January 25, 2020 5:12 PM PST
On the Harley with my half helmet, I use Etymotic ER20XS. My pipes are stock, so not really bad, but as a drummer, I've always used the Etymotic Musician plugs, so it made sense for me to use Etymotic for riding as well. The good thing about these plugs (aside from reasonable cost and washable), is they attenuate the sound equally among the spectrum. Meaning, as a drummer, I can still hear the band normally, and as a rider, I can still hear my bike normally. Just 20db less. For a full-face helmet (or any helmet that covers my ears, I either use standard foamies (since the helmet itself quiets things down a bit, or a pair of SkullCandy earbuds (if I'm using an intercom) because they don't stick out as much/push on my ears.
In any case, I'm always wearing ear protection.