By Jeff Johnston, FE Hunting & Shooting Editor
Now that digital hearing protection has become affordable, it’s the only way to go because I can actually hear someone shouting “Don’t shoot!” while shooting in my backyard. They amplify voices for those of us who are verging on deafness, while preventing high decibel sounds like gunshots from damaging our drums further. So the question now is, digital muffs or digital buds?
Muffs are great in that they are non-personal (“It’s just earwax dude, what’s your problem?”) and noticeable (“Everyone got their ears on?”). Every shooter needs a few sets laying around. But for me they often don’t seal well when worn over a hat; they’re hot; and they can get in the way of gunstocks stocks during the mount. So I prefer digital ear buds. The problem? I lose them like socks in the laundry. I lost one earbud of a $450 pair of then-top-end Peltors when it popped out of my ear and into the grass on my shooting range. I knew right where I was standing, but I never found it. So I generally go back to muffs. But recently I tried what I consider a compromise between the two: Walker’s ATACS Sport Earbuds that do not mess with my gun mount like muffs, but are larger than buds and tethered so perhaps I won’t lose them quite so easily. So far, so good, but it’s only been three weeks. During that time, however, I also learned a few other things about them.
For starters, the ATACS are big enough to feature a large on/off button on the front and two volume buttons underneath that I can actually find with my fingers. The unit comes with multiple sizes of tips so they fit any ears. They are Bluetooth compatible, so they connect to my phone so I can use them on phone calls while driving and for drowning out the screaming baby in seat 27B while flying. And if I am forced to communicate with the stewardess to order a cocktail, I just drape one over my shoulder rather than fumbling it into the floorboard and out of my life for good.
While I don’t love the concept of downloading another silly APP, I did it anyway for the purpose of this review and was pleasantly surprised by Walker’s Link App in three ways: 1. It was very simple to download and to sync: 2. With it you can control the ambient noise volume (the volume of the background noise even while listening to a primary sound source such as music), and a timer to automatically shut the buds off, thereby saving battery life for the next time you go to use them. They last about seven hours per charge, and charge by way of a USB-C cord. And 3. Downloading the app is not mandatory to use them.
I’m not sure what the heck ATACS even stands for, and I don’t care. But I do know that they have become my go-to set of ear pro when testing guns for Field Ethos, and that I haven’t lost them yet.
Cost: $200 (We found them for $146 at Optics Planet)
Pros: amplifies low sounds; protects against gunshots; Bluetooth; less likely to lose than individual buds; less cumbersome than muffs
Cons: need Left and Right label for idiots like me
