Replacement of Buds. Best Way and Factors To Consider

Whether it’s jamming out during a workout session or starting the morning with a podcast, many of us spend time every day with earbuds blasting sound into our ears. Today’s generation feels incomplete without a pair of earbuds, as they play important role in our day-to-day life.

The tiny little buds in earphones or earbuds play a major role. The comfort level of the earbuds is decided by the size of buds we use, the irritation and pain after a long hour of usage is also a considering factor while a selection of buds or replacement of buds.

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While these little sonic feeding tubes can ease our minds and moods with satisfying sounds, they can also damage our hearing. But with a little awareness and proper selection of buds size, it’s possible to prevent that from happening.

Replacement of Buds

The little silicone tips that let your earbuds fit in your ear are very easy to lose. Luckily, they’re also easy to replace, with a semi-standard size that will fit about 90% of the earbuds on the market.

There are several regular silicone tips, which come in a variety of sizes even for the more unusual earbud designs. Nowadays in the market, memory foam earbud tips are a popular option for those who want some extra comfort, plus picks for those who need an ultra-secure fit for sports and fitness and a multi-flange design for those who demand superior sound isolation.

In other words, getting those ear tips replaced in today’s date is pretty much easy than it looks.

Types of Buds

Here we have classified the types of the buds on the basis of material used, and yes that’s the major factor while replacement of buds as the buds from manufacturers sometimes annoys us due to its poor material quality or improper audio effect.

1. Foam

Foam type buds are the most common type buds used by manufacturers nowadays as they are durable and shiny. Foam-type buds easily fill your ear canal, which helps to keep the outside sounds out which results in your focusing on what you’re listening to. With such kinds of buds, you enjoy your music to the fullest as there is minimum environmental audio.

However, foam tends to absorb ear wax and these tips can be hard to clean, there is a negative side of the foam-type buds.

2. Rubber

If you are among the people who don’t prioritize the comfort level, for you the durability of the buds is the prime consideration then you can blindly go with the rubber-type buds. Many people don’t like rubber tips since they tend to be the least comfortable and due to this such kinds of buds can annoy you after long-time use.

Also Read: 10 Best Earbuds For Xbox One

Nevertheless, if you want super durable earbud tips and you prefer a harder material, rubber tips are made up for you. They are pretty much easy to clean, you don’t have to take any extra effort to clean them!

3. Silicon

If you’re buying earbud tips from a company other than the manufacturer, your main consideration after compatibility is the material that they’re made out of. Silicon buds will never let you down if choose them, as they are very much comfortable and the durability of the material is also high.

They are the most popular option among the people and manufacturers of highly renowned brands. Silicone tips are easy to clean and they usually last a long time, although they may not last as long as rubber tips. They don’t do a great job of keeping ambient sound out which is the downside of silicon buds.

Silicon is also an inert chemical, meaning that it won’t irritate your skin. Nowadays by many modifications, silicon tips are able to keep the surrounding sound out, which also overcomes its only drawback.

Harmful Effects of Using Improper Buds

We’ve heard so many times that wearing audio-isolating devices for a long time damages our ears, sometimes even to an extent where it gets fatal. Do you ever realize that majority of such issues are related to the quality and size of ear tips that you use? Few negative effects are described below.

1. Hearing problem

This is the major consequence you can face if you used improper buds for a long time. When you constantly wear earphones and listen to music at a very loud volume, then you are simply damaging your eardrums.

The fact of the matter is that noise over 90 decibels is bad for your ear.  It can lead to a severe loss of hearing or even deafness. Hence, the replacement of buds is not an option, but a necessity.

2. Leads to the exchange of germs

Do you realize that exchanging earphones means you are also exchanging germs and possible ear infections with the person? So, on a very clear note, it is not recommended to share earphones or earbuds at all.

But if your girlfriend/boyfriend insists on listening to the songs together, make sure to clean the earphones before you exchange them. 

3. Unaware of the outside world

Your ears are an important sense organ. They help you to have a better understanding of the outside environment. If you are using ear tips that are too fit for your ears, you are more prone to accidents as your hearing sense is not working.

4. Lack of focus

Here’s a fun fact. The sound actually goes to your brain through your ears and the size of buds you wear impacts your neuro (brain) function directly. Small-sized tips with normal volume are better than large-sized ear tips with loud volume, trust me.

Not to mention, constantly hearing noises on the earphones decrease your sense of focus. So, you find it hard to concentrate on your work at hand.

Factors to Consider While Buying or Replacing The Buds

1. Material

As mentioned above basically three materials of buds are used – silicon, foam, and rubber. Silicon ear tips are very much popular among people. They can be cleaned easily, as they are chemically inert they are infection-free. There are no more itchy ears when using silicon earbuds.

If comfort is your prime priority then you should go for foam buds. They can be reshaped according to your ear canal. They are the most flexible type of tips which you can ever get in any other buds. Foam-type buds have perfect noise-isolating property.

Want your buds to stay for years and years? Rubber buds are for you. They are the most durable type of buds. But when it comes to comfort level they are the most downgraded one! After long hours of use, your ears start itching and you can feel uneasy.

2. Comfort and Fit

Comfort and proper fitting should be your main consideration while buying buds. However, it’s not an easy task, if not close to impossible for some.

Everyone has different anatomies, so the respective ear canals are also unique. They vary in curvature, in the cylinder’s shape of the cylinder, or can even be asymmetrical between two ears.

For that very reason, you have to look into the design and size of the buds you are planning on to achieve the best fit & comfort for your ears. Choose between different sizes (small, medium, large/ extra large) options and the depth that they may go into your ear to ensure the best listening experience.

3. Durability

Durability is also something to look into when buying earbud tips. The models do differ in their ability to be used for a certain period of time.

To be specific, silicone ear tips are the most flexible and durable. They can go for years and go through quite some external impacts (without being dropped or lost, evidently).

Meanwhile, foam tips typically wear out quite quickly over time (after weeks or more impressively months of use) and tend to be contaminated with earwax and dirt in use. For that reason, you should consider foam tips as consumables and factor them in when making your purchasing decision.

Final Words

Thank you for sticking with us throughout the article. Replacement of buds is quite a difficult task for some people because they feel chaos in choosing the right size, whereas some manage to do it easily.

It’s the most underrated thing! But replacing a perfect tip for earbuds is essential for your listening experience and also to prevent your ears from getting damaged by providing them optimum comfort.