• This topic has 31 replies, 22 voices, and was last updated 7 years ago by ahsat.
Viewing 32 posts - 1 through 32 (of 32 total)
  • "Cheap" (Active) Noise Cancelling Headphones – any good?
  • deadlydarcy
    Free Member

    I fancy a pair. If I was doing lots of flying for work or using public transport in London lots, I might chuck a few more quid at the better ones, Bose, higher end Sony etc. However, I don’t. Occasionally at work, I’d like to listen to a podcast (I make lots of noise but wouldn’t/couldn’t use headphones on a site where not allowed but plenty of opportunities where it would be perfectly safe) and for a few trips a year on planes and reasonably frequent bus journeys, I’d like something better than the crappy ones that came with the phone.

    Amazon is full of lower priced ones…as well as some Sony currently under £100 (Warehouse Deal). Most popular are the Eonfine and Cowin…both around £60.

    Anyone tried a cheap pair? I imagine even a cheap pair of active noise cancelling will be a better listen than crap earbuds. Are they worth a pop? Do they block out shouty toddlers? 🙂

    jimdubleyou
    Full Member

    I had a pair that came free with my Sony Xperia Phone. Need to be plugged into the phone to work though sadly.

    I found them worse than normal earbuds. Not sure what the technical word is, but they sounded “distant” – and whatever you were listening too certainly wasn’t the only thing you could hear.

    mike_p
    Free Member

    I tried some Sony cans from Amazon that looked like good value… hopeless, went straight back again. Unless you’re going premium (i.e. Bose) a decent pair of normal earbuds are a much better bet.

    Fresh Goods Friday 696: The Middling Edition

    Fresh Goods Friday 696: The Middlin...
    Latest Singletrack Videos
    CaptainFlashheart
    Free Member

    *Disclaimer- I have a pair of Bose QC35 and they are really rather excellent*

    I also have a pair of £50 Sony brass in ear jobbies that have excellent sound quality and very good ‘blocking’ of background noise. Not ‘active’, but very good.

    simon_g
    Full Member

    Noise cancelling only works well for continuous droney noises like aeroplanes IME. Trains, buses, open-plan offices, toddlers – less so. A big pair of closed-back headphones that seal nicely around your ear are more effective for that sort of thing.

    DM52
    Free Member

    Having got on really well with a pair of Sennhieser ones I decided a few years back to try a set of really cheap Xenta active noise cancelling headphones and they made me feel so queasy I just couldn’t use them. Gave them to a friend to try and he had exactly the same issue.

    I gave up on active noise cancelling for work and went with a pair of these https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_4?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=august+ep650&sprefix=augu%2Caps%2C133&crid=2HXG64ND69RFR used them of a trip to Las Vegas last year and they did a good job of isolating the noise.

    willard
    Full Member

    *Disclaimer- I have a pair of Bose QC35 and they are really rather excellent*

    Same here (well, QC20s).

    I used to use Sennheiser in ear and over ear headphones for travelling, but the Bose ones are a leap above. More comfortable on long journeys than the over ear, better at blocking noise than the in ear ones.

    You get what you pay for.

    Sundayjumper
    Full Member

    I have some QC15 and they’ve been great. I can wear them non-stop for a 12 hour flight with no comfort issues.

    However, some decent in-ears that form a good seal will do what you want. I’ve had a few pairs of Soundmagics over the years, I like the sound but the build quality is patchy. Currently using their E10s. Never tried any of the “proper” brands.

    deadlydarcy
    Free Member

    I should have added to my OP that I bloody hate anything in-ear/earbuddish.

    CountZero
    Full Member

    I should have added to my OP that I bloody hate anything in-ear/earbuddish.

    In that case, you’re either stuck with expensive active ‘phones that need batteries/charging all the time, or big, fairly obtrusive over-ear ‘cans that’ll make you look like a wannabe dj!
    Back-to-front baseball cap with oversized flat peak almost obligatory.
    The best, least obtrusive solution I’ve found has always been proper in-ear ‘phones, or canalphones with double or triple flange eartips, or proper custom-made eartips, but those’ll set you back a lot of money, roughly £120.
    I wore my canalphones while running industrial folding machines where the ambient noise was a consistent 92dB, and they were just as good as industrial ear protection.

    deadlydarcy
    Free Member

    I don’t really give a toss what I look like wearing them – they’re not for daily use. To use them at work would require (well, not quite “require” but I’d rather just leave my phone in one place and use BT) them to be wireless anyway so they’d need some kind of charging. Like I said, anything in-ear is out of the question – they just annoy the shit out of me.

    scaredypants
    Full Member

    http://www.whathifi.com/lindy/bnx-60/review
    Got mine from novatech computers as they were cheapest at the time
    They are great at blocking out plane noise and the sound seems good to me, though I’m not a unidirectional cable type of bloke. It’s right what the review headline says; sound much better when active than passive, even if the room is quiet. I suppose that might reduce battery life a little bit

    Flaperon
    Full Member

    Spent ages last year trying to decide whether to cough up on expensive noise cancelling headphones.

    In the end I bought some decent “normal” in ear ones and a set of Comply foam tips. Takes a few seconds to put them in but complete and utter silence once the foam expands. Bonus is that you can use a lower volume setting too.

    We use active noise cancelling headsets at work which do work very well, but the constant “pressure” in your ears gets fatiguing after a few hours.

    TrailriderJim
    Free Member

    For £17, the sound quality of these is remarkable. They claim to be noise cancelling but aren’t 100% but for that price…

    [video]https://youtu.be/4R0eAnVYASw[/video]

    deadlydarcy
    Free Member

    Cheers for that scaredy…they’re still at £75 from novatech, a tenner cheaper than Amazon. That’s two* top tips from you in two days.

    *Yes, I count. Three means I maybe love you long time. Watch out for my next question. 😀

    ac505
    Free Member

    I have been very happy with my Goldring ( headphones).

    Does that sound wrong?

    mikey74
    Free Member

    I got some Sony Bluetooth (also came with wired connection) headphones before I flew to Canada last year. They were around £90. I was really impressed: they made the flight almost enjoyable.

    The noise cancelling function has an auto mode which works really well.

    I think they are the ZX770BN model.

    wobbliscott
    Free Member

    My experience of cheaper ones is that they’re not that good. When in noise cancelling mode you seem to get alot of hiss and white noise – not necessarily a loud noise, more of a sense of white noise. But the only pair of cheap ones I bought was about 6 years ago so maybe they’ve come on a bit.

    A few years ago I bit the bullet and got some Bose ones and they are excellent…however over the last 18months or so i’ve flown alot on the latest gen of aircraft (787, A350, A380) and the Airbus’s are so quiet I find I don’t turn on the noise cancelling feature as it’s not needed. The 787 isn’t quite so quiet, It’s not bad if I manage to get a seat up front it’s OK but down the back I still use the noise cancelling feature.

    I think having an over ear set makes a difference too. The on-ear ones are simply not as good at shielding out the noise from the outside.

    martymac
    Full Member

    I’ve used some cheap phillips ones, i think they were £35? They were ok, I would still be using them if the cat hadn’t eaten the cable.
    Replaced with bose qc15, better in every way except cost.
    I bought mine for going to Canada, use them occasionally in the house though.
    I’d agree with sentiment above that you get what you pay for.

    midlifecrashes
    Full Member

    Got some Philips SHB8750 for my daughter at Christmas, about £40. Not tried them on a plane yet, but seem ok on train. Sound quality decent for the money. I don’t think any mentioned here will be anywhere close to saving your hearing from repeated power tool use though.

    midlifecrashes
    Full Member

    Got some Philips SHB8750 for my daughter at Christmas, about £40. Not tried them on a plane yet, but seem ok on train. Sound quality decent for the money. I don’t think any mentioned here will be anywhere close to saving your hearing from repeated power tool use though.

    CaptainFlashheart
    Free Member

    A few years ago I bit the bullet and got some Bose ones and they are excellent…however over the last 18months or so i’ve flown alot on the latest gen of aircraft (787, A350, A380) and the Airbus’s are so quiet I find I don’t turn on the noise cancelling feature as it’s not needed. The 787 isn’t quite so quiet, It’s not bad if I manage to get a seat up front it’s OK but down the back I still use the noise cancelling feature.

    Down the back? *shudders*

    Good point though. Was talking to the CSD on a Cathay A350 flight the other day and she said that crews were having to readjust their conversation volume in the galley. What was a private conversation can now be heard a fair few rows down the cabin.

    I was in 14K. Can’t say I heard any conversation, but it was awfully quiet.

    wobbliscott
    Free Member

    They are amazing things to fly on now. I know a few people who work for Airbus and they’ve received feedback form airlines that the A380 and A350 are too quiet. It seems the passengers like a bit of background drone as it helps them sleep and helps distract them from noises from other passengers.

    drslow
    Free Member

    Active noise cancelling requires power so you need a battery pack. Noise isolation means a better seal round your ear canal of tips that go deeper into your ear canal. I use Lee noise isolation with performance tips and they do a pretty good job of noise isolation.

    Another option is a self fitting ear seal kit which you put a cheaper pair of earphones in and mould to your ear. Go on any motorbike forum and there will be a thread on what earphones for riding.

    mikey74
    Free Member

    Active noise cancelling requires power so you need a battery pack.

    Not if they’re rechargeable, like my Sonys.

    scaredypants
    Full Member

    I was in 14K. Can’t say I heard any conversation, but it was awfully quiet.

    footwear shots or it didn’t happen 😀

    CaptainFlashheart
    Free Member

    Scaredy, my only photo from that flight

    A rather nice LBV, IIRC.

    Am back on Cathay, and a couple of A350 sectors, in a couple of weeks. I’ll wear my Manolos. 😉

    sbob
    Free Member

    http://www.richersounds.com/product/all-headphones/akg/y50/akg-y50-blk

    Bought those for my missus.
    On ear but can’t hear a bloody thing with them on. Might buy myself some.

    nemesis
    Free Member

    DD, I’ve got two sets of cheap ones from 7dayshop.

    The first are wired but otherwise the same (in terms of noise canceling) as my second set which are BT. I liked the wired ones enough that I got the BT ones.

    I use them for flying which I do a reasonable amount of these days and I’ve found them very good. I’ve compared to a colleague’s expensive Bose ones. His are better but imo, not £200+ better particularly when actually listening to films or music.

    I know you want BT ones but drop me an email and I’ll send you my wired ones to try out to see if they’re worthwhile for you

    https://www.7dayshop.com/products/7dayshop-headphones-aero-7-active-noise-cancelling-headphones-with-aeroplane-kit-and-travel-case-7dayadhf

    https://www.7dayshop.com/products/7dayshop-aero-freedom-active-noise-cancelling-bluetooth-4-1-wireless-headphones-headset-with-mic-for-handsfree-sb-004

    nemesis
    Free Member

    Oh and to join the humblebragging ( 😉 ), business in an A380 recently and I did still use the NC

    wobbliscott
    Free Member

    But you don’t need NC on an A380. You can hardly hear the engines on take off, especially if you’re forward of the engines. No more of the death or glory engine spool up at the end of the runway with the interior fixtures and fittings shaking as you start the take off roll. Even with the Bose I find the NC does affect the sound quality, you get a sort of background white noise – not so much a noise that you hear, you just sense it, so i’ll only use it if I feel I need it. And the over ear design does a good job of noise isolation, so adequate up front on an A380 without NC. And the windage noise in cruise is barely detectable unless you make a conscious effort to listen for it.

    ahsat
    Full Member

    I’ve got a set of £40 wired Sony noise cancelling ear cans. And for the price they are very good. Make a big difference on a plane and help working in a shared office. Just need one AAA battery. Only issue is, long haul – used them to go to Japan and USA – they do make my ears hurt after several hours as they squash them rather than sit round them. However, still good for the cost and kill a lot of white noise. No doubt Bose is better, but can’t justify that price!

Viewing 32 posts - 1 through 32 (of 32 total)

The topic ‘"Cheap" (Active) Noise Cancelling Headphones – any good?’ is closed to new replies.