I use IEMs they’re not noise cancelling, but more noise isolating. When I have them in they act like earplugs, silencing the outside world.
The big thing, for me, with my IEMs is that they’re wired, but there are solutions to that depending on how you want to proceed.
The IEMs themselves are pretty cheap, especially compared to airpods, so trying them to see if they isolate enough noise should be a very inexpensive proposition. So getting some decent IEMs and testing them using a wired connection for fit and isolation and sound quality should be the first task, if this becomes a serious consideration.
I don’t presume to know what it is you’re looking for in terms of design, style, sound profile, etc. Even if those things are simply preferences, and not hard requirements. I wouldn’t want to recommend bright pink headphones because their specs are great and in line with what you’re looking for, if you happen to hate the color pink (as a crude example).
What I can say is what I would think to recommend, which, off the top, I’d be considering the blon bl-05 IEMs paired with either a wired connection to a Bluetooth receiver, such as the Fiio BTR3 or similar, alternatively, the Fiio UTWS3 or similar for the “true wireless” type experience. The last piece that’s absolutely essential for sound isolation is better eartips, I’ve been using these for a while and they’re excellent: https://www.linsoul.com/products/tripowin-spiral-groove-memory-foam-eartips
The foam tips make it so I can’t hear anything when I have my IEMs inserted.
The catch to all this is that putting them in or taking them out can be a little bit of a pain point, since the foam tips can be a bit finicky to get properly seated in your ear (at least for me).
But, like I said, I don’t know enough about your preferences to really make a proper recommendation.
Of course, when you get into this level of earphones, you end up in a market where the sky is the limit on cost. I’ve seen some IEMs go for thousands of dollars. You can spend nearly as much on cables and add-ons. I’m not into that sort of thing. I’ve been on the hunt for cheap-but-good IEMs for years and have a small number of pairs that are very good and didn’t break the bank.
The nice thing about this kind of approach is that it’s very modular, so if you don’t like the BT receiver, replace it. If the fit of the eartips isn’t good, buy new eartips. If the sound of the IEM isn’t what you prefer, you can get a new IEM, and use that instead. It’s entirely up to you how you want to customize them and how you use them. Lots of options.
Personally I have a Fiio BTR5, a balanced headphone cable to my IEMs using the foam eartips. For IEMs I have a set of moondrop starfield, a set of blon bl-05’s and a set of Tin T2, which I regularly switch between. All of them sound great, but they all sound slightly different, so sometimes I’m in the mood for one over the other. I clip the btr5 to my belt, connected to my phone by Bluetooth, and usually run the cable under my shirt so it doesn’t catch on anything.
But that’s what I like. You’re different, so you’ll buy different things if you choose to go this route. No pressure, obviously, I just want to make you aware of the options you have in this regard.
If you do choose to go this route, I’ll point you at linsoul (linsoul.com), which regularly runs sales on a lot of this, and otherwise has pretty good pricing. Some items may not be available there, like the Fiio bt receivers, but they’re generally going to be available on Amazon, so you should be fine there too.
My entire focus here, is to make you aware of the option. Not to tell you what to pick. Using IEMs has been rewarding for me since there’s nothing to throw away. Even if one set of IEMs died tomorrow, I would only have to toss the IEMs themselves. The eartips, cable, etc, would all be able to be reused with another set. With something like the airpods, you basically have to throw out the entire unit with the charging case and all accessories, since Apple usually doesn’t bother making any of that compatible with their future versions of the same. It’s wasteful. I don’t like it.
Whatever you decide, I hope you have a good day, and the best of luck finding a good replacement when you decide to do so. Cheers.
What key feature has you going back to the airpods? There’s very likely a good alternative, but it depends on what is keeping you using them.
None. I stick to the AirPods Pro at the moment because, they work right now and Apple keeps replacing them anyway.
That and don’t have time (yet) to do research for new in-earbuds that are good quality with real good NC. Noise cancelling is a must though.
I use IEMs they’re not noise cancelling, but more noise isolating. When I have them in they act like earplugs, silencing the outside world.
The big thing, for me, with my IEMs is that they’re wired, but there are solutions to that depending on how you want to proceed.
The IEMs themselves are pretty cheap, especially compared to airpods, so trying them to see if they isolate enough noise should be a very inexpensive proposition. So getting some decent IEMs and testing them using a wired connection for fit and isolation and sound quality should be the first task, if this becomes a serious consideration.
I don’t presume to know what it is you’re looking for in terms of design, style, sound profile, etc. Even if those things are simply preferences, and not hard requirements. I wouldn’t want to recommend bright pink headphones because their specs are great and in line with what you’re looking for, if you happen to hate the color pink (as a crude example).
What I can say is what I would think to recommend, which, off the top, I’d be considering the blon bl-05 IEMs paired with either a wired connection to a Bluetooth receiver, such as the Fiio BTR3 or similar, alternatively, the Fiio UTWS3 or similar for the “true wireless” type experience. The last piece that’s absolutely essential for sound isolation is better eartips, I’ve been using these for a while and they’re excellent: https://www.linsoul.com/products/tripowin-spiral-groove-memory-foam-eartips
The foam tips make it so I can’t hear anything when I have my IEMs inserted.
The catch to all this is that putting them in or taking them out can be a little bit of a pain point, since the foam tips can be a bit finicky to get properly seated in your ear (at least for me).
But, like I said, I don’t know enough about your preferences to really make a proper recommendation.
Of course, when you get into this level of earphones, you end up in a market where the sky is the limit on cost. I’ve seen some IEMs go for thousands of dollars. You can spend nearly as much on cables and add-ons. I’m not into that sort of thing. I’ve been on the hunt for cheap-but-good IEMs for years and have a small number of pairs that are very good and didn’t break the bank.
The nice thing about this kind of approach is that it’s very modular, so if you don’t like the BT receiver, replace it. If the fit of the eartips isn’t good, buy new eartips. If the sound of the IEM isn’t what you prefer, you can get a new IEM, and use that instead. It’s entirely up to you how you want to customize them and how you use them. Lots of options.
Personally I have a Fiio BTR5, a balanced headphone cable to my IEMs using the foam eartips. For IEMs I have a set of moondrop starfield, a set of blon bl-05’s and a set of Tin T2, which I regularly switch between. All of them sound great, but they all sound slightly different, so sometimes I’m in the mood for one over the other. I clip the btr5 to my belt, connected to my phone by Bluetooth, and usually run the cable under my shirt so it doesn’t catch on anything.
But that’s what I like. You’re different, so you’ll buy different things if you choose to go this route. No pressure, obviously, I just want to make you aware of the options you have in this regard. If you do choose to go this route, I’ll point you at linsoul (linsoul.com), which regularly runs sales on a lot of this, and otherwise has pretty good pricing. Some items may not be available there, like the Fiio bt receivers, but they’re generally going to be available on Amazon, so you should be fine there too.
My entire focus here, is to make you aware of the option. Not to tell you what to pick. Using IEMs has been rewarding for me since there’s nothing to throw away. Even if one set of IEMs died tomorrow, I would only have to toss the IEMs themselves. The eartips, cable, etc, would all be able to be reused with another set. With something like the airpods, you basically have to throw out the entire unit with the charging case and all accessories, since Apple usually doesn’t bother making any of that compatible with their future versions of the same. It’s wasteful. I don’t like it.
Whatever you decide, I hope you have a good day, and the best of luck finding a good replacement when you decide to do so. Cheers.