TETRA Turkey AmpPods Review
Detecting and locating that distant gobbler can mean the difference in filling your tag or going home empty-handed. Get your edge back with TETRA AmpPods.
As turkey hunters across the nation are enjoying the spring season, hearing technology company, TETRA, is giving hunters an edge with their AmpPods. Turkey AmpPods are premium hearing devices designed to fit inside the ear canal to maximize the ear’s natural sound collection, enabling many hunters to once again hear the sounds of a wild turkey at a distance, and better judge distance and direction.
Hearing, like many other aspects of good health, is often taken for granted until one day it’s gone or damaged. Proper hearing protection while hunting is frequently neglected. In fact, 86% of hunters don’t wear hearing protection at all. As hunters, we know that moment when you take the shot is usually an adrenaline-filled moment when our senses are heightened. What many of us don’t realize though is the simple fact that loud decibels, like a gunshot, are causing irreversible damage to our hearing.
TETRA Hearing Enhancement Technology
A lifetime of noise exposure from shooting, loud equipment, loud music and more can rob us of our hunting edge. Hearing loss makes it harder to detect our game and almost impossible to tell distance and direction. With that in mind, TETRA developed a patent-pending Specialized Target Optimization (STO), the world’s first hearing technology designed to optimize hearing for hunters in their specific hunting environments. STO is the world’s first hearing technology that isolates and enhances the exact frequencies needed to improve hearing for your specific hunting environment. STO accentuates gobbles, yelps, clucks and purrs for turkeys; as well as grunts, bleats and footsteps for deer while keeping other sounds at natural levels.
TETRA devices are the most advanced hearing technology ever offered to outdoor enthusiasts, and are specially designed for hunters, by hunters. The founders are also hearing doctors having the highest expertise in sound and hearing technology. TETRA uses a similar chip and digital noise reduction that consumers would typically pay $5,000 for in hearing aids, and can be customized to your hearing profile using an online hearing test.
Field Testing
I’ve been using the Turkey AmpPods this spring while guiding guests on hunts. First, I could hear the turkeys cluck, call, and gobble much more clearly thanks to the hearing enhancement. Second, I could locate where they were much more easily and accurately thanks to the directional noise enhancement of the AmpPods. Last, I could also hear the leaves rustle from the turkeys walking in the woods long before I saw them when they weren’t in the mood to talk. These are all serious advantages for the guide and for the hunter.
I’ve also used cheaper end hearing protection that claimed to include noise enhancement, but these cheaply made products amplified everything. For example, the sound of the wind was annoyingly loud. However, with the TETRA AmpPods, the sounds of nature were enriched. I was able to hear the sounds I wanted to hear more effectively.
Unlike most headsets, AmpPods are comfortable, require no adjustment once properly inserted, and don’t interfere with a cheek weld on rifles or shotguns. There are two options in the Amp series: 75 “Enhanced” and 90 “Premium.” All have multiple settings, adjusted by simply tapping twice on your ear canal and listening for the beeps. The 90 Premium series can be customized for individual hearing levels in each ear, just like a hearing aid, while the 75 Enhanced AmpPods are “insert battery, plug, and play.” The 75 Enhanced AmpPods do include wind noise reduction.
Tetra uses a small 10A hearing aid battery in their devices with an excellent battery life of a week to 10 days. It does take a bit of practice to insert the small batteries and to properly insert the AmpPod into the ear canal. Their website is a great resource full of instructional videos.
One thing to know is the AmpPods are designed primarily for hearing enhancement. They are not designed as hearing protection for constant loud noises such as on the gun range. To reduce the impact of loud noise, AmpPods use AlphaShield Compression technology to shut off instantly with a gunshot or other loud sound. AmpPods suppress the volume of the gunshot significantly compared to an open ear. It does cut off loud sounds, but does not create a tight seal, so is intended for field use with only occasional shots. At the range I found the AmpPods were adequate for suppressed centerfire, but for unsuppressed centerfire it’s wise to wear earmuffs or use the Tetra’s Alpha Shield.
Spring might bring turkey, but you may also be an avid deer, elk or duck hunter in the Fall. Not only are the Turkey AmpPods specifically designed to enhance the sounds of a wild turkey, they are also an adaptable product that can be programmed for these other game species and more. TETRA has you covered with hearing enhancement across the spectrum of hunting and sporting adventures.
To learn more about this revolutionary hearing product, take an online hearing test to learn which product is best suited for your needs or visit www.tetrahunt.com. You can also check out this YouTube video to see Turkey AmpPods in action. TETRA isn’t just hearing protection. It’s hearing perfection.
TETRA Turkey AmpPods Include:
• Turkey AmpPod right and left
• Waterproof hard carrying case (90) or water-resistant soft carrying case (75)
• Pack of size 10 batteries
• Cleaning tool
• Replacement wax guards
• 2 smaller pocket-sized soft cases
MSRP:
• 75-Enhanced: $849/pair
• 90-Premium: $1,099/pair