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So I recently bought some MSA Sordins following recommendations from other owners on the range. I've been using Peltor Sport Tacs for the last 10 years without much problem.

A couple of months ago I bought the optional Gel cup upgrade for the Peltors (~£65) so all in, the peltors cost about £170 and the Sordins about £180.

Sound reduction - there is lots of info on other forums discussing the NRRs so I won't get involved in that.

Comfort - when both have gel cups, comfort is similar. But the Peltors have a much deeper and ever-so slightly longer cup and so your ears aren't squashed against the electronics. P1-S0

Robustness - overall very similar. Sordins feel very solid but so do the Peltors. Prefer the steel headband on the peltors to the plastic one on the Sordins but overall pretty close.

Servicability - those who have experienced problems with the Sordins have sent them back to manufacturer for repair with positive feedback. However when the cables frayed from repeated folding on my Peltors I was able to disconnect the cable, order a spare (£12?) and fit it myself in 5 minutes. Better design in my opinion.P1-S0

Weather resistance - the peltors are not classed as waterproof. I've worn them countless time in the rain and only once experienced problems (and admittedly it took weeks for them to properly recover - but they did!) the Sordin Pro X are actually waterproof so definitely a win there. P0-S1

Sound - both very good. The Sordins do amplify noises more but at high volumes the reproduced noises can be unpleasant (the jingle of car keys, empty cases etc). The Peltors seem far more natural to me (but at a couple of clicks down from Max, the Sordins sound good too.) P1 -S0

Aux input - plugging my boing in to both sets to play MP3s, the Sordins can barely be heard even at full volume. Peltors (again with an optional £10 cable) plays back a far more useable volume. P1-S0

Adaptability - in the summer I always wear a hat. I thought long and hard about whether to buy the neckband version of the Sordins for an extra £20. I didn't as the headband was quite intrusive into the area of your head where a hat would encroach. I also doubted how well the neckband would work in prone. By contrast, the peltors use the standard peltor mounting. Meaning that you can easily buy a peltor neckband and in 10 minutes convert your headband muffs into a neckband version. And then back again - something I've done each year. Undoubtedly a peltor win. P1-S0

Size - when used with a rifle in prone the muffs can touch the comb of the rifle. The Sordins are marginally thinner here but not by much. P0-S1

Battery compartment. Sordin - unbelievable! Seriously who thought of that was a good idea? What if a battery leaks in that ridiculous opening!? Both use x2 AAA. P1-S0

Overall for me it is a peltor win but largely with the optional upgrades (gel cups, neckband, aux in cable). If being waterproof is important to you then perhaps that outweighs everything else. If you have big earlugs perhaps you'll find the peltors better. As with everything, it is a compromise but it certainly isn't a clear cut win either way.

I did also find another good review here:
http://www.triggerwarningtactical.org/s ... styled-13/

An interesting comparison. Despite having always shot with the passive military type Peltor when I went electronic I opted for the MSA Sordin Pro-X some 10 years ago and still run the same pair to this day. I totally agree with your comments on the battery box and when mine failed last year it was the battery box at fault. From memory it cost around GBP35.00 for the repair and they are faultless again.

Only issue for me is wearing either type over a hat as the cans will never seal correctly so either preserve my hearing or keep my head warm. I could opt for in-ear type active however I would almost certainly lose them if my current luck with gloves is anything to go on.

I currently use the Deben Slimline Active ear defenders and have been thinking of a change, don't laugh too much but I have big ears and have been finding them uncomfortable to wear for extended periods.

How are these ear cup size wise?

Only issue for me is wearing either type over a hat as the cans will never seal correctly so either preserve my hearing or keep my head warm
For that reason I "invested" in some very fine wholly hats. It works very well even in the finest Czech winter weather . Arteryx, Tad Gear and Brybje, among many others, make very nice warm stuff that keep my empty skull warm while not interfering with my sordin.

Yalan wrote: Battery compartment. Sordin - unbelievable! Seriously who thought of that was a good idea? What if a battery leaks in that ridiculous opening!? Both use x2 AAA. P1-S0

Ironically mine are away for repair, for the second time the battery, "round the corner" wont come out!

I may well look at Peltor next time round.

I bought a pair of walker ear defenders after seeing them on DemolitionRanch (youtube channel) after being tired of squashing my ears into my current defenders (howard leight for shooting, peltor WS alert XP for work) and have been VERY impressed by them, especially for £60

I'm very happy with my Peltors.

When they developed a fault in the electronics I returned them to 3M in Basingstoke and they repaired them FOC.

The only problem I've had is with the battery contacts corroding. Ideally you should remove the batteries between use but i shoot so often I can't be bothered.

I've had a pair of Peltor Tac6 S muffs for more than a decade now & despite one battery leakage (easily cleaned out), they've worked very well indeed.
Spares are easy, though the only ones I've needed are new cuffs & a wire due to the depredations of a hot FAL barrel.
All I have to remember is to remove the centre button from any baseball cap I might wear with them, as otherwise after fifteen minutes it feels like said button is being shoved through my skull (being bald in top don't help...).
I also have a pair of bright pink Cabelas active muffs that cost less than $20 & three years later, they're still working OK apart from the odd whistle & popping noises now & then.
In both cases I double up with plugs when shooting indoors/under cover as my hearing's bad enough from years of motorcycling without making it any worse.

bradaz11 wrote:I bought a pair of walker ear defenders after seeing them on DemolitionRanch (youtube channel) after being tired of squashing my ears into my current defenders (howard leight for shooting, peltor WS alert XP for work) and have been VERY impressed by them, especially for £60

Thanks, looking at some reviews the Walkers have larger muffs which is what I need.

bradaz11 wrote:I bought a pair of walker ear defenders after seeing them on DemolitionRanch (youtube channel) after being tired of squashing my ears into my current defenders (howard leight for shooting, peltor WS alert XP for work) and have been VERY impressed by them, especially for £60

Are these the model you have?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/WalkerS-Unisex ... RNN7K0ZG68