That's why you get the headphones that cover your ears, instead of having earphones that fit in your ears.

I know, but all those ones that were comfortable were too expensive.

A very important factor is not blocking out background noise entirely though, which is one reason I went with these.

Maybe you could figure out the size of the earphones before purchesing them. Google is your friend...

...Sometimes..

Even if you can figure out the sizes, you won't know if it actually fits right unless you try them on. BestBuy is the only place I know of that lets you try them on and we went there already on my birthday. Only one pair fit me right and they were Bose headphones, and they're known for being the best noise blockers which is extremely unfortunate for me and the most comfortable. Since these were over 6 inches I guess I need something that's 5 inches or so.

Welp.

People are talking about headphones.
I knew this day would come.

Alright, let me get the cross-over part out the way here, you sound like you're talking about earbuds, there's a few things that everyone should know right off the bat;
Firstly, earbuds and earphones just don't sound as good as a pair of cans, or "circumaural headphones" if you want to get technical about it, they just don't, that might matter you or it might not.
Secondly, and more importantly, long-term use of earbuds or earphones is a bad idea, firstly they'll make your ears sore, and excessive usage can actually damage your eardrums and cause tinnitus, you have been warned.

Now, if you're looking at earbuds and you don't want to block out ambient noise, that's not gonna happen, that's what they're designed to do.
What you really want to look for is a pair of open cup headphones, they're like regular headphones but the back of the earpiece is mesh rather than being solid, that let's much more ambient sound in. (be advised, it also lets sound out, so people nearby will be able to hear it.)

But if you're looking for something specifically designed for letting ambient noise in, you might want to look into cycling headphones, they come in various designs (some sit in front of your ears, some actually make sound by vibrating your jaw), but they're all designed to let you hear your surroundings.
Unfortunately I'm a studio guy, I don't know enough about specialist headphones to give advice on specific brands or designs, I'd suggest doing some research.

Actually, I used to use ear buds but they started becoming so loose that they'd pretty much fall out of my ears so I stopped using them. The ones I just got today are these (one of Petie's suggestions), called "stereophones". They're basically headphones without the headband, where each ear clip piece goes on top of your ears, but are independent like ear buds. They were just the perfect thing for me so I begged Mom to get them.

However, I just made a post in the Neutral Thread about these, that they've mysteriously started to fit better than they did earlier, so I don't think I have a problem anymore. Thanks a lot for the information though! I thought for sure ear buds were safe as long as you didn't jam them into your ears like some angry person, as I kept telling Mom that they were okay when she kept telling me that they'd hurt my ears... I guess she was right.

(09-15-2012, 09:29 PM)Mighty Jetters Wrote: The ones I just got today are these

I hope you have an ear masseur, because those things will hurt a lot when left on too long

(09-15-2012, 09:29 PM)Mighty Jetters Wrote: The ones I just got today are these

Those things will hurt you after a while.

Damn it, I was ninja'd by Alex.

Petie said I'd be fine, but I'll see how it goes.

I own two pairs of them and recommended them to Jetters as well. In fact, I'm probably going to buy a 3rd pair.

They aren't uncomfortable at all (though rarely there are some small issues with the earclips and the earhooks on my glasses both being in the same spot but that only happens if I'm moving around a lot with them on and only because I wear glasses, soooo) and are the best headphones I've ever used for their price.

They won't hurt your ears.
I've worn other earclips and they definitely do, but these flex and are somewhat adjustable to fit your ears.
tl;dr there's nothing to worry about


edit-
there are different types of headphones
in-ear (earbuds)
over-ear (cans)
on-ear (clips)

earbuds suck i don't care if i'm biased all of them are bad never use them.
generally speaking cans are your best bet for sound quality, but as PZ said if you want ones that let in ambient noise you'll want open-air headphones. These generally have better sound quality as well, but depending on the noise around you can be harder to hear.
As I said, for their price, the KSC75s have amazing sound quality and I use them for basically everything if I'm not at my desk using my Sennheisers or A-Ts.

I'm wearing them right now. They haven't hurt my ears once.
I had a different pair that did but yeah these are fine

My earbuds broke (again) a month or so ago, that is only one side would work unless you went through the trouble to get the wire in an specific position so they both worked. Anyway, my dad went to get a new pair but they were, simply put, kinda sucky. I mean most electronics in most Egyptian shops is below par anyway, I wasn't expecting too much, but my dad's logic got sort of made it worse.

This is what happened: I said I wanted earbuds. Apparently, the only good headphones that weren't inner-ear eabuds (*shiver*) were over-ear cans. That's all right, I mean earbuds are preferable (for portability more than anything else), but I don't mind. However, my dad conjectured that I simply want the smallest headphones available.
Viola, I get small cans that squish on my ears instead of covering over them.

These hurt. Occasionally they manage to sit in a position which is OK, but most of the time they really bend my ear edges which is not really comfortable. Sometimes it's even a relief to take them off. Recently I've been getting more used to it, but even so I tend to listen to stuff in general less than I used to. Plus they're horrible for the DS so I just use the speakers.

I did tell my dad after a few days of testing them, explaining that I care more about comfort than size. However, it seems all Egyptian shops have an unwritten "no backsies" policy, and thus buying a new pair without getting a refund for this pair is out of the question.

Thus I'm stuck with these for a while. I mean I can still play TF2 and hear a Heavy coming round the corner, and during that time I barely notice my headphones anyway (since I'm focused on backstabbing that Sniper). It's just that when I'm not listening to anything I tend to take them off, even if I'm planning to listen again in 5 minutes. I don't even listen to music when sprite ripping anymore.

(And for those who are gonna say I should have bought the headphones with my dad, it's not really that simple. My dad doesn't really make time or plans for us to go out and buy this sort of stuff so he said he'd just buy them next time he went out and passed by the shop.)

xtraem headphones all the way.

That's a shame. Music is such an amazing thing, I know that for a fact and I actually couldn't live without music as much as I listen to it (which is all day).
Either way thanks for the input guys! I agree that ear buds are not that great, mine that I received as a gift one Christmas got uncomfortable and the rubber ball end things got really flimsy and "soft" for lack of a better description after a while.
While these did hurt my ears some having them on yesterday I think it's because of how much I had to adjust and mess with them. I also had to have them in certain positions so they wouldn't just fall off of my small ears. They aren't totally snug against my ears but otherwise they sound amazing and as I said once I get them into a good spot and can leave them there they feel and sound great.
Actually, I just put them on again for the first time today and... they magically fit even better today than they did last night. o_O Of course they'll still fall off really easily upon swift motion but if I don't move around they feel pretty good. Maybe I'm starting to adjust to them...?

(09-16-2012, 08:14 AM)Mighty Jetters Wrote: That's a shame. Music is such an amazing thing, I know that for a fact and I actually couldn't live without music as much as I listen to it (which is all day).

I've always been afraid of going deaf because of this and the fact that I just love background noise in general. If I went deaf I don't know if I'd even have the will to live anymore