Noise Cancelling Headphones vs In Ear Earphones

[ozscot]

I have Etymotic hf5 in-ear headphones with custom tips. They've been running a promotion where you can have custom tips fitted for around $100. This is undertaken at your local audiologist, I went to Glenferrie Road in Hawthorn. It's quick and painless - a little odd though as they use a huge syringe looking thing to squirt cool silicon gunk way further into your ear than you'd have thought possible!

The etymotics are great, but the custom tips make all the difference. The fit easily into your ear and are much more comfortable than the standard foam or flange tips so you can wear them for extended periods. The custom tips ensure you always have a perfect seal which is critical for bass response and noise isolation.

With the earphones in, and no sound playing you have significant noise isolation. With even soft music or spoken podcasts playing you can't hear any external noise at all. This works both ways too, you can crank your music up to 11 and there's no sound leakage to annoy your seat mate.

Cheers,
Steve.

 

[random111]

Thought id just give an update on this...I bought the cxc700 from amazon, hot them delivered to aud for roughly $210...the fact that they came with everything I need for travel was the game winner for me. I tried a cheap pair if ultimate ears last week and wasnt overly impressed with the isolation hence another reason for the purchase.

Will let you know how they are shortly

 

[markis10]

Spent 4 hours with the Bose on last night watching LTA with DJ, thats the longest I have worn them so far and watching transformers it was pretty impressive sound.

 

[Jleno]

I've had the Bose QC15s for about a year (and about 5 or 6 long haul flights) and it's now one of those items I must have when I'm flying. However I am a little spoilt now being used to the noise-cancelled environment that the last couple of times I actually felt it didn't cancel out enough noise! For those who've never tried noise cancelling, it definitely does not cancel out all the noise, but I still think it's well worth the money. I hesitated for a long time, looking for cheaper alternatives, but I must say I've never regretted buying it. Some general thoughts on the QC15:

1. I would love to know if there are any headphones out there that do a better job of noise cancellation. I've done a lot of googling and while many reviews say that its sound quality isn't the best in the market, there doesn't seem to be a better headphone with noise cancellation (this is among headphones with noise cancellation - some have argued that noise isolation ear-bud headphones do a better job). I myself would love to know if there are any in-ear noise cancellation options, because of point 2 below.

2. They are difficult to sleep with. Definitely difficult to rest your head to the sides. If the ear pads touch any part of the seat (which for me is generally when I want to sleep), you'll hear a slight hum from the vibration. It is still better than not having the headphones on, but annoyed me sometimes nonetheless. However, there's no getting away from the fact it is difficult to sleep on the side, hence it would be great if Bose made in-ear models with the same technology (I suspect that's not possible yet).

3. Someone mentioned wearing glasses with these. I agree - if you have glasses on, the over the ear pads won't seal completely (but again, still pretty effective). I just move my glasses above the headphones.

4. If you want total silence (or pretty close), put in a pair of disposable foam ear plugs (most airlines will have them, or your local pharmac_/chemist) and then the QC15s. It's close to perfect. I would think that anyone who has those noise-isolating earphones can achieve the same result, with audio!

5. It is quite annoying that FAs will often tell you to turn the QC15s off on takeoff and landing. This is still one of my pet peeves about flying - I just fail to see how my headphones could ever affect the flight. There must be millions of tiny electronic components all over a standard aircraft that could pose more harm. Pretty soon, passengers will no longer be allowed sleep or close their eyes upon take off and landing.

6. USA is the cheapest place I found them. Not more than USD 300. It's about SGD 570 in Singapore (ridiculous) and about GBP 279 in the UK (equally ridiculous). They seem to be like an Apple product though - very hard to find differing prices in one jurisdiction.

7. Replaceable AAA batteries is great. Means there's no need to carry yet another charger on the trip. Just put a couple of extra batteries in the headphone case and you're safe.

8. The case that you'll carry your headphones in is quite bulky and can be annoying if you're someone who likes to travel light.

9. I preferred the QC15 over the ear rather than the QC3 on ear buds. I've travelled on a few long haul flights with them and personally not had issues with the comfort of the QC15s.

 

[Archphoto]

I can't wear the over headphones - my ears get sore and as I sleep on my side, they're uncomfortable as well. I picked up a pair of SENNHEISER CX 300 in ear phones and love them - fit well, good sound and so much smaller than headphones (and they're comfortable for me). I'm also a light sleeper, but these block enough noise to allow me to sleep fairly well.

I usually just put my Ipod on shuffle and doze off, but if I wake up and find the music annoying me so I can't fall back to sleep, I just leave them in with the Ipod off. The adaptor allows me to listen to the IFE better as well.

 

[BTee]

I would buy some Etymotic earplugs or earphones. The earplugs are only circa 20 AUD, and the earphones circa 100 AUD. If you're in business class, put the supplied headphones over the top of them.

I agree, Etymotic has some very good earphones for the price you pay. Some of the best that I've used and definitely much better than any Sony or Sennheiser earphones that I've had. The only downside is that they protrude a little from the ear and therefore can cause discomfort if you sleep on your side. On the positive side, they come with about half a dozen different 'plugs' which you attach to the driver to get the perfect fit in your ear canal, from the standard soft rubber 'mushroom' and 'christmas tree' styles as well as some memory foam which will expand (just like your work ear plugs, only better quality). They also come with built in earwax filters and a spare set for when those gunk up

 

[holdenvxman]

I have QC3, I swear by them, Got them cheap at Bose factory outlet in Boston

 

[serfty]

If trying to sleep, I'd use neither type.

Standard industrial yellow flouro ear plugs do it for me.

Other than that, I'm an over ear guy.

 

[Limewood]

I concur with Jleno, love my Bose Comfort 15 purchased in Honolulu recently, paid $299 at Bose shop. Keeps most of the noise out, can wear for long periods, audio is excellent, AAA batteries last, very well made, case they come in fits great in my small carry on cabin bag. Looked around J class cabin on way over and return, lots pax had this exact model.

 

[markis10]

Anyone looking for an in ear option would be hard pressed to go past this Amazon deal

http://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Rese...5MAK/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1322746674&sr=8-2

 

[Danp]

I've been using the Bose QC3's over the past 6 months and find them pretty good.

Have hust bought some Shure SE215's as well for use in the ground but on a recent flight back from Hong Kong wore the QC3's over the top of the SE215's and found this was seriously good as you had 2 types of noise canceling in action at the same time

Shure Americas | SE Models

The shure headphones were quite cheap in hong kong if you're rolling through there at some stage, I like them as they are designed for recording studio use originally so are higher quality than standard consumer headphone brands

 

[Canny man]

I can confirm the anecdotes on Bose customer service. My two year old QC3's developed a fault with the connection to the cable. I sent them to a Bose service centre along with proof of purchase and they were replaced with a new pair within the week (posted to Bose on Monday, new pair arrived Thursday). Outstanding.
Also they sound better than any other earphone I've tried.

 

[simongr]

Just wish Bose had a bluetooth version with built in mic for iPhone.