I learned about ASMR only recently. I would be interested because I often don’t sleep well. I did a search on Taobao and found that indeed there are earphones that are targeted at ASMR usage, i.e. for wearing during sleep.
To make an earphone sleep-wearable, the buds have to go in all the way so you don’t feel them when your ear is pressed against the pillow. Also, wireless is definitely a good idea. So, mostly, an “ASMR” earphone is just a Bluetooth earphone. I settled on this pair of KBF (the usual poor choice for brand name, both in English and Chinese). I got it for cheap – 70 Yuan (S$14.10). It is fairly light, promises 12 hours of music. The buds, wires and neck strap are all made of soft Silicon. It didn’t feel heavy when put on, and you’ll almost forget you had them on after a while. Yes, they do feel like they will not come in the way when used during sleep.
Overall, the sound quality is decent. When compared to my regular pair of earphones, there is much less detail and punchiness to the music, but well, if mostly used for ASMR, then the audio quality is not all that important. Another interesting feature is that it has a TF slot! This means you can play music offline without turning on Bluetooth. Unfortunately, when inserted, the micro SD card is not fully concealed, and i don’t think it will be a good idea to be used during sleep (i had hoped i could use it that way). It runs on Bluetooth 5, and even has a microphone so it can be used as an earpiece for taking calls and for teleconferencing. I suppose a lot of Chinese products are made to be all do all, and i appreciate the idea in this case. Note that the audio prompts (when turning on/off, switching mode) are in Chinese, naturally.
It is harder to put on the earphones than my regular one. You’ll have to spend some time to make sure it is put in the right position, but once done, it achieves good noise isolation.
ASMR content are easily found on YouTube, although the kind that involves people tapping or licking are too weird for me. I will stick with sound from the natural surrounding, like rainfall, river and such. There is actually a better way to get such content – Internet Radio. I like to use the app Hi-Fi Cast. It comes preloaded with thousands of Internet Radio sites. Just search for the term “Ambient” and you’ll find quite a few that are suitable for ASMR. Hi-Fi Cast also has a sleep timer function which is perfect for listening to the soundtrack for a preset duration.
For such a low price, I’m very pleased with this earphone. Don’t forget to get cashback for your Taobao purchases through Shopback (referral link).
