Just realized people are using foam tips wrong on IEMs

I keep seeing folks at meetups shoving foam tips in dry and wondering why they don't seal. You gotta squish them, insert, and hold for 10 seconds while they expand or you're losing all your bass under 100hz. Has anyone else noticed this at local listening sessions?

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2 Comments

james922mo ago

Start by pinching the foam tip until it's a tiny cylinder, then insert and hold it in your ear for a solid 10-15 seconds while it slowly expands. @faithb78, I get that dry insertion works for you, but most people lose seal that way because the foam doesn't grip the ear canal walls evenly. The whole "twist and it expands in five seconds" thing is physically not how memory foam works - it needs time to regain its shape after you compress it, especially if you've got naturally oily ear canals or weird angles. I've seen guys at meetups yank their IEMs out three times before giving up, and it's almost always because they skipped the squish-and-hold.

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faithb782mo ago

Stop telling people how to use their gear. Some of us actually prefer the dry method. I get a better seal with dry foam tips than wet ones because my ear canals are weirdly shaped. The whole squish and hold thing is overrated. I shove them in dry and twist, they expand fine on their own within like five seconds. Maybe your fit is just bad? Not everyone needs to baby their tips like that. Leave people alone if they like it dry.

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