Do earbuds tend to leak sound? How to deal with sound leakage of earphones and 4 recommended models | @DIME at dime

In public spaces such as trains, you may unintentionally leak sound from your earphones. In most cases, sound leaks are not noticed by the person wearing the earphones, and cause inconvenience to the people around them. The cause of sound leakage and how to deal with it before it makes people around you feel uncomfortable. And let's check the products that are hard to leak sound.

What exactly is sound leakage?

"Sound leakage" is, as the name suggests, leakage of sound to the outside when listening to music with earphones or headphones. In most cases, it leaks to the outside with a sound like metal scraping, and there is a high possibility that it will make people around you feel uncomfortable.

Why does sound leak out of earphones? The main reason for this is the "loud volume". Also, even if the volume is low, there are cases where sound leaks because the earpiece part of the earphone does not fit the ear canal.

How to deal with earphones that leak sound!

What should I do to avoid leaking sound from earphones? "Let's see how to deal with that."

Turn the volume down first. In most cases, this should prevent sound leakage. When you're on a train, the surrounding noise is loud and you tend to turn up the volume, but it's best to keep the volume down and enjoy the music. If you are concerned about sound leakage, remove the earphones once while music is playing, hold the earpiece with your finger and separate it from your ear by a few dozen centimeters. You should try to see if the sound is leaking in that state.

Even if the volume is low, sound may leak if the earpiece does not fit your ears. If earbuds of different sizes were included when you purchased the earphones, try using those earbuds to choose ones that will not leak sound.

Ear-hook earphones are a type of earphones similar to headphones that do not have earpieces in the ear holes. Broadly speaking, there are closed type and open type, and it is said that the closed type is relatively less likely to leak sound. However, in the case of an open type, there is a high possibility that sound will leak outside, so we do not recommend using it in public places.

Which earphones are less likely to leak sound?

From now on, let's take a look at some earbuds that don't leak sound that you can buy on Amazon.

[Reference] SONY Wireless Noise Canceling Earphone WF-1000XM3

Canal type wireless earphones equipped with high-quality noise canceling function by SONY's proprietary "QN1e" and two sensors. Only the main unit can be played for 6 hours. If you put it in the case, you can charge it up to 3 times. It also supports fast charging. There are 7 types of earpieces available, so you can choose the one that suits your ears to prevent sound leakage.

[Reference] AVIOT TE-D01g Bluetooth Earphone

It is a canal type, and the earpiece uses a foam material that provides a good fit. Because it is made to match the characteristics of Japanese hearing, it is easy to hear the sound and there is little worry of raising the volume too much. Earphones alone can play up to 10 hours. If you use the case, you can enjoy music for a total of 50 hours.

Built-in noise canceling function. You don't have to worry about raising the volume too much even when the outside sound is loud, such as in a train. Therefore, the possibility of sound leakage will also be reduced. Four sizes of earpieces are included, and you can choose the one that fits your ear shape. The point is that it is suitable for exercise because it is waterproof (IPX4).

[Reference] JVC HA-FX87BN-B Wireless Noise Canceling Earphones

[Reference] Audio-technica Earphone ATH-CKS550X RD

The position of the earpiece is adjusted to a unique position to achieve a high degree of sealing. In addition to high-pitched sounds, these in-ear earphones are equipped with a “SOLID BASS HD driver” that is good at reproducing heavy bass. Since the replayed sound is easy to hear, there is little worry about raising the volume too much. Four colors are available: black, gold, blue and red.

* Data is based on editorial research as of mid-March 2020. *Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information, we do not guarantee the completeness or accuracy of the content. *Please use products and services at your own risk.

Written by Akira Takamizawa