Description
What the Elgin Discord Gen 2 Is and Who It Suits
The Elgin Discord Gen 2 is a wireless earbud built into an earplug body. Elgin markets it as noise isolating safety wireless headphones for industrial work and high noise environments, and the product title also carries an OSHA compliance claim. The specification sheet lists Bluetooth 5.3, a 14 hour battery life, a 50 foot range, 8 mm dynamic drivers, a sensitivity of 101 dB, a frequency range of 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz, silicone construction, a 3 hour charge time, water resistance and a protective case in the box. The model number is M1.3 and it first became available in January 2019.
The buyer is someone who works in noise: a construction site, a factory floor, a workshop, a groundskeeping crew. The proposition is that one device does two jobs, protecting hearing and carrying audio, instead of wearing earplugs under headphones. Elgin also lists motorcycles among compatible devices, which points at riders as a second audience. Readers who want a sports oriented alternative should look at the JLab Epic, and those who want to keep ambient awareness rather than block it should read about the AfterShokz OpenRun.
The Earplug Form Factor
The design here is different from a normal earbud in an important way. A conventional earbud seals the ear canal enough to hold itself in and to keep music in, but it is not built as protective equipment. An earplug style earbud uses a longer, softer silicone body designed to fill the canal the way a foam plug does, with the driver mounted behind it. Elgin lists Silicone under material and Passive Noise Cancellation and Sound Isolation under noise control, both of which describe physical blocking rather than electronic cancellation.
The advantage over active cancellation in this setting is straightforward: electronics cancel low frequency noise well and high frequency noise poorly, while a physical seal does the opposite. Industrial noise contains a great deal of high frequency energy from tools, impacts and compressed air, which is exactly what a physical plug attenuates best. It also means the protection continues to work when the battery dies, which an active system does not. Listeners who want a sealed consumer earbud instead can compare the Soundcore A30i.
Battery, Connection and Working Day Use
A 14 hour battery life is the specification that makes this product practical for work rather than for a commute. A full shift plus overtime fits inside that figure, and the listing records two lithium ion batteries included and a 3 hour charging time. Elgin lists a protective case among the included components, though the listed case dimensions of 4.5 by 3 by 1.25 inches describe a storage case rather than a charging case, so buyers should confirm whether the case recharges the earbuds or simply holds them.
Bluetooth 5.3 is a current revision, and the 50 foot stated range is generous for the format, which matters when a phone is in a jacket on the other side of a workspace. Controller Type is listed as Button and Siri, which suggests physical buttons rather than touch surfaces. Physical buttons are the right choice here, since touch controls do not work reliably through work gloves. Buyers who want something with a longer battery for outdoor use can also look at the Skullcandy Rail.
Durability and Environment
Water Resistance Level is listed as Water Resistant, without a specific IP figure attached, and Elgin’s own title describes the product as all weather. A silicone bodied earbud with no exposed fabric or foam is inherently easier to clean than a conventional earbud, which matters in dusty environments where a mesh screen clogs. Item Weight is listed at 0.704 ounces, which is light, and light matters on something worn for eight hours.
What buyers should look for beyond the listing is the replaceable parts situation. Earplug style silicone tips are consumables in a dirty environment, and a product that offers spare tips has a longer working life than one that does not. The listing includes a user manual, a warranty and a protective case among the components but does not itemize spare tips. Readers comparing across the broader earbud headphones selection will find that this level of environmental hardening is unusual.
Highlights
- Earplug style silicone body designed for high noise workplaces.
- Passive isolation rather than active cancellation, so protection does not depend on battery.
- 14 hour battery life listed, enough for a full shift.
- Bluetooth 5.3 with a listed 50 foot range.
- Physical button controls that work with gloves, listed under controller type.
- Carries a 4.1 star rating across 5,249 ratings, a very large sample.
Things To Consider
The most important gap in this listing is a safety one. The product title makes an OSHA compliance claim, but the specification sheet publishes no Noise Reduction Rating and no attenuation figures at any frequency. For hearing protection, the NRR is the single number that determines whether a device is adequate for a given noise level, and workplace compliance depends on the rating, on correct fit, and on the employer’s hearing conservation program rather than on the product alone. Anyone buying these to satisfy a workplace requirement must obtain the rating from Elgin and check it against the noise exposure in their own environment, and should confirm with their employer or safety officer that a device combining protection with audio playback is permitted on that site at all. Nothing in this review substitutes for that check.
The specification block also has clear errors. Frequency Response is listed as a single value of 20 KHz, the upper bound of the range given elsewhere. Theme is listed as Video Game, which is meaningless here. Headphones Jack reads No Jack, which is accurate but redundant. The water resistance claim carries no IP rating to give it a defined meaning.
Practical limitations follow from the design. Deep insertion earplug style earbuds are not comfortable for everyone and take practice to seat correctly, and a poor seal removes both the protection and most of the bass. Blocking outside sound is a hazard as well as a benefit: on a worksite, being unable to hear a reversing alarm or a shouted warning is dangerous, which is why volume discipline matters more here than with normal earbuds. Sound quality is not the design priority. And with a 2019 release date, this is an older Bluetooth product despite the 5.3 radio listed.
Who Should Buy It, and Who Should Not
This suits a worker in a noisy environment who has verified the protection rating independently and whose site permits audio devices, and who wants one item instead of plugs plus headphones. The long battery, the glove friendly buttons and the washable silicone body are all genuinely well matched to that job.
It does not suit anyone who needs a documented hearing protection rating before purchase, since this listing does not provide one, and it does not suit a listener buying primarily for sound quality. It is also the wrong choice for any setting where situational awareness is a safety requirement, and those readers should look at an open design from the earbud headphones selection.
