5 Of The Best Radio Headphones For Lawn Mowing

Before I discovered headphones, I used to wear earbuds and crank them up to their highest levels to drown the annoying noises from the lawn mower.

At the end of the yard work session, my ears would ache for a while.

Well, think about it, I was adding more decibels to relieve the damaging decibels.

Its synonymous with adding gasoline to fire, right?

To the rescue are Sync Stereo Earmuffs by Howard Leight.

The hearing protectors combine the headphone technology with protection earmuffs.

How is the noise reduction?

The pieces provide you with a 25 noise reduction rating (NRR) which is perfect when working in low to medium noise levels such as in the yard.

The volume is limited to 82 dBA rating which is below the maximum 85 dBA recommended by OSHA.

Compared to the other headphones I have used over the years, these pieces seem to block most of the outside noise so well.

I can attribute this to their solid construction with strong plastic housing and vinyl padding that surrounds the ear completely.

I dont about you, but I have a big head. When I wear the headphones, they are very tight on the head which prevents most of the noise from getting in.

Does the radio work?

I also own 3M Tek and Peltor headphones but I have to say that the FM radio tuner in these headphones is one of the best I have ever come across.

I live in the rural areas but the tuner doesnt have problems finding the radio stations, as its the case with other headphones I have used before.

The headphones feature an LCD display that lets you know the stations that are available. When I started using the headphones, I had problems with the controls, especially the volume control.

Maybe its because the control is recessed into the pieces. If you look at it, the control is only exposed at the very bottom thus it can be a challenge to properly control the volume.

When I switched on the radio, I was surprised to notice that the headphones are much louder than my Pelter and Tek. This may be due to the superior noise reduction that they provide as they have the same specs as the other headphones.

Are the headphones comfortable?

Howard Leight has installed a number of great features on these headphones that makes them some of the most comfortable pieces in the market that you can buy.

The pieces have a patented air flow control technology that reduces sound across all the frequencies without increasing the weight and size of the earcups.

The cool thing is that the pieces have multiple attenuation levels.

The lightweight ear cup design comes in handy in giving you all the comfort you need when mowing your lawn.

The headband is padded with reinforced fork slides thus if you have a large head like mine, you dont hurt your head even when the headphones are too tight.

To make it easy for you to maintain and replace them, the headphones have snap-in ear cushions.

While the pieces are very comfortable to wear, I have an issue with sweat. Im a big guy and when working under the sun in Central Florida, I sweat a lot.

This means that any material that isnt made from natural fiber, cant stand my sweat.

These headphones are made from solid vinyl, which as all of you know, isnt natural. After a few minutes under the sun, the headphones get too slippery and I have to keep on putting them in place, which is distracting.

Is the music good?

Well, you will enjoy the music, but its not the same as when using high-end headphones. Lets be honest, Sync earmuffs arent meant to be in the audiophile arena.

You shouldnt expect the sweet, clear music you get when using top-notch headphones such as

You will experience distortion and harshness, especially when listening to higher frequencies. The good part of these pieces is the bass. Its sweet. Its neither boomy nor tiring, as its the case with cheap headphones.

If you arent looking for extremely high volumes, these earmuffs will work perfectly for you.

In conclusion, I can say that the Howard Leight sync stereo earmuffs are decent, inexpensive earmuffs for lawn mowing, but you shouldnt expect audio nirvana.

Pros

Cons

Noise reduction

The most important feature to consider when buying protection devices is their effectiveness at attenuating sound from the lawn mower.

These work tunes have a noise reduction rating (NRR) of 24 dB.

The rating isnt high enough to block most of the noise, but at the same time, they arent horrible.

When you wear them properly, you will prevent most of the lawn mower noise from damaging your ears.

How comfortable are they?

Who would be comfortable dragging a lawn mower for hours in uncomfortable hearing protection devices? Not me.

The hearing protectors have a redesigned headband that features vents and ear cushions that increase your comfort levels when working.

The pieces also feature softer earcup padding for extended comfort. The padding is removable therefore, if you find that you dont like wearing it, you can simply remove it.

Are they wireless?

When watching a movie, reading a book or commuting on a train, cords arent an issue but when you are moving the lawn mower from one side to the other, they can be a nuisance.

Cords get in the way, are easily pulled out and limit your movement, especially when they are too long or too short.

3M has solved this issue by making these pieces wireless. You can use Bluetooth to stream audio from your phone or MP3 player.

How is the AM/FM radio?

The inbuilt AM/FM radio tuner allows you to save up to 50 radio stations. Programming these many stations is a hustle and this is why the hearing protectors have a voice assist technology that does all the work.

The auto scanning feature also comes in handy in helping you to quickly find and save the stations.

For an enhanced listening experience, the headphones have a spectacular radio performance and bass boost option.

Batteries

At the time of buying these headphones, you wont receive the batteries. You will have to buy 2 AA batteries separately. If you dont like using these batteries, you have the option of using lithium battery pack.

Nobody wants to recharge or buy new batteries every now and then. To save the battery, the headphones turn themselves off after 2 hours of inactivity.

Other cool features of the hearing protectors

The rotary dial allows you to tune the radio and at the same time operate the Bluetooth controls.

Courtesy of this feature, you can keep the smartphone or Bluetooth enabled device in your pocket while you do your work.

The safe volume technology corrects the audio levels to a safe exposure level thus you dont suffer from hearing problems.

The headphones have an Audio assist technology that guides you through setting up and operating the electronics without taking off the ear muffs.

The feature verbally tells you what you are doing when you hit a given control on the headphone.

Pros

Cons

You should take a look at 3M worktunesor any other Bluetooth enabled devices

While this is the case, the pieces have a number of great features that you may find great to have:

How is noise reduction?

The headphones have a noise reduction rating (NRR) of 25 which is quite higher than most of the other products that go at the same price.

The pieces make use of the patented air flow control technology that prevents outside sounds from entering your eyes.

Are they comfortable?

When I wore the headphones for the first time, I thought, Wao, these are light! according to the manufacturers, the headphones are only 1.1lbs which isnt much.

The pieces are also small and you can easily fold them when traveling or storing them.

Another thing that caught my eye is the small ear cups. I later learned its due to the patented air flow control technology that makes it possible for Stanley to make small ear cups without compromising on the quality.

The comfort of the protection devices is further enhanced by the padded headband that features reinforced fork slides.

Due to these features, you can wear the units the entire day without complaining about discomfort.

Im very lazy when it comes to cleaning my hearing protectors as I feel Im damaging them. these pieces make your work easy as they have snap-in ear cushions that allow you to remove them from the hearing protectors, clean them, and then replace them. This isnt much of a hassle, is it?

For you to get the most from the headphones you should wear them properly. For a firm seal, secure the ear cushions over the ear.

How is the radio?

I have to say that the radio is my best feature in these headphones. The radio has one of the best receptions Ive come across in a long time.

As I had mentioned before, I live in the rural areas but with these headphones, I feel as if the radio station is next door.

The headphones also have a hi-fidelity digital stereo tuner that makes it easy for you to tune the radio and get your favorite station.

The most attractive thing about the radio is the large LCD display that allows you to search the radio stations and store up to 10 radio stations.

Do the batteries last

When you buy these headphones, they dont come with batteries, but you need 2 AA batteries that you can buy separately.

I noticed the headphones consume a lot of energy thus I wouldnt recommend you buy the regular batteries. This is because you will use so many of them that you will end up spending more money on the batteries that you spent buying the headphones.

The best way of going about it is investing in high-quality rechargeable AA batteries. When these batteries are properly charged, they last the entire day and you wont have to worry about buying new ones.

Are the headphones durable?

I know, no one wants pieces that will come apart after only a few uses. I promise these won't. They are made from high-quality plastic; therefore, you should expect them to last for a long time.

While the units are designed to last for a long time, you need to take good care of them.

This calls for you to avoid using them in wet environments and other harsh conditions.

Pros

Cons

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5 Of The Best Radio Headphones For Lawn Mowing