Unleash the tingles without the headphones – explore alternative ways to experience ASMR!
Listening to ASMR with headphones undoubtedly enhances the experience. They shut out any distractions around you, so you enjoy the full effects of the audio triggers in these videos.
However, you might not always be able to use headphones. For instance, some people complain that they get an ear infection whenever they wear headphones. This means they can’t wear headsets while listening to ASMR.
Luckily, you can listen to ASMR without headphones and get tingles through visual and monaural ASMR videos, among other tactics. Dive into the article to discover more ways to watch ASMR videos without headphones.
How to Listen to ASMR Without Headphones
While most ASMR is better with headphones, it’s possible to watch ASMR without them and still feel the usual tingles. Here are some tips to help you enjoy ASMR without any listening device:
- Choose monaural videos or audio
- Use visual ASMR videos
- Listen in a quiet environment
- Listen while sleeping
Choose monaural videos or audio
Monaural videos are videos recorded using a single audio channel or microphone. So when you play them on loudspeakers or headphones, the result typically sounds like it’s coming from one position at the same volume.
Binaural videos, on the other hand, are recorded via two audio channels. Their sounds are typically perceived on speakers and headphones as coming from the left and right.
You’d often require headphones to listen to binaural ASMR to experience the full 3D sound effect. However, you can watch monaural ASMR videos without headphones and still enjoy an immersive experience since the sound won’t change whether you listen from a speaker or from your headphones.
Use visual ASMR videos
Sound is probably the most common ASMR trigger, with most ASMR videos focused on triggering relaxing feelings in audiences via specific sounds, such as whispering, humming, and tapping.
However, if you don’t have headphones or aren’t a fan of using them, you can still experience relaxing tingles from visual ASMR. Visual ASMR uses the animated details of the video (rather than sounds) to help viewers relax.
Since the triggers are entirely visual, many visual ASMR content have minimal sound or don’t include it at all, thereby making the use of headphones to listen to audio triggers unnecessary.
One common theme in visual ASMR is that they often involve activities executed with hands. Some common tasks carried out by YouTubers creating this kind of ASMR include:
- Painting
- Cake mixing
- Slime poking
- Soap crushing
- Pattern making
- Color swatching
If you’re more of a visual person, you can opt for these categories of ASMR content as alternatives to their audio-based counterparts.
Listen in a quiet environment
Noise from certain elements like your TV can make it challenging to immerse yourself in ASMR and experience the full effects of these videos.
As such, one of the best ways to enjoy ASMR is to listen in a noise-free space, especially if you intend to use it as a sleeping aid or don’t have headphones. In more quiet settings (such as your bedroom), you can take in all the sights and sounds of ASMR without distractions.
Listen while sleeping
Playing ASMR videos during your bedtime can guarantee a more relaxing night’s rest. Medical evidence suggests that ASMR activates brain parts associated with calming hormones, such as dopamine and oxytocin.
That said, we’d recommend not using headphones to listen to ASMR while sleeping.
Prolonged use of headphones can prevent earwax from draining properly, leading to problems such as ear infections, tinnitus, and even hearing loss. For these reasons, you don’t need to wear headphones while listening to ASMR in your sleep.
5 ASMR Videos You Can Listen to Without Headphones
Visual ASMR and other ASMR videos you can listen to without headphones aren’t in short supply. However, when it comes to ASMR videos and triggers, people have individual tastes.
As such, finding what works for you can be tricky. That said, here are our top recommendations of ASMR videos you can listen to without headphones:
- Extremely Visual ASMR
- ASMR | NO HEADPHONES ???? ❌ NO PROBLEM 2
- ASMR A Sign Language Story About Pie (ASL)
- Mono ASMR: Fast Tapping Assortment
- ASMR Relaxing Visual Triggers
1. Extremely Visual ASMR
- Video: Extremely Visual ASMR
- Types of ASMR Triggers: Hand movements, stipples, tracing, and layered inaudible mouth sounds.
- YouTube Channel: Jojo’s ASMR
Jojo’s ASMR has a treat for all those sensitive to visual triggers. His 20-minute video starts and ends with several hand movements. He accompanies these with crisp mouth sounds, such as tongue clicking and chewing, and personal attention as he taps, strokes, and gently pokes a stick on your face.
This video is an ideal pick if you don’t have or use headphones, with the abundance of hand gestures being more than enough to get you tingling and dozing off in no time.
2. ASMR | NO HEADPHONES ???? ❌ NO PROBLEM 2
- Video: ASMR | NO HEADPHONES ???? ❌ NO PROBLEM 2
- Types of ASMR Triggers: Hand movements, rubbing, tapping, mouse-clicking, tongue clicks, and whispers.
- YouTube Channel: Ben’s ASMR
Who says you can’t enjoy ASMR without headphones? Ben’s ASMR proves otherwise. With an assortment of triggers, from gentle whispers and tongue clicks to rubbing and scratching his hands against two fluff ball keychains, this soothing visual display doesn’t fail to deliver for ASMR enthusiasts.
We especially enjoyed the rhythmic hand movements coordinated alongside gentle mouse clicks. Ben ensures you don’t need headphones to feel tingles, as his hands sliding across your screen does more than enough to get you relaxed.
Take out all noisy distractions from your bedroom space, and we can guarantee this video will put you to sleep in no time.
3. ASMR A Sign Language Story About Pie (ASL)
- Video: ASMR A Sign Language Story About Pie (ASL)
- Types of ASMR Triggers: Hand movements, mouth sounds, and whispers.
- YouTube Channel: Tingledom ASMR
Eating pie is fun, but there’s nothing quite as relaxing as watching Tingledom ASMR serenade you with this thrilling story about making pie using American sign language.
From the first minute of her story, Tingledom ensures headphones are unnecessary, with her hands more than a suitable relieving companion in this video.
If you thought the delicate hand movements and mouth sounds at the beginning were s 8thoothing, wait till you see her combine them with silent storytelling whispers when you get to the voiceover version.
4. Mono ASMR: Fast Tapping Assortment
- Video: Mono ASMR: Fast Tapping Assortment
- Type of ASMR Trigger: Fast Tapping
- YouTube Channel: Captain Jamro ASMR
Have tapping sounds ever been this calming? If you love ASMR videos with fast-tapping fingers, Captain ASMR feeds your nerves with never-ending relieving tingles throughout this 44-minute video.
He uses everything to deliver a completely tranquil display, from a plastic jar to a hardbound notebook, a leather case, a toy basketball, and a high-heeled shoe. Talk about variety! With the individual sounds from each object, you sure aren’t ready for the tingles coming your way.
5. ASMR Relaxing Visual Triggers
- Video: ASMR Relaxing Visual Triggers
- Types of ASMR Triggers: Hand movements, personal attention, mouth sounds, and whispers.
- YouTube Channel: Latte ASMR
Visual ASMR content cuts across virtually everything: baking, storytelling, and even beauty makeovers. The latter is what Latte ASMR focuses on in her video, as she combines delicate hand gestures and her soothing voice with being your very own makeup stylist.
Who needs headphones when Latte ASMR has enough hand gestures to get you tingling non-stop? Personal care certainly never felt so relaxing.
Conclusion
While headphones can make ASMR more immersive, they aren’t a must-have to enjoy them. With monaural and visual ASMR videos, you can dive into the full experience of those relaxing tingles from your laptop or mobile phone speaker, even without listening devices.
Have you ever listened to ASMR with and without headphones? Did you notice any difference in the experience? What are your favorite visual ASMR YouTube channels? Let us know in the comments. We can’t wait to read your responses!