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Topic: Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings (Read 15211 times) previous topic - next topic
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Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

I'm a programmer and my workplace lets us listen to music while we code. However, we need to be able to notice if someone speaks to us.

What would be the best solution in this case?
Headphones or earphones? Would head/ear-phones that provide great sound quality in low volumes help? Should I stay away from noise canceling products? etc.

Thank you!

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #1 –
For hearing your surroundings you'd better using open back headphones. AFAIK, neither closed back, ear buds nor noise cancelling cans can beat them in that department.

On the other hand, for working indoors, their trade off is their ad hoc sound leakage. So, unless someone knows of a specific model they're familiar with, I honestly think you're in for some serious internet searching.
• Listen to the music, not the media it's on
• The older, the 'lossier'

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #2 –
You might be interested by the Shure "Push-To-Hear Device ",  if you use Iems.

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #3 –
A 'rule of thumb' for avoiding hearing damage is that if you can't hear a person standing next to you who is speaking to you, the music is too loud. I use, at different times, large, seal around the ear headphones and in-ear monitor earphones. Noticing that someone said something to me isn't hard with any of them. Sometimes, if my attention is especially focused on the audio stream from the phones, I might not know what was said, but this also happens when I'm reading or working on something and there is nothing in or over my ears.

I'm saying I would not worry about what type of headphones, only about the volume control setting. I suppose that might be more difficult if you work in an especially noisy environment.

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #4 –
Another solution, if you are using an Android or IOS device, is a pair of Etymotic headset (such as the HF2 or HF3) in conjunction with the Awareness app.

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #5 –
There are plenty of "open" headphones. 

My standard answer for headphone & speaker questions is:  "Every speaker/headphone sounds different.  Opinions & preferences vary, and the specs are often useless.  Go the store and LISTEN!  You'll learn a lot more by listening to speakers/headphones than you'll learn by listening to advice!" 

Also, if you are going to be wearing your headphones for long periods, you'll want to check the comfort.

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The koss ProtaPro ($50 USD) is open-backed, it has been around for about 30 years and it has a reputation for being one of the best sounding low-price headphones.    If you want to go upscale a bit more, all of the Grados have similar reputations for being some of the best in their respective price ranges, and all Grados are open-back.

I think headphones are easier than in-ears to quickly pop on & off if you need to speak to someone. 

If you search the forum, you can find lots of headphone recommendations, but you might need to weed-out the closed-back recommendations.

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #6 –
I would not be too hasty to 'weed-out' closed back phones. It is, after all, extremely bad manners to force your entertainment on other people and could lead to some unpleasant situations. Open back phones tend to leak quite noticeably unless the volume level is very low. When I wanted to listen to music at work, I used Sony MDR-V6 headphones, which seal rather well,  and never had any difficulties about communication.

I know people differ but I also know I'm far from unique in this respect. For most of my work, any music was a real distraction (which included , of course, any from my own CD player). If I could hear it at all, it was too loud. Fortunately, all the companies I worked at that allowed music listening had policies that absolutely forbid interfering with/bothering anyone else. One could listen to music but there was no argument that someone else "shouldn't" be bothered by being forced to hear what you wanted to hear. You had to keep it to yourself.

There is a large selection of in-ear phones with the soft rubber bulbs at the ends. These generally come in three or four sizes to fit to different ears. They seal fairly well and, in my experience, are easier and quicker to remove than anything with a headband, especially if you happen to wear glasses.



Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #7 –
Quote from: AndyH-ha on
A 'rule of thumb' for avoiding hearing damage is that if you can't hear a person standing next to you who is speaking to you, the music is too loud.


That doesn't apply to IEMs. I can have the volume at low levels and because they provide noise isolation just by wearing them, having the extra noise means I can't hear someone speaking next to me. However the volume is far from too loud. If I turned the volume down so I could hear that person talking I would barely be able to hear the music.

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #8 –
How much noise or how loud a noise is harmful is a somewhat controversial topic. There are large variations in circumstances, individual reactions, and the ability to recover from over exposure, but the general idea of limiting loudness and time is valid for long term protection.

Those iems with soft rubble bulbs holding them in place, and sealing out noise, are quite noticeably noise suppressing, but not to the extent that one should have any difficulty knowing, while listening at a reasonable volume level, that someone has spoken to him. Music at a non-lethal level may mask outside sounds enough to significantly reduce intelligibility of that speech, but I doubt that the point here is to be able to carry on a conversation while simultaneously enjoying heavy metal.

I've often used such iems in an automobile where mechanical and road noise is pretty high. The seal cannot completely eliminate the noises. I have to up the volume some under these circumstances to be able to understand what I'm listening to,. However, I can still always tell when someone says something to me.

The kind of iems that go deep into the ear canal probably reduce outside sounds still more. While I've only had one pair of those in recent years, and thus can't speak from as much experience, that pair did not prevent me from knowing someone was speaking to me. Having the music volume so high as to completely mask outside sounds would have indeed been too loud.

The claims for noise reduction by such firms as Etymotic are "let the advertising dept. pick its own numbers" not based on standard measurements. The very best passive noise reducing earplugs don't exceed 33dB reduction, which is a standard calculated value over the audio spectrum, not a maximum figure obtained at very high frequencies where human hearing isn't very sensitive anyway. If someone could make better earplugs they would be vying for a competitive edge in the market place.

I've obtained and used the best ear plugs available. Some people always speak very softly, so understanding them can be difficult under some circumstances, but in general I can not only hear people but carry on a conversation while wearing quality earplugs. And yes, I do know how to insert them properly.

It is obvious from even causal observation that people's preferences and perceptions differ considerably but experiencing what more than a few people have considered "not loud" has made me wonder if hearing damage isn't more wide spread than advertised.

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #9 –
Quote from: AndyH-ha on
Those iems with soft rubble bulbs holding them in place, and sealing out noise, are quite noticeably noise suppressing, but not to the extent that one should have any difficulty knowing, while listening at a reasonable volume level, that someone has spoken to him. Music at a non-lethal level may mask outside sounds enough to significantly reduce intelligibility of that speech, but I doubt that the point here is to be able to carry on a conversation while simultaneously enjoying heavy metal.


IEMs are almost sealed to your ear with the driver millimetres from your ear drum. I've used IEMs for many years, my hearing has not deteriorated in the slightest (had lots of hearing tests over the years) yet according to you I must've been listening at lethal levels every day for maybe 10 years now. By your reasoning I should be deaf.

I suppose you could check what sort of levels people consider loud by using one player, the same track and seeing what volume level they have the player set at for comfortable listening.

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #10 –
Quote from: probedb on
I suppose you could check what sort of levels people consider loud by using one player, the same track and seeing what volume level they have the player set at for comfortable listening.

...and the same pair of headphones/earphones. Would be an interesting experiment, though not an easy one to conduct.

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #11 –
Not an easy one maybe because, in the end, it would be just another subjective test. Wouldn't it?

OP, +1 from me for the Koss Porta Pro suggested earlier on: in practical terms sound leakage is not so dreadful with that model and you are surely aware of the world around you whilst listening to your beloved tunes - at not so harmful levels, that is. 

FYI, many a musician (in my country, at least) use them for feedback pure and simple. And if you dislike them, the investment is not going to be that high for you not to use them as a backup unit of sorts.


Edit: for the life of me, I could have sworn having read something about the Porta Pro in this same thread ealier on. Don't mind my drifting please, OP. But I do stand by my suggestion. =)

Edit: yeah, it was referred to as 'Prota Pro', that's why! 
• Listen to the music, not the media it's on
• The older, the 'lossier'

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #12 –
Quote from: includemeout on
Not an easy one maybe because, in the end, it would be just another subjective test. Wouldn't it?

Yes, of course, but I liked the idea if only for curiosity's sake.

Quote
OP, +1 from me for the Koss Porta Pro suggested earlier on

+1 here as well. Before acquiring the venerable Sony 7506, I was quite happily using a pair of Koss UR55. They are semi-open, so you can hear your surroundings at moderate listening levels, with minimal leakage. From what I gather they sound quite similar to the Porta Pro.

Headphones/Earphones that let you hear your surroundings

Reply #13 –
An intermediate mixer device with mic pluged in one port (and positioned strategically) and music in another (if non-mobility is not a problem), and closed headphones to avoid sound leaks.
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