The next time I had the courage to try it again, it worked perfectly. The foam lining I am guessing is to be used inside the ear cups, but since they dont come with any instructions I couldnt figure out how to use them. The deal too good to not get insta-scalped ) This seat is great! After trying all the supplied tips, nothing seems to get these to sound any good. Although the size fits perfect and they are very comfortable to walk in, the rose colour flip flop discolours after two days. I have several pairs of TAOS sandals and they are the best. I can even wear them walking across the stone parking lot. I works both as a bench and shoe rack greatly. Summary:I ultimately kept the Bose because I was only using these for flying and the Sennheisers (as much as I loved them) let me down in the Noise Cancelation department.