The LectroFan Is the Best White Noise Machine I’ve Ever Used

Tinnitus sucks. It was always there, ringing constantly, as long as I can remember. I didn’t even know I had it until I was older and learned that not everyone hears a constant noise in their ears when it’s quiet.

Maybe it’s the snoring of the person next to you. Or the street noises out your window. Or your loud-ass neighbors. For me, it’s the tinnitus. Once I’m asleep, I’m a heavy sleeper. But it wasn’t until a friend recommended the LectroFan Classic four years ago that I was able to block out the ringing and fall asleep as easily as I do now.

It’s a white noise machine, right?

You might call them white noise machines, but sound machines go so far beyond just white noise. The best lets you tailor how loud you want it, what pitch you want it, and what tone you want it to have. Ramp up the treble? Sure. Put on some busy café noises instead? Go for it.

Notice those two buttons on the face of the LectroFan Classic: fan sounds and white noises. That’s what you get. Twenty of them, and no fancy soundtracks of ocean swells breaking or birds in dappled forests singing. But as far as white noise goes, the Classic has the rest beat.

Each track sounds so natural that I’d almost forget it was just a digital recording. It does this one (or two, if fan noises count separately) and does it very well. The controls are intuitive, and I could efficiently operate the raised buttons in pitch black conditions.

It also lets you vary the volume from a whisper to loud as hell. I’ve used it to cover up the sounds of an outdoor rave on my building’s roof to fall asleep—multiple times.

There’s a single sleep timer setting for one hour. If you take longer than an hour to fall asleep, consider the LectroFan Evo, which allows you to set the sleep timer for up to eight hours.