Ear bud recommendations
 

So, I bought my daughter a new Ipod so she gave her old to my son who gave his old one to me. It's a very old shuffle and I really just want to see if I'll use it before I buy myself a better one.

Problem: These ear buds are hurting my ears big time. I don't know if I have really small ears or what, but I can't get these to be comfortable.

Question: Anybody have a similar problem and what replacement ear buds worked well for you?

I don't have an Ipod, but I did replace the earbuds on my mp3 player. I got these. Since they hook behind the ear, I don't have to have them as far in my ear to keep them in place. They're more comfortable but they still do bother me a little bit if I have them in for several hours. But almost all headphones start to bother me if I have them on for hours at a time.

I have these ones by JVC, called "marshmallow" headphones.
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...NL._AA160_.jpg
I like them because they squish like foam earplugs and then fill out inside your ear so that it drowns out the outside sounds. They are my headphones of choice for working out in a noisy gym.

Thanks, I knew I could count on GC to help me out!

I never used the earbuds that came with my IPod, they always fell out of my ear. I'm with you Dee they are no bueno.

I am a big fan of the kind that hook over the ear since I am usually only wearing them while working out. I got some el cheapo Phillips ones at RiteAid (CVS/Eckerd elsewhere) and they also had a volume adjustment on the cord which is nice so you don't have to whip out the whole device to turn the volume down.

I had no luck with the iPod earbuds either! I thought I was the only one. You'd think with Apple's eye for design, they'd finally improve on those, though , but they haven't.

I got the JVC Jelly earbuds...they are a bit larger than the iPod buds, with a more ergonomic shape.

I agree with the JVC marshmallow buds. They were great, til my daughter chewed on them! I recengtly replaced them with a set that match the blue color of my 2nd gen Nano- I think the brand was Skullcaps? or something like that. They came with 2-3 soft plastic pieces to fit in your ear. Both brands were inexpensive- around $15. Just don't let your daughter chew on them 'cuz she thinks it's funny! :D

When I see people walking around with the Apple earbuds in their ears, I am somewhat amazed. However, if I switch them (put the left in the right ear and the right in the left ear), they will sometimes stay. You would think they would have improved on that design by now.

Bose In-Ear Headphones! I love mine. Great sound quality and super comfy because they don't go deep inside your ear, they just rest on the outer area.

My ear buds look similar to that, except they're made by Griffin. I bought em off eBay for less than $5. What's neat is that they came in 3 different sizes, so I was able to find the perfect one for my ears. They drown out outside sounds too!

that's exactly what i have. they work great for people with small ears!

I have additional info on the Marshmallow JVCs! When I first had posted, I wasn't sure whether to include this because I thought it might have been a fluke:

I have a bad habit of leaving my earbuds in my workout clothes pockets and then washing them. I try to be careful, but I've ruined 2 pairs in about 3 years from doing this. So a while back I accidentally washed my Marshamallows and amazingly they still worked great. I thought I was just lucky. Last weekend I actually did it -- again! AND they still work fine!

If you have the means, the best way to go are ultimate ears. Of course, I don't have them but The Boy's company paid for his and he loves them and refuses to use anything else now.

I just bought a cheap pair that goes over the ear from Target. I used to have Nike headphones that got me from my walkman days until about 6 months ago. I'm looking to get another pair, but the price seems to have gone up since I last bought them.

Personally, I prefer Sennheiser's stuff for "everyday" listening on the high end (found here) but hey.

Their buds are much more ergonomic than most, and you can actually get their low-end or midrange products for fairly good prices at places like Guitar Center or CompUSA. Worth checking out if you're going to use them a lot or have odd ear issues (like I do) - they're also very rugged, much more so than other "audiophile" phones I've owned.

earbuds and me don't get along either

I use the behind the neck headphones for my video ipod