It’s not uncommon for people to get frustrated with their music or gaming headsets after a few months or even years of usage, because the sound quality of their headphones starts to deteriorate.
But did you know that most of the time it is only because your headphones are dirty?
To help extend the life of your expensive headphones, try cleaning them from time to time.
Please review the following steps on how to clean your headphones.
Why do we need to clean our headphones?
Take out your headphones or earphones right now, and examine the inside of each cup.
You see months-old sweat in there from when you were running or doing your workouts or doing outdoor activities like snowboarding or skiing last week.
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We accept and cherish the fact that our headphones are part of us. They allow for an immersive listening experience, which means they’re valuable beyond measure.
So why would we treat them like disposable goods?
By caring just as much about your in-ears hygiene you should do regular cleaning/oiling sessions of your wire and wireless headset so you can extend their lifespan by years without any regret!
Getting Started
Let’s talk about cleaning. It is not for the faint of heart, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get the job done with a little finesse.
All you need are some basic tools at home.
Things you need:
There are two types of headsets: earphones and headphones (there are some headphones that look the same as earplugs).
Earphones, also known as earbuds, tend to be small and fit inside the ear canal.
Headphones, on the other hand, may cover your entire ear or just sit on top of it. They tend to be bigger than earbuds because they have a little speaker unit at each side.
So the following list of things would be used to clean your gaming headset:
- A small cloth
- Rubbing alcohol/ hand sanitizer
- Q-tips/cotton buds
- Soap
- Water
- Blu-tack/Multipurpose adhesive
How to Clean Earphones
Cleaning the driver unit
The driver unit is a small and rigid transducer attached to the speaker’s frame, usually made of paper with extremely thin metal foil placed on its surface.
Driver units are the most important factor for gaming in both earphones and headphones as they give you the best sound quality for your ears.
Note: Some of the hyperx headphones available on the market today have the best driver unit in the market.
Follow the below step to clean the driver unit of your earphones:
- It is important to take the ear tips off before you clean the driver unit.
- Now, Hold your earphones with the mesh side facing downwards.
- Gently Use a dry toothbrush inwards, upwards from one end of the wire unless you touch its other side. then repeat for each earbud separately.
- Furthermore, Cleaning wire mesh with a paperclip and Blu-Tack is an easy way to get rid of all unwanted particles. The adhesive will pick up any dirt or dust on the surface, so you can be sure it’s clean when applied correctly in just one step!
- Finally, get a cloth and moisten it with rubbing alcohol or hand sanitizer. Wipe the metal mesh and wires with the moistened cloth.
Cleaning Silicone IEM ear tips
Most earphones come with different sizes of ear tips so that they will fit your ears perfectly.
Also, the Silicone IEM ear tips are best for single-ear headsets because they grip the outer ear better and offer a more comfortable experience.
You have to follow the below steps if you have earphones with only silicone ear tips. If your earphones have waterproof or foam tips, then these steps do not apply.
- To clean the silicone ear tips, remove them from the stem of your wireless device.
- Next, soak them in warm soapy water for about 5 minutes
- Now, wipe off the soap and all the dirt particles that you see.
- After the good wipe let them dry completely on paper towels before reattaching them.
How to Clean Headphones
The headphones are tricky because they involve delicate parts. So be careful when you’re taking them off for cleaning purposes.
- In order to clean your rugged gaming headphones, you have to remove the ear pads.
- Now, Clean them with a damp cloth and wipe them with some paper towels until it’s clean.
- If the earpads of headphones still have some dirt, soak them in the rubbing alcohol to clean the nooks and crevices of the earpads.
- Finally, put them on some paper towels, and let them dry for a while before putting them back on the headphones.
Kevin is a Tech journalist for over a decade. He writes on Wearables, Headphones, and Laptops. When he is not glued to his laptop, You will find him working on exciting projects that include Unboxing new Gadgets, comparing them, and tweaking their hardware.