don't want to be distracted by listening to something. For extended sanding periods, I'll put earbuds under the headphones.

[ChrisA Edwards]

I worry about active noise cancellation, because it just tricks your ear into not "hearing" the sound by mirroring the sound wave of the disturbance, correct? Atleast, that is my ignorant and probably incorrect understanding of the technology. I guess what im getting at is active noise cancellation doesnt protect your body from harmful exposure to high decibel ratings. What i currently wear is rated to 32-34 dB reduction. I notice the wortktunes are only 24dB. Is this significant from a longterm perspective?

From reading a few articles on the Internet, there is nothing I've read that the cancellation of the noise causes any bad effect, the noise cancelling creates a 180 degree frequency reverse noise, that cancels out the original noise before it gets to your ears.

My two sets of noise cancelling headphones also do not block out all the sound, you'll just hear lower levels of that sound. So I can still hear my tablesaw cutting or other tools when in use.

So if I rate my table saw as a 10 in volume level, with my headphones it's probably a 5 without noise cancelling and with the noise cancelling active it drops to a 3.