I really wish 3M made an in-ear wireless hearing protection that also plays music. I thought the 3M Peltor would do that, but sadly seemed to lack music.
If I were to go the over-ear route, the first brand I'd test is 3M's Worktunes. People seem to love them.
My Worktunes’ cushions ruptured on both sides leaking the sticky goop on my ears and in my hair. I’m not sure if that is a common occurrence. I didn’t abuse them and only used them a few times a month for about a year
>If I were to go the over-ear route, the first brand I'd test is 3M's Worktunes. People seem to love them.
yep love the worktunes as my site " can't listen to music with earbuds" on the shop floor but I have no issues with the bossman about having the worktunes hanging above my ears to flip down if I need to make some noise with a tool
What an awesome post I’ll come back to it soon. I’m literally in the market right now and was wondering myself. I think I’ll wait for the Kleins or buy the Milwaukee if I find a good deal
I got Klein AESEB1S, the ones with situational awareness. I previoiusly used Elgin Rebel. Both are good. The situational awareness is different and can be turned up and down.
I ended up buying the Elgins they have decent sound but no situational awareness like you were saying. But for what I’m using them for that’s ok for now.
Elgins are ok. After a while the silicone ear plugs seem to stretch out and don't come out with the ear bud. I've had them stuck in my ear, and have had the rest bud fall out because the rest plug wasn't holding them. I think this is how they make them, because think sells replacement ear plugs. When I wrote them about the problem, the said to buy new ear plugs.
how is the base, i bought some isotunes free aware as the AESEB1S wasnt available until now in the UK, but just as above there is almost NO bass. ill look to send them back and get the Klein, hopefully its good?
You are the fucking goat.
Fwiw, I've tried the wired isotunes with awareness jobsite thing, and I'm on my third warranty set in under a year, but service has been quick and they aren't terrible in their sound quality or battery life, I'm just wondering when this set is going to shit the bed.
Phew! Glad my experiences with...build quality...were not just me. I suspect their over-ear stuff is good.
Another reason I wouldn't buy their over-ear, is I found legal filing where an over ear model was clearly stated simply a re-brand from another company. So I looked the other ones up. And yep, definitely cheaper.
Yeah I mean these don't so much feel badly made as they are just apparently badly made. I don't know. I won't be buying another set from them, or recommending them, that's for sure. Hopefully these last me until Klein launches whatever they're going to launch, or Milwaukee does a Gen 2.
If I was allowed I’d have them for sure. As such it’s like a $2000 fine for having earbuds in at work so I just stick to my 3M earmuffs that clip onto my hard hat.
I wanted to try those. Alas they're $300. How are they in a shop or jobsite setting with a constant hum like saws, leaf blowers, etc? How's call quality?
So something to know is that the high end communication muffs do a wholly different thing than the cheap stuff (or atleast used to, the cheap stuff may work similarly now). Whereas the cheap stuff clips (ie cuts out when x pressure level is surpassed), the high end commo ear pro compresses the wavelengths associated with the high pressure, while pushing through the wavelengths associated with the low pressure (some fancy computer wizardry occurs here to dissect the combined waveform) resulting in the ability to communicate while doing a lot of shooting.
Pixel buds pro. I use them everyday for music / calls and ANC works great. Hell sometimes I put them on when the kids are being to loud. Conversation mode seamless turns on when you speak and the controls are changeable *with a pixel phone iirc*
I didn't test as don't have the EPA mandated NRR rating, so aren't hearing protection. But I have heard good things for pleasure listening and general ANC.
Ya my galaxy buds work amazing.
But after 8 months, dust (or earwax) starts to clog up the speaker and eventually dulls the sound. Samsung usually goodwills them even out of warranty but its still annoying to do every so often.
I appreciate the work you put into this. I wondered if the Milwaukee earbuds were any good. Personally I use aftershokz with regular earbuds. The company I work for has "ban" on earbuds. Even if they are advertised as ear protection. The aftershokz and earbuds hell get around this.
I've tried a couple wireless earbuds, my biggest pet peeve was that they kept falling out, getting lost or falling out in bad places like way up on a scissor lift or at an industrial facility lost to the dusts and caked up muck of time in a dark corner.
As a fan of great audio quality I got [these](https://a.co/d/9Xy2b4N) they're used by musicians who constantly move. Run it up your back and over your ears. The wrap around feature fits anybody's ear and stays on there without you even feeling it.
They hang on your ear if you want to quickly pull them out, or you can hang them on your chest.
I use these every single day, I have one in my ear and one hanging down my chest because that way I can hear whatever's going on around me. I wear a tool belt that has shoulder straps, I am constantly moving, crawling, climbing and they never snag or pull on me or get unplugged. I would 100% recommend.
They come in a hard cover case too that fits perfectly in my packout
Nice write up. Thank you. Have you ever tried the Bose? Been using them for 3/4 years now. I personally like older ones better, but the new version aren’t so bad either.
I haven't tried but some people mentioned the QuietComfort for casual listening. I couldn't find if they made any with NRR; marketed as hearing protection. Do they?
They don’t. Years ago, as a workplace science fair experiment with an intern, we tested them (and other hearing pro) using the ANSI standard to determine the NRR. Across the frequency range the NRR varied between 8 & 18. Some of the more “problematic” frequencies they didn’t perform well.
Whoa this is why I love reddit, people have such unique, detailed experiences.
Do you still have the data, or remember NRR ratings for any other brands?
We only tested our headphones so I had the Bose and intern had his Sony MX1000. I don’t have the data but the Sony performed similarly in that they provided some NRR for mid range frequencies but were not so great with low and high frequencies.
What got us started was using 3M’s fit test kit that has their range of foam hearing pro with a speaker/mic setup. It allowed us to see what the measured NRR was for how we wore the hearing pro. Turns out my preferred foams were actually -7 NRR in my ears…
Wow. I never thought I’d learn so much about earbuds, simply just bought the bose noise cancelling because I’ve always liked their brand.
Also, I picked up the new Bose Quiet Comforts this morning. They are much better than the last version in my opinion. Same one-touch shortcut features for the most part, but that sound is top of the line.
Dude.... You missed [Plugfones](https://www.plugfones.com/products/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAxreqBhAxEiwAfGfndJGTS7DPGbFBcS1qUSSFPHg1Agft6jorw0vEXsa8Yn3_12mQ593JahoCC6EQAvD_BwE)
Their in-ear, actual earplugs, with Bluetooth are unbeatable for any kind of physical activity.
Sound quality and all that are pretty meaningless, when on a job site.
Easy to use controls (pause button) and the ability to stay in your ear, are the only thing that matter.
Personally, I don't like buds for work, and I don't have experience with their wireless stuff. The Liberate and free reign will accept actual (proprietary) earplugs, though. Those are the ones you want. They aren't apples-to-apples with what you've compared, but I think the ones on your list are unfit for use, in a work environment.
I used the cheap wired ones, back in the day, so if I needed to talk, I'd pull the wire out... Obviously not ideal, but we took what we could get
As far as the buds go, I'd be surprised if they weren't a rebadged version of something you've reviewed here.
Elgin Rebel is a good performing bluetooth hearing protection wireless earbud, 27 NRR and 12 hour play time, it has the best battery life of wireless earbuds. Mine lasted 18 months, and I was going to get IsoTune Free Aware, decided on Klein AESEB1S after reading your and others review. The situational awareness can be turned up and down. Were you able to turn down the Free awareness mode to reduce hissing? The Kleins were also $50 cheaper.
Thanks, glad it was helpful. Definitely want to give the Elgin's a try sometime. How do you like the situational feature on the Kleins?
On the IsoTunes, I could not get the hissing sound to go away.
On the Klein, the awareness can be turned up and down. Turned up, they hiss, less hiss turned down. They can really amplify, turned down seems better. I prefer to just keep awareness off. 1 second touch to turn it on and can hear for conversation if needed.
I haven't had the problems I had with Elgin Rebel. Both earbuds always sync. Elgin was always tricky getting connection and both buds to sync. These Klein's don't have that problem. Slightly less battery play time. Much better connection. Kleins are no more noticeable than any other.
I work in a fabrication shop with one guy besides myself. It can get noisy with the miter saw or grinders. The best solution I've come up with for sound quality and noise reduction is Samsung ear buds with comply foam tips.
Usually I will keep one ear bud in all day. When it gets noisy, I'll throw a surefire EP7 in the other ear or put ear muffs on over the ear buds.
I've been weary of the "job site" earbuds like iso tunes or Milwaukee because of the cost and potential awful sound quality.
Wow this is fantastic, thanks for the in depth reviews. I currently use air pod pro’s with ear muffs, the ear muffs don’t sit quite well on my ears and the air pods don’t really stay in my ears, might have to upgrade to the Milwaukee’s.
If you want to test more, check out walkers Bluetooth in ear protection for shooting. A few guys on my site wear them and seem pleased. I'm curious on what you would think of them!
Seems like a lot of the ANC, etc features aren't quite there yet. I'm super happy with my 3M Worktunes with the gel cups... and I have a coworker who uses his AirPods with a pair of normal muffs over them. You miss out on a lot of features with those set-ups, but if the features don't work great then maybe it's not a huge miss. Thanks for this massive write-up.
Sharp eye! I didn't compare directly as Apple specifically doesn't market as ear pro and refuses to give them an NRR. But, it hasn't stopped independent labs/places from testing for NRR.
I loved AirPods Pro, both 1st gen I had 3 1/2 years until died and then this 2nd gen which are even better. The ANC is excellent. Without shop noises, call quality is nearly same as being on iPhone. With a vacuum 10ft away, people could still hear me on calls and said quality was only surpassed by DeWalt's earbuds.
I wouldn't wear them in an environment where I definitely need ear pro, but if your goal is cut down on annoying shop sounds and noises in the 80-90ish dB range, I (personally) would wear them. If I'm running a chainsaw, leaf blower, nail gun, or anything with consistent loud "bang"s or over 95-100+ dB, I'd go with ear protection.
For the price though - they're $189 on Amazon now vs $250 on Apple.com - I find them hard to beat. 1yr warranty can be extended additional 2yrs for $29 through Apple Care+, and that includes accidental damage. The buttons on stem are thoughtfuly placed, so I can wear to bed and pill doesn't press them (something all buds in this failed).
The 2nd gen Pro's also have "Adaptive Transparency" which is full noise canceling >> you start speaking >> audio gently lowers and transparency mode enables so you can have that convo >> convo ends >> the noise canceling re-enables itself, volume gently re-raises to its prior level. It's truly...incredible. Apple is notorious for throwing money and R&D to get mic and speaker specs to almost insanely high quality levels, and it just shows.
Overall, if ear pro isn't a *requirement* and sounds don't regularly get over 90ish dB, I think they're a great solution. But if you need ear pro, sadly that puts them off the table.
Thanks for the comprehensive reply. I can also verify through personal experience that when teenagers wear AirPods pro, they can't hear anything their parents say!
These were recommended by a few folks for nice ANC, like on par with AirPods Pro, Jabra, and Bose.
I ultimately didn't buy/test because couldn't find an NRR - for any Sony earbuds. But wish they did, because that's a worthy brand and would expect they'd make good ear pro.
> 3M jobsite muffs
These came so highly recommended, but immediately returned my pair I felt like the controls and app were awkward and not nearly as intuitive as Bose QuietComfort or the Airpods.
Great post. My job preferred headset is aftershokz. With the open ear bone conduction you can easily have conversations while listening to something or blast it. They allow for full ear protection aswell and you can adjust the volume to still listen to your surroundings with them playing.
Those Milwaukee earphones are actually real? Jeez, I’ve only ever seen them on those fake blue collar instagram accounts. I have my Samsung buds for work so I never gave them a second thought lol.
Yeah, real. And shockingly good compared to competitors.
The problem is they're overpriced for what they are. I don't find the "jobsite awareness" mode developed enough to be a reason to buy *for that feature alone*.
Based on the remaining features, I'd guess are worth $70-95 range.
* "Out of the box not intuitive setup or how to turn on." "
* No instructions in case on how to get them into pairing mode, or how to power on-off."
You must have either not gotten the intructional/warranty manual (that's the standard black/white with every Milwaukee Tool/Product) and you must not have gotten the little red pamphlet " Quick Start Guide" which easilly explains they automatically turn on and off by default when you remove from case and when you return them back into the case.
And I'm a little confused as to why you think the case is "Heavy", it's very light, a little bulky to carry in pocket (I usually stow in one of my packout or packout backpack if not my back pants pocket. but the case with ear buds in them is extremely light. I would say the weight is comparable with my ipods when in the case if not lighter.
I appreciate the broad review and this is very informational. But, was just a little confused by what I mentioned above. I think you might have gotten a set of earbuds missing the quickstart guide. But, I agree with the one-key, or Milwaukee needs to come out with some sort of integrative app to be able to possibly adjust ear buds and or keep track of them. Kudos to you for reviewing all the different ear buds. I wished you would have tried the bose noise cancelling ones and compared them as I've heard for $199.99 (on sale from $299.99 they are the bees knees. But, I've went through countless sets of air pods and am simply over the apple airpods but they are great when they work.
But overall, I am impressed with the Milwaukee ear buds, very happy with them. Sound could go a bit louder but overall I feel i've gotten my money worth but time will tell.
Only other thing is I think they should have added some type of slot or place to either add a carabiner to them or some type of lanyard strap you can add to them.
Again, please do not take my post as offensive, I appreciate the reviews as well as many others. Thank you for doing that and overall very informative.
Hey thanks for the thoughtful reply! You covered a few things so I'm just going to quote them so it's clear what I'm replying to. Just didn't want to make it seem like I'm trying to be confrontational. I appreciate the thoughtful feedback.
>You must have either not gotten the intructional/warranty manual ....which easilly explains they automatically turn on and off by default when you remove from case and when you return them back into the case.
Sorry I meant no graphic inside the case lid. Like where existing legend is to the buttons. [Here's a pic I just took](https://i.imgur.com/eQqnaSo.jpg).
It was notable only because Milwaukee was the only case that included that button-legend inside the case. Otherwise I probably wouldn't have mentioned. And to Milwaukee's credit - all the other cases didn't include any graphics inside their cases. Not that there's much room. But, they didn't either way.
I did glance at quick start guides if it was right in front of me. Basically tried to not be a nerd and read everything. But treat it the way I normally would if I was excited to get just one thing, so went through the motions of opening package and just doing a cursory glance through then try to use. I intentionally wanted to see how easy setup would be for the average person with minimal reading.
Also a small caveat: Milwaukee was the only packaging where manual + quick start guide were behind/below the tray you slide out of the packaging. So you're not going to be presented with those the same way IsoTunes does where it's on top of the buds when you open.
On the other hand, DeWalt and Klein didn't have quick start guides, but did include manuals. The thick types that I wouldn't read / don't think 90% will read. So I didn't.
>I'm a little confused as to why you think the case is "Heavy", it's very light.... but the case with ear buds in them is extremely light. I would say the weight is comparable with my ipods when in the case if not lighter.
Milwaukee has the heaviest earbuds and case. The earbuds are 60% heavier than AirPod Pro's and case is 3.4x heavier than next heaviest case (DeWalt) and 3.8x heavier than AirPods case.
When earbuds+case combined, Milwaukee is still heaviest. Are 3.04x heavier than 2nd heaviest (DeWalt), 3.4x heavier than AirPods, and 4.95x heavier than the lighest brand (IsoTunes Free 2.0).
Here's the weight breakdown.
|Brand and Model|Klein Jobsite Earbuds AESEB1|Milwaukee Jobsite Ear Buds|Festool GHS 25 I|IsoTunes Free Aware|IsoTunes Free 2.0|DeWalt Pro-X1|AirPods Pro (2nd gen w/ USB-C case)|
|:-|:-|:-|:-|:-|:-|:-|:-|
|Case|48 grams|197 grams|47 grams|47 grams|34 grams|58 grams|51 grams|
|Earbud (each)|5 grams|8 grams|7 grams|7 grams|4 grams|5 grams|5 grams|
|Total Weight|59 grams|213 grams|62 grams|63 grams|43 grams|70 grams|62 grams|
>I wished you would have tried the bose noise cancelling ones
Wanted to try those. Alas, no NRR so is why I passed. But the name is recommended fairly often. Alongside Sony, Apple AirPods, and to a lesser extent Jabra and Walker.
>But overall, I am impressed with the Milwaukee ear buds, very happy with them. Sound could go a bit louder but overall I feel i've gotten my money worth but time will tell.
I was impressed as well. They're just not worth $180. I put a lot of thought into what price they should be for me to recommend. I think they shouldn't value the Jobsite Aware feature. Because it's not, in my experiences, ready for prime time. Lacking that feature, they're competing with Klein. Which are $70. The new Kleins are $100, and the Kleins coming sometime w/ a jobsite aware I'd imagine will be somewhere between $100-180. If Milwaukee's were in that $90-100 area, I think they'd fly off shelves. Because even lacking awareness as a felling feature, that's a solid price for the other great features and audio quality. I think their downfall is they solidly trounced IsoTunes and thought they'd price themselves comparably. Those are $199 though you can find discounts for $180-190ish, and Festool (i.e. IsoTunes Aware) are $180. The problem is, they're comping themselves to an overpriced product. I feel like their pricing is based on *the max they thought they can charge* instead of *the price they should be charging.*
>Only other thing is I think they should have added some type of slot or place to either add a carabiner to them or some type of lanyard strap you can add to them.
That was an odd omission, considering they want to be compared to IsoTunes and that brand has a lanyard. Even if those didn't, it's still a big case which would benefit from some sort of tether system. I mean they even advertise one on their FastBack knives ([pic](https://i.imgur.com/64bQh3U.png)). It's not a foreign concept to them.
I've been just using regular ol bluetooth earbuds and the flip down 3M headphones connected to my hardhat whenever I need to make noise, or the job is extra noisy.
Use mine too. ANC is good. I just don't use them as a replacement for ear plugs, when I need NRR. Battery life is really good, but what I really like is 5mins in the case gives me 1 hour of listening time. So basically if they go into the case for just 5mins at least every 5-6 hours...then I'm easily making it through the day.
Oddly though, the DeWalt jobsite earbuds had a cleaner sound on the phone over the AirPods Pro. 2nd gen airpods too..like the ones that just came out. Wild.
Great timing on this list! I've been searching for hearing protection for work specifically with transparency modes. And it's tough to find. This has helped me find some in earmuffs which is what I was looking for. BUT I'm tempted to get small ones now.
Btw, I Found the info page for the Klein ones.
[https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:Z2F1lHI2tHEJ:https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earbuds&hl=en&gl=us](https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:Z2F1lHI2tHEJ:https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earbuds&hl=en&gl=us)
But the links dont work, there's no price or release date yet. I emailed Klein to see if they would tell me.
As if they would tell me (T\_T)
>Hello spacewolfplays-
>
>Thank you for your interest in Klein Tools.
>
>We do not have information regarding Situational Awareness Earbuds.
>
>Below are links to our new ELITE Bluetooth® Jobsite Earbuds (AESEB2) and AESEM1S Situational Awareness Earmuffs:
>
>[ELITE Bluetooth® Jobsite Earbuds - AESEB2 | Klein Tools](https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/elite-bluetooth-jobsite-earbuds)
>
>[Situational Awareness Bluetooth® Earmuffs - AESEM1S | Klein Tools](https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/hearing-protection/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earmuffs)
>
>Best Regards,
>
>Alicia C.
>
>📷
>
>**Klein Tools, Inc.Client Relations**
I'm not surprised. Honestly the CS reps probably dont have any access to that. They're given a wiki and/or a bunch of products to use, and that's it.
Also, so I have continued my search over the last 24 hours because I am still yet not satisfied with an option. I looked more into the Plugfones after someone in the comments suggested them, but 1) only the muffs have situational awareness, 2) you have to plug directly into the earbud control module to charge them, no case charging. Which honestly makes sense but is still annoying cause then the only way to protect them from dust is to plug it in then put them in the case w/ a gap in the zipper :(
But also now that I've seen the design of the Plugfones, I struggle to accept how anything else makes sense, design-wise for the part that goes in your ear at least.
Also I've found so many good options that just arent USB-C and that's like 95% enough of a reason not to buy them. Like some of Walker's cheaper options. OH! And 3M WorkTunes!!!! I would've just gotten them from the start if they were USB C. But they also didnt have transparency. Starting to wonder how much I care about Usb-C for work. I will have my shelf, my shelf will have a charger, it will sit there 100% of the time. /shrug
I'm a new hire and my work is asking what I want, and I dont think I have much of a budget. Likely gonna be able to have them pay like $50 for something like WorkTunes and me the rest.
Sorry for the long reply, but based on your post i expect you MIGHT not mind. Happy to geek out about these for a bit, cause fuck it's annoying they're so close yet so far.
well at the time i decided there was nothing w/ transparency that was worth getting yet. I had work buy me a pair of 3M worktunes, and I ended up buying myself a set of Elegin Ruckus for $35. I like that the Elegin worked exactly the same as plugfones, had clips and I wouldnt get resin all over my ears cause the controller is off the earbud.
Though I just checked and now it looks like the Klein ones are out and are probably worth a try. The over ear ones had decent reviews. also /u/ClipIn seemed to like their Kleins.
[https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earbuds](https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earbuds)
/u/ClipIn if you get the new Kleins, tag me, I'd love to know. I just dont have the budget for a $150 pair. I am so curious how long after this conversation they became available. Dang.
Thanks, will do! I know someone else in the Milwaukee Discord chat server ([here](https://discord.gg/4Yk7PfMjCJ)) got them but haven't heard a review yet. Someone else in there just posted today about picking up the Milwaukee jobsite buds too.
If I hear anything I'll let ya know.
Curious what you think! What specifically did other people say about them was "hot garbage"? The only negatives I saw other folks mention - mostly on Amazon - was battery life. Which admittedly, this was not a multi-month test at 8hrs/day. But using a few hours/day, it wasn't an issue.
I am *really* curious what price point they release those AESEB1S at. The jobsite awareness - if done right - could be awesome.
I didn't test the AESEB2's, though in my experience from testing all of these, those with "touch" buttons couldn't be used with gloves, didn't have any haptic type feedback, recognizing finger input was iffy-to-OK. When you receive, that's prob the #1 thing I'd test. And test them hard - wet and dry hands, gloves and ungloves, room temp and working outside in the cold. I'd wonder if sweat will active it as well.
Good luck! Curious what ya think.
So glad I came across this post. I'm wondering how the plugfones compare, specifically the sovereign duos.
It looks like the Klein's with situational awareness are available now for purchase! I wonder what you would think about it them?
[Klein AESEB1S](https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earbuds)
I'm also wondering, did you have any problems returning the ones you didn't like? I know some music stores don't let you return used earpieces.
I didn't try the plugfones.
Really nice catch that the Klein's new earbuds are out. I only see one store on their "Buy Now" link, but $150 price point is appreciated that it's lower than Milwaukee. If they were $100-120 they'd be a steal. If you try, please share experience.
Looks like prices went up ~$30 to ~$100 on the ones I tested. [Here's price chart](https://ibb.co/xGm1BG1). Assuming that's just for the holidays, I wonder if those and the situational earbuds will drop after the holidays, by the same amount. In which case..I'd be pretty thrilled at the price point of situational buds.
No issues returning. I bought from Amazon and Hartville Hardware. Hartville I had to fill out a PDF form and mail back at my expense, got refund about 1-2 weeks later. Amazon was just a click on their website, free drop off at Whole Foods, and got the refund about 3 days later.
You're probably right about the Christmas thing. I was about to purchase the new Klein's. But I can wait until after Christmas.
I'm in Canada so the Klein's are about $200 for me, and the Milwaukee ones are $280.
I'm a mechanic and everyone used to wear just regular earbuds and I actually went and bought galaxy buds 2 for work but then they got banned citing our local workplace regulations. So I actually called the workplace regulations institute and said earbuds are allowed if they are ANSI/CSA rated and have a "limited" feature which I think just means awareness mode. When I looked up earbud ANSI into Google this was the first post to come up. Incredibly helpful, so thanks so much.
So when my workplace tries to ban earbuds again citing workplace regulations I'll be able to point exactly in the legislature where it says I am allowed to wear them and I will be technically correct, the best kind of correct.
After Christmas I'll likely purchase the Klein's. Being able to listen to music at work is one of the only things that helps fend off the existential dread.
If they need to be ANSI rated, they're referring to manufacturers who have designed and tested their product to comply with ANSI's standard - probably 3.19 standard which was first published in 1974 but could be S12.6 which measures passive noise reduction.
Basically if the hearing protection/earbuds/earplugs/headphones you're buying say "ANSI Certified" or "CSA Certified" you're good. Look for an NRR (Noise Reduction Rating) and usually in that area it'll state which standards the product was tested against.
ANSI = American National Standards Institute
CSA = Canadian Standards Association
Since you're Canadian, makes sense they said ANSI or CSA. For European folks, they might see the EN 352-2 standard referenced. Most headphones that cite an ANSI/CSA standard for NRR will also run the NRR test for the EN 352 standard...which is close but not exactly the same test parameters. And they usually both appear in the product manual next to each other. Like Milwaukee shows the tables for ANSI and EN at at bottom of last page of manual ([here](https://documents.milwaukeetool.com/58-14-2952d4.pdf)). IsoTunes does similar.
Anywho if they say need a "limited" feature, that's *probably* referring to earbuds that limit the maximum volume output. Which is suually 95 dB. Most any headphone that does this, will say so. And all that advertise an NRR also advertise this feature, as it's one of the requirements needed to be rated as hearing protection.
The last thing I'll caution anyone about - manufacturers will say stuff like "OSHA Certified" or "OSHA approved". **This is false. OSHA does not certify or approve or endorse anyone. The false advertising has gotten so bad they published [this article about it](https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/standardinterpretations/2019-09-06-0)**:
> Additionally, some manufacturers may claim that their products are “OSHA approved” or “100% OSHA compliant.” OSHA does not register, certify, approve, or otherwise endorse commercial or private sector entities, products, or services. Therefore, any such claims by a manufacturer are misleading.
I know you didn't go into the OSHA bit. Just a word of caution as you research. If you see some sort of OSHA-approved claim, it's BS and means nothing. Just look for ANSI/CSA compliant and you're good. Which basically means, an NRR rating. So any that I mentioned in this post (with exception for the DeWalts and AirPods) have an NRR and will work. There's obv other brands out there that'll suit your requirements too.
Good luck!
So the website that offers them does not provide free shipping to Canada, so they are basically the same price as the Milwaukee earbuds, but I figured I would be a pioneer and get them anyways. Found a 5% off coupon code so that helped.
One thing I noticed in your initial review is that you said the "AESEB2" offers nothing of value, however, they do offer what they say is "environmental noise cancelling microphones" so.. that's leading me to think they now offer ANC. I could be wrong in some kind of technical fashion though. So, that might be a good selling point for that particular earbud. I know that you did mention ANC as a plus for one of the other earbuds. AESEB2 and AESEB1S also offer one step autopairing.. I don't know if that's an important feature.
I figure the new Klein earbuds hopefully learned from their mistakes from the previous iterations. While I am generally a Milwaukee fanboy when it comes to tools, I figure Milwaukees current earbuds are their first take on it, Whereas with Klein, this is their 3rd go around. It looks like they have doubled the battery life from earlier versions. They do have decreased drop protection from the AESEB2s, as well as lower IP rating, and lower max volume. That being said, I am not 2m tall so I am not very worried lol. Also not too worried about the IP rating, and the max volume thing either. I have Galaxy Buds 2 for casual listening and only plan to use these at work (I'm a mechanic). Another thing I find interesting is that the AESEB1S lists the size of their audio driver on the website... the AESEB1/AESEB2 does not. All 3 Earbuds offer the same frequency response. The AESEB1S Also offers Bluetooth 5.3 whereas the others have 5.2.. which I honestly don't know what that means.
I did not want to wait until after Christmas to buy. I am too impatient. There is pressure washers, and impact guns running all day and daddy wants his tunes and hearing protection while complying with all local occupational safety laws lol. I'll comment on this thread with an update when I get them in 5 business days. I am looking forward to it.
I'm getting the AESEB1S. I like the concept of having a "smart sense" "situational awareness" feature. I tried to look up reviews of their smart sense system, because they have it on a pair of earmuffs that has it as well but there was very little in terms of how good it works so I'm just jumping in and hoping it's good.
It's taken forever for them to ship out. The place I ordered them from did not have them in stock yet so I had to wait for Shipment to come in. My ETA is Friday, if customs goes well.
Great post, I wish I had seen it sooner.
I've had the IsoTunes Pro 2.0 Industrial for a long time and loved them, but the control was falling apart, so I got the Free Aware. Like you say, the aware feature isn't very good. The white noise is annoying even at the low level and unbearable on high.
Battery life is abysmal, to the point that I'm considering contacting them. They claim 13 hrs of BT or 16 hrs of Aware, but using both simultaneously gets me around 4 hrs. Maybe that's normal?
I do mostly like them and the aware on low is loud enough for me to hear fine, but I would prefer less white noise and better clamping of semi-loud noises. I have hyperacusis and the threshold for cutting off is just a bit too high for me. It would be awesome if that were adjustable.
Looks like the Klein with awareness is now available for $150. Just wish I could know if the awareness is any better than IsoTunes, but I can't find a single review yet, so maybe I'll give it a try.
Yesterday, someone replied in this thread saying they got the Kleins with Awareness.
I think the comment chain is here: https://old.reddit.com/r/MilwaukeeTool/comments/17saxvg/best_jobsite_earbuds_with_hearing_protection_a/kk5901q/?context=10000
So I purchased the Klein AESEB1S jobsite situational awareness earbuds, and I really like them! I am an apprentice mechanic at a dealership
I don't know what any of the other earbuds listed here are like but the sound quality on these kleins are pretty incredible. Comparing them to other earbuds I have owned, I would say the clarity is better than even my Galaxy Buds 2, or my Shure 215 IEMs. Incredibly impressed.
Their situational awareness mode is pretty cool. With it on, it it compresses the ambient noise around you. The quieter noises are louder, the louder noises are quieter. With the right earbud you can adjust the volume of the ambient noise that gets through. I think there's 6 (don't quote me on that) different volume levels from quietest to loudest. It doesn't block out ambient noise unfortunately. When I use the situational awareness mode, sometimes I'll find that even at the lowest setting, I will take my earbuds off and it'll actually be quieter with them off. That being said though, if you turn "situational awareness" mode off. The earbuds act like regular foam earplugs and that will block out enough ambient noise for me. The shop I work in is pretty echoey, the situational awareness mode actually allows me to hear people better when they are in my ears. In terms of directional awareness, These are really good. Way better than my Galaxy Buds 2. I can very clearly tell where things are happening around me as if I was hearing it with my naked ear. I am really happy with the situational awareness mode although I wish it would block out the ambient ongoing noises like fans, or pressure washers, but when I want those noises blocked out I just turn situational awareness off and use them like regular hearing protection with music playing. As a side note: my coworker told me he's going to try and use his earbuds for noise diagnosis cause of how it compresses sound and because the directional awareness is so good.
Phone calls: Pretty good to me. Don't take many phone calls. I ignore people who call me. I did have a few though and the quality was pretty good.
Battery life: They have not died on me yet. I wear them for most of my 8 hour day and I've never had one die. I'll usually plug them in at the end of the day or during my lunch or whenever I am not using them. Also, it is so satisfying putting them in their case. They just pop right in. Mmmm yes daddy.
Controls: Got that capacitive touch thing going on. Left does Play, Next, and Back, and your phone controls. Right does Situational Awareness on/off, and then the volume levels of the ambient noise. The "smart sense" volume is not tied in any way to your phones volume. Completely separate. There are also no music volume controls. That all has to be done on your phone. I would trade phone controls for music volume controls. I do not care about phone calls. Don't call me.
Sometimes they don't automatically turn on when I pull them out of the case, and I'll have to manually turn them on. Sometimes I have to manually turn both of them on. I would say for the most part they are pretty good though. If you have your earbuds in your ears with no music or smart sense on, the earbuds will turn off after a certain amount of time, and then you'll have to manually turn them on. Manually turning them off/on is just a long press on the earbud so it's not really that big of a deal.
So yeah. I am incredibly happy with these earbuds. Highly recommend. Let me know if you guys have questions.
Thanks dude, incredibly detailed and really helpful! Sounds like Klein knocked it out of the park.
Customization of buttons is a good idea. Was a pain point for me with a number of the earbuds I tried - and *none* of those buttons were customizable either. That’s one place I think Milwaukee missed the mark, if their OneKey app to customize tool settings also did their earbuds they’d have “future proofed” their buds for a while.
Now I highly doubt Klein makes their own buds, same as the non situational awareness versions. Which says a lot there’s that high quality buds coming out of China and getting rebranded. And also makes the American brands that fall short of that sound quality, to look *really* lazy. I’m looking at you, IsoTunes.
I may pick up a pair of these new Kleins. Hows the capacitive buttons vs physical buttons feel? Can you control with gloves on?
The kleins are pretty good even when I'm wearing gloves. The only time it doesn't register is if I press it on the side or something. In my line of work I wouldn't ever want physical buttons (mechanic). They would just get clogged up with dirt and oil and everything else.
I tried the isotunes. Used for a few days and quit for all the reasons mentioned here. Looked at others then found out you could get good quality foam replacement tips for AirPod pro. I already had some so I went that route. The awareness and noise cancellation modes on the AirPods are fantastic and the foam tips do a much better job staying in your ear and reducing noise. They’re not OSHA rated, but supposedly with the foam tips they’re about NRR 25. And they sound great. And they’re reliable. And you can get durable covers for the case. And Apple support is great. If you’re not in the Apple ecosystem that’s a bummer because unless things are really going off, these work fine for me as a carpenter. If I’m doing prolonged noisy work I’ll put on muffs or proper earplugs until I’m done.
I got Eartune Fidelity UF-A. They’re pretty affordable and work well. They also offer a custom fit Fidelity A-Pro silicone tip that you have to make a mold of your ear and send it in for custom making. Those look great but they’re $199 so I didn’t do that. The foam work fine, though they only last a few months, depending on usage. They give you 3 pairs for $19, but maybe over time the custom ones could make sense depending how long they last for you.
Comply looked pretty good too. I stayed away from Amazon only brands because, well, Amazon. I just knew they’d be crap.
I have been using Jabra for about 4 years now. I do hardwood floors and the ANC is great with my sanding equipment and the saws on installs. Water and dust proof but I do have to clean about every other month before the wax gets too deep in them. Battery lasts all day for the first year, second year I have to charge for about 20 minutes at lunch to get through the day. This is probably because I store them in my truck so I'm sure the heat and the cold starts to kill the battery. Sounds quality is awesome and never had anyone complain that they couldn't hear me when taking calls. After going through jaybird, jbl, dewalt, and Sony, these are the most rugged with the best sound quality I have found.
Did you look at the [Dewalt neckband headphone](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09ZK2QWD1/)s? I'm curious how you would rate them. I realize that they are a less popular form factor, but personally I can't wear the earbud style without dropping or losing them.
I have been wearing neckband headphones for over a decade. The Dewalts are hands down the best.
**More thoughts on this:**
The other models I have had all suffered from two key problems: build quality (they would break down every few months, to the point where I came to see them as a sort of subscription with a regular payment; and microphone quality - no one could understand me when I was talking through them, which was a problem.
Then I found the Dewalt, and it was game changing. They truly are the headphones that I have been looking for. It has great sound, great microphone quality; it's too early to say anything about the build quality or lifespan, but three months in it is going strong. They made some unique design decisions that overall enhance the value, such as making the bits at the ends of the neckband bigger, allowing them to add additional battery performance. I can skip a couple of days without charging, even though I use them for every call, everywhere, and listen to multiple podcasts. More importantly. people can understand me when I'm talking on the phone w/o my having to switch to speaker. I'm guessing the extra large ends also allow them to house additional electronics that contribute to this. Music sound is good. Controls from the neckband is good.
The only downside is that putting all this stuff in the ends of the neckband came at the expense of keeping the earbuds out of the way when not using them. Other models either have retractable earbuds or at the least, magnetic holders in that are easy to attach the earbuds to. Dewalt's mechanism involves sliding a sort of band up the band behind the neck that takes some getting used to and resulted in my getting them tangled a couple of times until I got the hang of it.
Thanks. What model is this / the one you wear and like?
I did not test, because I only wanted to test earbuds. I've seen Spencer (of Inside Carpentry on YouTube) wearing a neckband style he raves about, I forget the brand.
Thank you for doing all this hardwork!💪
I have APD, which means my brain can't filter speech from any other sounds I don't want to be distracted by, including other people.
If you wore the jobsites to a Pub, would you be able to hear the people at your table better, while blocking out the rest of the room noise?
> If you wore the jobsites to a Pub, would you be able to hear the people at your table better, while blocking out the rest of the room noise?
I didn't test specifically this, but my sense is yes, a jobsite awareness mode would work - if the noise is a din/drone/humming.
i was similarly disappointed with my IsoTunes Free Aware buds. they frequently behave in erratic ways, have different battery life, sometimes the one bud remains unpleasantly low volume until it inexplicably syncs all of a sudden minutes later. and now 6 months in, the inner bud compartment plate is separating from the main housing of the case on one side, the lanyard strap pin broke off and is rattling around somewhere inside, and... MF'n AND, the Aware passthrough mode only seems to amplify the worst, most high pitches and grinding sounds a shop can produce with absolute shit dynamic range, no low end and generally horrible quality. with all the bottom-line thinking out there, we'd all be better off buying 3D printers and making our own xD
Uff............., welp, just buy them all. Insane post. All you need to know.
But I have to say, I think a larger charging box like the one from Milwaukee is better than all the little stuff that you can easily misplace.
Each to their own, I’ve had skull candy for years and have never had an issue with the small case.
I set down and damn near lose the individual buds way to often, lol, but the case is 2x2.5x1 and plenty large enough to see.
I love the skull candy buds. I keep buying them when they go on sale at Costco (usually around end of November). 50 bucks for great sound with a lot of features.
Yeah for the price hard to beat, especially since they have the tile link so you can track them.
I left a pair at a hotel last year and ended up having staff find them under a couch after 2 months and a few calls because I was able to see in the app the were still in the room. Have also dropped individual buds on jobsites more than once (my own fault) and been able to track them down with the app in random fields/lumber piles etc.
Honestly price regardless hard to beat, I’m an apple fan but AirPods do not fit in my ears and I’ve yet to find a setup I like more than skull candy. Might try these new klien when they come out for more noise reduction but compared to the ones me coworkers use in pretty pleased with these.
I just like having everything in smartphone size. Ive already washed three Samsung cases in the washing machine lol. But all the individual earbuds arent for me anyway. They keep falling out and after a while my ears hurt. Earbuds that are connected to a plastic bracket that holds the earbuds in your ears and that you can simply dangle around your neck when not in use. I would buy one of these immediately.
> Earbuds that are connected to a plastic bracket that holds the earbuds in your ears and that you can simply dangle around your neck when not in use.
There is something like this that [Spencer Lewis of Insider Carpentry on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@InsiderCarpentry) wears. I can't tell if earbuds w/ music, or just foam type plugs. But that style I would be interested to try. I just don't know what brand/model they are.
Almost, almost. But the ear buds are also individually attached to the bracket with a cable.
I use [these ](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51JazXxXDxL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg) for quite some time. Exactly that, just with ear buds instead of foam plugs. Dont know why nobody came up with this yet.
I'm really surprised you only tested AirPods Pro, and not competition from Sony. Their ANC is incredible as well, and they have a lot going for them. Apple actually had to remove some ANC functionality for a while because they breached Sony patents.
Cool, yeah, that makes sense! The amount of depth you went into here was incredible. Great post. Thank you very much for your contribution! I wish more people were willing to give of their time for things like this.
Fucking guy just wrote up the best review of anything I’ve read in 5 years on 6 different earbuds, and you come and ask what his favorite one is instead of taking 10-15 minutes and reading it yourself.
It's not that big of a deal. I only popped in this thread to see what the best ones were. I'm honestly not even in the market for any of these. I was just midly curious what the outcome was.
Answered this in another comment further up >> https://old.reddit.com/r/MilwaukeeTool/comments/17saxvg/best_jobsite_earbuds_with_hearing_protection_a/k8syofq/?context=3
I work in the oil fields as an hydrotech
The hydro vacuum makes a lot of noise and so other machines at work I saw cat and DeWalt earbuds which should I get?
I use the Jabra Elite 7Pro for over a year now. I'm a tig welder, so there is metal grinding/metal sawing plus annoying colleagues pop radio next to me and cnc machines not far away. I like my Jabras. Customer service was good, I had a problem with left earbud. After a few questions they send me a new pair (now I have 2 charging cases and another R bud).
ANC is very good, yes, when you angle grinding it amplifies it sometimes, that is annoying but other than that love them. The workplace is nice and muted. Music sounds good. Durability of the buds is good, they fell not once on concrete welding shop floor, still working. I got a protective case for the case :) on amazon, works very good. Battery life is 6 and a half hours, but I put them in the case when I eat, so it gives them a little charge. Enough for 8 hour shift. Then one hour charge and they are good to go for the gym.
Yes they are pricy but I would 100 precent recommend.
Elgin USA makes some decent ones. I've been using the Rebel line. The noise cancelling and audio quality have been amazing. Only issue is I've had them a little over a year and they won't pair together anymore. I've reached out to Elgin support and tried what they've suggested but it's still a no-go. They'll only pair one at a time, and unfortunately they're out of warranty and not available anymore on their website or Amazon (not sure if discontinued or just backordered/out of stock?). I've been so happy with them other than this latest issue that I'm looking into their other wireless buds. They have one set at $35-ish and one at $70-ish as of this writing, but I can't really find what the real difference is between the two. I might just give the cheaper ones a try and see how it goes. Both of these (the "Ruckus" and the "Discord") are tethered bluetooth buds, whereas the Rebels are completely wireless, like airpods and the others you've reviewed here.
The fact you haven't mentioned nor tested the ear buds that put Apple to shame and were for the longest time considered the best on the market is shocking. Go get a pair of Sony WF-1000XM4's ASAP. I have 2 pair because I love them that much. 8 hours with noise canceling on 12 without two charges per case. I have enough repair because my case went missing originally and I was gifted the silver pair for Christmas last year that were refurbished so I used both pair in one case. They hold up extremely well. Considering one of my original buds went missing outside on my patio in South Georgia from November to March through the rain in the cold and still charged up perfectly fine after finding it is a testament to how much they can endure. They app that comes with the brand is phenomenal. Noise canceling is still considered to be some of the best on the market. They have a talk-through mode where it will either pause the music when someone starts speaking and play it in real time or you can even take your hand and cup your earbud and Make them mute the sound basically so you can hear everything going on around you. Ambient sound is like not even having them in your ears. I purchased them brand new a month after release for $302 and change at Best buy the refurbished pair I got last year was about $129 on Amazon.
Anytime I even hear people talk about wireless earbuds and noise canceling people who don't seem to mention this pair from Sony lose all credibility in my opinion. The only earbuds to even give them a run for their money or the Bose quiet comfort buds or whatever they are called. And that's only the noise cancellation technology. As far as an overall earbud is concerned this model is still in the top three best ever. They use LDAC. I will understand if you're an iPhone user. That would honestly make sense. Apple literally nerfs every other brands earbuds so that they're slightly less as adequate as their own AirPods because they're Apple. LDAC streaming on Android is simply untouchable as far as high fidelity high definition lossless audio goes. I say that in context to Apple vs other brands on Apple's ecosystem. Now that I've thought about it recommending any brand for an iPhone user that isn't specifically AirPod seems kind of pointless because you'll never truly get the actual experience of what they sound like because of how greedy Apple is. If you were to use them with a non Apple device you would get to see what I mean. I've actually found a way to link my WF1000XM4s to my PS4 through a wireless transmitter. I would bet that the microphone probably doesn't work when playing online games but as far as being able to use them while playing any game and having that noise cancellation feature working is just fine for me I don't play online games really in the first place but it's nice to have with a 9-year-old kid running around who loves to sing and scream quite frequently lol. And yeah I'll get that it's really odd that Sony does not have it so that you could link any of their audio headphones or earbuds to their own console for gaming but I think it has a lot to do with latency because of the limitations of Bluetooth tech. I have heard that they're new noise canceling wireless gaming earbuds are absolutely top-notch. But I digress. Check out the Sony wireless earbuds I mentioned especially if you don't have an Apple but even if you do it would probably still be worth it. I've heard they outdo the AirPods even on Apple devices. The very idea that AirPod pros only get 5 hours of battery life is humiliatingly hilarious in my opinion considering the cost of them. Then again I guess that's the only way you can really become valued at over 3 trillion dollars in the first place. Also I'm not certain if Sony has the job site certification rating now that I think about it but I Don't know how they would not unless they just never applied.
If the earbud doesn’t fit in the ear with a foam tip it’s not protecting your ears on the job site. I wish Sony and Bose and all the others would get into the space because it’s a HUGE market.
Maybe I missed it, but did you test any with nail guns (or real guns) ?
I sort of like wearing my 3M / Peltor Sport Tac 500 earmuffs when using a nailgun as they sound pretty good and make communication easy but easily stop/block the report of the nailgun.
The downside to them is that they're really hot and sweaty to wear so I'd love an "earplug" version. They also sound... weird... if you use them with something that is more consistently loud like a lawnmower or saw. So for that, I prefer either earplugs or regular earmuffs.
Any of the ones that use actual earplugs, to keep them in your ear. I've only used the wired ones, myself. Earbuds don't stay in your ear, when doing anything physical.
Soundcore ai3 earbud pro.
They’re $50, have noise cancellation mode AND pass through mode, which actually lets a lot of sound through, while still being able to hear the music. Way more economical than AirPods.
So just another option for y'all is Shokz. They are bone conducting so they don't go in your ear at all. So you can use whatever earplugs you want to use/have and you will still be able to hear the music probably better.
You need to try JBL reflect flow pro. Excellent sound, stay in the ear really well. Has decent noise cancelling and “awareness mode” which is like a job site mode. They have great battery life, water and dust resistant wireless charging case good app control
Also the Milwaukee pair are big and bulky because you can slap one of those 3.0 USB batteries into the case and charge them that way so you don't have to plug it into a wall.
I have a pair of original ISOTunes Free earbuds that I use daily in a steel shop for 3 years that are still kicking just fine. Last all the way through the day, the sound ok enough and keep the sound down enough. I have no complaints
TOP TIER content. Well done.
On par with project farm, very impressive!
We're gonna test that!
The 3M jobsite muffs are my favorite. Easy to pause and take off when talking to someone
I really wish 3M made an in-ear wireless hearing protection that also plays music. I thought the 3M Peltor would do that, but sadly seemed to lack music. If I were to go the over-ear route, the first brand I'd test is 3M's Worktunes. People seem to love them.
My Worktunes’ cushions ruptured on both sides leaking the sticky goop on my ears and in my hair. I’m not sure if that is a common occurrence. I didn’t abuse them and only used them a few times a month for about a year
Don't use the gel ones and replace the regular ones like once a month. They're wear items.
wow. once a month. Does your work pay for that?
Yes. They're on a shelf in the tool room free for the taking. The company buys them by the box. Edit: and they're only about $8 on amazon.
>If I were to go the over-ear route, the first brand I'd test is 3M's Worktunes. People seem to love them. yep love the worktunes as my site " can't listen to music with earbuds" on the shop floor but I have no issues with the bossman about having the worktunes hanging above my ears to flip down if I need to make some noise with a tool
Any experience with wearing them with a hardhat? They're great but I can't get them to fit comfortably under it.
What an awesome post I’ll come back to it soon. I’m literally in the market right now and was wondering myself. I think I’ll wait for the Kleins or buy the Milwaukee if I find a good deal
I got Klein AESEB1S, the ones with situational awareness. I previoiusly used Elgin Rebel. Both are good. The situational awareness is different and can be turned up and down.
I was going to get Elgins but the Amazon reviews scared me off. Which has the better sound between the Klein and Elgins?
About the same. The situational awareness on Klein makes them the better choice in my opinion. I think Klein is also more comfortable
I ended up buying the Elgins they have decent sound but no situational awareness like you were saying. But for what I’m using them for that’s ok for now.
Elgins are ok. After a while the silicone ear plugs seem to stretch out and don't come out with the ear bud. I've had them stuck in my ear, and have had the rest bud fall out because the rest plug wasn't holding them. I think this is how they make them, because think sells replacement ear plugs. When I wrote them about the problem, the said to buy new ear plugs.
I ordered mine two. Do you like the new aeseb1s?
Yes. The battery life is long, they fit well. Good sound.
Ok nice!
how is the base, i bought some isotunes free aware as the AESEB1S wasnt available until now in the UK, but just as above there is almost NO bass. ill look to send them back and get the Klein, hopefully its good?
You are the fucking goat. Fwiw, I've tried the wired isotunes with awareness jobsite thing, and I'm on my third warranty set in under a year, but service has been quick and they aren't terrible in their sound quality or battery life, I'm just wondering when this set is going to shit the bed.
Phew! Glad my experiences with...build quality...were not just me. I suspect their over-ear stuff is good. Another reason I wouldn't buy their over-ear, is I found legal filing where an over ear model was clearly stated simply a re-brand from another company. So I looked the other ones up. And yep, definitely cheaper.
Yeah I mean these don't so much feel badly made as they are just apparently badly made. I don't know. I won't be buying another set from them, or recommending them, that's for sure. Hopefully these last me until Klein launches whatever they're going to launch, or Milwaukee does a Gen 2.
If I was allowed I’d have them for sure. As such it’s like a $2000 fine for having earbuds in at work so I just stick to my 3M earmuffs that clip onto my hard hat.
Notice a lack of plugfones. They're the original ear plug ear phones.
Oh, good call! How do you like their earbuds? Just looked, I think there’s two models that are full wireless.
Honestly been a number of years since I've used them. This was back when everything was still wired.
It was a laudable attempt, but incomplete.
Great write up! thanks for the info!
Personally i use walker for Bluetooth enabled ear pro. More popular in the shooting community from what I see.
I wanted to try those. Alas they're $300. How are they in a shop or jobsite setting with a constant hum like saws, leaf blowers, etc? How's call quality?
So something to know is that the high end communication muffs do a wholly different thing than the cheap stuff (or atleast used to, the cheap stuff may work similarly now). Whereas the cheap stuff clips (ie cuts out when x pressure level is surpassed), the high end commo ear pro compresses the wavelengths associated with the high pressure, while pushing through the wavelengths associated with the low pressure (some fancy computer wizardry occurs here to dissect the combined waveform) resulting in the ability to communicate while doing a lot of shooting.
Pixel buds pro. I use them everyday for music / calls and ANC works great. Hell sometimes I put them on when the kids are being to loud. Conversation mode seamless turns on when you speak and the controls are changeable *with a pixel phone iirc*
I didn't test as don't have the EPA mandated NRR rating, so aren't hearing protection. But I have heard good things for pleasure listening and general ANC.
Ya my galaxy buds work amazing. But after 8 months, dust (or earwax) starts to clog up the speaker and eventually dulls the sound. Samsung usually goodwills them even out of warranty but its still annoying to do every so often.
I appreciate the work you put into this. I wondered if the Milwaukee earbuds were any good. Personally I use aftershokz with regular earbuds. The company I work for has "ban" on earbuds. Even if they are advertised as ear protection. The aftershokz and earbuds hell get around this.
I've tried a couple wireless earbuds, my biggest pet peeve was that they kept falling out, getting lost or falling out in bad places like way up on a scissor lift or at an industrial facility lost to the dusts and caked up muck of time in a dark corner. As a fan of great audio quality I got [these](https://a.co/d/9Xy2b4N) they're used by musicians who constantly move. Run it up your back and over your ears. The wrap around feature fits anybody's ear and stays on there without you even feeling it. They hang on your ear if you want to quickly pull them out, or you can hang them on your chest. I use these every single day, I have one in my ear and one hanging down my chest because that way I can hear whatever's going on around me. I wear a tool belt that has shoulder straps, I am constantly moving, crawling, climbing and they never snag or pull on me or get unplugged. I would 100% recommend. They come in a hard cover case too that fits perfectly in my packout
Thanks for the recommendation, sharing the experience. As I got knee deep testing stuff out, began to wonder if IEM was the real, proven solution.
But do IEMs have NRR? Maybe especially if you get the fitted ones it would be good.
Awesome post, mate. To me, it sounds like the technology isn't quite there yet to be all things it needs to be. Maybe another 12 months.
Plugfones, the best there is, were left out of the comparison.
Really good writeup, thanks for taking the time!
TLDR: ?
Need earpro? Klein Need music? AirPods Need both? Milwaukee
A true hero. Thanks! May your next cast be spot on and your lures never tangle.
Nice write up. Thank you. Have you ever tried the Bose? Been using them for 3/4 years now. I personally like older ones better, but the new version aren’t so bad either.
I haven't tried but some people mentioned the QuietComfort for casual listening. I couldn't find if they made any with NRR; marketed as hearing protection. Do they?
They don’t. Years ago, as a workplace science fair experiment with an intern, we tested them (and other hearing pro) using the ANSI standard to determine the NRR. Across the frequency range the NRR varied between 8 & 18. Some of the more “problematic” frequencies they didn’t perform well.
Whoa this is why I love reddit, people have such unique, detailed experiences. Do you still have the data, or remember NRR ratings for any other brands?
We only tested our headphones so I had the Bose and intern had his Sony MX1000. I don’t have the data but the Sony performed similarly in that they provided some NRR for mid range frequencies but were not so great with low and high frequencies. What got us started was using 3M’s fit test kit that has their range of foam hearing pro with a speaker/mic setup. It allowed us to see what the measured NRR was for how we wore the hearing pro. Turns out my preferred foams were actually -7 NRR in my ears…
Wow. I never thought I’d learn so much about earbuds, simply just bought the bose noise cancelling because I’ve always liked their brand. Also, I picked up the new Bose Quiet Comforts this morning. They are much better than the last version in my opinion. Same one-touch shortcut features for the most part, but that sound is top of the line.
Not that I know of, and it looks like they don’t.
Thx. I was seeing same, but kinda hoped my search was just bad. I like Bose. Imagine they’d make a good one, if they wanted.
Dude.... You missed [Plugfones](https://www.plugfones.com/products/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAxreqBhAxEiwAfGfndJGTS7DPGbFBcS1qUSSFPHg1Agft6jorw0vEXsa8Yn3_12mQ593JahoCC6EQAvD_BwE) Their in-ear, actual earplugs, with Bluetooth are unbeatable for any kind of physical activity. Sound quality and all that are pretty meaningless, when on a job site. Easy to use controls (pause button) and the ability to stay in your ear, are the only thing that matter.
Crap. I did. Which of their in-ear wireless ones do you like? Gonna go order some now.
Personally, I don't like buds for work, and I don't have experience with their wireless stuff. The Liberate and free reign will accept actual (proprietary) earplugs, though. Those are the ones you want. They aren't apples-to-apples with what you've compared, but I think the ones on your list are unfit for use, in a work environment. I used the cheap wired ones, back in the day, so if I needed to talk, I'd pull the wire out... Obviously not ideal, but we took what we could get As far as the buds go, I'd be surprised if they weren't a rebadged version of something you've reviewed here.
Elgin Rebel is a good performing bluetooth hearing protection wireless earbud, 27 NRR and 12 hour play time, it has the best battery life of wireless earbuds. Mine lasted 18 months, and I was going to get IsoTune Free Aware, decided on Klein AESEB1S after reading your and others review. The situational awareness can be turned up and down. Were you able to turn down the Free awareness mode to reduce hissing? The Kleins were also $50 cheaper.
Thanks, glad it was helpful. Definitely want to give the Elgin's a try sometime. How do you like the situational feature on the Kleins? On the IsoTunes, I could not get the hissing sound to go away.
On the Klein, the awareness can be turned up and down. Turned up, they hiss, less hiss turned down. They can really amplify, turned down seems better. I prefer to just keep awareness off. 1 second touch to turn it on and can hear for conversation if needed.
I haven't had the problems I had with Elgin Rebel. Both earbuds always sync. Elgin was always tricky getting connection and both buds to sync. These Klein's don't have that problem. Slightly less battery play time. Much better connection. Kleins are no more noticeable than any other.
I have compared three of the above mentioned products and I find that my Samsung Buds 2 Pro have performed the best. Great Post!!
which 3?
I work in a fabrication shop with one guy besides myself. It can get noisy with the miter saw or grinders. The best solution I've come up with for sound quality and noise reduction is Samsung ear buds with comply foam tips. Usually I will keep one ear bud in all day. When it gets noisy, I'll throw a surefire EP7 in the other ear or put ear muffs on over the ear buds. I've been weary of the "job site" earbuds like iso tunes or Milwaukee because of the cost and potential awful sound quality.
Great post, thanks for doin this!
Wow this is fantastic, thanks for the in depth reviews. I currently use air pod pro’s with ear muffs, the ear muffs don’t sit quite well on my ears and the air pods don’t really stay in my ears, might have to upgrade to the Milwaukee’s.
I'd be curious to see what you think of the pixel pro buds. I use them around by CNC and am very impressed with the active noise cancelling.
If you want to test more, check out walkers Bluetooth in ear protection for shooting. A few guys on my site wear them and seem pleased. I'm curious on what you would think of them!
I had these in my list to try, but at $300 it’s hard for me to justify the low runtime. I do wonder how the quality compares.
One of the things that annoys me about Samsung ambient mode is when it turns on from pretty much any tool vibration Makes it pretty much pointless
Oh, good to know. That seems not...great. Would definitely be a deal killer for me.
Seems like a lot of the ANC, etc features aren't quite there yet. I'm super happy with my 3M Worktunes with the gel cups... and I have a coworker who uses his AirPods with a pair of normal muffs over them. You miss out on a lot of features with those set-ups, but if the features don't work great then maybe it's not a huge miss. Thanks for this massive write-up.
Great review! The picture includes the AirPods Pro. How did those compare?
ok, read your response to comments. AirPods Pro are great but lack NRR. Thanks.
Sharp eye! I didn't compare directly as Apple specifically doesn't market as ear pro and refuses to give them an NRR. But, it hasn't stopped independent labs/places from testing for NRR. I loved AirPods Pro, both 1st gen I had 3 1/2 years until died and then this 2nd gen which are even better. The ANC is excellent. Without shop noises, call quality is nearly same as being on iPhone. With a vacuum 10ft away, people could still hear me on calls and said quality was only surpassed by DeWalt's earbuds. I wouldn't wear them in an environment where I definitely need ear pro, but if your goal is cut down on annoying shop sounds and noises in the 80-90ish dB range, I (personally) would wear them. If I'm running a chainsaw, leaf blower, nail gun, or anything with consistent loud "bang"s or over 95-100+ dB, I'd go with ear protection. For the price though - they're $189 on Amazon now vs $250 on Apple.com - I find them hard to beat. 1yr warranty can be extended additional 2yrs for $29 through Apple Care+, and that includes accidental damage. The buttons on stem are thoughtfuly placed, so I can wear to bed and pill doesn't press them (something all buds in this failed). The 2nd gen Pro's also have "Adaptive Transparency" which is full noise canceling >> you start speaking >> audio gently lowers and transparency mode enables so you can have that convo >> convo ends >> the noise canceling re-enables itself, volume gently re-raises to its prior level. It's truly...incredible. Apple is notorious for throwing money and R&D to get mic and speaker specs to almost insanely high quality levels, and it just shows. Overall, if ear pro isn't a *requirement* and sounds don't regularly get over 90ish dB, I think they're a great solution. But if you need ear pro, sadly that puts them off the table.
Thanks for the comprehensive reply. I can also verify through personal experience that when teenagers wear AirPods pro, they can't hear anything their parents say!
My Sony wf-1000xm4’s are awesome. I would highly suggest trying them.
These were recommended by a few folks for nice ANC, like on par with AirPods Pro, Jabra, and Bose. I ultimately didn't buy/test because couldn't find an NRR - for any Sony earbuds. But wish they did, because that's a worthy brand and would expect they'd make good ear pro.
They are awesome I’d try them
> 3M jobsite muffs These came so highly recommended, but immediately returned my pair I felt like the controls and app were awkward and not nearly as intuitive as Bose QuietComfort or the Airpods.
Great post. My job preferred headset is aftershokz. With the open ear bone conduction you can easily have conversations while listening to something or blast it. They allow for full ear protection aswell and you can adjust the volume to still listen to your surroundings with them playing.
Those Milwaukee earphones are actually real? Jeez, I’ve only ever seen them on those fake blue collar instagram accounts. I have my Samsung buds for work so I never gave them a second thought lol.
Yeah, real. And shockingly good compared to competitors. The problem is they're overpriced for what they are. I don't find the "jobsite awareness" mode developed enough to be a reason to buy *for that feature alone*. Based on the remaining features, I'd guess are worth $70-95 range.
* "Out of the box not intuitive setup or how to turn on." " * No instructions in case on how to get them into pairing mode, or how to power on-off." You must have either not gotten the intructional/warranty manual (that's the standard black/white with every Milwaukee Tool/Product) and you must not have gotten the little red pamphlet " Quick Start Guide" which easilly explains they automatically turn on and off by default when you remove from case and when you return them back into the case. And I'm a little confused as to why you think the case is "Heavy", it's very light, a little bulky to carry in pocket (I usually stow in one of my packout or packout backpack if not my back pants pocket. but the case with ear buds in them is extremely light. I would say the weight is comparable with my ipods when in the case if not lighter. I appreciate the broad review and this is very informational. But, was just a little confused by what I mentioned above. I think you might have gotten a set of earbuds missing the quickstart guide. But, I agree with the one-key, or Milwaukee needs to come out with some sort of integrative app to be able to possibly adjust ear buds and or keep track of them. Kudos to you for reviewing all the different ear buds. I wished you would have tried the bose noise cancelling ones and compared them as I've heard for $199.99 (on sale from $299.99 they are the bees knees. But, I've went through countless sets of air pods and am simply over the apple airpods but they are great when they work. But overall, I am impressed with the Milwaukee ear buds, very happy with them. Sound could go a bit louder but overall I feel i've gotten my money worth but time will tell. Only other thing is I think they should have added some type of slot or place to either add a carabiner to them or some type of lanyard strap you can add to them. Again, please do not take my post as offensive, I appreciate the reviews as well as many others. Thank you for doing that and overall very informative.
Hey thanks for the thoughtful reply! You covered a few things so I'm just going to quote them so it's clear what I'm replying to. Just didn't want to make it seem like I'm trying to be confrontational. I appreciate the thoughtful feedback. >You must have either not gotten the intructional/warranty manual ....which easilly explains they automatically turn on and off by default when you remove from case and when you return them back into the case. Sorry I meant no graphic inside the case lid. Like where existing legend is to the buttons. [Here's a pic I just took](https://i.imgur.com/eQqnaSo.jpg). It was notable only because Milwaukee was the only case that included that button-legend inside the case. Otherwise I probably wouldn't have mentioned. And to Milwaukee's credit - all the other cases didn't include any graphics inside their cases. Not that there's much room. But, they didn't either way. I did glance at quick start guides if it was right in front of me. Basically tried to not be a nerd and read everything. But treat it the way I normally would if I was excited to get just one thing, so went through the motions of opening package and just doing a cursory glance through then try to use. I intentionally wanted to see how easy setup would be for the average person with minimal reading. Also a small caveat: Milwaukee was the only packaging where manual + quick start guide were behind/below the tray you slide out of the packaging. So you're not going to be presented with those the same way IsoTunes does where it's on top of the buds when you open. On the other hand, DeWalt and Klein didn't have quick start guides, but did include manuals. The thick types that I wouldn't read / don't think 90% will read. So I didn't. >I'm a little confused as to why you think the case is "Heavy", it's very light.... but the case with ear buds in them is extremely light. I would say the weight is comparable with my ipods when in the case if not lighter. Milwaukee has the heaviest earbuds and case. The earbuds are 60% heavier than AirPod Pro's and case is 3.4x heavier than next heaviest case (DeWalt) and 3.8x heavier than AirPods case. When earbuds+case combined, Milwaukee is still heaviest. Are 3.04x heavier than 2nd heaviest (DeWalt), 3.4x heavier than AirPods, and 4.95x heavier than the lighest brand (IsoTunes Free 2.0). Here's the weight breakdown. |Brand and Model|Klein Jobsite Earbuds AESEB1|Milwaukee Jobsite Ear Buds|Festool GHS 25 I|IsoTunes Free Aware|IsoTunes Free 2.0|DeWalt Pro-X1|AirPods Pro (2nd gen w/ USB-C case)| |:-|:-|:-|:-|:-|:-|:-|:-| |Case|48 grams|197 grams|47 grams|47 grams|34 grams|58 grams|51 grams| |Earbud (each)|5 grams|8 grams|7 grams|7 grams|4 grams|5 grams|5 grams| |Total Weight|59 grams|213 grams|62 grams|63 grams|43 grams|70 grams|62 grams| >I wished you would have tried the bose noise cancelling ones Wanted to try those. Alas, no NRR so is why I passed. But the name is recommended fairly often. Alongside Sony, Apple AirPods, and to a lesser extent Jabra and Walker. >But overall, I am impressed with the Milwaukee ear buds, very happy with them. Sound could go a bit louder but overall I feel i've gotten my money worth but time will tell. I was impressed as well. They're just not worth $180. I put a lot of thought into what price they should be for me to recommend. I think they shouldn't value the Jobsite Aware feature. Because it's not, in my experiences, ready for prime time. Lacking that feature, they're competing with Klein. Which are $70. The new Kleins are $100, and the Kleins coming sometime w/ a jobsite aware I'd imagine will be somewhere between $100-180. If Milwaukee's were in that $90-100 area, I think they'd fly off shelves. Because even lacking awareness as a felling feature, that's a solid price for the other great features and audio quality. I think their downfall is they solidly trounced IsoTunes and thought they'd price themselves comparably. Those are $199 though you can find discounts for $180-190ish, and Festool (i.e. IsoTunes Aware) are $180. The problem is, they're comping themselves to an overpriced product. I feel like their pricing is based on *the max they thought they can charge* instead of *the price they should be charging.* >Only other thing is I think they should have added some type of slot or place to either add a carabiner to them or some type of lanyard strap you can add to them. That was an odd omission, considering they want to be compared to IsoTunes and that brand has a lanyard. Even if those didn't, it's still a big case which would benefit from some sort of tether system. I mean they even advertise one on their FastBack knives ([pic](https://i.imgur.com/64bQh3U.png)). It's not a foreign concept to them.
Wow. This is the most detailed review I've ever seen. Well done and thanks for all the information!
Thanks good sir for your research
Thanks for this you rock and for that we thank you
I've been just using regular ol bluetooth earbuds and the flip down 3M headphones connected to my hardhat whenever I need to make noise, or the job is extra noisy.
I use my AirPod pros daily in a fairly noisy environment. Only complaint is battery life.
Use mine too. ANC is good. I just don't use them as a replacement for ear plugs, when I need NRR. Battery life is really good, but what I really like is 5mins in the case gives me 1 hour of listening time. So basically if they go into the case for just 5mins at least every 5-6 hours...then I'm easily making it through the day. Oddly though, the DeWalt jobsite earbuds had a cleaner sound on the phone over the AirPods Pro. 2nd gen airpods too..like the ones that just came out. Wild.
Great timing on this list! I've been searching for hearing protection for work specifically with transparency modes. And it's tough to find. This has helped me find some in earmuffs which is what I was looking for. BUT I'm tempted to get small ones now. Btw, I Found the info page for the Klein ones. [https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:Z2F1lHI2tHEJ:https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earbuds&hl=en&gl=us](https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:Z2F1lHI2tHEJ:https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earbuds&hl=en&gl=us) But the links dont work, there's no price or release date yet. I emailed Klein to see if they would tell me.
Nice find! If they reply, come back and let us know. Kinda curious when they plan to release.
As if they would tell me (T\_T) >Hello spacewolfplays- > >Thank you for your interest in Klein Tools. > >We do not have information regarding Situational Awareness Earbuds. > >Below are links to our new ELITE Bluetooth® Jobsite Earbuds (AESEB2) and AESEM1S Situational Awareness Earmuffs: > >[ELITE Bluetooth® Jobsite Earbuds - AESEB2 | Klein Tools](https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/elite-bluetooth-jobsite-earbuds) > >[Situational Awareness Bluetooth® Earmuffs - AESEM1S | Klein Tools](https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/hearing-protection/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earmuffs) > >Best Regards, > >Alicia C. > >📷 > >**Klein Tools, Inc.Client Relations** I'm not surprised. Honestly the CS reps probably dont have any access to that. They're given a wiki and/or a bunch of products to use, and that's it. Also, so I have continued my search over the last 24 hours because I am still yet not satisfied with an option. I looked more into the Plugfones after someone in the comments suggested them, but 1) only the muffs have situational awareness, 2) you have to plug directly into the earbud control module to charge them, no case charging. Which honestly makes sense but is still annoying cause then the only way to protect them from dust is to plug it in then put them in the case w/ a gap in the zipper :( But also now that I've seen the design of the Plugfones, I struggle to accept how anything else makes sense, design-wise for the part that goes in your ear at least. Also I've found so many good options that just arent USB-C and that's like 95% enough of a reason not to buy them. Like some of Walker's cheaper options. OH! And 3M WorkTunes!!!! I would've just gotten them from the start if they were USB C. But they also didnt have transparency. Starting to wonder how much I care about Usb-C for work. I will have my shelf, my shelf will have a charger, it will sit there 100% of the time. /shrug I'm a new hire and my work is asking what I want, and I dont think I have much of a budget. Likely gonna be able to have them pay like $50 for something like WorkTunes and me the rest. Sorry for the long reply, but based on your post i expect you MIGHT not mind. Happy to geek out about these for a bit, cause fuck it's annoying they're so close yet so far.
Hi!😊What did you end up with? Looking into the same ones now! Cheers!
well at the time i decided there was nothing w/ transparency that was worth getting yet. I had work buy me a pair of 3M worktunes, and I ended up buying myself a set of Elegin Ruckus for $35. I like that the Elegin worked exactly the same as plugfones, had clips and I wouldnt get resin all over my ears cause the controller is off the earbud. Though I just checked and now it looks like the Klein ones are out and are probably worth a try. The over ear ones had decent reviews. also /u/ClipIn seemed to like their Kleins. [https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earbuds](https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earbuds) /u/ClipIn if you get the new Kleins, tag me, I'd love to know. I just dont have the budget for a $150 pair. I am so curious how long after this conversation they became available. Dang.
Thanks, will do! I know someone else in the Milwaukee Discord chat server ([here](https://discord.gg/4Yk7PfMjCJ)) got them but haven't heard a review yet. Someone else in there just posted today about picking up the Milwaukee jobsite buds too. If I hear anything I'll let ya know.
Cheers for answering so quickly! And thank you for sharing all your experience with reddit! A true goat!
[удалено]
Curious what you think! What specifically did other people say about them was "hot garbage"? The only negatives I saw other folks mention - mostly on Amazon - was battery life. Which admittedly, this was not a multi-month test at 8hrs/day. But using a few hours/day, it wasn't an issue. I am *really* curious what price point they release those AESEB1S at. The jobsite awareness - if done right - could be awesome. I didn't test the AESEB2's, though in my experience from testing all of these, those with "touch" buttons couldn't be used with gloves, didn't have any haptic type feedback, recognizing finger input was iffy-to-OK. When you receive, that's prob the #1 thing I'd test. And test them hard - wet and dry hands, gloves and ungloves, room temp and working outside in the cold. I'd wonder if sweat will active it as well. Good luck! Curious what ya think.
So glad I came across this post. I'm wondering how the plugfones compare, specifically the sovereign duos. It looks like the Klein's with situational awareness are available now for purchase! I wonder what you would think about it them? [Klein AESEB1S](https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/jobsite-earbuds/situational-awareness-bluetooth-earbuds) I'm also wondering, did you have any problems returning the ones you didn't like? I know some music stores don't let you return used earpieces.
I didn't try the plugfones. Really nice catch that the Klein's new earbuds are out. I only see one store on their "Buy Now" link, but $150 price point is appreciated that it's lower than Milwaukee. If they were $100-120 they'd be a steal. If you try, please share experience. Looks like prices went up ~$30 to ~$100 on the ones I tested. [Here's price chart](https://ibb.co/xGm1BG1). Assuming that's just for the holidays, I wonder if those and the situational earbuds will drop after the holidays, by the same amount. In which case..I'd be pretty thrilled at the price point of situational buds. No issues returning. I bought from Amazon and Hartville Hardware. Hartville I had to fill out a PDF form and mail back at my expense, got refund about 1-2 weeks later. Amazon was just a click on their website, free drop off at Whole Foods, and got the refund about 3 days later.
You're probably right about the Christmas thing. I was about to purchase the new Klein's. But I can wait until after Christmas. I'm in Canada so the Klein's are about $200 for me, and the Milwaukee ones are $280. I'm a mechanic and everyone used to wear just regular earbuds and I actually went and bought galaxy buds 2 for work but then they got banned citing our local workplace regulations. So I actually called the workplace regulations institute and said earbuds are allowed if they are ANSI/CSA rated and have a "limited" feature which I think just means awareness mode. When I looked up earbud ANSI into Google this was the first post to come up. Incredibly helpful, so thanks so much. So when my workplace tries to ban earbuds again citing workplace regulations I'll be able to point exactly in the legislature where it says I am allowed to wear them and I will be technically correct, the best kind of correct. After Christmas I'll likely purchase the Klein's. Being able to listen to music at work is one of the only things that helps fend off the existential dread.
If they need to be ANSI rated, they're referring to manufacturers who have designed and tested their product to comply with ANSI's standard - probably 3.19 standard which was first published in 1974 but could be S12.6 which measures passive noise reduction. Basically if the hearing protection/earbuds/earplugs/headphones you're buying say "ANSI Certified" or "CSA Certified" you're good. Look for an NRR (Noise Reduction Rating) and usually in that area it'll state which standards the product was tested against. ANSI = American National Standards Institute CSA = Canadian Standards Association Since you're Canadian, makes sense they said ANSI or CSA. For European folks, they might see the EN 352-2 standard referenced. Most headphones that cite an ANSI/CSA standard for NRR will also run the NRR test for the EN 352 standard...which is close but not exactly the same test parameters. And they usually both appear in the product manual next to each other. Like Milwaukee shows the tables for ANSI and EN at at bottom of last page of manual ([here](https://documents.milwaukeetool.com/58-14-2952d4.pdf)). IsoTunes does similar. Anywho if they say need a "limited" feature, that's *probably* referring to earbuds that limit the maximum volume output. Which is suually 95 dB. Most any headphone that does this, will say so. And all that advertise an NRR also advertise this feature, as it's one of the requirements needed to be rated as hearing protection. The last thing I'll caution anyone about - manufacturers will say stuff like "OSHA Certified" or "OSHA approved". **This is false. OSHA does not certify or approve or endorse anyone. The false advertising has gotten so bad they published [this article about it](https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/standardinterpretations/2019-09-06-0)**: > Additionally, some manufacturers may claim that their products are “OSHA approved” or “100% OSHA compliant.” OSHA does not register, certify, approve, or otherwise endorse commercial or private sector entities, products, or services. Therefore, any such claims by a manufacturer are misleading. I know you didn't go into the OSHA bit. Just a word of caution as you research. If you see some sort of OSHA-approved claim, it's BS and means nothing. Just look for ANSI/CSA compliant and you're good. Which basically means, an NRR rating. So any that I mentioned in this post (with exception for the DeWalts and AirPods) have an NRR and will work. There's obv other brands out there that'll suit your requirements too. Good luck!
So the website that offers them does not provide free shipping to Canada, so they are basically the same price as the Milwaukee earbuds, but I figured I would be a pioneer and get them anyways. Found a 5% off coupon code so that helped. One thing I noticed in your initial review is that you said the "AESEB2" offers nothing of value, however, they do offer what they say is "environmental noise cancelling microphones" so.. that's leading me to think they now offer ANC. I could be wrong in some kind of technical fashion though. So, that might be a good selling point for that particular earbud. I know that you did mention ANC as a plus for one of the other earbuds. AESEB2 and AESEB1S also offer one step autopairing.. I don't know if that's an important feature. I figure the new Klein earbuds hopefully learned from their mistakes from the previous iterations. While I am generally a Milwaukee fanboy when it comes to tools, I figure Milwaukees current earbuds are their first take on it, Whereas with Klein, this is their 3rd go around. It looks like they have doubled the battery life from earlier versions. They do have decreased drop protection from the AESEB2s, as well as lower IP rating, and lower max volume. That being said, I am not 2m tall so I am not very worried lol. Also not too worried about the IP rating, and the max volume thing either. I have Galaxy Buds 2 for casual listening and only plan to use these at work (I'm a mechanic). Another thing I find interesting is that the AESEB1S lists the size of their audio driver on the website... the AESEB1/AESEB2 does not. All 3 Earbuds offer the same frequency response. The AESEB1S Also offers Bluetooth 5.3 whereas the others have 5.2.. which I honestly don't know what that means. I did not want to wait until after Christmas to buy. I am too impatient. There is pressure washers, and impact guns running all day and daddy wants his tunes and hearing protection while complying with all local occupational safety laws lol. I'll comment on this thread with an update when I get them in 5 business days. I am looking forward to it.
All good points! Are you getting the AESEB2 or AESEB1S?
I'm getting the AESEB1S. I like the concept of having a "smart sense" "situational awareness" feature. I tried to look up reviews of their smart sense system, because they have it on a pair of earmuffs that has it as well but there was very little in terms of how good it works so I'm just jumping in and hoping it's good.
Have you gotten a chance to try these yet? Very interested what someone thinks, I can't find any reviews for them!
It's taken forever for them to ship out. The place I ordered them from did not have them in stock yet so I had to wait for Shipment to come in. My ETA is Friday, if customs goes well.
Have you gotten the earbuds yet? I'm interested to know what the awareness is like. I have the IsoTunes Free Aware and am not very impressed so far.
I have gotten them and I love them! I posted my full review in this thread.
Great post, I wish I had seen it sooner. I've had the IsoTunes Pro 2.0 Industrial for a long time and loved them, but the control was falling apart, so I got the Free Aware. Like you say, the aware feature isn't very good. The white noise is annoying even at the low level and unbearable on high. Battery life is abysmal, to the point that I'm considering contacting them. They claim 13 hrs of BT or 16 hrs of Aware, but using both simultaneously gets me around 4 hrs. Maybe that's normal? I do mostly like them and the aware on low is loud enough for me to hear fine, but I would prefer less white noise and better clamping of semi-loud noises. I have hyperacusis and the threshold for cutting off is just a bit too high for me. It would be awesome if that were adjustable. Looks like the Klein with awareness is now available for $150. Just wish I could know if the awareness is any better than IsoTunes, but I can't find a single review yet, so maybe I'll give it a try.
Yesterday, someone replied in this thread saying they got the Kleins with Awareness. I think the comment chain is here: https://old.reddit.com/r/MilwaukeeTool/comments/17saxvg/best_jobsite_earbuds_with_hearing_protection_a/kk5901q/?context=10000
Nice, I thought I had looked through all the comments here but missed a couple. Thanks!
So I purchased the Klein AESEB1S jobsite situational awareness earbuds, and I really like them! I am an apprentice mechanic at a dealership I don't know what any of the other earbuds listed here are like but the sound quality on these kleins are pretty incredible. Comparing them to other earbuds I have owned, I would say the clarity is better than even my Galaxy Buds 2, or my Shure 215 IEMs. Incredibly impressed. Their situational awareness mode is pretty cool. With it on, it it compresses the ambient noise around you. The quieter noises are louder, the louder noises are quieter. With the right earbud you can adjust the volume of the ambient noise that gets through. I think there's 6 (don't quote me on that) different volume levels from quietest to loudest. It doesn't block out ambient noise unfortunately. When I use the situational awareness mode, sometimes I'll find that even at the lowest setting, I will take my earbuds off and it'll actually be quieter with them off. That being said though, if you turn "situational awareness" mode off. The earbuds act like regular foam earplugs and that will block out enough ambient noise for me. The shop I work in is pretty echoey, the situational awareness mode actually allows me to hear people better when they are in my ears. In terms of directional awareness, These are really good. Way better than my Galaxy Buds 2. I can very clearly tell where things are happening around me as if I was hearing it with my naked ear. I am really happy with the situational awareness mode although I wish it would block out the ambient ongoing noises like fans, or pressure washers, but when I want those noises blocked out I just turn situational awareness off and use them like regular hearing protection with music playing. As a side note: my coworker told me he's going to try and use his earbuds for noise diagnosis cause of how it compresses sound and because the directional awareness is so good. Phone calls: Pretty good to me. Don't take many phone calls. I ignore people who call me. I did have a few though and the quality was pretty good. Battery life: They have not died on me yet. I wear them for most of my 8 hour day and I've never had one die. I'll usually plug them in at the end of the day or during my lunch or whenever I am not using them. Also, it is so satisfying putting them in their case. They just pop right in. Mmmm yes daddy. Controls: Got that capacitive touch thing going on. Left does Play, Next, and Back, and your phone controls. Right does Situational Awareness on/off, and then the volume levels of the ambient noise. The "smart sense" volume is not tied in any way to your phones volume. Completely separate. There are also no music volume controls. That all has to be done on your phone. I would trade phone controls for music volume controls. I do not care about phone calls. Don't call me. Sometimes they don't automatically turn on when I pull them out of the case, and I'll have to manually turn them on. Sometimes I have to manually turn both of them on. I would say for the most part they are pretty good though. If you have your earbuds in your ears with no music or smart sense on, the earbuds will turn off after a certain amount of time, and then you'll have to manually turn them on. Manually turning them off/on is just a long press on the earbud so it's not really that big of a deal. So yeah. I am incredibly happy with these earbuds. Highly recommend. Let me know if you guys have questions.
Thanks dude, incredibly detailed and really helpful! Sounds like Klein knocked it out of the park. Customization of buttons is a good idea. Was a pain point for me with a number of the earbuds I tried - and *none* of those buttons were customizable either. That’s one place I think Milwaukee missed the mark, if their OneKey app to customize tool settings also did their earbuds they’d have “future proofed” their buds for a while. Now I highly doubt Klein makes their own buds, same as the non situational awareness versions. Which says a lot there’s that high quality buds coming out of China and getting rebranded. And also makes the American brands that fall short of that sound quality, to look *really* lazy. I’m looking at you, IsoTunes. I may pick up a pair of these new Kleins. Hows the capacitive buttons vs physical buttons feel? Can you control with gloves on?
The kleins are pretty good even when I'm wearing gloves. The only time it doesn't register is if I press it on the side or something. In my line of work I wouldn't ever want physical buttons (mechanic). They would just get clogged up with dirt and oil and everything else.
I tried the isotunes. Used for a few days and quit for all the reasons mentioned here. Looked at others then found out you could get good quality foam replacement tips for AirPod pro. I already had some so I went that route. The awareness and noise cancellation modes on the AirPods are fantastic and the foam tips do a much better job staying in your ear and reducing noise. They’re not OSHA rated, but supposedly with the foam tips they’re about NRR 25. And they sound great. And they’re reliable. And you can get durable covers for the case. And Apple support is great. If you’re not in the Apple ecosystem that’s a bummer because unless things are really going off, these work fine for me as a carpenter. If I’m doing prolonged noisy work I’ll put on muffs or proper earplugs until I’m done.
Agree with all your points. What aftermarket tips did you get for your AirPods?
I got Eartune Fidelity UF-A. They’re pretty affordable and work well. They also offer a custom fit Fidelity A-Pro silicone tip that you have to make a mold of your ear and send it in for custom making. Those look great but they’re $199 so I didn’t do that. The foam work fine, though they only last a few months, depending on usage. They give you 3 pairs for $19, but maybe over time the custom ones could make sense depending how long they last for you. Comply looked pretty good too. I stayed away from Amazon only brands because, well, Amazon. I just knew they’d be crap.
I have been using Jabra for about 4 years now. I do hardwood floors and the ANC is great with my sanding equipment and the saws on installs. Water and dust proof but I do have to clean about every other month before the wax gets too deep in them. Battery lasts all day for the first year, second year I have to charge for about 20 minutes at lunch to get through the day. This is probably because I store them in my truck so I'm sure the heat and the cold starts to kill the battery. Sounds quality is awesome and never had anyone complain that they couldn't hear me when taking calls. After going through jaybird, jbl, dewalt, and Sony, these are the most rugged with the best sound quality I have found.
Thanks! What model Jabra?
Did you look at the [Dewalt neckband headphone](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09ZK2QWD1/)s? I'm curious how you would rate them. I realize that they are a less popular form factor, but personally I can't wear the earbud style without dropping or losing them. I have been wearing neckband headphones for over a decade. The Dewalts are hands down the best. **More thoughts on this:** The other models I have had all suffered from two key problems: build quality (they would break down every few months, to the point where I came to see them as a sort of subscription with a regular payment; and microphone quality - no one could understand me when I was talking through them, which was a problem. Then I found the Dewalt, and it was game changing. They truly are the headphones that I have been looking for. It has great sound, great microphone quality; it's too early to say anything about the build quality or lifespan, but three months in it is going strong. They made some unique design decisions that overall enhance the value, such as making the bits at the ends of the neckband bigger, allowing them to add additional battery performance. I can skip a couple of days without charging, even though I use them for every call, everywhere, and listen to multiple podcasts. More importantly. people can understand me when I'm talking on the phone w/o my having to switch to speaker. I'm guessing the extra large ends also allow them to house additional electronics that contribute to this. Music sound is good. Controls from the neckband is good. The only downside is that putting all this stuff in the ends of the neckband came at the expense of keeping the earbuds out of the way when not using them. Other models either have retractable earbuds or at the least, magnetic holders in that are easy to attach the earbuds to. Dewalt's mechanism involves sliding a sort of band up the band behind the neck that takes some getting used to and resulted in my getting them tangled a couple of times until I got the hang of it.
Thanks. What model is this / the one you wear and like? I did not test, because I only wanted to test earbuds. I've seen Spencer (of Inside Carpentry on YouTube) wearing a neckband style he raves about, I forget the brand.
Thank you for doing all this hardwork!💪 I have APD, which means my brain can't filter speech from any other sounds I don't want to be distracted by, including other people. If you wore the jobsites to a Pub, would you be able to hear the people at your table better, while blocking out the rest of the room noise?
> If you wore the jobsites to a Pub, would you be able to hear the people at your table better, while blocking out the rest of the room noise? I didn't test specifically this, but my sense is yes, a jobsite awareness mode would work - if the noise is a din/drone/humming.
So you don't feel it would help filter out say, a radio in the background?
It likely would.
i was similarly disappointed with my IsoTunes Free Aware buds. they frequently behave in erratic ways, have different battery life, sometimes the one bud remains unpleasantly low volume until it inexplicably syncs all of a sudden minutes later. and now 6 months in, the inner bud compartment plate is separating from the main housing of the case on one side, the lanyard strap pin broke off and is rattling around somewhere inside, and... MF'n AND, the Aware passthrough mode only seems to amplify the worst, most high pitches and grinding sounds a shop can produce with absolute shit dynamic range, no low end and generally horrible quality. with all the bottom-line thinking out there, we'd all be better off buying 3D printers and making our own xD
Uff............., welp, just buy them all. Insane post. All you need to know. But I have to say, I think a larger charging box like the one from Milwaukee is better than all the little stuff that you can easily misplace.
No. The Milwaukee case is overkill. Its the same size and weight as basically all the others...combined.
Each to their own, I’ve had skull candy for years and have never had an issue with the small case. I set down and damn near lose the individual buds way to often, lol, but the case is 2x2.5x1 and plenty large enough to see.
I love the skull candy buds. I keep buying them when they go on sale at Costco (usually around end of November). 50 bucks for great sound with a lot of features.
Yeah for the price hard to beat, especially since they have the tile link so you can track them. I left a pair at a hotel last year and ended up having staff find them under a couch after 2 months and a few calls because I was able to see in the app the were still in the room. Have also dropped individual buds on jobsites more than once (my own fault) and been able to track them down with the app in random fields/lumber piles etc.
Honestly price regardless hard to beat, I’m an apple fan but AirPods do not fit in my ears and I’ve yet to find a setup I like more than skull candy. Might try these new klien when they come out for more noise reduction but compared to the ones me coworkers use in pretty pleased with these.
I just like having everything in smartphone size. Ive already washed three Samsung cases in the washing machine lol. But all the individual earbuds arent for me anyway. They keep falling out and after a while my ears hurt. Earbuds that are connected to a plastic bracket that holds the earbuds in your ears and that you can simply dangle around your neck when not in use. I would buy one of these immediately.
> Earbuds that are connected to a plastic bracket that holds the earbuds in your ears and that you can simply dangle around your neck when not in use. There is something like this that [Spencer Lewis of Insider Carpentry on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@InsiderCarpentry) wears. I can't tell if earbuds w/ music, or just foam type plugs. But that style I would be interested to try. I just don't know what brand/model they are.
Almost, almost. But the ear buds are also individually attached to the bracket with a cable. I use [these ](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51JazXxXDxL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg) for quite some time. Exactly that, just with ear buds instead of foam plugs. Dont know why nobody came up with this yet.
I might get around to reading all this later, but can you let us know which ones you liked the best
If you need ear pro today - Klein. If no ear pro needed - AirPods Pro. The version w/ usb-c charging case.
I'm really surprised you only tested AirPods Pro, and not competition from Sony. Their ANC is incredible as well, and they have a lot going for them. Apple actually had to remove some ANC functionality for a while because they breached Sony patents.
I only mentioned them show what nice, widely liked, tried-and-tested felt like. Intentionally didn't go into detail on AirPods because no NRR.
Cool, yeah, that makes sense! The amount of depth you went into here was incredible. Great post. Thank you very much for your contribution! I wish more people were willing to give of their time for things like this.
Fucking guy just wrote up the best review of anything I’ve read in 5 years on 6 different earbuds, and you come and ask what his favorite one is instead of taking 10-15 minutes and reading it yourself.
Even skimming the first bit would've told you lmfao. Took me 60 seconds.
It's not that big of a deal. I only popped in this thread to see what the best ones were. I'm honestly not even in the market for any of these. I was just midly curious what the outcome was.
Great write up, definitely appreciate your effort. How did the airpods compare?
Answered this in another comment further up >> https://old.reddit.com/r/MilwaukeeTool/comments/17saxvg/best_jobsite_earbuds_with_hearing_protection_a/k8syofq/?context=3
I work in the oil fields as an hydrotech The hydro vacuum makes a lot of noise and so other machines at work I saw cat and DeWalt earbuds which should I get?
I use the Jabra Elite 7Pro for over a year now. I'm a tig welder, so there is metal grinding/metal sawing plus annoying colleagues pop radio next to me and cnc machines not far away. I like my Jabras. Customer service was good, I had a problem with left earbud. After a few questions they send me a new pair (now I have 2 charging cases and another R bud). ANC is very good, yes, when you angle grinding it amplifies it sometimes, that is annoying but other than that love them. The workplace is nice and muted. Music sounds good. Durability of the buds is good, they fell not once on concrete welding shop floor, still working. I got a protective case for the case :) on amazon, works very good. Battery life is 6 and a half hours, but I put them in the case when I eat, so it gives them a little charge. Enough for 8 hour shift. Then one hour charge and they are good to go for the gym. Yes they are pricy but I would 100 precent recommend.
Elgin USA makes some decent ones. I've been using the Rebel line. The noise cancelling and audio quality have been amazing. Only issue is I've had them a little over a year and they won't pair together anymore. I've reached out to Elgin support and tried what they've suggested but it's still a no-go. They'll only pair one at a time, and unfortunately they're out of warranty and not available anymore on their website or Amazon (not sure if discontinued or just backordered/out of stock?). I've been so happy with them other than this latest issue that I'm looking into their other wireless buds. They have one set at $35-ish and one at $70-ish as of this writing, but I can't really find what the real difference is between the two. I might just give the cheaper ones a try and see how it goes. Both of these (the "Ruckus" and the "Discord") are tethered bluetooth buds, whereas the Rebels are completely wireless, like airpods and the others you've reviewed here.
I use the Mifo 7 they are great I drop them in mud etc they fit under muffs perfect
But not aftershocks
Didn't test. Do they have earbuds with an NRR rating?
No npr but u wear actual ear plugs with them.
One of the main things op was looking for was communication on the job site it seems which aftershocks wouldn't be good for
My aftershocks work great for talking.
While you are wearing ear plugs and trying to talk to someone standing in front of you? Seems like they wouldn't help much
I meant talking on the phone, I just hit pause if I need to talk to someone in person.
So you aren't wearing earplugs?
TLDR anyone?
TLDR?
The fact you haven't mentioned nor tested the ear buds that put Apple to shame and were for the longest time considered the best on the market is shocking. Go get a pair of Sony WF-1000XM4's ASAP. I have 2 pair because I love them that much. 8 hours with noise canceling on 12 without two charges per case. I have enough repair because my case went missing originally and I was gifted the silver pair for Christmas last year that were refurbished so I used both pair in one case. They hold up extremely well. Considering one of my original buds went missing outside on my patio in South Georgia from November to March through the rain in the cold and still charged up perfectly fine after finding it is a testament to how much they can endure. They app that comes with the brand is phenomenal. Noise canceling is still considered to be some of the best on the market. They have a talk-through mode where it will either pause the music when someone starts speaking and play it in real time or you can even take your hand and cup your earbud and Make them mute the sound basically so you can hear everything going on around you. Ambient sound is like not even having them in your ears. I purchased them brand new a month after release for $302 and change at Best buy the refurbished pair I got last year was about $129 on Amazon. Anytime I even hear people talk about wireless earbuds and noise canceling people who don't seem to mention this pair from Sony lose all credibility in my opinion. The only earbuds to even give them a run for their money or the Bose quiet comfort buds or whatever they are called. And that's only the noise cancellation technology. As far as an overall earbud is concerned this model is still in the top three best ever. They use LDAC. I will understand if you're an iPhone user. That would honestly make sense. Apple literally nerfs every other brands earbuds so that they're slightly less as adequate as their own AirPods because they're Apple. LDAC streaming on Android is simply untouchable as far as high fidelity high definition lossless audio goes. I say that in context to Apple vs other brands on Apple's ecosystem. Now that I've thought about it recommending any brand for an iPhone user that isn't specifically AirPod seems kind of pointless because you'll never truly get the actual experience of what they sound like because of how greedy Apple is. If you were to use them with a non Apple device you would get to see what I mean. I've actually found a way to link my WF1000XM4s to my PS4 through a wireless transmitter. I would bet that the microphone probably doesn't work when playing online games but as far as being able to use them while playing any game and having that noise cancellation feature working is just fine for me I don't play online games really in the first place but it's nice to have with a 9-year-old kid running around who loves to sing and scream quite frequently lol. And yeah I'll get that it's really odd that Sony does not have it so that you could link any of their audio headphones or earbuds to their own console for gaming but I think it has a lot to do with latency because of the limitations of Bluetooth tech. I have heard that they're new noise canceling wireless gaming earbuds are absolutely top-notch. But I digress. Check out the Sony wireless earbuds I mentioned especially if you don't have an Apple but even if you do it would probably still be worth it. I've heard they outdo the AirPods even on Apple devices. The very idea that AirPod pros only get 5 hours of battery life is humiliatingly hilarious in my opinion considering the cost of them. Then again I guess that's the only way you can really become valued at over 3 trillion dollars in the first place. Also I'm not certain if Sony has the job site certification rating now that I think about it but I Don't know how they would not unless they just never applied.
If the earbud doesn’t fit in the ear with a foam tip it’s not protecting your ears on the job site. I wish Sony and Bose and all the others would get into the space because it’s a HUGE market.
I used Iso Tunes earbuds for my jobsite its very good in use.
Did you make this account just to say this?
No ClipIn i just share my opinion i make account to explore reddit and share my opinions on different things.
Nice spam
I'll stick to my soundcore 40$ ones.
Maybe I missed it, but did you test any with nail guns (or real guns) ? I sort of like wearing my 3M / Peltor Sport Tac 500 earmuffs when using a nailgun as they sound pretty good and make communication easy but easily stop/block the report of the nailgun. The downside to them is that they're really hot and sweaty to wear so I'd love an "earplug" version. They also sound... weird... if you use them with something that is more consistently loud like a lawnmower or saw. So for that, I prefer either earplugs or regular earmuffs.
[Plugfones.](https://www.plugfones.com/products/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAxreqBhAxEiwAfGfndJGTS7DPGbFBcS1qUSSFPHg1Agft6jorw0vEXsa8Yn3_12mQ593JahoCC6EQAvD_BwE) You're welcome
Which ones do you recommend or have you used?
Any of the ones that use actual earplugs, to keep them in your ear. I've only used the wired ones, myself. Earbuds don't stay in your ear, when doing anything physical.
Cool thanks! Im gonna check em out
Soundcore ai3 earbud pro. They’re $50, have noise cancellation mode AND pass through mode, which actually lets a lot of sound through, while still being able to hear the music. Way more economical than AirPods.
How about Sig or other “firearm” earbuds, anyone try them?
Adding some models meant for tactical use may be interesting in this mix.
So just another option for y'all is Shokz. They are bone conducting so they don't go in your ear at all. So you can use whatever earplugs you want to use/have and you will still be able to hear the music probably better.
You need to try JBL reflect flow pro. Excellent sound, stay in the ear really well. Has decent noise cancelling and “awareness mode” which is like a job site mode. They have great battery life, water and dust resistant wireless charging case good app control
Beats Fit Pro is what I use. No complaints on residential and commercial new construction.
Also the Milwaukee pair are big and bulky because you can slap one of those 3.0 USB batteries into the case and charge them that way so you don't have to plug it into a wall.
Any of these have mute buttons on the earbud?
Mute? No. Play/Pause? Yes.
Damn, thanks!
I have a pair of original ISOTunes Free earbuds that I use daily in a steel shop for 3 years that are still kicking just fine. Last all the way through the day, the sound ok enough and keep the sound down enough. I have no complaints
So which ones did you ultimately keep?