How I get the pairs

Bought, never sent. Every pair of earbuds in a field guide is one I bought myself, at retail, from a store you can buy from too. Each guide names that store and links it, so you can see where it came from.

What that rules out

• No review units. No brand has sent me a pair to review, and none has paid for a review or for a place on a list.
• No affiliate links. Store links are plain links. I earn nothing when you click one or buy something.
• No ads or sponsors. Nothing on this site is paid placement.

If that ever changes

If a brand ever sends me a pair, or anything else that could colour a review, it goes at the top of that review, above everything else, in plain words. It never sits in a footnote.

Why it matters

A pair I paid for is a pair I can be honest about. I live with each one for weeks, often months, before I write the guide, and I say where my view differs from the reviewers I cite and from owners.

The one connection I do have is my own app, Arclet. When a guide covers a pair Arclet works with, the guide says so in a maker's note near the top. See the disclosure and editorial policy.