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I tested 31 products to see which can block out loud music from neighbours, housemates, or other sources. I specifically tested them in a bedroom as I know it’s hard to sleep with annoying noise. But the results should also be applicable to daytime use if you’re ever bothered by nuisance noise.
You can watch my test in the video above, or read the edited transcript below.
Introduction
In the photo below, you can see 12 of the earplugs, headphones, and white noise machines included in my tests. Trying to squeeze all 31 products into one image was too messy!
It can be very frustrating and difficult to sleep if your housemate’s or neighbour’s music is booming through the walls. If getting them to turn it down, sleeping in another room, or doing soundproofing work aren’t possible, there’s always the option to use earplugs, headphones, or a white noise machine.
Over the years, I’ve tested many of those. But for this video (and article), I wanted to really go to town on the problem and work out the best way to block out annoying music.
So I spent three days testing 18 earplugs, seven white noise machines, four sleep headphones, and two headphones from Apple and Sony known for their active noise cancellation. I even tried combining different options with some very surprising results.
It was also important to work out which ones are actually comfortable enough to sleep with. As you’ll see in some of the later tests, I sometimes had to play pink or brown noise so loudly that that would be the reason I couldn’t sleep.
Just to be clear, I bought everything myself, this video/article isn’t sponsored and none of the companies know about it.
Below, you can see the seven white noise machines I included in my tests. Top left to bottom right: Snooz Original, Yogasleep Dreamcenter, Dreamegg D3 Pro, Yogasleep Dohm Nova, Easysleep, LectroFan Micro 2, LectroFan Classic.
How I ran the tests
Let me explain how I did the tests. I basically ran a series of knockout stages with increasingly loud music coming from a room adjacent to my bedroom until I found the limits of all 31 products.
Note: you can listen to a demo of each music track at 1:12 in the video.
I played the music through my Soundcore Boom 2 speaker, which I put on the opposite side of the brick and plaster wall behind my bed. For every product, I played the same one minute track, which had a mix of 20 seconds of drum and bass, 20 seconds of blues rock, and 20 seconds of pop.
I gave each product a score out of 10, with 1 meaning very little music was blocked or masked and 10 meaning I couldn’t hear it at all. And only the top performers went through to the next round.
Scoring system
When you look at the results in the tables throughout the article, this is what the scores mean:
- 10: blocks / masks all the music
- 9: blocks / masks most
- 6-8: blocks / masks lots
- 3-5: blocks / masks some
- 1-2: Blocks / masks little
Below, you can see the six headphones I tested. From top left to bottom right: AcousticSheep SleepPhones, Apple AirPods Pro 3, Soundcore Sleep A2O, Sony WH-1000XM6, Ozlo Sleepbuds, Soundcore Sleep A30.
Subjectivity and uniqueness of ear canals
Before we start, I want to be clear that this was just one person’s subjective test. My hearing was recently tested as normal for my age by an audiologist, but your experience may be different. And because ear canals are unique, the size, shape, fit, and material of an earplug can make a huge difference.
The reason I tested so many earplugs then was to have the best chance of getting the right seal for my ears. But please keep in mind the key point that it’s the concept of foam, silicone, or wax earplugs that’s most important, not the exact brand that worked best for me. With that said, let’s take a look at round one.
Below, you can see all 18 earplugs I included. There are 10 foam, 3 silicone putty, 2 wax, 2 flexible silicone, and 1 flexible plastic.
Round 1
Note: this section starts at 2:13 in the video.
For round one, I’ve just been taking a few readings with my decibel meter, and the average volume across the three tracks is 40.4 dBA. Let me press play and you can have a listen while I keep talking to give you a sense of how loud it is.
Now, if you’re not wearing headphones, you might not be able to hear it very well just yet; it might not be loud enough. But I can tell you that here, there’s no way I could sleep with that. So, let’s see which ones block and mask it best.
Round 1 results
In tables A, B, and C below, you can see the results of round one. All six headphones and the Flents Quiet Time earplugs scored a 10 as they blocked or masked all the music, and there were several other products that blocked lots or most of it. But there were many that didn’t block or mask enough music for me, so they didn’t make it to round two.
In the comments column, you’ll see I often play pink or brown noise on the white noise machines and headphones. I actually tried more than 100 different sounds, but pink and brown noise masked the music best, especially the bass. Waterfall and rain sounds also did a good job though.
Table A: earplugs results for round 1
| EARPLUGS | MATERIAL | SCORE | HEARD / FELT & COMMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mack’s Ultra Soft | Foam | 9 | Some bass from tracks 1 and 2 |
| Moldex Sparkplugs | Foam | 7 | Some bass, mids, and highs |
| Howard Leight Max Lite | Foam | 7 | Some bass, mids, and highs |
| Howard Leight Laser Lite | Foam | 9 | Some bass from tracks 1 and 2 |
| 3M Comfort | Foam | 7 | Bass and mids, and lyrics; foam felt rough |
| Mack’s Slim Fit | Foam | 4 | Most music and lyrics heard |
| Mack’s Dream Girl | Foam | 4 | Most music and lyrics heard |
| Flents Quiet Time | Foam | 10 | All music blocked |
| Hearos Ultimate Softness | Foam | 8 | Bass |
| Hearos Xtreme Protection | Foam | 8 | Bass |
| Loop Quiet 2 | Flexible silicone | 5 | A lot of bass, mids and lyrics |
| Loop Dream | Flexible silicone | 5 | A lot of bass, mids and lyrics |
| Alpine Sleep Deep | Thermo plastic | 4 | A lot of bass, mids and lyrics |
| Mack’s Pillow Soft | Soft silicone | 3 | Most bass, mids and lyrics |
| Hush Plugz | Soft silicone | 2 | Most bass, mids and lyrics |
| Bioears | Soft silicone | 5 | Music still audible; better than other silicone |
| Quies | Wax | 2 | Almost no difference; hard to get a good seal |
| Ohropax | Wax | 2 | Almost no difference; hard to get a good seal |
Table B: headphones results for round 1
| HEADPHONES | SETUP / VOLUME COMMENTS | SCORE | HEARD / FELT | PRACTICALITY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ozlo Sleepbuds | 70% Crimson Cloak | 10 | All music blocked | Comfortable; volume tolerable |
| Apple AirPods Pro 3 | ANC only | 10 | All music blocked | Back sleeping only |
| Soundcore Sleep A20 | 80% brown noise + snore mask | 10 | All music blocked | Comfortable; volume maybe tolerable |
| Soundcore Sleep A30 | ANC only | 6 | Some bass and mids | Comfortable |
| Soundcore Sleep A30 | 60% brown noise + snore mask | 10 | All music blocked | Comfortable; volume maybe tolerable |
| AcousticSheep SleepPhones | 90% brown noise | 10 | All music blocked | Comfortable; maybe too loud |
| Sony WH-1000XM6 | ANC only | 10 | All music blocked | Back sleeping only; restricted head movement |
Table C: white noise machines results for round 1
| WHITE NOISE MACHINES | SETUP / VOLUME COMMENTS | SCORE | HEARD / FELT | PRACTICALITY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Easysleep | 100% white noise | 5 | Noticeable bass and mids | Unpleasant sound |
| Dreamegg D3 Pro | 100% pink noise | 9 | Some bass | Too loud |
| LectroFan Micro 2 | 100% pink noise | 4 | Noticeable bass and mids | Maybe tolerable |
| Yogasleep Dohm Nova | Loudest fan setting | 3 | All music and lyrics heard | Pleasant fan sound |
| Yogasleep Dreamcenter | 100% pink noise | 9 | Some bass | Too loud |
| Snooz Original | Loudest fan setting | 4 | All music except lyrics | Pleasant fan sound |
| LectroFan Classic | 100% pink noise | 9 | Some bass | Too loud |
My thoughts on round 1
Okay, some thoughts on round one then. The white noise machines struggled to block out the music unless I played them at very loud volume levels. I know from previous tests that they’re often better when the noise source is further away, such as birdsong, distant traffic, people chatting outside, or random house sounds.
The Easysleep, LectroFan Micro 2, Yogasleep Dohm Nova, and Snooz Original just didn’t mask enough for me, even at their maximum volume.
The Dreamegg D3 Pro, Yogasleep Dreamcenter, and LectroFan Classic all blocked most of the music with just some bass leaking through. However, I needed to play pink noise at the maximum volume, which I personally feel is too loud for extended periods of time, especially if it’s close to your bed. But those three still made it to round two as they technically did a good job.
The headphones were excellent at blocking out the music, and all six of them went through to round two. The Ozlo Sleepbuds, Soundcore Sleep A20, and Acousticsheep SleepPhones are dedicated sleep headphones that don’t have active noise cancellation.
So I either needed to play their app sounds or stream brown noise from YouTube, and at quite loud volume levels. It was just about tolerable for me, but that would be a personal thing.
Below, you can see the three sleep headphones that don’t have ANC and therefore need some noise masking audio.
Interestingly, the Soundcore Sleep A30 do have active noise cancellation and blocked a lot of the music just with that. But to block and mask 100%, I did need to play some app sounds. I also tested the A30 and A30 Special, but they’re basically the same other than the battery life.
Below, you can see that the Soundcore Sleep A30 and A30 Special look identical (to me at least). I believe Anker created the Special version in response to complaints about the battery life of the A30 when using ANC and streaming your own audio via Bluetooth. So technically there were 32 products in my test, but they were too similar to warrant including both in each round.
The most impressive performance came from the Apple AirPods Pro 3 and the Sony WH-1000XM6. They both blocked all the music with just the active noise cancellation. A big issue, however, is that neither of them are practical for side or front sleeping, and the over-ear Sony’s restrict your head movement, even on your back.
When it came to the earplugs, as I expected, only the foam earplugs with the highest lab tested noise reduction ratings of around 33 decibels blocked out most or all of it. The Flents Quiet Time worked best for me, but the Mack’s Ultra Soft and Howard Light Laser Lite also did well, with just a tiny bit of bass leaking through. So those three advanced to round two.
The worst foam earplugs for me were the Mack’s Dream Girl and Mack’s Slim Fit. But they were both made for smaller ear canals, so if you found that foam earplugs are too large in the past or they don’t stay in, perhaps give those a go. The Loop Quiet 2, Loop Dream, and Alpine Deep Sleep let too much of the bass, mids, and lyrics through.
Note: all three of those were very comfortable to wear. The Loop are made from flexible silicone and the Alpine from flexible plastic. To find out more about those, check out my Loop earplugs review.
All of the moldable silicone and wax earplugs really struggled with the music too. The best moldable ones were the silicone Bioears, which were a bit stickier, so easier to get a good seal.
Below, you can see how the silicone earplugs cover my ear canal rather than going inside like the foam or flexible silicone.
Even though I always get better noise reduction with foam, I know a lot of people swear by silicone or wax. I actually asked my sister and her kids to test some of the earplugs the other day and all three of them preferred the fit and feel of the silicone Bioears, Mack’s Pillow Soft and Hush Plugz. So they are good alternatives if you’re just not a fan of foam earplugs.
Overall then, 12 products scored a 9 or 10 and made it to round two and 19 scored an 8 or under and dropped out.
Round 2
Note: this section starts at 6:03 in the video.
For round two, I’ve bumped up the volume and the average across the three tracks is now 49.9 dBA. Let’s have a listen. Now, to me that sounds significantly louder than the first round.
It’s the kind of level of volume that if you perhaps have a housemate and thinner walls and they’re playing their music loudly, or if you’ve got neighbours with thicker walls and a big sound system, or perhaps even if you live above a bar. It’s really quite loud. So let’s see how well these block or mask it.
Round 2 results
In table D below, you can see the results of round two. Most of them did a reasonably good job, but all the headphones now needed some kind of audio to mask the bass. And all the white noise machines and earplugs let quite a lot of the music through at this volume level.
Table D: round 2 results for all 18 products
| PRODUCT | SETUP / VOLUME | SCORE | HEARD / FELT | PRACTICALITY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ozlo Sleepbuds | 100% Crimson Cloak | 8 | Some bass; more on side | Comfortable; volume too loud |
| Apple AirPods Pro 3 | ANC only | 7 | Some bass, mids and lyrics | Back sleeping only |
| Apple AirPods Pro 3 | ANC + 40% brown noise | 10 | All music blocked | Back sleeping only; volume tolerable |
| Soundcore Sleep A20 | 100% brown noise + snore mask | 10 | All music blocked | Comfortable; volume too loud |
| Soundcore Sleep A30 | ANC only | 5 | A lot of bass, mids and lyrics | Comfortable |
| Soundcore Sleep A30 | ANC + 85% brown noise + snore mask | 10 | All music blocked | Comfortable; volume too loud |
| AcousticSheep SleepPhones | 100% brown noise | 7 | Bass and mids | Very comfortable; volume too loud |
| Sony WH-1000XM6 | ANC only | 8 | Some bass and mids | Back sleeping only; restricts head |
| Sony WH-1000XM6 | ANC + 25% brown noise | 10 | All music blocked | Back sleeping only; volume tolerable |
| Mack’s Ultra Soft | Foam earplugs | 6 | Some bass, mids and lyrics | Comfortable |
| Flents Quiet Time | Foam earplugs | 7 | Some bass, mids and lyrics | Comfortable |
| Howard Leight Laser Lite | Foam earplugs | 5 | A lot of bass, mids and lyrics | Comfortable |
| Dreamegg D3 Pro | 100% pink noise | 7 | Bass and some mids | Too loud and intense |
| Yogasleep Dreamcenter | 100% pink noise | 7 | Bass and some mids | Too loud and intense |
| LectroFan Classic | 100% pink noise | 8 | Bass and faint mids | Too loud and intense |
My thoughts on round 2
The main problem with the white noise machines was that even when played at their maximum volume, I could still hear the bass of the music and now some mids as well. And the result was a kind of annoying cocktail of noise.
If I reduced their volume to what I would consider a safe and tolerable level or moved the machines further away, it was obviously even worse as I could hear the lyrics and the pink noise. So the last three white noise machines dropped out at round two.
Interestingly, I managed to block out all of the music except for a little bit of bass when I accidentally inserted the Mack’s Ultra Soft too deeply into my ear canals. However, I had to remove them with tweezers, which is never a pleasant experience and a clear sign they’re either too small for you or you’ve just inserted them too far.
When I then inserted them correctly, they did block a reasonable amount, but I could still hear some bass, mids and now some lyrics. And it was a similar story with the Flents Quiet Time and Howard Leight Laser Lite. I decided to advance the Flent’s Quiet Time to round three though, because they at least made the music more tolerable and were very comfortable to wear when lying on my back, front, or side.
The headphones were clearly the most effective in round two. But I had to play the audio of the sleep headphones very loudly to block out all the music. The Ozlo Sleepbuds had the most pleasant sound, but neither those nor the SleepPhones could mask all the music, especially when lying on my side, as the sound and vibrations of the music’s bass became quite noticeable.
The Soundcore Sleep A20 and A30 both managed to mask all the music, including the bass when lying on my side. However, the volume I needed to play the app sounds at was too loud and intense for me personally.
The AirPods Pro 3 and Sony XM6 both blocked all the music when I streamed brown noise at a volume level that I found tolerable. So again, I was very impressed with those two.
Overall, despite my growing concern over the volume required to mask the music, all the headphones made it through to the next round.
Round 3
Note: this section starts at 8:32 in the video.
Since it was clear that this volume level was already difficult to block out in a way that was comfortable, I decided to do a combo round. I kept the music at the same volume level and tested a few different combinations of products, which is something that many people have asked me about in the past.
Round 3 results
In table E below, you can see the results for all the combos I did in this round. It was a shorter round, so all my comments are below the table.
Table E: round 3 results
| PRODUCT / COMBINATION | SETUP / VOLUME | SCORE | HEARD / FELT | PRACTICALITY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SleepPhones + Flents Quiet Time | 100% brown noise | 9 | Bass | Comfortable; brown noise more tolerable |
| SleepPhones + BioEars | 100% brown noise | 8 | Bass and mids | Comfortable; brown noise more tolerable |
| SleepPhones + Flents Quiet Time + LectroFan | Brown noise + pink noise (both 100% volume) | 9 | Bass (slightly less) | Comfortable; 3 noise sources annoying |
| SleepPhones + BioEars + LectroFan | Brown noise + pink noise (both 100% volume) | 8 | Bass (slightly less) | Comfortable; 3 noise sources annoying |
| Flents Quiet Time + LectroFan | 100% pink noise | 9 | Back: bassSide: bass and some mids | Comfortable; pink noise more tolerable |
| Sony XM6 + BioEars | ANC only | 8 | Bass and mids | Back sleeping only; limited head movement |
My thoughts on round 3
The most interesting result for me was wearing the Flents Quiet Time earplugs under the AcousticSheep SleepPhones. That combo scored a 9 out of 10 as only some bass was audible, and the earplugs made the brown noise from the headphones more tolerable.
The silicone BioEars under the SleepPhones had a similar effect and was also a comfortable combo. Interestingly, adding the LectroFan white noise machine as well didn’t make a huge difference; it just made the room noisier.
However, when I wore the Flent’s earplugs and used the LectroFan alone, it blocked most of the music when I was on my back and made the loud LectroFan volume tolerable. But on my side, the vibrations from the bass of the music were very noticeable.
Although I’m skeptical that combining very loud brown noise and earplugs is a good idea, I did more combos in round four to at least find out how effective they are.
Round 4
Note: this section starts at 9:30 in the video.
For round four, I’ve squeezed the last five decibels out of the speaker, and the average across the three tracks is now 55.2 dBA. It’s extremely loud!
When I’ve been lying on my side or front just to see what it’s like, I can really feel the bass as well as hear it. So, let’s have a listen. And there you go – even if you’re not using headphones, you should be able to hear that.
It’s extremely loud, and I would hope most people never have the unpleasant experience of trying to sleep with that level of music playing from another room. I almost feel like my walls are made of Lego rather than real bricks, that’s how loud it is in here! Let’s see if I can block it out or mask it with any of these.
Round 4 results
You can see in table F below that at this volume level, most of the individual devices and combinations reduced the volume, but either not by enough or in a way that I’d find uncomfortable for the whole night.
There were just four ways in which I blocked or masked 100% of the music. However, only one option was just about tolerable, which was the Apple AirPods Pro 3 streaming brown noise at 60% volume. I probably wouldn’t want to play that volume of brown noise all night every night, but I would consider it from time to time if I really hated my neighbour’s music.
Table F: round 4 results
| PRODUCT / COMBINATION | SETUP / VOLUME | SCORE | HEARD / FELT | PRACTICALITY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flents Quiet Time | Earplugs only | 5 | Bass, mids and lyrics; bass felt | Very comfortable |
| Sony XM6 | ANC only | 6 | Bass, mids and lyrics | Back sleeping only |
| Sony XM6 | ANC + 60% brown noise | 10 | All music blocked | Too loud and intense; back sleeping only |
| Sony XM6 + Flents | ANC + 80–100% brown noise | 9 | A bit of bass | Tolerable; back sleeping only |
| Sony XM6 + BioEars | ANC + 100% brown noise | 10 | All music blocked | Brown noise sounds very bad |
| Soundcore Sleep A30 | ANC + 100% Niagara Falls | 10 | All music blocked | Too loud |
| SleepPhones + Flents | 100% brown noise | 8 | Bass and mids; some bass felt | Comfortable; music + brown noise annoying |
| SleepPhones + BioEars | 100% brown noise | 6 | Back: bass and midsSide: lyrics heard; bass felt | Comfortable; music + brown noise annoying |
| Flents + LectroFan | 100% brown noise | 7 | Bass heard and felt clearly | LectroFan more tolerable; bass + brown noise annoying |
| Ozlo Sleepbuds | 100% Crimson Cloak | 6 | Some bass, mids and lyrics | Comfortable; music + brown noise annoying |
| AirPods Pro 3 | ANC only | 5 | Bass, mids and lyrics | Back sleeping only |
| AirPods Pro 3 | ANC + 60% brown noise | 10 | All music blocked | Maybe tolerable; back sleeping only |
| AirPods Pro 3 + LectroFan | ANC + 100% pink noise | 7 | Bass very noticeable | Maybe tolerable; bass + pink noise annoying |
My thoughts on round 4
Perhaps the most interesting discovery was what happened when I wore different earplugs under the Sony XM6. With the Flents Quiet Time, I could increase the volume of the brown noise on the headphones.
Even though I could still hear a bit of bass from the music, it was tolerable, and the earplugs also made the brown noise tolerable. So I could actually lie on my back with this combo for a reasonable amount of time.
Below, you can see the Sony WH-1000XM6 and Flents Quiet Time earplugs, which was a very effective combination.
But what I didn’t expect was that when I wore the silicone BioEars under the Sony’s, it blocked out all of the music, including the bass. However, that was because the brown noise sounded warped as it was filtered by the silicone. So the music was gone, but it was replaced by an even more annoying sound!
As for the others, the earplugs alone or the Ozlo Sleepbuds just didn’t block out enough for me. The A30s could mask all the music, but the volume needed to do so was way too loud. The SleepPhones combined with either the Flents or Bioears blocked and masked quite a lot. But I could hear both the brown noise and the music, which was a bit annoying.
So really, if your neighbours are blasting very loud music, there are plenty of ways to make it less irritating. However, there’s a point at which it becomes very difficult to block or mask all of it in a way that’s comfortable and sensible for the whole night.
Recap and key takeaways
Now I’ve finished the tests, let’s have a recap with some of the main points that stand out for me and some of the key lessons to take from this video.
Earplugs
The foam earplugs were much more effective than silicone or wax, but those are still reasonable alternatives if you don’t like foam.
The right foam earplugs for your ear canals might block out 100% of quieter music. The Flents Quiet Time, Mack’s Ultra Soft and Howard Light Laser Lite worked best for me, but a different brand may suit you better.
Foam Earplugs might make loud music more tolerable, but won’t block it out completely. Importantly though, they can be comfortable to wear on your back, front, or side.
White noise machines
White noise machines may not be the best choice to mask loud music. They might be better for distant sounds like traffic or birdsong, or just for relaxation.
For masking music, the most effective white noise machine sounds will probably be pink or brown noise, but you may need to play it very loudly to block out the bass and lyrics. And many can reach volume levels that are arguably too high for a bedroom or to play close to your ears.
The most effective at masking music were simply the loudest. the LectroFan Classic, Dreamegg D3 Pro, and Yogasleep Dreamcenter.
Standard headphones with good ANC
The headphones were the most effective category, especially those with the triple shield of passive noise isolation, active noise cancellation, and noise masking.
The Sony WH-1000XM6 and Apple AirPods Pro 3 significantly outperformed the sleep headphones when it came to masking loud music.
Headphones with excellent active noise cancellation might be able to block out quieter music just using that. I chose the Apple and Sony as examples, but there are obviously other headphones with effective ANC. Sleeping on your side or front may not be possible with standard headphones though.
Dedicated sleep headphones
The dedicated sleep headphones were all comfortable to wear on my back, front, or side, but not everyone will find the earbuds of the Ozlo Sleepbuds or the Soundcore Sleep A20 and A30 to be so comfortable.
The sleep headphones needed louder audio to mask the music. The most effective sounds were pink and brown noise, waterfalls, or snore masking sounds on their respective apps.
Out of the four sleep headphones, the Ozlo Sleepbuds had the most pleasant sound, but they were less effective at masking louder music, especially when lying on my side. I had to play their masking sounds too loudly for my preference.
The Soundcore Sleep A30 and A30 Special were the most effective sleep headphones. But to mask loud music, I had to play their app sounds so loudly that it would keep me awake and I would worry about my hearing.
Note: I only mention worrying about my hearing when discussing playing the A30’s app sounds very loudly. But this is a worry I would have with most headphones if I played them very loudly for extended periods of time.
The AcousticSheep SleepPhones were comfortable in all sleep positions, but less effective at masking the music. Wearing earplugs under them helped reduce both the masking sound and the music.
Combinations
The most effective combination was wearing foam earplugs under the Sony XM6 with brown noise playing.
But with all the combos, I wouldn’t assume the earplugs automatically make it safe to increase the volume. You’re still playing loud audio close to your ears, so I’d be very cautious about using that kind of setup. Even though it’s effective at masking loud music, I won’t be doing it myself.
Finally, sometimes the combinations made it worse. Wearing silicone earplugs under the Sony XM6 made the sound very unpleasant. And adding white noise machines to headphones just introduced too much extra noise into the room.
Final thoughts
For me personally, after all that, the most useful discovery was simply a new earplug. I’ve used the Mack’s Ultra Soft for years, but I’m going to continue using the Flents Quiet Time for a few weeks now to see which I actually find more comfortable for sleep.
Note: I’ve already used them for a couple of weeks since I filmed that section of the video. I feel the Mack’s Ultra Soft are a bit more comfortable as they are smaller. But the Flents definitely block out more noise, so I might keep a supply of both of them near my bed: Mack’s for everyday use, Flents for noisier nights, and then headphones for really noisy nights.
The next time I’m in a situation with very loud music, or other loud noise perhaps, I’ll make sure I’ve got my headphones charged as they’re clearly more effective.
For really loud music, I imagine I’ll use the AirPods Pro 3 as the over-ear Sony XM6 are too restrictive, even on my back. However, if it’s not too loud, I’d rather use the Ozlo Sleepbuds as they’re comfortable on my side and sound nicer than the A30 or SleepPhones. But to mask very loud music, I wouldn’t be comfortable with the volume of brown noise I’d need from any of the sleep headphones.
Below, you can see six of the products than ended up being the most effective at blocking and masking loud music, or worked well in combination with others.
Very importantly, if I’m wearing headphones, I’ll always set a 60-minute timer so I can hopefully fall asleep, stay asleep, and not have audio playing in my ears all night long.
Now, if you watched the video or are reading this article and thinking “I really wish he’d tested them with snoring or dogs barking or loud traffic!” or whatever it might be, let me know in the comments below. Although it’s possible the results will apply to other noise sources, if enough people ask, I’ll consider doing more tests.
And if you have any comments or questions about the content of this test, let me know. It’s always good to hear from you, and I’ll be happy to try and help.
Thanks for watching and/or reading. Sleep well.
Links to buy the top products
If you’d like to try some of the products that featured in the video and article, here are the links for the ones that performed best in each category:
Earplugs
- Flents Quiet Time (Amazon)
- Mack’s Ultra Soft (Amazon)
- Howard Leight Laser Lite (Amazon)
Headphones
- Apple AirPods Pro 3 (Amazon) (also on the Apple website)
- Sony WH-1000XM6 (Amazon)
- Ozlo Sleepbuds (Amazon)
- Soundcore Sleep A30 Special (Amazon)
- Soundcore Sleep A20 (Amazon)
- AcousticSheep SleepPhones (official website)
Note that I recommend the A30 special over the A30 due to their longer battery life.
White noise machines
- LectroFan Classic (Amazon)
- Dreamegg D3 Pro (Amazon)
- Yogasleep Dreamcenter (Amazon)
