Our family are going on several long haul flights next year on an extended holiday and one of the planes (a Boeing 747 IIRC) is notorious for being very loud and I want to get headphones for two adults and two children. One of the children is very fussy about things being uncomfortable (slightly on the spectrum and has ‘discomfort’ issues) but really likes the comfort of Apple headphones.

I don’t want to spend lots as they won’t get heavily used afterwards but want something that works well and are comfortable.

Many thanks

As per http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/long-flight-noise-cancelling-head-phones

Bose are good. Cheap ones aren’t.

Cost-effective way if you use in-ear headphones is to put on a pair of ear defenders over the top – it cuts a lot of noise.

Well sealing in-ear headphones with rubbery silicon tips are probably your best bet for cheap noise-covering.

I’ve flown numerous times with just the standard apple headphones with no issues, this included a 14hour flight as well as many short haul flights.

I find the noise cancelling in ears ones ill fitting and uncomfortable.

Buy some second hand Bose ones (QC25 maybe) from ebay them sell them on when done. You won’t be left that much out of pocket and you’ll have had a reasonable set of ear duffs for your trip(s).

Well sealing in-ear headphones with rubbery silicon tips are probably your best bet for cheap noise-covering.

^^This^^

Don’t be the ones leaking tinny noise from your Apple headphones while you try and drown out the jet noise!

747s aren’t especially noisy, either.

747s aren’t especially noisy, either.

It might not be the 747 (I don’t have the details to hand) but my wife said all the reviews on SeatGuru said this particular plane was very noisy, especially when sat behind the engines (which we’ll seek to avoid of course).

Ahem,

Noise cancelling earphones for sale

Well sealing in-ear headphones with rubbery silicon tips are probably your best bet for cheap noise-covering.

Yep.

I have some musician ones with different inserts for differing attenuation and they are brilliant.

On flights I just use some £20 in ear headphones, which work fine for me, have music on really low and still don’t notice background noise.

I posted these on a thread a few days ago, seem quite good for £25:

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

I have no idea what they’re like but they seem to get good reviews. Might be worth a punt…

I bought some Lindy NC40 headphones. They were about £40. I am well impressed. There is no way £200+ Bose ones can be 5 times better.

I listen to podcasts in bed sometimes. The noise cancelling totally kills the noise of the extractor fan in the adjacent bathroom. I know, not as noisy as a 747, but the noise is totally gone.

Given how infrequently I use them, the Lindys are great for me.

Not sure if you want ‘headphones’ to listen to stuff as well as drown out engine noise, or ‘ear defenders’ to just drown out engine noise? Cheapo bog standard ear defenders from a builder’s merchant/screwfix are brilliant at the latter. c.£10.
I can vouch for this having recently been building shelving into a remarkably acoustically resonant alcove made of Accrington Brick making about three dozen screaming holes with a hammer drill.
Both maybe, given the subject’s sensitivities?

Do7day shop still do their own?

They weren’t half bad when we compared my daughters to our bose ones. Certainly worth the £35 we paid, may be a bit more now.

Love my (sod the budget) Sennheiser momentum 2.0’s. Noise cancelling not as good as Bose but much much nicer sound.

Some sony mp3 players had a noose cancelling facility too. Not sure if they still do.

Look at this on eBay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/253147923428

I have some Bose QC25 on eBay at the moment, might be worth a look for you.

Some sony mp3 players had a noose cancelling facility too. Not sure if they still do

Nwz-580 series, really good plus would have the battery life to last the flights easily.

Only down side is the proprietary charger.

Maybe mix a match?

Buy a couple of Bose ones second hand and a couple of cheap ones. Then you can be sure your son will be happy with at least one set. As has been said, you can sell the Bose ones when you get back. Although I garuntee you’ll end up wanting to keep a pair.

I have the in-ear Bose ones. I personally recommend them over the on-ear ones, because you can still lean your head on the side of the plane/pillow and not push them off. Noise cancelling properties aren’t quite as good as the on-ear ones, but they are still quite spectacular.

Do7day shop still do their own?

Yeah, see my post above. £25 now with the voucher offer – at that price I’m tempted even though I don’t need any more headphones!

sennheiser

little brother bought some of these for a flight to NZ – said they were good

Can also vouch for the bose in-ear ones. I take 4 flights once a fortnight. From the moment I enter the airport to the moment I pick up my hire car they don’t get turned off. Its surprising how noisy an aircraft is – lots of hvac hiss, along with the 400hz whine from the electrics. Engines themselves are pretty low down on the scale of irritation.

The headphone have a bypass mode which provides feedback when talking on the phone so you DON’T SOUND LIKE DOM JOLY, phone integration is really good (beware that there are specific Android and iOS versions) and battery life is excelent (16hrs+ on a charge). When the battery goes they revert to being regular, great earphones. They don’t suffer from the signature bose fantastic bass, fantastic trebble and no midrange issue either.

You get three different sized silicone gaskets to fit different ears. I’ll happily sleep with them in on longhaul, though as with all ear buds, they may not suit everyone.