Thread: Ozito Electronic Ear Muffs

I don't know that particular ear muff, however there are quite a few noise cancelling headphones available there days, around the $300 mark. One day I intend to get one of these, the ability to hear everything except the stuff that you don't want to hear: machinery noise.
Suresh

Originally Posted by mat

Anyone seen, bought or used the Ozito electronic ear muffs currently selling at Bunnings for $30
They claim to cut out the high dBs but allow for normal talking to get through.
The brand is a turn off but they do have a 3 year warranty.

Do they simply reduce the amplitude of the higher frequencies ?

I think when using any power tool it is important to still be able to hear changes in the pitch of the motor or cutting blade. I find it can give you important information about the cut you are making.

G'day all,
If these earmuffs use "white noise" to cancel out perception of sound, make sure they are in built in accordance and comply with the Australian Standards (if so they will be marked as such)
The thing about "white noise" is it is still there our brains just lack the faculties to process the different pitches together, so we don't register the sound as such.
While this is going on the damage is nonetheless still occuring to the many sensitive receptacles in the ear.
Sorry to be such a doom & gloom prophet but I know just a little too much about this area of OH&S.

Having worked in the hearing industry in a previous life I can tell you that the best thing for noise reduction while still being able to hear what's happening around you are misicians earplugs available from most hearing aid dealers, (Australian Hearing would be my choise).

These do not adjust the frequency response they merey attenuate down to a safe level, which is why musicians like them.

I haven't seen the Ozito units so can not comment on them.

Bruce,
A number of manufacturers produce electronic noise cancelling hearing protection and they comply to AS1270. If it complies you will not be subjected to high intensity noise unless it overpowers the muff - the SLC80 rating - note this rating has now changed to grade numbers with 5 being highest. Overpowering of a muff is subject to informed selection.

Noise cancelling muffs normally have an external microphone to provide external noise such as speach or warning signals up to a specific dB at which point the external mic is switched off making the muffs a heavy duty muff.

Can't say I've heard of "white noise" producing muffs in this country and I been specifying & purchasing safety equipment for an energy Authority for almost 20 years.

Originally Posted by Markw

Bruce,
Can't say I've heard of "white noise" producing muffs in this country.

Neither have I Mark, but that doesn't mean someones not importing any, as it's not illegal to sell them if they are non-compliant, it's just to use them in a place of paid employ in this state if so warranted.
My point is a few years ago many places were selling "safety kits" :confused: for a few bucks and many bought them for domestic and commercial use, these kits may or may not have been effective in their endeavours....who knows as they were untested to any standard recougnised by us or partner countries.
Just trying to say "caveat Emptor" as I suffer from Tinitus (& assoc hearing degradation) due to no, and then later being issued with incorrect hearing protection and hence my motivation would be fairly obvious.

From my limited knowledge of white noise it sounds like a radio when it is in between stations - a low frequency hissing sound.

When I tried on the ozito's in Bunnings there was certainly no white noise just an attenuated volume of people around speaking and a low volume radio from Bunnings PA system. They do have a small microphone hole in one earpiece and an off/volume control.

I use a pair for pistol shooting and it allows me to hear normal level noise but a pistol shot is a faint bang. (no white noise used tho)
If the ozitos are any where like the normal expensive ones they are a good option and 3 yr warranty makes it worth a try
Pete

Just to clarify,
from my limited understanding of the sound/frequency properties and the impact they have upon the human senses, is that if you get the right frequencies/pitches (Hz)at the same time at similar levels of noise (Db's) we may not even conciously register a note at all in our brains. This is the type I'm talking about, the type originally developed by someones armed forces to mask the sound of their approaching hordes, then picked up by car manufacturers and so on. Then there is the classical "white noise" as someone mentioned, hissing, background chatter. Just cause you don't hear the first type, it doesn't mean its not there and the sounds emitted being a semi-solid sort of pressure could possibly stilll affect your hearing capability.

Bruce

I think you're confusing the technology. Noise cancelling systems don't trick the brain into not hearing the sound, they create a inverse wave that cancels the wave form and thus removing it completely. In this case they are removing the pressure wave that damages the ear. They have a microphone which would normally be set at a particular range to allow certain frequency sounds to come through. This is OK in an environment where the troublesome sound is at a particular frequency but it would not be fool proof. ie if you received a very loud sound at a different frequency (eg somebody shouted in your ear), then the sound would not be removed. This is quite expensive technology.

There are two other technology options that the Ozito ear muffs may utilize in addition to being "noise cancelling' as described above.
1. They are fully sealed ear muffs with a microphone that records all sound, filters out sounds of a certain frequency and then plays the remaining sound to you through a headphone. There is no cancellation of the sound as such.
2. They are set to trigger at a certain dB level,. If the volume goes above that level, they block all sound and if it is below a certain level, they let sound through. The main advantage is that you can leave your headphone on and have a normal conversation but they are ready when the volume goes up. However, they would not allow you to listen to a radio or a person speaking when the machine was running.

Thanks Simon,
It's very hard for me to remain objective on this issue therefore I humbly stand corrected.

They sound like the bees knees for chainsaw work.

G'day.

I just bought a pair of the "BEST" muffs in the house from the local
safety gear shop down the road.
They cost $56 & are easly 5 times better than the cheapies that I
keep breaking the plastic head band on.
Hopefully they will also last 5 times longer.

I had a look at the Ozito Ear muffs at Bunnies last night.

According to the box, they attenuate sound (ie reduce it) above 85dB. They appear to have a microphone on the outside and a headphone on the inside. This means they are not "noise cancelling" but will prevent you receiving any sound above 85dB. I'd be surprised if they allow you to hear conversations while the loud noise is going on, but I haven't tried them.

As echidna states, these type of ear muffs are good for chainsaw use and in fact one of the main industries that uses these type of ear muffs is shooting, where it is important to hear the noise of poor defenseless animals scurrying around but not the noise of the gun. The noise cancellation ones are becoming popular in busy bars and restaurants allowing waiters to takes orders by cancelling out the background noise of the music and crowd. They are often coupled with a radio to allow the staff to converse.
One final point is that this appears to be an interesting step forward for Ozito and may be the start of them moving from being bottom of the range price wise to more of a player in the GMC/Ryobi range. This is a standard marketing ploy of selling very cheap products to break into a market and then re-investing in technology to raise you up the market. Similar to teh car industry with Japanese cars in the 70's and more recently the Hyundais and Kias.

Simon