Best Headphones To Use On Airplane?

[YoungAndRice]

what are the best head phones to use on an airplane to watch dvds and cancel the noise of the engine?

[peter991]

Use anything BUT the ones they supply (where you have to assemble the foam ear pads). Personally, I use the ones which came with my iPod, because they are compact.

Peter

[bino]

If you're not above spending some $$$ - the Bose "Quiet Comfort" headphones are awesome.

They reduce all of the ambient noise around you, so that what you want to listen to is especially clear. They also work well when not listening to anything- when you just want silence.

Like I said, they aren't cheap, but hearing is believing!

[prefabs]

Use anything BUT the ones they supply (where you have to assemble the foam ear pads). Personally, I use the ones which came with my iPod, because they are compact.

Peter

I have Bose Noise Cancelling headphones and they are very good. However, they are bulky and expensive.

[dekka007]

Sony do some In-Ear noise cancelling headphones for around $100 I think. In-Ear plus active noise cancelling is probably the best u can do.

[YoungAndRice]

I have heard that Bose is overrated and overpriced.

[Expat2B]

Mrs E2B got me a pair of Sennheiser PXC300 headphones for Xmas which I will use first time tomorrow on the flight to Australia. Will let you know then how they work but they had quite good reviews on internet plus the size is not bulky either.

[joebuzzard]

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/06/14/tec...y/14ptpogue.php

An excellent roundup by IHT earlier this year. The Panasonics seem like the best value.

[technocracy]

I've had the Sennheiser PXC 250 for nearly 4 years now and I have to say they have been absolutely brilliant! The sound quality is also excellent - I really cannot rate them high enough - 10/10 all round.

I have used them in all forms of public transport from the underground, buses, planes everywhere and they work an absolute treat. If you've ever been on London Buses you know just how annoying and loud they can be I used to be completely unaware of the noise around me - be it wailing babies or the generally loud yobs around. On airplanes they work a treat you can actually hear you music without needing to blast the volume - I was flying to Laos from the UK pretty much every month and they are worth there wait in gold!

They are very compact, incredibly comfortable and also very durable - which surprised me actually since they don't feel like they would withstand much wear and tear but I can assure you they do!

The NoiseGard unit uses 2 x AAA batteries and they last for ages . . . so long I can't remember who long it normal is between changes.

If you actually have chance to try them make sure you listen to music as this when the noise cancelling works best since just switching them on without music you will notice the background noise cancelling working but when you listen to music you'll be totally oblivious to anything around you.

The Bose ones I've looked at and tried and in my opinion I didn't think the noise cancelling worked as well as the Sennheiser - also they are very big and bulky and priced rediculously. Personally I think the size is half of the reason for there noise cancelling.

Edit: Just looking and you can still buy the PXC250 - I thought the 300s were just an update.

Edited December 30, 2007 by technocracy

[YoungAndRice]

will the new battery laws on planes effect these?

[peter991]

Looks like you guys take your listening experiences seriously.

Perhaps a MOD could move this to the Travel Section.

Thanks for the advice about carrying spare lithium ion batteries - effective from 01 January 2008, they are not permitted to be carried in checked luggage and must be carried on board with your cabin baggage.

Here's the LINK for people who are interested. As far as I am aware, only applies to flight entering or leaving USA - but like the LPG (Lotions, Potions & Gels) will probably spread world-wide soon.

Peter

[technocracy]

will the new battery laws on planes effect these?

Well as the new law on covers Lithium battery and these use the standard AAA batteries then no there is no restrictions.

You can seriously expect over a month of usage from 2 AAA batteries - so you don't need to worry about that side of things!

[tw25rw]

I have 2 sets.. Some Phillips in-ear ones that I bought at LHR for £30, and some Sennheiser PXC-300s I bought on ebay for £72..

I actually think the in-ear ones do a better job of noise cancelling, but are fiddly and hard to keep in if you sleep.

The Sennheisers work well, but sit on the ear rather than around it, so get a bit annoying after a few hours. Have to take them off and rub the ears occasionally. I tend to wear them combined with the foam earplugs to sleep.

Sennheiser also do the PXC-400 (?) that goes around the ear, but are dearer.

The Bose ones are said to be very good, but are expensive because Bose keep tight control of the supply chain.

[lomatopo]

I've used Sony MDR NC11A in-ear (ear bud vs. over-ear) noice-cancelling headphones (and the preceeding model) for ~ 10 years. Note that you give up some performance for a smaller package, potentially easier to sleep with.

I'd look in some travel forums for more first-hand reports. Example:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=459929

New TSA/DOT Lithium travel guidelines - links:

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/ass.../batteries.shtm

http://safetravel.dot.gov/whats_new_batteries.html

http://safetravel.dot.gov/tips.html

[Dakhar]

It really depends on several factors as to which are the best

1) Price

2) Isolation (noise reduction values)

3) Sound quality

4) application

The sky is the limit on quality, and the truth is Thailand can offer you the quality at a much more affordable price.

If you really research IEM (In Ear Monitors) designed for quality sound and isolation, they are based on hearing aid technology. In a nut shell, the speakers used in hearing aids are essentially the same used in IEMs. The speakers are called balanced armature drivers, and for the size they deliver an astonishing sound quality. This technology is now used in Shure, Etymotic Research, Ultimate Ears, Creative Zen Head phones.

I work with a company that has been in the hearing aid business for over 20 years, and now is interring into the head phone market. For some time now, audio phile customers have been brining their non-custom head phones (Shure, ER4, Westone, Ultimate Ears) to us and requesting us to build a custom housing for them and install the internal components from their head phones into the housing. It did not take long for us to realize, we could do the same, from the ground up, and we have access to the same armature driver suppliers as all the above mentioned companies..... and so now we offer the same sound quality and excellent craftsmanship. Fact is we do it, for about 40% less of what most IEMs cost, and they are custom crafted to fit your ear. We offer art work, just as Ultimate Ears does. We can also offer various colors, and even build them to your acoustic preferences. We can do it for less, and not skimp on quality, because we have less business costs than any of the other companies have. We are based solely in Thailand and have no where near their operating costs.

So in a nut shell, which is the best.....? I say PM me, and let us build you the best, for a lot less.

If you do not want to work with us, the best option in my opinion would be the products from Etymotic research. (The ER4P seems to be them most preferred) It is not because of their drivers are awesome or anything like that. The fact is their driver is pretty vanilla, but what they offer, better than the other big names is noise isolation.

BTW, the founder of Etymotic Research is a doctorate of Audiology, & so am I......

w.editorsguild.com/v2/magazine/archives/1105/features_earphones.htm

w.edn.com/blog/1770000177/post/1800007780.html

[Spee]

If you're not above spending some $$$ - the Bose "Quiet Comfort" headphones are awesome.

They reduce all of the ambient noise around you, so that what you want to listen to is especially clear. They also work well when not listening to anything- when you just want silence.

Like I said, they aren't cheap, but hearing is believing!

I've had the original Bose units for more than 5 years. I've used them so much the foam pads are starting to wear out. My 2p worth.

- Bose was the first on the scene. Several competitors have sprung up and are offering similar products for similar prices.

- They are "the nuts" for any airplane travel. They knock several db across the spectrum using active cancellation, but seem to have the most effect on the higher frequencies, especially engine noise.

- When not on the plane, they are subject to electrical interference. I've noticed substantial interference from mobile phones, especially Blackberry's where there is a lot of data traffic. There is also interference from computers and high speed electric trains.

- IMHO, the Bose are definitely a great product, with a couple others in the same league and others definitely of lesser class. Essentially you get what you pay for.

- Decide whether you want "on the ear" or "over the ear" units. Bose make both but most competitors seem to offer "on ear" only. I happen to prefer the "over the ear" units.

[Dakhar]

The concept of phase cancelation is neat and all (Bose etc), but realisticly it adds artifact.... being a purest, I'd rather go with isolation type head phones.

[JetsetBkk]

Cheap Charlie approach: buy some earplugs, put them in your ear first, then turn up the volume on the supplied head set to max.

[tolsti]

These are the ones I use... http://reviews.cnet.com/headphones/logitec...7-31797806.html

I use them on planes, trains to listen to music/films and also just to deaden background noise. They come in a neat case which fits into your carry on baggageand have an adapter to fit almost all aircraft types. A spare battery is carried in the case (the active battery is in the lefthand earpiece) and being of the total ear enclosing type are very effective. Battery life is amazing. They cost me 60 Euros and I've never regretted it.

[Dakhar]

The head sets I have in mind are more like these.

w.ultimateears.com/_ultimateears/products/custom/ue11pro_description.php

Why someone would pay 300$ for an i-pod and then use a head phone with 10$ worth of parts beguiles me.

[sunreader]

Cheap Charlie approach: buy some earplugs, put them in your ear first, then turn up the volume on the supplied head set to max.

Cheap Charlie? why not save on the price of costly eagplugs and push the airline supplied devices deep into your ears, max up the volume and press both hands over your ears hard for the duration of your movie or musical piece thus helping to cancel out the exterior noise situation without the need for further expensive batteries.

Hands are also a lot lighter and less bulky to carry than those clumsy "highs and lows must be Bose" models, and hands can be utilised for other purposes making them much more useful than the normal range of noise cancelling products.

Just my 2d worth.

[britmaveric]

http://www.shure.com/PersonalAudio/Product...odels/index.htm

Have a set from Shure - best pair I have ever had. Sounds great and blocks out any outside noise. Pricey though, but well worth it IMHO.

[ACMIKE]

Sennheiser are the best for the money, Bose as stated above are expemsive and bulky. I have tried the 250 & 300 models and bothe are equally good. I don't like the around the ear models (Bose) but that is what makes them considerably better than the Sennheisers.

My 2 cents....

[Dakhar]

http://www.shure.com/PersonalAudio/Product...odels/index.htm

Have a set from Shure - best pair I have ever had. Sounds great and blocks out any outside noise. Pricey though, but well worth it IMHO.

No doubt Shure assemles a good product. I say assemble because that is really what they do, they buy the drivers from Knowles and assemble the product from that point. Which is what we do also.

The issue I had with mine was the ear tip hurt my ears. So comfort wise they were the pits. Eventually I had the internals pulled, and had custom soft canal size shells built. From that point I had the internals loaded into the silicone shells. Because the fit was custom & made of silicone, the bass increased & the sound quality was much better. The isolation was also increased. The same can be accomplished with a much smaller driver, if placed in the ear correcly. The driver is around 80% smaller than the ones used in the Shure single driver units. The small driver is more costly too, but it does sound better, & can fit ver small ear canals so we focus on that particular driver more.

But we have moved on beyond simple one driver designs. They have their purpose (price point, easy to build, low costs) but I find the multi driver products to be better, more enjoyable and more of a challenge.

Edited January 2, 2008 by Dakhar

[WilliamC]

Audio Technica ATH-A900ti are one of the best reputations of closed headphones. Check this out!

http://www.warehouse123.com/ProductInfo.ph...UTATHA900TI-SLV

Slightly recessed midrange sound and very large size, but comfortable and good sound. They are not noise-cancelling phones but they can keep sound out and in. These are wonderful headphones and excellent choice.

[sgtpeppers]

the ATH-A900ti won't block the noise of an airplane enough.

The in ear canal phones are the only way to go.

Money well spend IMO.

[Maigo6]

ATH ANC 7 (Audio Technica) Noise cancelling Headphones are great and use 1 normal penlight battery that last for over 20 hours, and if the battery dies, they still work, unlike the overpriced Bose that just die on you. I paid about 25,000 Yen ( 7600 Baht ) in Tokyo for the ATH ANC7's. The Audio Technica's are like Bose without the expensive advertising campaigns that bump the price of Bose products up.

I also recieved a set of Bang & Olufsen A8's as a gift, great headphones for the iPod, expensive, but superbly engineered.

Edited August 14, 2008 by Maigo6

[adammike]

I have tried a good selection of in ear over ear and the shure are the best by far e310s,

They do take a bit of getting used to and are a bit pricy I have the sennheiser hd600 at home

now they are pricey but good.

If you are used to wearing ear plugs the in ears are the way to go but bear in mind the

nearer you are to the engines the louder it will be,don't expect total silence.

Its like speakers its a very personal thing,

I have good sony over ear but they are like the bose a bit bulky I do love my shure's though.

they make my Ipod sound good.

[WilliamC]

ATH ANC 7 (Audio Technica) Noise cancelling Headphones are great and use 1 normal penlight battery that last for over 20 hours, and if the battery dies, they still work, unlike the overpriced Bose that just die on you.

It's a good pick and they are definitely better than bose! I'll never get the bose.