PROHEAR GEP01 Gel Ear Pads (Upgraded) for 3M PELTOR Headsets

These gel ear pads are a great match for my Peltor tactical 500 Bluetooth headphones. I’ve used them while shooting, mowing the lawn, using the blower in temps from 50 degrees to 85 degrees and they remained comfortable and cool. They were very easy to install, comfortable, affordable, a great fit, the sound and hearing protection were the same as the original, and I am quite pleased with them. These gel ear pads are a great match for my Peltor tactical 500 Bluetooth headphones. I’ve used them while shooting, mowing the lawn, using the blower in temps from 50 degrees to 85 degrees, and they remained comfortable and cool. They were very easy to install, comfortable, affordable, a great fit, the sound and hearing protection were the same as the original, and I am quite pleased with them.

This review is for PROHEAR Gel Ear Pads Compatible with Peltor Sport RangeGuard TAC100 300 500 Earmuffs, Comfortable Replacement Gel Ear Cups. I purchased these gel replacement ear pads to upgrade my 3M Peltor Sport Tactical 500 headphones. The stock pads weren't bad, but I own a different set of headphones that came with PROHEAR gel ear pads on them, and they were the most comfortable ear pads I have worn. So, I decided to purchase a pair for my Peltor 500. These PROHEAR Gel Ear Pads were an immediate upgrade over my stock Peltor 500 ear pads. As soon as I wore them, it was immediately noticeable that there was increased noise reduction. The seal is noticeably improved with these gel pads as you can really feel the air being sealed around your ears. The double-hump sealing design definitely seems to work, as these are also better at noise reduction with glasses on over the stock ear pads. These gels pads are also more comfortable and more conforming to the contours of your head. Each of these gel pads is about 1mm thicker than the stock Peltor 500 pads. These gel pads also use a very quality 3M adhesive. Installation: I went with the replacement gel pads that don't come with the plastic base. These were just the gel pads with the adhesive backing. I did not need any tools to remove the original pads. I pinched and grabbed the bottom of the original pad and angled the bottom of the pad away from its plastic base. Eventually I was able to get the adhesive to start to separate from the base. As I held it away, I slowly started to get my finger between the pad and base. I slowly continued to separate one side at a time until I got all the way the circle. I found that going slow while working a finger between the pad and the base reduced how much of the adhesive stayed on the plastic base. A not about the stock adhesive, it is a high-end adhesive. It is very strong, and I found out that Goo-Gone doesn't exactly break it down. The first ear pad base took me about 20 minutes of using Goo-Gone and rubbing alcohol to remove all of the remaining adhesive. I was better at removing the second ear pad, and I wound up with very little adhesive residue on the plastic base. This time to remove the remaining adhesive, I rolled my finger over the adhesive so that it would peel away. I was able to get almost all off it off with way. The tiny bit that remained I used Goo-Gone and rubbing alcohol to clear away. I then did a dry fit to lineup the new gel pad (so I left the adhesive cover on). Once I was comfortable with how I was going to line it up for installation, I removed the backing, and lined up the gel pad. At first, I didn't get it lined up perfectly, so I gently lifted the pad back off, lined it back up again, got it right, then I applied pressure all the way around to get a good adhesive seal. When you are lining up the pad, as long as you don't apply pressure the adhesive won't stick or will just ever so slightly stick in a couple of spots, so it is easy to remove it at this point. I had the best of lining up the gel pad to the base by using my index and middle finger pushed up to the top and bottom inside edge of the plastic base. When you do have the gel pad fully seated the way you want it, then spend about a minute or two pressing the pad down to the base. I went around the entire pad a few times with good pressure making sure that adhesive got a good seal. Then I wore the headset for about 20-30 minutes to keep that pressure applied to the pads. If you do this, just be sure that you don't slide the pads down your head, and instead of them pulled away from your head and bring the pads straight down around your ears. This way you don't risk shifting the pads while the adhesive is bonding. Altogether, I spent about an hour (including the 20-30 minutes of wearing the headset) removing the old pads, removing the old adhesive, and installing the new gel pads. If you don't want to spend that much, or any time on installing the gel pads, there is an option to purchase these PROHEAR gel pads with a plastic base for a little bit more money. To install that version, you just pull off the original plastic base that the stock pad is attached to and then snap in the new one that comes with the plastic base. Also, the gel pads I purchased came with replacement felts to replace the original felts. I didn't use them, only because my stock felts were still perfectly clean. However, it is nice that they are included.

And half the price and better quality than the 3M brand replacement gels these things are a no brainer. They’re easy to put on and extremely comfortable. The gel seems to create a better seal than the stock pads for my Peltor 500, and so they are at least as quiet if not a little more. They also seal around on my eyeglass earpiece ( temple) better. It’s an amazing upgrade for the price and anybody who does a significant amount of shooting I can’t imagine these not being worth the extra cost. There’s a number of valid criticisms to the 3M branded jelly your pads and these things seem to have fixed all the problems that those other ones have. They’re very soft but not as mushy. They don’t seem like they be durable but I hear that they actually are. I think because it’s a jelly glossy skin on the outside it looks fragile but it seems to be tougher than it looks and it certainly cleans up easier without the fear of ripping or tearing. The plastic backing is about the same size as the original 3M ear pads and that was another criticism for the 3M gel pads, that the hard plastic backing was thinner and more narrow. You can read about people having to spend a very long time trying to install the 3M ones and mingling their fingers as a result. These took me about 15 to 20 seconds on each year cup to put on. They snap right on and you get a very satisfying tactile click on to know that you’ve put them on correctly. I think one of the keys is to push on the inside of the gel pad around the entire circumference and then press around the outside. Do not press directly on top of the pad as they are quite squishy. The product comes with a very basic instruction card that is all that useless, The main purpose which seems to be is warning you not to peel the gel pad off of the plastic rim. But you should be able to figure it out and if you can’t there’s probably a video online. Final note I particularly like the concentric double ring design which seems to help ensure a better seal. And while these look like they would be a lot warmer than the regular plastic pads, it was 88° today when I was trying them for the first time and these felt a lot cooler. I think the gel does a much better job staying cold than some fiber surrounded by faux leather plastic.

TL;DR - Gel Pads > Foam Pads + Cool and Comfortable + Increased Durability ( skin/cover material doesn't chip off ) + Easy To Clean + Better Seal ~ Thicker Padding (may add more pressure, YMMV) For a bit of background on my use of the product, let me preface that I am an autist who wears a headset just about everywhere in order to cope with my surroundings. As such, you can imagine how many countless hours I've worn these pads. I bought my first pair of WorkTunes in April of 2021. After just 8 months of prolonged usage, the skin on stock foam pads had already started to chip away. It didn't help that the grippy texture on the already brittle material made them difficult to wipe down without further wearing out the pads. Not a year after I had bought them they had practically disintegrated. That's when I bought my replacement pair. I bought a pair of these gel pads last year (February 2022), and let me just say that they have vastly outperformed the stock foam pads in every aspect. The silicone gel pads are cool and comfortable every time I put them on. The material also seemed to create a better seal as well, so there is next to zero sound leakage even at full volume. Additionally, the polyurethane skin is much easier to wipe down than the foam pads, which was a major pain point for me with the foam pads. Next, I want to compliment how well they held up over time. After two years of constant usage, the gel has flattened outward a bit, but has mostly kept it's original shape. The main issue is that the inner lining where the skin adheres to the adapter plate has begun to separate, and the silicone gel is becoming exposed the on the inside. In spite of that, the noise suppression has not been affected, and I am still able to wear them without issue for the moment. However, I'm sure it won't be too long before they start coming loose from the inside, so I'm taking that as a sign that it's time to switch into a new pair of pads. Lastly, some people in the past have complained about difficulty snapping them into place. Admittedly, doing it for the first time can be a little tricky, but it's not an issue once you've done it a time or two. The trick is to apply pressure evenly so that the plate doesn't accidentally pop loose in any of the corners. I've personally taken them off several times for cleaning, so I can confidently say that it's just a matter of practice. I haven't had any instances of them coming loose on their own either, so you can rest easy once you've got it properly attached. So that's my review of the product. If you are looking for a durable replacement part, or just a more cool/comfortable fit, then I would say this is definitely a solid choice. Just keep head size in mind when you're putting that extra padding on. The gel pads are marginally thicker than their foam counterpart, so there may be slightly more pressure as a result. That said, I'm off to buy a new pair for myself. Hope this was informative for anyone considering to buy the product themselves.

Using with x5a: PROS: Comfort - these are significantly more comfortable after long periods. hard to notice difference when you first put them on but after ~30min the stock pads give me a headache while these don’t. Classes-compatibles - the stock pads are basically unusable with standard glasses causing them to skew and poke - the are significantly more usable with glasses and glasses don’t reduce their protection because of how the gel molds around them. Easy removal - these are noticeably easier to remove than the stock pads (without seeming like they’ll fall out accidentally). A minor / niche point but worth mentioning CONS: Worse protection - sadly these have noticeably worse protection than the stock pads, especially for the low frequencies that the x5a excel at (I tested with an air conditioner). They are still great muffs but while the xa5 with stock pads feels _magically_ quiet, these just feel quiet. Personally I will stick to the stock pads and use contact lenses because they perform better for my needs but if you need to wear glasses or extended use of stock pads gives you headaches these are absolutely worth it.

While not mentioned in the specs, these are in fact compatible with the 3M Optime 95. The fit is looser than the factory originals and they can pop out with minimal force. However, when placed on the head the pads are secured in place, and when not in use the ear cups press into each other anyway, so the looser pad fit is not an issue in practice. The attached photos show a pair of Optime 95s with factory pads on the left, vs the one I upgraded to the PROHEAR pads on the right. Been using these for almost 5 months now and they are a great upgrade for both comfort and seal quality.

I had my doubts about getting these Gel foam pads for a newly purchased Pelton Rangeguard earmuffs. I put gel foam pads on my earmuffs for comfort as well as providing a slightly better seal to block out loud gun shots. I read where the backing plate was difficult to install. But I gave it a try anyway. Let me tell you that they were much easier to install than I had anticipated. The gel pads gave me the comfort and seal that I wanted.

Fit great and super easy to apply. I like these better than the originals. High quality, great value and helps cancel the noise well.

I have not had time to stress test them yet so i am just going to say that they fit my WorkTunes Connect earmuffs and they feel good.

The fit is good

Son orignales

Die Polster passen genau auf den Worktunes Bluetooth mit Radio. Es sind nicht wie in der Beschreibung erwähnt mehrere Adapter dabei für 3M Kopfhörer, also war es eine Glücksspiel das es passt. Die Polster sind angenehm zu tragen und halten sehr gut den Lärm draußen ich würde sogar sagen besser wie die originalen. Ich trage den Kopfhörer bei der Arbeit jeden Tag ca 8 Stunden und bin gespannt wie lange die Polster durchhalten, die originalen Polster haben 4 Jahre gehalten. Für 40 Euro erwarte ich das die mindestens auch so lange halten.

Easy assembly and fitted well in Peltor Sporttac