SportEar delivers
as promised for Iowa agent
ST.
MARYS, Iowa—Brian
P. Maloney (OC-IA) picked up a pair of
SportEar
hearing protection/enhancement devices
at last year’s OC national convention.
After trying several brands on the market,
here’s what Brian had to say
about SportEar:
I
purchased a set of custom molded
two-channel digital Sport Ear
hearing enhancement
and protection this past summer
at the Outdoor Connection convention
in Cabo
San Lucas. Now that I have had some
shooting and hunting time experience
with the
product, I thought you might like
to share this in the Tracks Newsletter.
Let
me start with, I own just about
every hearing enhancement and protection
brand
name product out there, from the
famous names you see advertised
to the generic.
I’ve spent hundreds of dollars
on these other products over the years
and have never used them more than a
couple of times due to their poor quality
sound, hiss and the fatigue they created.
There have been times in the field I’ve
had to take them off to rest my ears
from the constant woosh noise they made.
The joke was, I’d end up with
the old hearing enhancement/protection
in
my pocket and the old-standby foam
ear plugs in my ears.
I
have now worn my custom-fit molded
Sport Ear on the shooting range,
in the
field and in the deer stand. I have
used
them for archery to enhance the
subtle sounds of deer approaching
from the distance,
and on the range for outstanding
protection. Fall turkey hunts have
been more enjoyable
as I hear the sounds of the turkey
approach well before he arrives.
This offers me
the advantage to be in position
and set for the shot. I really like
these in
the field or goose blind. I hear
everything clearly without the hum,
hiss or that
constant woosh of the other hearing
enhancement/protection products
on the market. I can hear the
geese coming and from what direction,
long before my fellow hunters hear
them and usually before we even
see them.
The custom fit molded
Sport Ear are not only comfortable and
provide
outstanding
clear amplification, their
rapid suppression for sounds greater
than
90 dB is absolutely
amazing. By far, the sound
suppression exceeds that offered by foam
ear
plugs or any other style of
ear protection
I have used. I am able to carry
on conversations without yelling
and also have the benefit
of the sound suppression when
the shooting begins. Even the blast
of my dog whistle
in the field is suppressed.
These work so well, I use them turned-off
as an
ear plug, as they are a perfect
fit to plug the outer ear canal.
I have worn
them for up to eight hours,
from
early morning goose hunting
until late afternoon
pheasant hunting. They are
extremely comfortable and the volume
can be
adjusted up or down very easily
while in place.
I
do have hearing loss in my right
ear which Sport
Ear was programmed
to accommodate,
allowing me to once again hear clearly,
directional and in stereo. These
work so well I have
used them while mowing
the lawn or running my ATV. In my
opinion,
the Sport Ear system is by far the
best product for
hearing enhancement
and protection
available. They perform as advertised
and come with a 5 year warranty.
Although they seem
pricey, compared
to the many
brands I have used only once now
gathering dust in
a drawer, the cost
is a bargain.
Finally,
what is the value of protecting
our hearing? The Sport Ear is a
small
investment when compared to all
the other sporting equipment I don’t think
twice about buying. I will never go into
the field, stand, blind or target range
without my Sport Ear. My wife says I
should wear them all the time so I have
no excuse for not hearing her. So do
yourselves a favor. Spend the money now
to enhance your hunting pleasure and
protect your hearing. You can’t
afford not to.
Good Hunting,
Brian
brianm@theoutdoorconnection.com
www.theoutdoorconnection.com
Guns Magazine, July,
2005 by Glenn Barnes
Without doubt the most commonly asked question
at any shooting range is, "What'd
you say?" The reason is simple--smart
shooters wear hearing protection and
therefore can't hear anything else going
on around them.
For years the best way to prevent hearing
loss while shooting has been to don a
quality set of earmuffs. They work well
and are relatively inexpensive. Today
there's a better way to protect your
hearing and it's called SportEar. The
technologically advanced SportEar enhances
your hearing by up to five times and
automatically suppresses harmful loud
sounds beyond 95dB. A gunshot is around
140dB.
With the SportEar you can hear normal conversations
in noisy environments such as industrial
settings or the shooting range and you
can even catch the tell-tale sounds of
an animal approaching while you're sitting
in your deer stand. I've done it several
times.
A few of the SportEar's trademark features
include hearing up to 50 percent better
than standard muffs, 32dB noise reduction
rating, ComfortFIT one-size-fits-all
design, on-off switch with volume control,
and CD quality sound. If you're tired
of asking, "What'd you say?" at
the range, and desire an ultra-safe method
of protecting your hearing you may want
to check them out.
What you hear is what
you get
Reviewer: Pte John Wellfarer, Army, The Soldiers Newspaper
Here’s an exciting concept – earplugs
that block out noises within harmful
decibel ranges, but enhance other, less
distinct noises, so that you hear them
better.
That’s the idea behind SportEAR’s
Digital plugs, which leap ahead of standard
hearing protection with battery powered,
digital hearing protection and enhancement.
The Digital plugs were designed for hunters and sporting shooters with the
need to hear better than normal most of the time, but still block out the
loud noise of firing a weapon.
The first time you put in a pair of Digital
plugs, do it somewhere quiet so you can
get a feel for them. They look too big
to fit in your ear, but they’re
actually quite comfortable.
It takes a little while to adjust them
into position the first time and it can
get a bit frustrating – when they’re
not correctly fitted they emit a high-pitched
whistle that will have you climbing the
walls with your fingernails after five
minutes.
Once the plugs are in position the sensation
is quite unusual – rub your thumb
and forefinger together and it sounds
like you’re running two pieces
of sandpaper against each other.
It takes some getting used to – just
walking around in a quiet place by yourself
you feel as though you’re making
a lot of noise.
In busy areas the plugs become more of
a nuisance than anything else nothing
seems to be louder, just frustratingly
digitised.
Wearing them in the bush takes even more
getting used to – you can hear
leaves rustling 100m away, but you find
yourself cringing as every step you take
sounds like you’re felling trees.
The one thing that might stop you rushing
out to buy a pair of hearing enhancement
and protection plugs is the price – Digital
plugs will set you back US$499, while
the Analogue plugs offer lower quality
sound for US$299.
I suppose it depends on how much you feel
being able to hear distant, faint noises
is worth to you, and how much cash you
have lying around.
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