testimonials

My life would be very different if I didn’t have the use of my ears. Without my hearing, I wouldn't be able to work, write songs or act.

So looking after my hearing is essential, if I want a career in music or anything else creative. I use in ear monitors when I perform on stage and moulded ear plugs when I’m just going out on a social one and there's loud music being played, all from Musicians Hearing Services.

It isn't worth risking the use of your ears just to have a good time.

Ben Drew, aka Plan B

As a DJ I knew I should be protecting my hearing, I often have ringing in my ears after a gig. I tried the foam plugs but they just made everything sound dull.

Then I heard about Musicians Hearing Services. They made me custom fitted specialist earplugs which make things quieter but keep the fidelity of the sound. The service was great and the staff were knowledgeable and friendly.

Now I won't play a set without my earplugs.

Matthew Horne

I am very pleasantly surprised after my trip to Musicians Hearing Services. I have just fitted the monitors that they provided and listened to some music.

With respect to frequency range I seem to be able to hear a lot of high frequency sounds in my right ear, much more than I expected. Brass is brassy, strings are stringy, and I can hear hi-hats in drum kits. These in-ear monitors are fabulous, just as they predicted.

Pete Townshend
The Who

If you're a DJ or a muso and you're reading this and thinking 'maybe its time I got some earplugs...', hold that thought and listen: there is NO 'maybe' about it. I cannot stress to you how important it is to protect your ears, they are your living, and they are under almost daily barrage.

I've been on tour with The Prodigy and played gigs so big the monitoring is 30,000 watts of sound, but if you're thinking 'I only play little gigs' it's often those sh*tty little sound systems at Camden Monarch or some bar that will cause the most damage.

One day, years ago, my colleague Erol Alkan told me he'd lost 40% of the hearing in one of his ears and that he'd just discovered Geraldine and Paul at Musicians Hearing Services.

That recomendation changed my life. I'd get tinnitus SO badly after every gig, that I couldn't sleep, and I'd ill as a result. My immune system was shot through and I was a mess.

Since getting MHS to sort me out with plugs, I carry them EVERYWHERE and use them at big gigs, little gigs, parties, anywhere with a soundsystem. Now I sleep, I'm healthy and my ears aren't getting any worse despite my job.

They make it easy, they are nice people, they'll even get rid of that horrid build up of years worth of wax for you.

The plugs come in varying degrees of sound reduction and they just reduce it, not muffle it like those spongy yellow ones you can get for free at festivals. You'll still hear the sizzle of a hi-hat and the boom of a kick drum, just at less damaging volume.

Now if you're final thought is 'hmmm but its quite expensive...' Stop. Its the best money I EVER spent.

Do it now. You will not regret it. Just guard them with your life!

PS - just one more thing - if you're thinking 'this is one of those free plugs for a plug thing...' NO. This is from the heart and I paid the same for my earplugs as you will pay for yours.

Eddy Temple-Morris

The Remix on Xfm
Remix Allnighter at Matter
Losers on Distiller Records

www.twitter.com/eddytm
www.facebook.com/eddytm
www.myspace.com/losersuk

“I will not go onstage without my in-ear monitors from Musicians Hearing Services.”

The Script
www.thescriptmusic.com

“Our in-ears are invaluable to us, as are Musicians’ Hearing Services and Geraldine who look after all our hearing needs...”

Coldplay
www.coldplay.com

A few years back I became very aware of how much I was exposing myself to loud music. However, as a DJ I was concerned about using earplugs and losing some of the feel of the room. I have used these plugs now for 3 years and swear by them. Its only when I take them out mid set that I realise how dangerous monitor levels can get. I do not DJ without them.

Zane Lowe
BBC Radio 1 DJ

My hearing is the most precious tool of my trade. Geraldine and the MHS have taught me how to look after my hearing and make sure that night after night, show after show, my ears are in perfect shape. Their care and services are truly second to none.
Hearing is believing.

Tom Meadows
Drummer - Duffy, Girls Aloud, Lucie Silvas, Jamelia

Its incredibly important to try and protect your hearing as a singer or musician. I had been using cheap foam earplugs and was definitely experiencing the on-set of tinnitus. Andy Spence, my song writing partner found Musicians Hearing Services at Harley Street Hearing and booked both of us appointments. I am fairly squeamish about having things put into my ears and the staff at the clinic were very sympathetic to that and let me take the consultations and fittings at my own pace.

I have had my earplugs for about a year now and I find them to be infinitely beneficial in enjoying music in many different environments, as well as performing.

Tahita Bulmer – lead singer
New Young Pony Club

3 people in NYPC use Elacin earplugs and we all agree they are the best way to protect your ears without ruining the sound you hear. Musician Hearing Services have always been very professional and considerate when fitting the plugs so we don't hesitate to recommend them for ear protection or any other hearing needs.

Andy Spence – guitarist
New Young Pony Club

It is hard to overestimate the importance of ear protection in clubs.  I still believe in not wearing them for short periods to experience  the sheer tumult of load music as a physical experience from time to  time, especially on a well-tuned sound system with no distortion (the main culprit for ear damage), but as a DJ, I wear them for five out of every six minutes, removing them only to hear the transition from one record into the next as the club hears it. Otherwise I wear them at all times these days in all clubs.

I have used moulded earplugs from Musicians Hearing Services for five years now.  The sound reduction is pretty even across all frequencies allowing for accurate sound mixing. It also actually improves your ability to hear conversations as extraneous non-voice frequencies and distortion are reduced. I make use of the different filters too. 9db - 15db reduction in small clubs. 25db reduction for big systems. If I could make one improvement it would be a modification where you could open and close the filter without removing the plug itself. This would make life much easier and prevent loss of both the plug and filter on the dark floor of every nightclub!

I would also like to see clubs obliged to provide improved and user-specific ear protection for all employees; bar staff particularly, who take orders from people shouting into their ear as well as enduring the loud volumes of the music. Foam plugs are not enough.

We live in an age where live music is loud and constant. Ear damage is for life once it strikes. When you are young you expect the ringing in your ears will go away in the morning, but without precautions one day you will wake up and it won't.

Ben Watt
Everything but the girl

Why wait until you damage your ears? This product from Musicians Hearing Services is fantastic and you can still DJ and produce with them in as your ears adjust very quickly. Money well spent!

Pete Gooding
DJ

I play bass with the Mustangs, which is a blues/rhythm and blues band.  We play in a wide variety of venues large and small, and frequently have very little control over sound levels/monitoring. I tried the ER15s for the first time last weekend at two separate gigs, and was amazed by the difference they make.  I could hear myself and the other members of the band with total clarity, but the excessive volume and "wash" of sound was completely gone.

The boominess of my bass disappeared, with the result that I could clearly hear every note as I played it.  I was able to play as tightly as I have ever played without any strain or effort.

Best of all, after each gig I was able to fall into bed without the usual ringing in the ears and feeling of being noise-battered.  The whole experience was far more enjoyable and less fatiguing,

The ER15s are an incredible piece of kit that I would recommend to any musician.  I intend never to play a gig without them again.

Ben McKeown
The Mustangs

I wanted to let you know of my experience with Earplugs over the last 18 years of DJing.

A few years back one of my DJ partners got bad Tinnitus in his ears and had to protect them, as we were working together a lot at the time he urged me to get some, which I didn’t.

Anyway, I had a scare 1 day when I couldn’t hear properly after a gig and went and got some fitted in Harley St, at the time I got the weakest  available (–15 Decibels), but I found them very difficult to use in Clubs as personally I think they are for bigger systems (like stadiums etc?), I felt cut off from the atmosphere of the club and it was impossible to mix with them in, totally defeating the object,  having spoken to others I know a lot of DJs have the same experience.

So I didn’t wear them for a while, and kept on DJing without them, and guess what, ended up with a ringing in my ears so bad that it felt like it was deep inside my head, I have heard that people have killed themselves having Tinnitus and after that experience I can understand, thankfully mine was temporary, but the next day I went back for new earplugs, and here’s my point, they’ve now developed –9 Decibel earplugs, my girlfriend Alexandra and I got fitted with them that day, and haven’t looked back, they’re the best thing for club systems, I put them in as soon as I walk into a club now (even if I’m not playing), I DJ all night long in them, and take them out at the end of the night and feel great!

Also, Alexandra is a club chick, not a DJ, she was very dubious before we got them, but now she swears by them, trust me on this one, if you want to enjoy long club nights and not be deaf in later life protect yourself with these NOW, they take a mould of your ear and the filters in the plug are changeable so if you felt that you wanted stronger at any point you could upgrade to –15 or even -25 (which some DJ’s do use)

Mark Wilkinson
DJ

(Picture of Mark Wilkinson – DJ & Alexandra Houston Carroll – Club Chick)

I’m not a musician but a history professor who listens to lots of music.  I have to travel a lot.  But take a long trip by rail or plane with a set of Geraldine’s custom-made, perfectly-fitting ear plugs – into which can be slipped the earphones from an i-Pod or Walkman – and you could be on your way to paradise. Lose yourself in the sounds of your music, uninterrupted by anything other than a ticket inspector if it’s a train journey, or an air hostess if it’s a plane – who’ll ask you to take them out for landing and take-off.  They’ll struggle to attract your attention though; the ear plugs are that good, and you’ll be lost in another world.

Chris Whatley, Vice-Principal and Professor of Scottish History, University of Dundee