DIY Molded In-Ears (Cheap & Easy)

Thank you all this. I do sing, and had to bit down on a giant piece of foam to keep my mouth more open. It was miserable. By the end, i was questioning whether i really needed to sing, haha.

It’s funny you mentioned scanning, because i just happen to be one those 3D printing nerds. But my drummer has a much more professional scanner than mine. So i sent myself an email hi reminder to look for STL models for the drivers. If so, it wouldn’t be a huge stretch to scan/print my mold with socket for the driver. i have a feeling i won’t have much luck finding available models :(. This has the potential to be a humongous pain on the neck, and i will likely abandon the idea in favor of just buying a custom iem.
 
Rex said:
Good info. Does it work in reverse? If you take an open-jaw impression, might it cause issues if you keep your mouth closed?
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When the mouth is open, the ear canal is widened, so the earplugs made in this way are larger and cause more or less uncomfortable pressure in the ear canal when the mouth is closed. This is very good for sealing and sound quality. But not for comfort.
You can take away the pressure by just opening the teeth for a centimeter.
When swallowing or speaking, the pressure is unavoidable.

My €160 earplugs no longer fit after two years.
Now I wear https://www.alpinehearingprotection.com/products/motosafe-race?_pos=1&_psq=motosafe&_ss=e&_v=1.0
They fit just as well and the sound quality is on par.
However, I had to try five different manufacturers before I found ones that fit and sound so well.
 
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holgar said:
When the mouth is open, the ear canal is widened, so the earplugs made in this way are larger and cause more or less uncomfortable pressure in the ear canal when the mouth is closed. This is very good for sealing and sound quality. But not for comfort.
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I understand that part. What I was asking was whether there are issues in the opposite direction — for instance, does an open-mouth impression give you a loose fit when you close your mouth?
 
This thread started thanks to my childish enthusiasm over a new discovery, but has turned into something much more enlightening.

Regarding open vs close mouth molds. I did my silicone with open mouth, because I also sing. There's no discomfort when I close my mouth. I could wear them literally all literally wear them all day without discomfort. With my old foam tips, I would need breaks. As the night goes on, it was not unusual for me to pull them out between songs just to have a rest.

A lot of the professionally molded IEMs are plastic though (right?), I can't say how comfortable they are after a few hours. I'm guessing it's not a problem, or they wouldn't be so popular. But still interested in hearing from people that use UE or 64 or whoever's molded ears.
 
If they are made well/good fit solid acrylic molds are very comfortable. It’s like a wooden chair or bench, it’s comfortable if it’s got the right contours and you can sit all day, might feel better than overly soft seat even, but if it’s a flat slab of wood it’s going to hit you in the wrong spots and get some fast.

Acrylic is nice in that it don’t rip or tear, easy to wipe off sweat and bacteria etc. just don’t drop it
 
GMGM said:
Yeah - I could see having some issues with the material separating and leaving something behind, if it wasn't mixed well. They make it pretty easy to know, as it's supplied in a 2-part formula (white and red halves). So visually speaking, it's pretty see when you have a good mix. I've had to fish out a piece of a broken ear plug on stage before with needle nose pliers (do not recommend). I suppose material separation is always a possibility though, given the differences from one ear to the next.

I first mixed it up, and stuffed it in my ear as far as it would go [EDIT- This is a bad idea, use cotton/foam to keep material from going to far into your ear canal]. Then I jammed the IEMs into the puddy. So there was plenty of pressure to make sure the mold reached every possible place in there. It does go pretty deep. But you'll probably end up trimming quite a bit of it away. You really only need a little bit to surround the opening of the 'speaker' itself. I left maybe 3mm or so, beyond the mesh screen of my drivers.
FWIW.
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I don’t think it’s a good idea to jam cotton or foam down in your ear either… how are you going to get it out when you are done.

Honestly now I’m considering passing on this.
 
Domct203 said:
I don’t think it’s a good idea to jam cotton or foam down in your ear either… how are you going to get it out when you are done.

Honestly now I’m considering passing on this.
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Cotton/foam recommednded by @lqdsnddist They tied string around the plug to pull it out.

And I shouldn't say it, but as of yesterday - I've now made (successful) molds - without cotton/foam stoppers - for 6 additional pairs of IEMs
 
GMGM said:
Cotton/foam recommednded by @lqdsnddist They tied string around the plug to pull it out.

And I shouldn't say it, but as of yesterday - I've now made (successful) molds - without cotton/foam stoppers - for 6 additional pairs of IEMs
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He was explaining the professional process, not recommending people go stuffing cotton in their ears and make these molds.

It’s not misuse of the product, it’s made and sold as moldable ear plugs and is being used as such.

With some common sense and proceeding carefully this seems safe enough, just go easy on how much material you shove in your ears.
 
Domct203 said:
He was explaining the professional process, not recommending people go stuffing cotton in their ears and make these molds.

It’s not misuse of the product, it’s made and sold as moldable ear plugs and is being used as such.

With some common sense and proceeding carefully this seems safe enough, just go easy on how much material you shove in your ears.
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Right on. I might've been a little nervous had I read his comments prior to starting. But thankfully, I've converted 8 different sets of IEMs without foam/cotton, and no error.

I used way too much puddy on the first two. I used the full kit, and ended up with more outside my ear, then in it. Had I shoved cotton down there first, I easily could have gotten two sets out of each kit. So the others are much less bulky, and needed much less trimming when I was done.

FWIW - the final outcome of this little experiment has been hugely successful (at least for me). So much so, that I've started a conversation with a company about ordering the real deal. I'm not looking for the price tag, but if I can get a molded AND better drivers at he same time - then it'll be worth it.
 
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