ยฃ19.95 | www.auritech.info | 01483 516434ย | Tested by: John Milbank, Editor Motorcycle Sport & Leisure magazine
Sure, ear plugs are a pain. Yes, itโs annoying when you have your lid on before you remember them. And your gloves. And itโs raining. But being deaf is more annoying, as is tinnitus.
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These one-size-fits-all plugs are designed to filter wind and road noise, whilst allowing other sounds โ like your intercom, or the filling-station cashier โ to get through more clearly. Theyโre washable, which makes the price more palatable (water should be fine, but the own-brand cleaner is recommended), and come in a handy metal carry case.
To get the best fit, itโs important to put them in properly โ that means lifting your ear and pulling gently backwards before inserting and rotating the plug. I do have odd-shaped ears (I really dislike custom-made plugs), but I found that if I didnโt take the extra few seconds to seat the Auritechs properly, theyโd occasionally, and only momentarily, break their seal when I turned my head for a life-saver. Oh, and if you do use them, keep your ear hair trimmed โย itโs too easy to pull a strand as you dig your fingers in to remove the plugsโ small stalks.
On the bike, they donโt give the same isolation as the 3M EAR Soft FX disposable plugs I usually use, but thatโs the idea โ the ceramic sound filter embedded inside the Auritech allows me to hear speech a lot more clearly. In fact, I can hear a range of tones more easily โ a hearing test with no earplugs allows me to recognise down to a frequency of 95hz, and with the Auritechs fitted whilst wearing my Shoei Neotec with the front flipped open, itโs exactly the same. With my foam plugs, I couldnโt hear anything until 118Hz.
I listen to music on long rides though my Interphone F5MC, but I havenโt really noticed any benefit between the two sets. Itโs when talking that the difference is more noticeable, and I do prefer not having to keep asking people to repeat themselves when paying for fuel. There are safety implications too of course โ maybe itโs hearing the squeal of brakes that little earlier, or a childโs shout.
Before doing more controlled back-to-back tests, I would have said that these werenโt worth the money. I still think theyโre expensive, and I prefer the way I can just shove my foam plugs clumsily in and they seal my ears perfectly every time. I also prefer the fact that I can buy a box of 200 3Ms (about a two year supply for me), for just ยฃ28.
But having realised just how much better these Auritechs are (despite being a touch noiser than the foam plugs), I am convinced. Now Iโve just got to try really hard not to lose them.
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