Who uses in-ear monitors?

[Mobay45]

I'm thinking about buying some in-ear monitors. After last Saturday night of standing right next to one of the mains, I wasn't sure I would be able to hear out of my left ear again. Seems to have recovered now, but I don't want to do that again. I hate ear plugs. I don't like the muffled sound you get with them. Just give me your input before I spend $500+ on one of these systems.

 

[TSanders]

Larry. For a solid year I used in ears. There are a number of pros and cons. Ill give you as many as I can think of for each.

For reference I used a Shure PSM 600 wired pack with Shure E5s (the dual drivers).

Pros:

You can gear EVERYTHING going on, if you desire such a mix. I got what my soundguy called a "CD mix". Super clear, and detailed.

The ability to hear EVERYTHING actually seemed to make me and my drummer play tighter.

Does help hearing loss.


Cons:

When wearing both earpeices, even with the E5s, I didnt have the bottom I liked so I usually played with one in and one out, to still have the precense of my bass rig.

IMO, if you go ears, cheap wont always get you very far. I tried some of Shures lower end stuff and WAS NOT pleased.

More to worry about (esp with wired), more cords, things to switch on/off, and batteries.

I dont use ears anymore because my band changed, and I preferred to not use them at the time. However, I think I will be going back to ears as soon as I get the chance.

Hope this helps at least some.

 

[CodeMonkey]

I find the felt that wraps them a bit scratchy on my simian ears and speakons tend to be heavy when hanging down from the ol' ears...



Acutally this was something I was curious about myself...

 

[Dr Stankface]

Travis, who was running the sound? Wasn't Jose was it?

 

[82Daion]

They sound like a really cool idea. I would have liked to have them for the gig I did last weekend, but the way the sound guys screwed up everything else, I don't know if I would have wanted their "handiwork" stuck right in my ears.

They left the stage monitors off and my guitarist out of the mix, and had the bass level up way too high, such that the first note I struck on the Bongo nearly brought the place down.

 

[SteveB]

In-ear monitors have been on my mind lately, too. I hope we can get more feedback (not to slight ebmusicmanlvr83's input) because I've been reading up on the Shure PSM 200 system (P2R receiver, P2T transmitter, and E2 earphones).

 

[TSanders]

Travis, who was running the sound? Wasn't Jose was it?

Nope. Andy Luker.

 

[Dr Stankface]

Ahhhh. Andy's a killer sound guy.

 

[TSanders]

Jose hes not though. Not even close.

 

[Psycho Ward]

I've used them in the past, I much prefer the excellent ear plugs such as the ER-25's, that way you still feel the bass and your pant legs flap, but the volume is cut and it's pretty flat, the bass still sounds good and so do the highs. Everything is still there, just not as loud. Getting fitted is around 150.00 bucks, I wish I had done it sooner, then maybe I wouldn't need the hearing aids by day...

 

[ExLurker]

I've never used in ears but sure would like to try. I've been using Etymotic ER20's (I think they are branded Hearos in the US). They make me feel a bit 'disassociated' with the band. I've just ordered some custom molded plugs which will have an insert with -15db reduction. I'm told these are much better. That was fun, having you ears injected with silicon and waiting 10 minutes for the silicon to go hard before being yanked out with a string, ear hairs and all! OUCH!

 

[strummer]

I'd sure want a good set of in-ears too.
We're not loud on stage, but you never get the sound you really want in the bins, so my own personal CD-mix sounds like a great idea.
If things get loud I have those flanged earplugs with about 20 dB cut, and they work well.

 

[Gerk]

I've used ears quite a bit in the past and no doubt will again in the future Love em. You need a good soundman/monitor man, at least I do. A terrible mix on ears is that much more terrible than through a wedge I've used both ER4's and ER6's in the past.

Right now I'm using ER-15 earplugs. I opted for the 15's because I didn't want to block out the full 25db of the 25's. I'm glad I went with the 15's. It drops the levels enough to save your ears, but it's still loud enough -- for me anyway.

Mark

 

[ExLurker]

I've used ears quite a bit in the past and no doubt will again in the future Love em. You need a good soundman/monitor man, at least I do. A terrible mix on ears is that much more terrible than through a wedge I've used both ER4's and ER6's in the past.

Right now I'm using ER-15 earplugs. I opted for the 15's because I didn't want to block out the full 25db of the 25's. I'm glad I went with the 15's. It drops the levels enough to save your ears, but it's still loud enough -- for me anyway.

Mark

Hey Mark, how do find the ER15's? having just ordered mine, I'm still concerned about hearing everything properly. All the advertising bumf says that you can hear everything as well as before but just lower in volume. If the non molded ER25's I've been using are anything to go by you definitely lose the high end frequencies. If you could tell me your thoughts on this I'd much appreciate it.

 

[Mobay45]

OK, it seems as if, with our p.a system, that I won't be able to get a mix just for me so I'm leaning towards molded ear plugs instead. For those that are using them, I see that some are using the ER15s and some are using the ER25s. I've about made up my mind that the ER15s will probably give me what I want but what brand to get. I can go to a local audiologist and get fitted for the Westone brand plugs or I can go online an get a self-fit kit from here http://shop.store.yahoo.com/earplugstore/er915and25pr.html

What is your experience with this procedure and custom ear plugs?

 

[0557]

A good pair of ears will run between $400 and $1000. I've used E5's and found them to be harsh in the midrange, but settled on "Sensiphonic" dual drivers. (around 650.00). they key is getting isolation with ears molds that are done by an audiologist. usually for around $100.
You can do some damage if you don't isolate them properly. by doing this you don't have to use as much gain in your mix.
These kids with I-pods are getting hearing damage because their using the cheap
ears that come with the unit and cranking the volume.
I do miss wedges, but only if theyre Meyer time aligned and on a big stage.
But at this time in-ears with a limited back-line are my faves.

 

[Gerk]

These kids with I-pods are getting hearing damage because their using the cheap ears that come with the unit and cranking the volume.

I think it's more about cranking the volume than the cheap earbuds. It doesn't matter how good/bad they sound, it's all about the decibels/SPL at that point :/ I shake my head every day riding on the bus and subway and hearing someone's music from their earbuds from 10 feet away. We're going to have a LOT of hearing loss in the coming generation. It's never been easier to fry your ears!

Mark

P.S. Tinintus sucks. I suffer from it. We have to spread the word people. Listening to 8k ringing in your ears 24/7 is not a fun thing to live with.

 

[Gerk]

Hey Mark, how do find the ER15's? having just ordered mine, I'm still concerned about hearing everything properly. All the advertising bumf says that you can hear everything as well as before but just lower in volume. If the non molded ER25's I've been using are anything to go by you definitely lose the high end frequencies. If you could tell me your thoughts on this I'd much appreciate it.

Very happy with the ER15's, best investment I ever made. They are fairly transparent. You do still get a bit of the occlusion effect (the "my head is underwater" thing) but not nearly as much as traditional plugs. The 25's are too much, even for loud drummers IMHO. No one I know that bought 25's are happy, they block out too much sound.

Mark

 

[Gerk]

OK, it seems as if, with our p.a system, that I won't be able to get a mix just for me so I'm leaning towards molded ear plugs instead. For those that are using them, I see that some are using the ER15s and some are using the ER25s. I've about made up my mind that the ER15s will probably give me what I want but what brand to get. I can go to a local audiologist and get fitted for the Westone brand plugs or I can go online an get a self-fit kit from here http://shop.store.yahoo.com/earplugstore/er915and25pr.html

What is your experience with this procedure and custom ear plugs?

Go to an audiologist. No comparison. While you're there get your ears tested. I have some hearing loss, and they tailored my plugs for my ears specifically. The audiologist will also be able to do better modlings that you can do yourself. THe trick is also to get past the bend in your ear canal to avoid as much occlusion as possible and this should really be done by an audiologist. The one I went to here in Toronto specializes in musicians, and is a musician himself. Great resources on his site for those interested.

http://www.musiciansclinics.com/home.asp

Mark

 

[Mobay45]

Go to an audiologist. No comparison. While you're there get your ears tested. I have some hearing loss, and they tailored my plugs for my ears specifically. The audiologist will also be able to do better modlings that you can do yourself. THe trick is also to get past the bend in your ear canal to avoid as much occlusion as possible and this should really be done by an audiologist. The one I went to here in Toronto specializes in musicians, and is a musician himself. Great resources on his site for those interested.

http://www.musiciansclinics.com/home.asp

Mark

Thanks for your input Mark and everyone else. I'm going to call a local audiologist today and set something up.