New product: Festool hearing protection?

[wpz]

Apparently festool will be bringing out some hearing protection called GHS 25 I

order# 577792

Innovative: the conversation mode allows you to communicate with colleagues without removing your hearing protection
For professional use: complies with European safety standard EN 352
Communicative: Bluetooth® 5.2 with True Wireless technology
Multifunctional: noise-isolating microphone for intelligible calls even in noisy environments
Convenient: touch control on the hearing protector
Long-term use: up to 13 hours of battery life, additional 25 hours by recharging in the charging case
Robust: protection class IP 67 against dust, water and sweat
Safer: 25 dB (NRR) / 32 dB (SNR) noise reduction
Core areas of use

The perfect companion for construction, the workshop and for leisure
Protects ears from harmful noise
Multifunctional, professional hearing protection (EN 352), also for listening to music and talking on the phone
Wireless ear protection with Bluetooth® 5.2
Suppresses background noise - for undisturbed calls even in loud environments
multifunctional, professional hearing protection (EN 352), also for listening to music and talking on the phone

wpz

 

[NiteWalkerGR]

I could be down for these. It all depends on how the sound quality is though. Right now I use a set of worktunes, and while they do the job well, sound quality is just ok.

 

[ChuckM]

Looks interesting, though the 25dB NRR rating is not as good as the ones I've been using. If the price is right, I'll try it.

 

[PaulMarcel]

So I like the idea of better hearing protection being released, I've been a long-time fan of SensGard passive hearing protection. It works by countering the loud audio waves passively with a resonant chamber. There are no batteries.

My trade neighbor would routinely come over when my garage shop door was open and I'd listen to his story... he'd always get (fake) grumpy that I "wasn't listening" to him with my SensGards on. But the thing is, I always have music on in my shop and I can leave them on while that's playing and not really remember I have hearing protection on. When the dust collector and table saw have a little jam at 100+Db, I can literally still follow the song that's playing.

I'll admit, studying HS and college physics as well as ham-radio harmonics hasn't given me a full understanding of how TF those work so well, but I have several for when I teach friends woodworking (yes, they have extra ear inserts).

Fun fact: I had to help a friend extract a glass chess board from his project because he "typoed" 7x8 instead of 8x8. Ironically, he was on his HS chess team...

 

[ChuckM]

I have two pairs of SensGard...they can handle every machine in my shop except the thickness planer. Rated 31dB NRR.

 

[PaulMarcel]

I have two pairs of SensGard...they can handle every machine in my shop except the thickness planer. Rated 31dB NRR.

Really? I have both the 26 and 31 models and honestly never grab the 31s. I did retrofit the PM-20 with a helical head (much quieter) but even that isn't very loud with the 26s. Though I can't say the 31s wouldn't be a better idea with the straight-knife head.

But seriously, the cheapest and best performing in my mind. The 26s are so comfortable I forget I have them on (as my neighbor will attest). The 31s are a bit heavier and will rotate to the back of your head.

 

[ChuckM]

Mine is the Ridgid planer R4331; 100dB, FW Mag. 2017 test). I have to wear my custom ear plugs (31dB NRR) (https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop/tools/apparel-and-safety-gear/hearing-protection/76327-custom-ear-plug-kit?item=22R7270) and an over ear hearing protector (25dB NRR) to feel comfortable while working around the planer (usually an hour at a time). The noise from the planer is fully blocked.

I got my SensGard from LVT, which carries the 31dB NRR version only.

 

[PaulMarcel]

Oh... didn't know about those from my fine Canadian brethren... I could see that with the Ridgid planer. I had one of those planers before the PM-20 (which even with straight knives wasn't that bad...)  Actually, I regret selling it off as it was amazing with my setup for thin drawer stock.

 

[usernumber1]

looks like ~$200 ish
https://www.pkrealizace.cz/produkt/festool-sluchatka-spunty-do-usi-ghs-25-i

 

[Crazyraceguy]

I guess there is an up-side to having Tinnitus for the last 45 years. The constant ringing is a fairly effective noise canceler.  [unsure]  At the pistol range is the only place I wear hearing protection of any kind. Planer, jointer, router, none of that stuff bothers me at all.

 

[ChuckM]

I might've shared it before (if I have, blame it on my age). In recent years, my wife complained about my hearing, and I finally went to see an ENT specialist. After the hearing test, the doc concluded that my hearing was as normal as anyone my age. He also pointed out that it was harder for our aging ears to pitch up the women's sound (high pitch). I have stuck to all my routine ear protection measures.

I don't wear ear plugs when using cordless drills. But it made me wonder if I should after recently finding that drills produce a noise level at 90dB to 94dB (A).

 

[Crazyraceguy]

I might've shared it before (if I have, blame it on my age). In recent years, my wife complained about my hearing, and I finally went to see an ENT specialist. After the hearing test, the doc concluded that my hearing was as normal as anyone my age. He also pointed out that it was harder for our aging ears to pitch up the women's sound (high pitch). I have stuck to all my routine ear protection measures.

I don't wear ear plugs when using cordless drills. But it made me wonder if I should after recently finding that drills produce a noise level at 90dB to 94dB (A).

Funny you should say that. I heard one time that a man hears female voices with the same part of their brain that they hear music. This does not however translate to women. They hear female voices the same as the do male. (By "hear" I mean that specific parts of the brain "light up", as the receiving area.)
I thought it was fascinating.

I have no idea what the frequency of the noise I hear actually is, but it must be fairly high?
Certain things are somewhat canceled by it, but one particular pitch annoys me. One of the older edgebanders we used to have, made that sound. It was fine if the operator would leave the damn covers in place, like they should be, but that hi-frequency noise when they were open and running, climbed righ up my back.

 

[MCS-Todd]

FYI, Festool filed for FCC ID Approval on April 21st.
https://apps.fcc.gov/oetcf/eas/reports/GenericSearchResult.cfm?RequestTimeout=500&calledFromFrame=Y

Able to see the breakdown pictures of them too. Hopefully they will be released soon.

 

[jeh]

I guess there is an up-side to having Tinnitus for the last 45 years. The constant ringing is a fairly effective noise canceler.  [unsure]  At the pistol range is the only place I wear hearing protection of any kind. Planer, jointer, router, none of that stuff bothers me at all.

None of those machines bother me, but they still are stealing bits of hearing capacity if you are not wearing protection.

 

[fritter63]

I refuse to buy these unless they come in a mini-systainer.......

 

[mino]

I refuse to buy these unless they come in a mini-systainer.......

Aren't these in the XSS terrritory ?

Besides, these are clearly more of a fan merchandise.

 

[kevinculle]

If you don't take care of your hearing you will end up like me, using your bluetooth hearing aids for both hearing protection and listening pleasure.  Modern aids allow you to turn off the mics while still getting the bluetooth feed at a comfortable level.  Since my hearing loss is broadband (across the full frequency spectrum) and in the 45-55dB range when I turn off the mics I get much better noise attenuation than wearing my 31dB NRR muffs with hearing aids underneath.  My DeWalt DW735 planer is just a faint whine.  Take care of those ears while you can, but if you haven't consult an audiologist!

 

[Packard]

Note that there are two types of headphones to use in noisy environments:  Nose reduction headphones, and noise isolation headphones. 

My earbuds use memory foam for the ear pads.  They do an excellent job of isolating me from the noise. 

I have a very pricy pair of reference grade earbuds that use silicone pads that insert deeply into the ear canal.  They block out almost 100% of the outside noise.

But I (and most of the public) have become indoctrinated to sound that is over-boosted in the low bass range.  The reference grade earbuds very accurately reproduce the sound as it was recorded.  The result is that they sound a little “tinny”.

The earbuds came with a printout of the sound accuracy.  I don’t use them very often, but the are exceptional for listening to garbled voices. 

My hearing loss is hereditary and started when I was a child. It does not respond well to hearing aids and I went to school for lip reading instead.

 

[Sparktrician]

An interesting thing about tinnitus is that even though I'm 100% deaf in one ear due to the auditory nerve being severed, the tinnitus was not mitigated by hearing loss on the deaf side.  If the ambient noise level rises, the level of the tinnitus rises, too, in BOTH ears.  Most irritating!  When I go to the range with my favorite pistols or rifles, I wear both plugs and muffs to stifle both direct impact noise as well as noise picked up by bone conduction.  Shotguns aren't as noisy, so I wear only plugs on the sporting clays and skeet ranges.  I'm surprised that I didn't sustain more hearing loss due to where I worked when in the military.  In those days, NO hearing protection was issued.  When we got off watch after four hours, we were functionally deaf for the next 12 hours or so.  For those that suffer from tinnitus, there's an interesting development about a potential treatment.  [smile]

 

[Mr Speaker]

I guess there is an up-side to having Tinnitus for the last 45 years. The constant ringing is a fairly effective noise canceler.  [unsure]  At the pistol range is the only place I wear hearing protection of any kind. Planer, jointer, router, none of that stuff bothers me at all.

None of those machines bother me, but they still are stealing bits of hearing capacity if you are not wearing protection.

100% agree. Please protect your hearing, even if, and perhaps especially if the noise doesn't bother you. A lot is unknown about hearing damage but we know it is cumulative, and irreversible in the long term. In the coclea, pressure wave pass by the higher freqquency hearing cells befor they reach the lower frequency cells. We suspect that low frequencies and mid frequencies can damge your hearing at higher frequencies. The damage varies greatly between people, so better safe than sorry.