The Best Way to Protect Your IEM in 2026

Are pouches still relevant?

In the world of audio, things can get rough. Whether you work in the music industry, film, broadcast, or live production, your IEMs will eventually take a beating. For years, the standard solution for protecting IEM transmitters and receivers was simple:
Put them in a pouch.

Pouches like the old Sennheiser G2/G3/G4 versions were everywhere. And sure, they did protect the equipment from scratches. But the more demanding your workflow becomes, the more obvious the drawbacks are.

Here’s why pouches have become increasingly difficult to rely on.

The Problem With IEM Pouches

When your IEM is inside a pouch, you immediately lose access to the most important information. You can’t:

• See the display
• Check battery status
• Change batteries
• Check or change frequency
• Adjust settings

For all of that, you need to remove the IEM from the pouch.

And removing it takes time.

Anyone who has worked with Sennheiser G2/G3/G4 pouches knows the process:
You fight the clip out of the slit, pull the unit out, fix whatever you need to fix, then squeeze it back in and try to get the belt clip through the slit again.

Now picture this on a movie set.The director has just yelled “Action,” something is suddenly wrong with the audio feed, and you have seconds to troubleshoot. Everyone is ready to go. The pressure is high. And more often than not, the problem is something simple, maybe the director turned the pack off while nervously fiddling,

But because the IEM is hidden inside a pouch, you can’t see anything.
You’re stuck guessing until you take it out.

It’s stressful. And after too many situations like this, many people end up ditching the pouch completely, which then leads to the next problem:

Dropped. On concrete.

Not ideal.

Finally, a better alternative to the traditional IEM pouch

At CrabJuice Accessories, we knew there had to be a better way.So we designed the CrabShell Protective Case, a case you put on once, and never have to remove again.

With a CrabShell, you can instantly see:

• Is the unit on?
• Is it on the right frequency?
• What’s the battery status?
• Is the headphone cable fully attached?

No guessing. No removing.
Everything is visible through the case.

And when you need to actually change a battery or adjust a setting?

Just open the hatch.

Leave the case on.
Do what you need to do.
Close it. Done.

This alone saves a huge amount of time, especially in stressful environments where quick decisions matter.
And as a bonus, older transmitters and receivers that have seen better days suddenly look clean and fresh again inside a CrabShell.

A Bonus: Custom Volume Knobs

Each CrabShell comes with a black volume-knob cover as standard.But if you want to stand out, or keep track of multiple units, you can add extra colored knobs.

It’s a simple upgrade, but people on set appreciate it far more than you might expect.
Letting someone choose their color is a surprisingly effective way to make their day a little better, something a traditional pouch can never offer.

Not really. They had their moment.

Today’s productions require faster troubleshooting, better visibility, and stronger protection.
The CrabShell delivers all of that, without slowing you down or hiding the information you need most.

If you rely on your IEMs every day, a pouch simply can’t keep up anymore.A CrabShell can.