Comments on: Etymotic Research ER6i Earphones Review (from a motorcyclist’s perspective)

By: drfaulken

drfaulken — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 16:57:54 +0000

Hi Chris,

Yes they did. I put them in and found they did not attenuate as much sound as the flange plugs, which in turn did not reduce as much sound as my Howard Leight Max plugs.

Also, the foam plugs are not meant to be multiple use according to Etymotic.

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 15:41:50 +0000

Didn’t your set come with foam plugs as a replacement for the flanged plugs? I could never get the flanges to sit correctly, but the foam plugs work just like the normal earplugs (get them warm, squish them down, and insert). They do an excellent job of keeping the noise down.

By: BigOrange

BigOrange — Sun, 03 May 2009 22:12:26 +0000

I do use the ER6i all the time on the bike – two tricks are to try the small flanged earbuds and stuff them as far into your ears as they go I think Etymotic suggests wetting them first (yes, this is getting to be a bit more information than required). The small earbuds should be the least uncomfortable and if they are seated properly they do a good job at reducing outside noise (which I find doesn’t intrude until ~70 mph).
Not sure what the problem with cutting off flanges is as there are spares with the phones and replacements are available on the internet. They also came with foam earbuds as well for those with more delicate ears but continually replacing these would quickly become costly.

By: Motodisiac

Motodisiac — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 18:37:59 +0000

Interesting. Your thoughts on ER6i’s completely mimics my experience with them. I bought a set few years ago, after several unsuccessful attempts to use them I gave up and they have been sitting my my desk ever since. The cord is complete junk and will look like it went through hell in no time. There is no way these provide adequate noise protection, maybe if you have never used the earplugs you may be fooled that the noise is reduced.
By the way I also use Scala Rider Q2 and while it’s completely useless for listening to music while riding, it works just fine for communications with my riding buddies and customers who call in at the wrong time :)

By: Gremlin

Gremlin — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 14:14:50 +0000

With the third flange cut off, you can insert the headphone the way it’s meant to. The entire headphone is inside the ear just like a properly inserted ear plug. When it’s properly inserted, the only part of the headphone that is touched by the helmet is the wire, so looping over the ear prevents wire noise from reaching you and prevents the helmet from pulling on the wire.

By: Spectre

Spectre — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 11:58:47 +0000

Nice write up Doc. I have had good experience with the Skull Candy ear buds when I was riding. The best thing about them for me was that the back side of the speaker housing that sat outside the ear was flat, instead of conical like most ear buds. When I had my helmet on the buds would rest on the padding rather than dig into the side of my head, and depending on the helmet I was wearing would even leave me with a little wiggle room for comfort.

Might want to check those out. I have also put mine through a lot of abuse and they are still working as well as they did when I bought them two years ago.

By: drfaulken

drfaulken — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 11:18:23 +0000

Hi Gremlin — I am glad your ER-6 earphones are working out for you. I had read about cutting off the thinnest flange, but didn’t want to in case I needed to sell the ER6i.

Inserting them upside down and looping the cord are both interesting ideas. I am not certain if the former would help on the ER6i, as the back is square and would be bumped regardless of orientation. How does this help the earphones you have from getting bumped out of place?

I am glad you mentioned the db meter and testing … how do companies like Etymotic validate their claims on noise reduction, and is it possible to test it at home? I guess you could have a ~34db noise according to the meter and then see if you could hear it with the Etymotics in.

Thanks for your comments, I hope they are helpful for someone else with the same problems I did.

By: Gremlin

Gremlin — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 22:58:54 +0000

I’m going to disagree with you one this one with a couple of caveats. I’ve used the ER-6 (not the 6i) for about two years while riding. During that time I’ve done several 12 plus hour rides without ever removing them for more than 20 minutes.

There are a couple differences between the sound of the 6 and the 6i. The 6i has an increase bass response that I find totally unnecessary. If I want more bass, that is for the EQ to do.

More importantly, the er-6 only has two flanges. Try nipping off that tip flange. I also recommend looping that wire over the top of your ear (inserting the headphone upside down). Then when you put your helmet on, you won’t be pulling on the wires and upsetting your seal.

For hearing protection, I usually use my db meter and a fancy cardboard contraption to get actual spl for a given headphone/music player combo. I aim for 75 db. At 75 db, OSHA says no hearing protection is required. Then I insert the headphones and go for a ride. With my er-6 I don’t EVER have to turn the volume up. That’s damn good isolation.