New Toys: Minuendo Lossless Earplugs

Norway-based Minuendo Lossless earplugs have a patented, adjustable membrane inside each of them to reduce sound pressure levels without drastically changing the overall frequency balance, as conventional earplugs will do. Unlike using swimming earplugs or those cheap foam ones, you get an adjustable and transparent sound reduction of up to 25dB. You can avoid the feeling of “occlusion”—being separated or blocked out from other people and your surroundings when wearing these well-fitting earplugs.

The Minuendo earplugs actually have a volume control lever on them to dial back loud sound levels any where from 7 to 25dB plus the volume for each ear can be set individually.

Gigging musicians are often positioned on stages too close to another player’s loud guitar amp or big drum kit. Being able to reduce the level coming into one ear or the other solves this age-old problem diplomatically: being able to hear yourself and/or the rest of the band without problems. If you attend a concert and it becomes too loud, you can re-adjust them while they are placed in your ears—no need to pull them out.

I did try them on my morning walks on busy and noisy streets and I found them to work well once I got the fit correct. Importantly, Minuendos come with a whole set of various sizes of tips to fit any set of ears plus a cleaning kit, neck leash, and expert directions for their use. They have magnets on the outside so when you remove them they “stick” together in your pocket or in the included zippered carrying case.

Great for musicians, concertgoers, or just for dealing with overwhelming loud situations in modern life, Minuendo Lossless Earplugs sell for $159 MSRP.

minuendo.com