Sleep Phones

These I have to say seem to have been a well kept secret.

I have been sleeping with headphones in for years now and trying to find comfortable headphones is a nightmare! You see I have all those great ones that are “in ear” block sound…brilliant but when you are trying to sleep they stick out your ears and as a side sleeper you have no chance!!! I saw the pillows but they only had a mono speaker and I wanted stereo for some of the things I listen to.

So I think Ok I’ll buy a cheaper pair that doesn’t have all the fancy features…but alas they don’t block out

• the barking dogs
• chirping birds at 3am- has someone not told them it is light when dawn arrives not pitch black
• the car engines-diesel is such a great invention for insomniacs
• slamming doors of the night workers-ok so your jealous that you think we are all asleep when you have to work.
• the screaming drunk girls in from a night out- if you need to make that row would you mind getting a decent curfew from the parents and not coming home till 6am when the clubs shut?
• the bin put out at 2.47 am-strange
• road noise and in particular the souped up 16 year old kids first motorbike…trust me it’s hell at 4am- and I thought 24 hour opening was great till he got that shift!

…and they fall out.

So as you can guess sleep and I are a rare event…I go days without…so that arrival of these sleep phones had me intrigued…Would they work to block sound…are they comfortable…can I get a night’s sleep…trust me 3 nights without I’m keen for some decent  shut eye.

On looking at them my first thought was these would be great in the gym…yes I spend my life with ear buds falling out my ears….fine if I want to take it easy but on a proper run….not for me.

My first view is this…they are incredibly comfortable and the sound coming through them is like being in my own sound booth…I can hear sounds around me so good for safety.

The company sells you various options but not all are available in the UK.

1. You can buy the headphones in various sizes  on their own for approximately £37.50
2. You can buy them with a sleep CD of various types for £42.50

In the US they offer the option for a sheep to hide your MP3 player in so you don’t press the buttons in the night….in my case it might be an idea save me attempting the strangle myself with the cable. Sorry but lack of sleep bores me and I fidget like heck….how the cable has not throttled me yet I’m sure is down to the fact that I’m actually awake.

The Sleep Phones  are made of a soft fleece and the flat speaker are tucked inside the headband using the usual cable that can be plugged into your MP3, if you still have one a CD player or if you are watching a DVD the player.

I can lie on my side quite comfortably so these are good to wear. An added bonus is the fact that you can from the US site (www.sleephones.com) download a choice of MP3 tracks to help you sleep for free.

The speakers are removable for washing and can be adjusted in position to be in the right place for your ears.

There is a choice of sizes but I must admit I did laugh as the size guide referred to hat sizing guide. I am pretty sure if I went in the street and asked people what their hat size was they would laugh or say small, medium or large! Nice thought if a little outdated!

Now for those of you who like technical specifications on the speakers – 20Hz to 20kHz and the technical listener’s comments are that the bass is taut but not pounding. The speakers have good dynamic and placement.

If you are out somewhere loud, by the road, running the hoover then don’t expect to hear through these unless you turn the volume up loud but if you are running in the park they will be fine, as you will be able to hear without a hammering your eardrums.

The US site does give you the option to replace the headband and the speakers separately but at the moment I have not seen these in stock with UK suppliers. That is something I would like to see as often the wires go in earphones I use…I suspect because many of them assume I’m 6ft tall and I wind them up so I don’t fall over them

I have to say I like them but why didn’t someone tell me about them sooner?

You can always tell if something is good if you get it out the box and put it on and don’t take it off..but alas even I don’t think I can promise they will make you sleep but you will at least be comfortable!!!

Those of you who like a work out then look out for run phones which have a summer wicking ban as well as a fleece for winter. They are available in the UK but for the info the US site is www.runphones.com

The ones I’m reviewing were supplied by www.relax-uk.com