# Do you always put your earphones on the proper ear? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 11, 2008, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192 "2008-11-11T15:31:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cainxinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@cainxinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cainxinth)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/1 "2008-11-11T15:31:32Z")
Most headsets mark the right and left channel on the earphones. When listening to music it almost never matters, but for some reason (OCD probably) I always make sure the left phone is in the left ear and the right in the right. ---
**Author:** ![Jayn\_Newell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jayn\_Newell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayn_Newell)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/2 "2008-11-11T15:34:45Z")
I never used to, but my last pair of earbuds were shaped so that they didn’t sit properly if they were in the wrong ear (and somehow I always, _always_ got them wrong if I didn’t check). So even though my current pair isn’t like that, I still check and make sure out of habit. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/3 "2008-11-11T16:19:49Z")
Yes. I always look for the little L and R and switch them if I’m about to put them in wrong. I’ve suspected I’m a little OCD for a long time. (I hear some of the strange number and counting things I do are signs of it) ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/4 "2008-11-11T16:22:40Z")
I must buy cheap earphones. It’s never occured to me to check. I put whichever but I happen to pick up with my right hand in my right ear, and vice verse; it’s never been an issue. ETA: I just checked, and sure enough the phones I have on were marked and in the wrong ears. I switched, and it’s much more comfortable. Merci! ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/5 "2008-11-11T16:33:02Z")
I do. I don’t have earbuds, I have real earphones that hang off the ears, so they definitely have a left and right one. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/6 "2008-11-11T16:33:53Z")
Well, sure, otherwise you don’t know for sure which side the shots are being fired from. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/7 "2008-11-11T18:39:03Z")
With my earbuds, I try - simply because they’re designed so they sit better that way. With over-the-ear phones, I put 'em on whichever way feels more comfy; one pair I have actually feels better backward. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/8 "2008-11-11T19:26:12Z")
Yep, when I use the iPod earbuds even though they’re shaped just the same I always make sure they’re in the proper ears. The artists went to painstaking trouble to put sounds in each ear, the least I can do is listen to the music properly. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ParentalAdvisory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@ParentalAdvisory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParentalAdvisory)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/9 "2008-11-11T19:28:15Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > The artists went to painstaking trouble to put sounds in each ear, the least I can do is listen to the music properly. 😉 Exactly why I make sure L and R are L and R. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/10 "2008-11-11T19:33:26Z")
> [@ParentalAdvisory](#): > > Exactly why I make sure L and R are L and R. I was half kidding, I’m sure bands like Pink Floyd obsessed over left and right, I can picture the mixing of a Britney Spears song as a lot more loose. ---
**Author:** ![Minnie\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Minnie\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Minnie_Luna)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/11 "2008-11-11T19:36:57Z")
Mine are not shaped any differently, but I do go to the trouble of making sure L is L and R is R. Threadjack– On the OCD front, my parking garage for work is on top of a grocery store. I leave with one of the Admins every day at the same time. We got in the elevator and pushed our floor, others got in at the grocery level. A man had a bouquet of roses, I assumed he paid for a dozen, but I only counted 11, so I counted again, 11 and again, only 11. We get off on our floor and I said something to my Admin friend about how he got ripped off, there were only 11 roses, he didn’t even bat and eye and said he noticed the same thing. We constantly rip on each other about our stupid OCD habits. ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Bruin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Queen\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Bruin)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/12 "2008-11-11T19:49:01Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Well, sure, otherwise you don’t know for sure which side the shots are being fired from. Exactly. ---
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/13 "2008-11-11T19:52:07Z")
I used mine in the opposite sides for months before I saw the little l and r. I switched over, but it felt better using them the “wrong” way, so I went back. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/14 "2008-11-11T20:00:32Z")
I always do. I suppose it’s not that important most of the time. I listen to lots of electronic music, and there are times when sounds definitely start out way off to the left and then move across to the right. I figure the artist went to the trouble to give me that experience, so I should experience it. TV shows and movies also have sounds definitely coming from the right or left, and I use headphones with TV all the time. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/15 "2008-11-11T20:41:11Z")
I wouldn’t even have thought to check. But recently I noticed some writing on my ipod earbuds, looked closer, and they had an L and R. While the buds themselves are identical regardless of symmetry, the bit that sticks off them to connect to the wire is slightly off center. So I figured they might fit more comfortably in my ears if I followed the lettering. I don’t think they are ergonomically shaped enough to matter, but I follow the lettering anyway just in case. ---
**Author:** ![Cerowyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@Cerowyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerowyn)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/16 "2008-11-11T20:59:55Z")
After I bought a Creative Vision:M, I noticed that if I wasn’t wearing the buds in the “correct” ear, the volume was a fraction of what I expected. I have a pair of Maxell earphones that I bought at an airport somewhere, and they have the same characteristic. Most other pairs I have, though, don’t seem to be as specific. ---
**Author:** ![TroubleAgain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e480ec/32.png) [@TroubleAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroubleAgain)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2008, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/17 "2008-11-11T21:05:33Z")
I use these [JVC earbuds](http://www.qfonic.com/images/products/ha-fx33-p/image01.jpg), and I seldom notice which ear I’m putting them in. In fact, if I’m wearing them while out running or walking, I only wear one earbud, so that I can hear traffic coming behind me. Oh, and **Cerowyn** , I have the Vision:M, too! ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/18 "2008-11-12T02:56:47Z")
> [@cainxinth](#): > > When listening to music it almost never matters . . . For those of us who listen to orchestral music, and also have OCD, it really matters. It’s distracting to hear the first violins on the right, and the cellos on the left. And the difference is not merely left-to-right, but also front-to-back. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/19 "2008-11-12T13:12:20Z")
I don’t have OCD (at least I don’t think I do) but I do have a musical background, and it drives me nuts if L and R are reversed. Even with modern music, if I know a guitar is supposed to be on the left and it’s on the right or I hear the drum set reversed (the cymbals, snare, hi-hat, etc all have a “standard” placement) it will bother me until I fix it. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192/20 "2008-11-12T13:25:25Z")
I came in to post basically the same thing as **engineer\_comp\_geek**. I don’t have OCD but I trained in audio engineering and used to do live sound for bands and lots of cheap studio work. It would drive me mad to have the headphones reversed because as **engineer\_comp\_geek** says the drum kit would be reversed and the left hand of the pianist would become the right hand and all orchestras set up the same way before an audience. It isn’t OCD that makes you want to hear it that way, it’s the way it should be heard. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-always-put-your-earphones-on-the-proper-ear/472192.md?page=2)