Ear Plugs
Seeing as how we’re doing DJ Accessories now, I thought we’d cover Ear Plugs.
DJs need to be careful about their hearing but most ear plugs muffle and distort sound making them impractical for use whilst working, especially if you need to be mixing.
I personally use Etymotic Research’s ER-20 High Fidelity Earplugs. They’re not the most comfortable ear plugs I’ve ever used but the sound quality is incredible. Unlike other ear plugs they reduce the sound by the same amount across the whole frequency range so that there’s no muffling or distortion. The additional pay off is that the sub-base feels even louder compared to the reduced volume.
There is of course a down-side. Wearing ear plugs distorts the sound of your own voice and it can be difficult to tell how loud you’re talking. This is especially important for DJs who have to use microphones during their performance. This is the same for all ear plugs though and, if you want to protect your hearing, you just have to get used to it.
Etymotic Research is a US based company but the ER-20 earplugs can be bought in the UK from Stringbusters. Unfortunately, at the time of writing the online shopping cart doesn’t appear to be working. As alternative, PJBox has them also, albeit for a slightly higher price.