Now, Listen Up - Possible source of ear infection?

[OneWorld]

Might not amount to a whole hill of beans, but might have relevance. I have a pair of trusty old pair of Beyer DT100 headphones which I must have had for decades. Anyway, I noticed the ear pads were looking tatty and took them off, and noticed the inner foam pad was, well, to put it bluntly....manky. Well we never clean these things do we? And over the years gather muck, and I am not one of those people that needs regular ear de-waxing. Anyway, I got to wondering if there is any possibility of manky erar causing ear infection, they do look unhygienic, any I've order replacement ear muffs and foam inners off YouKnowWhoBay.

You heard it here first

[Hugh Robjohns]

Yes there is a possibility of ear infection, and yes, some of us do clean the earpads regularly, and replace them occasionally.

There are lots of websites that explain what you need and the process of how to clean earbuds and headphones, such as:

https://www.soundguys.com/how-to-clean- ... nes-30295/

https://www.howtogeek.com/664669/how-to ... d-earbuds/

[Nazard]

Your own ear wax is unlikely to be a potential source of infection, although someone else's might.

Apart from the infection, prevention element, worn out earpads stop the 'phones working as the manufacturer intended, plus new ones feel like you've bought new 'phones, for relatively little outlay!

[OneWorld]

Your own ear wax is unlikely to be a potential source of infection, although someone else's might.

Apart from the infection, prevention element, worn out earpads stop the 'phones working as the manufacturer intended, plus new ones feel like you've bought new 'phones, for relatively little outlay!

Yep, sort of makes sense, as the headphones are the last interface between the music itself and the inner workings of one's auditory system, they need care and attention

[Albatross]

Search for 'Sanitary Headphone Covers'.

But yes, my own DT100s came out of storage, didn't get a clean and gave me a very nasty ear infection.

I've got leather ear pads that I made myself some years ago, it was them what did it.

I've noticed some BBC presenters (in the studio podcast things) who have those disposable covers... don't have any but it makes perfect sense.

[Hugh Robjohns]

Good point. I've used these (below) from Amazon when I've been working with clients through the pandemic and needed to provide headphones. They are available in several different sizes to fit most headphones. They provide as much peace of mind as protection from contamination, but that visual indication that hygiene is being thought about is often important in a professional setting!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sanitary-Headp ... B0149UTNA4

[BWC]

After a little help from the fine folks here, I recently bought a pair of HD 600's. The pads are a soft, fuzzy material, rather than a leather or vinyl type of thing. Any advice on the best way to go about regular cleaning of the fuzzy pads?

[Martin Walker]

After a little help from the fine folks here, I recently bought a pair of HD 600's. The pads are a soft, fuzzy material, rather than a leather or vinyl type of thing. Any advice on the best way to go about regular cleaning of the fuzzy pads?

I think the general consensus is to hand-wash them in warm water with a dab of soap. then rinse them thoroughly to remove all trace of the soap, then let them dry thoroughly in a warm environment (not a clothes dryer)

On the other hand, you could try just giving them a little attention with an anti-bacterial wipe, although I've not tried that myself.

Martin

[Eddy Deegan]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sanitary-Headp ... B0149UTNA4

I'm now using the larger ones (L-12CM) of these on my AKG 702s.

10 pairs of covers for fractionally over a quid a pair. Brilliant!

[OneWorld]

Good point. I've used these (below) from Amazon when I've been working with clients through the pandemic and needed to provide headphones. They are available in several different sizes to fit most headphones. They provide as much peace of mind as protection from contamination, but that visual indication that hygiene is being thought about is often important in a professional setting!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sanitary-Headp ... B0149UTNA4

They seem like a good idea, they will also preserve the ear pads which tend to see the vinyl flaking off, and very cheap too

[Sam Spoons]

Good for tracking cans but how much do they affect the high end when using them with decent open back headphones?

[Eddy Deegan]

Nothing that I've noticed ... the material is ultra flimsy yet resilient. I don't have the best high frequency hearing on the planet by a long shot but academically, based on the physics of the covers I've got here, I'd be amazed if anyone could detect attenuation as a result of using them.

[Hugh Robjohns]

Good for tracking cans but how much do they affect the high end when using them with decent open back headphones?

I wondered that too, but at the time I started using them any minor acoustic degradation was of less importance than the perceived hygiene benefit... but actually, I can't hear any difference at all when using high end AKG and Sennheiser headphones.

And because I'm old and crinkly I asked my twenty-something daughter to have a listen and she couldn't hear a difference either. So I'm reasonably confident that any acoustic roll-off is negligible.... which is what I'd expect to be honest. The material is thinner and lighter than that typically used in exterior mic windshields.

[Sam Spoons]

[Albatross]

At a push (if nobody's looking) you could always elastic band a couple of pieces of kitchen roll over the pads. I did this when I came back from somewhere hot and humid with a nasty fungal outer ear infection.

[ManFromGlass]

Some cool colours too. The description says they also protect against hair product. I remember getting on a long distance bus - the headrest was all gooey with the previous sitter’s product. I would have said - ewwwww in an inner teenage girl’s voice and moved on.