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Three Tips for Getting Earphones to Fit Properly

posted by Robert E. Calem on July 27, 2011
in Phones and Mobile, Headphones, Music and Video, Tips & How-Tos, Tech 101 :: 8 comments

man wearing earphoneEven the best in-ear headphones can sound awful and feel uncomfortable if they're not seated properly in your ear. Here's how to get a proper fit.

  • Size Matters: The key to a proper earphone fit is using the right size ear tip. So try the various sizes of foam and silicon tips that come with your earphones. One ear may be slightly larger than the other, so you may need to use a different size for each ear.
  • Seat the eartip firmly: To get the best sound, you need to seal your ear canal with the eartip. So simply pushing an eartip into your ear often isn't enough to create a proper seal. Try gently pulling on the outer rim of your ear to ease the tip into a comfortable position. You should notice a drop in ambient noise when the tip is seated correctly. And when you're listening to music, you'll notice more range, especially bass.
  • woman wearing earphoneSecure the tip for sports: If you find that your earphones fall out while exercising, try looping the cable that connects them behind your head and around the top of each ear. For eartips that are angled to fit in the ear canal, place the side marked “L” in your right ear and the side marked “R” in your left ear. Some headphones, like those made by Shure are designed to be worn this way, so check before swapping sides.

 

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Find your brand that fits your ears

From Jackie @ freeismylife on July 27, 2011 :: 9:58 am

My ears are very small and most in-ear earphones don’t fit. I started using the Jabra brand years ago and their gel tips are are great for a good fit.  I do have earphones from other brands that use the interchangeable tips but they still don’t fit as well.

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I dont understand how one

From Marcia on July 27, 2011 :: 8:30 pm

I dont understand how one tries on all the earphones when they are in plastic packages and not available for trying on.  THank you.

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Better earphones come with a

From Josh Kirschner on July 28, 2011 :: 12:42 am

Better earphones come with a variety of eartip sizes. So after you purchase, you should try the various sizes to see which fits you best. Obviously, you can’t try on the different tips before you buy the earphones.

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Earphones that fit

From Sausha Johnson on August 08, 2011 :: 3:23 pm

I need headphones—but I want them to connect to my iphone.  Does anyone make these?  I can only find earbuds that I cannot make fit.

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Most should work

From Josh Kirschner on August 08, 2011 :: 4:47 pm

Most headphones/earphones should work with your iPhone. If you have an external case on your iPhone, that can sometimes make the fit trickier, so look for earphone models that have a straight post (rather than an L-shaped post). Often the straight post models are longer and won’t be blocked by the case.

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Earset that can be used with Peltor ear muff hearing protectors

From David on September 13, 2011 :: 10:43 am

Is there a set that allows use of a HTC EVO in conjunction with Peltor ear muff hearing protectors?
I am a woodworker and wear the Peltor Worktunes. The problem is I cannot hear my cell phone ring not can I feel the phone in vibration mode when working. Consequently, I miss a lot of phone calls. Any suggestions?

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Any set of earbuds should

From Josh Kirschner on September 13, 2011 :: 12:54 pm

Any set of earbuds should work as long as they are small enough to fit inside the Peltor cuff and the wire doesn’t interfere too much with the seal around your head (which it shouldn’t. Or, it appears that Peltor has a Blutooth model, which you probably could then sync to your phone for booth music ad other sounds (e.g., ringing).

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Mix and Match Earbuds

From Paul on October 12, 2011 :: 8:28 pm

I have the very annoying problem of my left ear canal being smaller than my right ear canal.  So I always make sure my headphones come with multiple ear gels and usually mix and match sizes.  Even with that method the earbud in my left ear always falls out during running.  I’ll try that method of wrapping the cord around the ear, though that doesn’t look that comfortable.

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