So instead of any of these, I ended up buying the Etymotic Research ER20XS.
I made the choice largely because the comparisons on HearAdvisor put them as one of the best low-cost choices.
It’ll be a while before I can give them a proper concert test. But I cranked up my stereo as loud as I could stand it, and put the earplugs in. Then I cranked up the music even louder.
I went into the next room to tell my partner they seem to be working well enough. I thought I was speaking at a perfectly acceptable volume, but he didn’t even realize I was talking. When I took them out, I realized I had the volume up almost painfully loud without even realizing it.
The experience of wearing them is weird for me, someone who’s never used this sort of earplug before. I’m not used to this fidelity, I’m used to the type that muffle everything. Because of that, I didn’t “feel” like was listening through earplugs at all. In fact at first when I put them in without any loud noises around, I could still have a conversation with my partner at normal volume, which made me worry I got a total dud.
But from my little experiment, clearly they do work. I could have comfortably relaxed on the couch and listened to that music at a volume that would have anyone without hearing protection clamping their hands over their ears.
I can’t speak to how comfortable they are to wear for hours since I had them in for less than 10 minutes, but the experience of putting them in and removing them was just fine, and they felt fine in my ears.
I’m sure the others would also be fine choices, but these ones seem great.