Two factors play in how long a person can wear earphones and earbuds: comfort of the device and how much heat individuals generate. My ears get warm quickly when they are covered, so I cannot last too long listening to headphones/earbuds. For example, I had the Philips Fidelio X2 that I loved. They were very comfortable and had great clarity and soundstage, but my earlobes got too warm for comfort. I’ve tried many others, including Sennheiser 598, Audio-Technica ATH-M50x, Bose SoundTrue, Zolo Liberty, etc. I couldn’t last more than 2 hours wearing them.