What are people using for ear protection for datacenters these days? I'm down to my last couple of corded 3M 1110:
http://www.moldex.com/hearing-protection/foam-earplugs/pura-fit.php This are cheap, but that's sort of the point - you can put a bin, or several bins, filled with them on the wall outside a noisy room, and they're always available. This is working on the principle that the cheap ear plugs that always get used are better than the high-end ear protection that keeps getting forgotten in the office or left out of bags because it's bulky. My workplace has many constantly noisy areas, other than the datacenter, so this may be a somewhat different scenario than yours. Also, a spare pair helped me survive a Panic! At The Disco concert last week, so I'm all for 'em.