I love music, but I also like my sleep, which puts me in a difficult situation when it comes to attending festivals. Sure, they come in many flavours, some louder and more obnoxious than others, but one thing is for certain: you'll find it hard to get your eight hours of shut eye with everyone moving around your tent in the night.
Over the years, I tried a bunch of things to help the situation, from using blackout backpacking tents to sleeping in a beanie hat pulled down over my ears. I even tried foam earplugs, which I also use for camping or sleeping in multi-occupancy rooms, but they always fall out of my ears.
I'm probably not the only one who saw Loop Earplugs popping up on their social media feed, and maybe for that reason, I thought they were a bit faddy (if I'm honest). They come in many shapes, sizes and colours, and there are supposedly more than one version for different occasions. Right.
Looped up
Even though I can resist marketing onslaught slightly better than an average person, thanks to working as a tech journalist who looks and interacts with products all the time, I will cave eventually, which is what happened with Loop. I thought, "Well, it's cheap enough to try, and what if it actually works?"
I went with the Ouiet 2, which, according to the brand, is made for "deeper focus, calmer travel and sleep" – just what I need! It was smaller than I expected, but I loved that it came with three different ear tip sizes to help me adjust it to my massive ears.
Do they work? The passive noise cancellation of the Loop Quiet isn't quite the same as the ANC on the Apple AirPods 2, but it does reduce external noise significantly (the official number is 24 dB). More importantly, it's comfortable to wear and stays in your ears when lying down.
Even though I've only been using mine for a few weeks, it's growing on me. I took it with me on my travels and camping trips, and it's quickly becoming an essential item in my bag when I'm sleeping away from home (along with a pair of nail clippers), so much so that I'm considering getting the Dream model, which is designed specifically for sleeping.
Of course, I would still recommend getting a blackout and waterproof tent for festivals, and maybe a pair of wellies, too. From now on, my festival (and camping) essential gear list will also include Loop Earplugs; if only there were a Glastonbury-themed set...
You can buy the Loop Earplugs directly from the brand, with prices from $24.95/ £19.95/ AU$ 34.95.
