Flare Audio Calmer | Noise Reducing Ear Plugs Alternative | Silicone Reusable Ear Plugs for Noise Sensitivity, Focus and Travel | Ear Plugs for Noise Reduction (Standard, Grey)

*Reason for buying* I had read about Calmers as a potential accommodation tool for people with autism and general sensory/perceptual sensitivities (which I have). *Outer Design Pros* They fit well, they are very discreet (in clear), their bag keeps them dry and clean. The bag is easy to recognize by touch if you have it in a laptop bag with other stuff. *Technical Design Pros* Some people have said that, after the 24h test, they took the Calmers out in noisy environments and immediately noticed the Calmers had been making a difference, because they became more anxious and irritable. I do not notice such a shift (which is a plus because it seems that wearing the Calmers a lot doesn't further lower your tolerance to sound). On whether it works for me- I can easily notice that mid to high pitched sounds are, indeed, muffled. Low pitch sound is unaffected, and I can still hear mids to highs pretty well. There is seemingly no decibel difference, just pitch. So, Flare is legit on those claims. Again, I haven't felt a distinct shift when I put them in or take them out. However, I have been far less anxious, irritable, and overwhelmed since I started to wear them (real result, placebo, or other cause- I don't know, but I'm sticking with it). Also, I can tolerate close proximity to very harsh noises like vacuuming (never could achieve this before). I feel as though I am able to function better in my noisy home, whereas before I was knowingly and frequently running away from noise. Noise can still be annoying sometimes, but it just seems more tolerable/manageable. *How/When I Wear Them* I place the Calmers in my ear as directed (logo/projection side facing the back of your head, not super far into your ear). They really don't work otherwise, so be sure to do that. I just put them in before any louder noises I expect to occur and/or that I suspect or know stress me out. So, for example, I will put them in when my family is settling down to watch TV. I haven't tried the Calmers at a noisy restaurant or public space yet. I so far didn't feel I needed them at those places, but I'm sure they will help there. I also reach for them if there is a louder noise in my environment and I notice that I am irritated or have a headache in the back of my head/neck (I learned recently that these headaches are often from overstimulation). The noise may not be the cause, but who knows? I grab my Calmers anyway. *Technical Design "Cons"* Nothing is a real con for me. I do notice some weirdness to my voice when I wear the Calmers. People call it "echoing" but it just sounds a bit muffled and low to me. Nothing bothersome over time, though. It can also be a bit harder to hear people. This was all expected, especially due to the range at which I and other people speak (mids I guess). You also can't wear earbuds for music with them, so headphones are good, or I just take them out. I originally wanted colored Calmers for fun (I don't actually like boring and discreet items), but I found the available colors to be ugly, and I see that the clear ones are actually a great choice. So, Flare could make nicer colors, but it's not that important. I am guessing that I can't wear my tragus piercing without affecting the Calmers' performance (haven't tried, they are bendy but it might still affect things). That's fine, as I'd rather wear the Calmers most of the time. It's not a problem existing for most potential buyers anyway, but I wanted to note that. *Overall* I love the Calmers, and I think the price is fair for the materials used and how they have helped and will help me. I would definitely suggest splurging on accommodating yourself (I know Calmers are not that expensive, but I was still dragging my feet to buy them). Accommodating yourself in health is not shameful (you aren't being overly dramatic), it definitely helps you to live a little and be more productive, it is needed, it is worth the price, and it opens up space to be happier. 10/10 great tool for sensory sensitivity.

I have recently discovered I have autism as an adult, and have been learning about my sensory issues, which I realized a lot is from over stimulation from loud sounds or multiple sounds at once. I initially looked at the Loop Engage Plus earplugs but I saw lots of reviews that mention it does have an isolation effect just like regular ear plugs and I knew I needed something different as I was wanting something I can wear to work. I have to deal with people in a quiet setting so I knew the loops would make it difficult to hear. I saw a lot of other things online about these and decided to give them a shot. I got the Minis. My first impression was that I was honestly confused on if I just need to push them straight into my ear, or push upwards etc. I know there are instructions but to me it was just lacking a little detail. I got them in and initially my ears were sooo itchy and they just felt loose. I really couldn’t tell if they were too big or too small. I have a sinus infection and it has affected my ears so I think that was part of the itchiness. I kept them in until I went to bed and I still could notice them way more than I should have. This morning, day 2 I put them in at more of an angle pushing them up slightly and they went right into place and my ears are less itchy. They feel a lot more comfortable. Now onto the sound control: I do think they work really well! It has taken the edge off with my child’s crying/ loud voice, riding in the car has became less stressful as the loud pickup trucks (live in southern USA) sound less loud. I also have them in with my Beats Solo pros on top and I have a few songs that I enjoy, but the high notes/repetitive lyrics at louder volumes bother me. I tried those songs while I have these in and it really did take the edge off and I was able to enjoy those songs. They do exactly what they said they’ll do. You can still hear everything around you just at a slightly lower volume. I say the way you hear sound is less muffled version of when you wear the 1st gen AirPods. I will say I take them out while eating as I feel it still makes chewing louder just like earphones or earplugs but besides that there is no muting or blocking of anything. If you’re looking for something you can go between just lowering the volume to completely blocking out sound you should get something else. I’m considering getting loops engage plus or a similar product in addition to these to have the option to completely muffle or block the sound if needed. Im not sure how these would help with anyone’s ear conditions or anything like that as it is just to help lessen the preexisting sound but I plan on bringing these everywhere with me from now on. Also the little metal keychain is definitely better to keep up with than the black mesh bag it comes with, in my opinion. Only caveat is if you do have very sensitive ears or sensory issues to metal scraping, the lid to the metal keychain screws on and off, and makes a small scraping noise that is a little unpleasant. I also chose the minis because anytime I’ve worn earplugs on an airplane I always have them falling out because they’re too big. I think the calmers fit well in my ears. One did fall out while I was sleeping but I think that could be because I didn’t have them in right. I have had them in about 8 hours now on and off when needed, I have them on right now, and I really do feel like I’ve been so relaxed today and the only thing that’s changed about my routine is these calmer minis! I will update if my opinions changes. 4 stars is because I feel like the instructions or use of the product need a little more in depth description however I do like all the other information the paper given with the product. Hope this helps!

I've tested these in multiple scenarios, from teams meetings at my desk, to live bands and crowds. These are invaluable to me, I've ordered a second set to keep one in a container on my key ring. My use case: I recently learned I am autistic and have been exploring recommended tools to increase my enjoyment of life, or at least decrease my discomfort in it. These earplugs are one of the recommended tools. Here is what I noticed: The first 6 hours they were itchy. Not because they cause an itch, but because my ears are unaccustomed to earbuds or ear plugs. I typically prefer over the ear headphones, so this adjustment was necessary and reasonable. Pulling them in and out throughout the day while at home alone, I noted that it suppressed the sound of light rainfall entirely and made my conference calls much easier to deal with. I didn't have to constantly adjust the sound up to hear certain people, then down to muffle the ear grating noise of others, despite using a high quality conferencing speaker. Over the course of several days, these ear plugs have actually decreased my pre-meeting stress dramatically. I wore them to the book store, which is typically pretty quiet. This was day 3 and I had no discomfort or fear of them falling out. I did enjoy it more, I didn't notice much talking except for those in my immediate vicinity. I didn't notice the horrifying music they typically play, and I didn't notice it so thoroughly I'm only now realizing it. Then, I wore them to a bar/restaurant that has indoor live entertainment. Here the effects were massive. These entirely eliminated the steady drone of conversation from all the other tables that carries so well in large, highly acoustic buildings. Additionally, I wasn't being distracted by those around me that weren't speaking to me. Typically, I can, without intent, easily hear such conversations. There was no decrease in the quality of the sound of the band that I could tell, though it did eliminate the "brackishness" that is usually uncomfortable. I feel like I had to ask people that were speaking to repeat myself far less than normal, and far less than others were asking people to repeat themselves (based on watching the bartenders and customers interact). I was asked to repeat myself more than normal, but I think that is because my brain had adjusted to the lower levels of sound interference. Once I realized and adjusted for that, no worries. No one, to my knowledge, noticed the transparent ones I was wearing. I do have long hair that typically covers my ears, but I also have the habit of tucking my hair behind my ears. Eating... It is my personal preference to take them out when eating at home in a relatively calm environment. In such cases the sound of my eating is too much. However, when I'm in loud environments I prefer to keep them in because the benefits of the overall noise suppression far outweigh the sound of my own chewing, which is by comparison to that around me far more minimal. As I mentioned, I've already purchased a second pair. I find these far more useful than the other main brand with a circular design, at least for daily use. I'll save the other for planes and occasions that I want to block out pretty much everything. This brand is the winner for times I need just enough suppression to make it through the day AND interact with those around me. I sometimes have to check with my hand to make sure they are there because they're comfortable enough to escape my constant awareness. I'm truly pleased these exist.

I wear these very regularly as of a couple years ago, and would definitely reccomend them - I get stressed/overstimulated/distracted by noise and these were a massive game changer, allowing me to be present in public spaces with some control over how they affected me. They mute noises a little bit, not as much as, say, foam earplugs, but enough to notice, and especially with sounds that are more echoey or fuzzy, if that makes sense. The best I can explain it is, without them, it feels like every sound is coming 'at' me and pushing me around in a hundred little ways, like getting caught in a river current, and my brain can't keep up. But with them in, I can create some separation between me and the noise, like I'm here and it's over there, it's not in my face, and I can process it from a respectable distance without feeling swamped by it. Granted, there are times (like loud concerts or busy streets) that that isn't enough, so i just use foam earplugs. But these allow me to have a conversation, interact with my environment, and feel at ease (not constantly in alert mode). It's a great middle ground between blocking out noise and still being aware of your surroundings. And unlike some other earplugs for this purpose eg Loops (nothing against them, just don't work for me) they don't block the ear canal (which would give a stuffy feeling and amplify the sounds inside my head such as chewing or breathing - the 'occlusion effect'). The shape also fits my absurdly small/narrow ear canals (I ordered the minis) while the earbud-style tips never fit and always fall out of my ears. And they are much less conspicuous by comparison as well, nor easily mistaken for earbuds - people usually assume I have hearing difficulties (not exactly wrong, but not in the way they think) or just ask what they are, instead of assuming I am listening to music (which could get me in trouble at work - but these have never given me that problem.) I got the purple so there's like two little antenna protruding from my ears, which aren't that noticeable from a distance, and I think are kinda cute. But last I checked they also sell a clear pair which would fly even further under the radar. Anyway, I debated buying these for a while, arguing with myself that my sensitivity to sound wasn't that bad, until I finally got them on a whim, and they were absolutely worth it. I didn't realize how much I had needed them. If that is you, my advice would be to try them, the worst that can happen is they don't fit or don't give you the degree of effect you were hoping for. A couple of tips tho - wash them regularly, as earwax buildup tends to make them prone to slip out (I just use warm water and dish soap). And dry out your ears if you shower before wearing them, as moisture makes them slippery too, as does chewing gum or food (which is a bit annoying when wearing them in restaurants.) I do find myself checking from time to time and discreetly poking them back in, since i've almost lost them a few times from sliding out, but it definitely doesn't outweigh the immense benefit, and my earholes are finicky anyway as I said before. I do reccommend putting some thought into how you carry them since they're so small; the basic bag is fine with me (although I lost it and replaced it with something similar long ago) and I like being able to squish it and make sure they are both in there. Some people opt for the hard case but I don't really care; the bag is easier to stuff in a pocket but I suppose a hard case might be harder to lose. Lastly since amazon is bugging me about durability, I can honestly say that after a few years of near-daily use they still look and fit as good as new. Honestly, the more surprising thing is that I haven't lost them. 😄

I like that they mute the sound somewhat, not a lot, just enough to notice. However I was in a noisy area yesterday and could not hear or focus on the person talking to directly to me. What I have seen with video reviews and audio test is that they change the direction the sound is coming from and basically take away your echo location ability or hamper it., that then mutes noises or lessens certain ranges I literally could not tell where this person was speaking from and it was distracting. I had to take out one just to focus on him enough to hear him. With bone conducting headphone they seem to enhance the depth of the sound and make it better almost like regular headphone would sound. They don't block any noise so really do not do anything to crowd noise. However because its changing the direction of the crowd noise it seems to help me focus less on the crowd but also hinder listening to one person talking to me. At work we have to leave our doors open all day and it makes it heard to focus. They do not get ride of the noise form others, but do mute it a little. There is also a whining noise in my office and I noticed it immediately after taking them out, so that was a plus. What I really hate is that one falls out constantly. I am not sure if it's too big or too small. The other two bothersome things are the itchiness, which apparently is normal and the slightly underwater feeling of sound. I like that I don't get full occlusion with these like the loop ear plugs. I do get some. I have misophonia and I can't stand mouth noises from others and wearing the loop makes me hate myself when eating these less so but its still there. The loop helps much better with the mouth noises from others because it blocks a lot more sound all together. The loop also blocks a lot more crowd noise and help for loud noises close to me. I have yet to test these in a game night with 7 friends who get loud and often trigger me. That test will come in the next month. These have their place and so do the loop. Neither solve my issues but they do help a little.

Reason for purchase; misophonia and auditory hypersensitivity associated with autism and sensory processing disorder. Before getting these things, I was reluctant to spend the money and deeply skeptical of how effective they would be for one reason; most of the product literature on Flare Audio's website and their advertisements were fairly vague about the details of what they did and how they worked in a way that set off snake oil alarm bells. When an explanation is vague as to why you should stick rubber tubes in your ear to alter your mood, my skeptic sense tingles. I can't help it. I'm a scientist. Nonetheless, I decided to give them a try. I have enough of an acoustics knowledge and well-trained enough ear to be able to hear in detail what exactly they're doing (if they're doing ANYTHING), so I'm not exactly going to be tricked easily by a placebo effect in this area. Over the last week or so my skepticism has been replaced with admiration and delight; these things work, they work well, and they work for very good reasons. There's a few things going on here; 1. They're bypassing the external anatomy of the ear, making hearing more directional and a hair less sensitive 2. They're altering the internal acoustic properties of the ear canal Let me break this down a bit further; Our ears act as acoustic collecting dishes, in particular the hollow adjacent to the ear canal. If you're bypassing that, then less sound is being directed into the ear canal in general, and this also has the effect of making hearing slightly more directional without amplifying in the way something like an ear trumpet would. So how does this help? When you have an auditory hypersensitivity from a processing disorder, you can't filter out environmental sounds normally, and by making hearing more directional you're cutting out a huge percentage of the sound reverberation your ears are picking up. Every echo in a room adds to the auditory chaos around you, so by removing a measure of that from your awareness, and slightly deadening sounds coming from behind you, it becomes a lot easier to decipher and focus on sounds in front of you that you're trying to give your attention to. The best way I could describe the shift in auditory sensation is that it's like suddenly all the surfaces in the room are covered in sound-dampening acoustic foam. As for altering the acoustic properties of the ear canal itself, it's also deadening sound reflection. This has an effect not unlike turning down the gain on an amplifier. A lot of high frequency and upper midrange sounds are dampened very slightly. Electrical hum and buzz is really effectively notched out. In general audiophile terms, it makes the sound profile "warmer." In a relatively quiet room, the differences in your auditory perception will be fairly negligible. The louder and more chaotic your environment, the greater degree of difference will become apparent. I didn't even grok how effective they were until I'd been wearing them to the grocery store a few times, and then took them out while shopping. I'm telling you, the sudden auditory assault when I removed them legitimately stunned me. I wasn't even cognizant of how much auditory input they were notching out until suddenly it all came screaming back. I honestly wish Flare Audio did a more effective and detailed job of explaining the functioning of these things on the website. As it is, it sorta took trying them myself to understand the principles they're operating on. That being said, these things are amazing, worth every penny, and I'll probably never go anywhere without a pair ever again. These are a shockingly effective tool to counter sensory overwhelm, so I guess I shouldn't have been so skeptical of sticking rubber tubes in my ear.

I'm autistic and ADHD. I have trouble with audio processing and noise sensitivity. This is the second ear plug product thing I've tried (also tried loops) and I think it's an overpriced piece of rubber. They are kind of awkward to put in and feel like they are ready to fall out easily. I wouldn't be too hard on it, if it was priced appropriately. I mean come on, look at it, look at it in your hand. That should be multiples for 10 bucks. I'm pretty desperate for a product that will allow me to tolerate 'loud' spaces like restaurants, stores, anything with more than a few people in it, while still being able to hear the world around me and interact with it: This may just be pure fantasy for somebody like me. It will reduce sound a bit, but that is a double edged sword when you need to hear your name being called out or anything. I just feel like there's no happy medium with this type of product. You either muffle too much sound, or you slightly muffle everything and wonder what the point is. It did help me from feeling overwhelmed in a waiting room, but then I had to take them out to actually talk to somebody. So, as long as you don't care to actually talk to anybody, and just want to tolerate the grocery store or something, these can be useful. If you are like me, chances are you've long since discovered headphones. If you are a bit self conscious about wearing headphones or would just rather not, I guess these are okay, but get the ones that are tethered so you don't lose them. I think they called them Flare Secure or something like that. Don't get me wrong, you can talk in these, and I have no idea what it's like for a normal person, but for me and my problems, it's still hard to separate voices from other voices and background noise. There's less background noise, but conversing is still an issue.

I wanted to allow myself time to get used to these before reviewing it. I have sudden hearing loss on one side, which has been mostly a nightmare. People think it's not a big deal, but we were born with two ears because we need both of them to function properly. Since losing half my hearing, I have no more balance, no center. Unless you're half deaf, you just don't realize how much you lose when you only hear on one side. I can't tell which direction the noise comes from or how far away. Everything is just noise, at the same level, all the time. If someone is talking on my left, I can't hear it over whatever is happening on my right. When someone calls my name from a distance, I have no idea of knowing where they are unless I see them. This is dangerous in some situations because sometimes the sounds I don't hear are cars, and thankfully I have a dog who warns me before something like that can happen. At some point, it's just stimulation overload and I get migraines, dizziness, vertigo, etc, and I just stay home. What I'm trying to say is I have been looking for something to make sounds more bearable, and I think I finally found it in Flare Audio's Calmer. So with all that in mind, here's what I think of it: - It does what it claims. When in place, sounds no longer sound like one big sheet of noise. It's like the difference between using your TV's stereo and upgrading to a home theater. Sounds sound more layered, like I'm finally hearing them as I should before only being able to hear on one side. I still hear on one side, but the sounds seem more organized. - I don't know how much it helps with tinnitus, but I have tinnitus, and if there is an improvement, it's subtle. But I'll give that more time. After all, some ongoing problems won't go away instantly, so expectations have to be realistic. - Sounds seem crisper. I feel like I'm hearing things I missed previously. - I have a bone-anchored hearing aid on my deaf side, though it doesn't work very well. A bone-anchored hearing aid (BAHA) is one of the ways the deaf can hear again, using bone conduction to allow sound to travel from the deaf side to the hearing side. The idea is to allow your brain to feel like you're hearing on both ears, but really all the sound is just traveling to the hearing side, and when in harmony, it works just well enough to make life bearable. In reality, it's far from ideal, and the device was almost useless to me. But with Calmer in my hearing ear, it helps the sound from my hearing aid become more focused because it eliminated a lot of white noise and just lets me hear more efficiently. It's truly wonderful, and I almost cried because it's been a few years since being able to hear with that much quality. It's not perfect, but it's the best I can hope for with one functioning ear. That's my honest testament to this device. - Lastly, the bummer of this device: it doesn't stay in place. I bought the standard size, not the mini. If you're not sure which size to get, get the standard. Unless you know you have smaller ear canals (you will have known that by now because any doctor would have mentioned it), it's best to get the standard. But it is easily dislodged. I don't have a very active lifestyle anymore, so I don't do things that would cause it to be dislodged, but it always happens. A regular activity like having a conversation or walking can dislodge this thing because it needs to be redesigned to fit better. It won't fall completely out. Between your tragus and antitragus, you'll feel something different and touch your ear and realize the device is resting there, instead of in its place. I don't have super waxy ears and that's the only thing I can think of that could cause the device to keep dislodging. I just think it's a design flaw. So, when the device is in place, it's wonderful. The design needs to be reconfigured to not fall out so easily, but otherwise, what a great idea. It's a game-changer and I'm so glad I got it. As with anything you put in your ear, be careful, educate yourself, and even talk to your audiologist. But this is a great product. If it was on Shark Tank, I think the panel would go for it. The company's website has more products as well, and it's worth looking into. Good luck!

Wow - these are life-changing. I can hardly believe the difference they make.

Funcionan, cumplen su funcion

These help so much in noisy environments to take the edge off. They are easy to wear.

Die kleinen Plugs sind sehr hilfreich bei Störgeräuschen oder zu lauten Gesprächspartnern. Sie dämpfen etwas ab, aber lassen dennoch alles gut vernehmen. In lauten Städten könnten sie zu schwach sein. Pluspunkt ist ihr supra weiches Material. Sehr angenehm zum tragen, auch für längere Zeit. Und waschbar.

Pour moi c'est parfait ça réduit le bruit sans qu'on ne puisse pas entendre quand quelqu'un nous parle, c'est super discret dans l'oreille. Ça fait vraiment la différence dans mes journées quand je suis trop submergé