D'Addario Accessories Planet Waves PWPEP1 Pacato Ear Plugs Practice Aid, Black, Large

I've been on an earplug kick lately, trying out all the mid-priced and expensive ear plugs that claim to "lower the volume" without muffling the sound. Lots of plugs do a good job of simply blocking out sound, but a whole different world unfolds when you still want to hear things naturally, just not as loud. Some plugs reduce the volume well, but are uncomfortable or impossible to wear for very long. Some plugs I tried had the comfort thing nailed down, but just didn't sound as clear as I needed. Then, of the few plugs that fit and sounded decent, there was the issue of too much internal resonance (when you can hear yourself talking, breathing, things rubbing on your clothing, etc.).Then, I stumbled on these Planet Waves "Pacato" plugs. I found them after researching the "Pacato" branded plugs sold in Europe. More than just a plastic insert with a hole in the center, the diffuser technology used in the Pacato plugs takes a different approach to reducing sound. The result is an exceptionally discrete, super-comfortable ear plug that truly "turns down the volume" without the annoying inner ear resonance. They attenuate higher frequencies in the most natural way I've experienced from any plug and, while I wouldn't dare use these at a shooting range, they work great at bringing loud rock/metal concerts down to tolerable and non-damaging levels. They also work great when playing my guitar at louder volumes. With ear plugs, it's easy to the lose the dynamics of a musical instrument and feel detached from what you're playing, but these work very well and keep playing enjoyable.Highly recommended (and great price from Amazon)!

While going deaf for the rest of the night at a rock show is something of a rite of passage in my opinion, I'm starting to get too old for it, and the pursuit of a career as a sound designer means that I need to value my hearing more than ever. I needed a set of earplugs to wear to shows, and I wanted something better than the foam ones that are so ubiquitous. I like these.Any earplug is going to attenuate sound unevenly in some way or another; while I don't understand the exact details, I do know that it's basic physics that you can't attenuate everything evenly, especially in an earplug form factor. Using these earplugs, some high-end attenuation is very apparent. What's important is that it's not as severe as using the cheap foamies that we've all stuck in our ears at some point or another. I've found that over the course of an evening you get used to the characteristics of the attenuation, and stop really thinking about it. Unprotected, my hearing would start to dull after the opening acts, so that by the main event things sounded muffled anyway. At least this way I can walk out of the venue at the end of the night and still hear properly.I had some trouble initially getting a good seal in one ear. I stored the earplugs, unused, for several months with the second (middle) flange flipped inside out. Whether this helped or not, I don't know; but I store them this way so that the middle flange will hopefully get flexed a little wider and give a better seal. I don't flip them back before sticking the plugs in my ears, either. This seems to have worked, as I got a decent seal at both of two shows just recently. This was my main concern with the earplugs when I first got them; after all, if there's no seal then they aren't really protecting your ears.One quality which weighed heavily in the Pacato's favor over other plugs was that they don't protrude from the ears when being worn, unlike some others with stems which look like little alien antennas. These plugs are pretty discreet and don't look goofy. They can take a little effort to remove, depending on your individual anatomy. I have some trouble getting a firm grasp on the little tabs, but I've never been in a situation where I really struggled with them, so it's nothing more than a minor inconvenience.As a musician, I haven't used these while playing, so I can't speak to using them for that purpose. I would certainly want to take them out anytime I was setting my guitar tone, as the aforementioned attenuation is uneven and would give a very false impression of your tone. I suppose once the sound I was after was achieved, I could put them in and play, but many guitarists make minor adjustments to their sound constantly, so I'm not sure how that would work. I'll have to try them sometime.All in all, a solid purchase. Cheaper than going to a big-name show, and they should protect my ears through many of those.

Nice clarity and sound attenuation. I recommend them for concerts, clubs, loud workplaces etc.. Put them in and forget them. The sound is better than the ER plugs but those are easier to remove and insert quickly. Think about that if you find yourself taking your earplugs in and out often.UPDATE: I am still using these regularly in a live band situation. They are the best off-the-shelf plugs I've ever used. They are comfortable too. In my earlier review above I said that they were not as easy to take on and off as the ER's. Not anymore, I got used to grabbing the little tab. Anyway, it's been 4 months and I'm still happy with them.

Not good used once threw away hearing must be protected these are not good for concerts or band practice. Might be good in a library. Love the brand but this is not good

I go through piles of foam earplugs. I bought this set because I brought foam to a concert and felt like I was underwater. In brief: they sound much better on the high end, the extent they reduce sound is perfect for a typical club or concert (they'll bring the typical ear-splitting volume down below 90 db, or leave it fairly high if you don't push them in the whole way), and they're nearly invisible once inserted. They don't test much better than the Etymotic ER20, but those stick out and these don't. No complaints about comfort or falling out. The case is fiddly and annoying. Still, definitely recommended.

They do cut sound and at times if you're used to the cheaper foam ones, they'll appear not to work as well because they're not cutting higher frequencies more, so things seem louder (and yes they are), but they sound so much nicer than the cheap foam earplugs (of course, any protection is better than no protection). Other than them feeling like they're seated all the way, I love mine. I also keep the little stretch cord on them as these are super easy to lose and they 're not $1 like the cheap foam ones, so I like to keep them as long as I can.