Very helpful, thank you. Part of my issue is that I do use an F4 communicator and I don't want to block all the noise out. I don't remember what kind I bought but I do recall they weren't dirt cheap. I will give the 3M product a try.
Actually earplugs are not all made equal. Don't just get crappy cheapo ones and dismiss it all.
I used some that were horrible but there is hope...
1110 3M work great for me.
Comfortable on long rides, block noise but I can still use Scala fine.
I think they block certain frequencies but I am not sure about that.
Way I understand it high frequencies (wind) are blocked more than talk.
Anyway... this is spec sheet
http://multimedia.3m.com/mws/mediawebserver?6666660Zjcf6lVs6EVs666yE2COrrrrQ-
On noisy bikes they are worth every penny on long fast rides.