Comfortable to wear, though tiny and therefore easy to lose! Flare has great customer service. I ordered Calmer Pro in the regular size because after reading lots of reviews and the guidelines on Flare's site, I thought I shouldn't do mini since I had had headphones in the past with earbuds where the smallest size insert fit me comfortably enough to use (that would be Raycon everydays from years ago). Well, the regular size Calmer Pro were by far way too big.
Once I had them in, I took some photos and sent an email to Flare customer service to see if this was fitting the way it's meant to or if these are too big for me. They confirmed that yep, unfortunately they were too big for me. They gave me a code to order a new pair in the mini size, and I would just have to pay shipping, which I felt was very reasonable.
I did that, and then the minis actually fit really really well! I love them. I do recommend storing properly and then fastening securely to a keychain. If you are wearing these because you have autism and/or ADHD (I'm AuDHD), then I highly recommend only taking them out or putting them away when you are in a distraction-free moment and not doing anything else. That seems to be the best way to not lose these. If you are prone to dropping things held in your hand, these are easier to lose than most items because the silicone will muffle the sound when they hit the ground, so you won't even get an auditory signal to let you know "hey, you dropped something."
The metal insert is interesting. You can separate the metal from the silicone if you want to, as you would do for cleaning them. If you do this and put the silicone inserts directly in your ear, you can test out the difference in sound with vs. without the metal insert. The metal insert definitely makes a big difference in sound quality and I am in love.
I wear these in my ear with over-the-ear noise cancelling headphones over top. This helps me get through difficult situations like when I have to work in-office.
I was able to wear these for 8+ hours right away with no issues. Loops, even on the smallest size, I can barely tolerate for 2 hours, and they give me soreness afterward.
I did try a with/without test for myself while wearing the Calmer Pro Minis at a baroque chamber orchestra recital which was held in a church. I don't know if that gives an idea of the sound environment I was in. I tried listening with them, without them, and I also recorded some sections on my field recorder with a windscreen just so I had another point of comparison. I think I would always prefer to attend a concert with the Calmer Pros in my ear. I believe the rustling and coughing noises of the other audience members were less distracting with the Calmer Pros in my ear.
Anyway! I think Flare brings something special that no one else has. I hope they continue to impress. For years before I was diagnosed with autism, people would get annoyed with me and ask if I could hear them. (Which, if I did have hearing loss, wouldn't that be a rude way to talk to someone?) Well, I can hear, I just hear too much and can't choose which sounds I'm going to focus my attention on. Calmer Pros really help with this.
I had an experience recently where my husband and I had gone to WalMart and I didn't have any protection on my ears. Well, then one of the folks stocking shelves decided to take a big heavy pallet and drop it unceremoniously onto the ground, and it felt like motorcycles were shooting out of my ears. It was really painful! I just stopped what I was doing and carefully took out my Calmer Pros and got them into my ears, and they helped me IMMENSELY with my process of getting my body back to a regulated state. My husband was with me and also helped me, but I think I learned my lesson that I can't handle a WalMart without some kind of protection for my ears.
