I've been using the Bose QC20's for the last 2 years. I fly several times a year domestic and international. The QC20's are well worth the investment.

Over the years, I've met several people who have lost their hearing and that's one of the things I've always been wary of. When mowing the yard, I wear the QC20's and they're great.

When mowing the yard, operating hand tools or loud machinery, the QC20's are the first thing I put on.

quote:

Originally posted by KDR:

The only downside to a nice pair of noise cancelling headphones is that they do their job very well. My wife has to practically scream to get my attention if I've got them on.

Downside?

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

Hmmm... Buy 'em now, when needing them will be a year off, or wait until I need them, only to find they're either no longer available or have taken a quality hit?

Decisions, decisions...

quote:

Verdict

Monoprice’s SonicSolace Active Noise-Cancelling Bluetooth headphones offer superb value for money. The noise-cancelling function and Bluetooth performance are both excellent. The build-quality is far better than you’d expect for the price. All in all, these headphone offer great value and great performance. My only criticism is that at 346g they can feel a bit heavy and look a bit bulky... but for $70 you can’t have everything. If you can’t afford a pair of Bose QC35 these Monoprice headphones punch well above their weight.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/m...der-70/#67c41a421ac7

quote:

Originally posted by thezoltar:


They appear to be the same to me. I love mine. I use a $1000 set of Sennheisers when I'm at work and I think these are their equals when it comes to noise cancelling and music.

How do you store them? They don't seem to come with a case.

I bought audio tecnica and got 80% of bose performance for 30% of the price.

I once had a pair of (Sanyo?) that were actually painful to wear more than an hour or so. But they were cheap.

Would never have spent the money on the Bose. But then I won a pair of QC2's in a contest at work. Now I couldn't be without them. The original pair has been going strong for at least ten years and Bose supplied me a free refit kit that replaced my worn out earcups like new. I also have a pair of QC25's now and the tech has just gotten better over time.

No need to save them for flights... nice even if you just want a quieter day or evening around the house.

quote:

How do you store them? They don't seem to come with a case.

A case can be had on eBay for about 6-7 bucks. I just toss mine into my computer bag. No ill effects so far.

A bit over a year ago this thread popped-up just after we returned from a trip to Europe. Missed it by this >< much

We've just scheduled another, so it was time to make a decision. I looked at the Monoprice product referenced earlier, but did not care for some of the negatives I read. Particularly regarding build quality.

Looked at a couple others. The biggest problem with all the affordable products was build quality. Either mechanical or electronics. Was considering the Audio-Technica ATH-M50xBT at about $180. Looked like that was what I was going to have to spend. Biggest complaint with them is their Bluetooth implementation is a bit wonky.

Then discovered the Plantronics Backbeat Pro 2 wireless noise-cancelling headphones, currently $130 on Amazon. (Normal street price is closer to $200.)

• Over-the ear: Check
  
• Bluetooth: Check
  
• Wired-capable: Check
  
• Solidly-constructed: Check
  
• Reportedly comfortable: Check
  
• Affordable: Check
  

Read a half-dozen of so reviews. Bottom-line: While not as good as a $350 pair, darn close for something at nearly half the price. The clincher for me was when I read one reviewer's comment that he'd worn them all day and they'd been comfortable, and he had big ears.

Got them in this morning. Initial impressions: Very comfortable. I have large ears and most over-the-ear headphones become annoying, if not down-right painful, after a couple hours. I've been wearing these for going on 2-1/2 hours and I'm still fine.

The passive noise cancelling is just so-so. E.g.: I can still hold a conversation with them on. The active noise cancelling I think will largely eliminate that annoying low hum on an air flight. Walked into the bathroom at one point, flipped on the fan, listened, thought "Hmmm...", flipped on the active noise cancelling and the fan's low hum went away entirely. (ETA: Just experienced the same results while microwaving the pizza I'll soon be enjoying for lunch.)

Sound quality is, to my ears, perfectly balanced. Just the right amount of low end, and clear high end w/o being jangly. This latter aspect is important to me, because my hearing sucks and I have tinnitus. Too little high end and things lack clarity. Too much high end can be almost painful to my ears.

Passive sound quality, wired, with the power off, plugged into my iPhone, was more subdued--with the bass and higher-end clarity dropping off markedly. Still "ok," but nothing to write home to mom about.

Held a Facetime call with my wife and she reported the microphone sound quality from my end was fine.

I'll update in the future after they've been tried on a plane.

Or go really cheap and use earbuds plus one of those sleep noise apps, rain, etc. Works great for me.

quote:

Originally posted by Georgeair:
Or go really cheap and use earbuds plus one of those sleep noise apps, rain, etc. Works great for me.

I wanted these primarily so I could hear the sound on in-flight movies without having to turn the volume up excessively high.

One of the big problems with hearing loss, particularly high-end roll-off, is increasing difficulty pulling sound you want to hear out of noise.

For just noise suppression on the flight I've found a pair of good foam ear plugs work fine.

I've got a pair of TaoTronics that are pretty kickass for $60.

https://www.amazon.com/TaoTron..._dp_s_web_5608252011

I have a pair of Bose QC15 that work well for blocking out the noise from my Kubota zero turn. You can find them for about $65 used on eBay.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: mcrimm,

I have a pair of Bose QC15s that I use for work, but wanted something cheaper and less bulky for working around the house or exercising. On a whim I tried the wireless Taotronics in ear headphones for gym work and loved them so much I got a second pair for the gym, then bought the wired Active noise reduction for airline travel to and from work. The quality is good, sound reproduction is out standing and the active noise reduction is tremendous. I can't say enough good things about them. And the price, you can just throw them away and not sweat it if you don't like them. I love them and have 3 pair I use nearly every day.

https://smile.amazon.com/s?k=t...1&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_7_6

Go Bose and go home. Buy once cry once.

you only get one shot at hearing and when its gone, it doesn't come back

as with all things, you get what you pay for, so depending on how much you value your hearing, plan accordingly

not everything is equal

for a $75 investment, I'd suggest you get a shitload of foam earplugs and a pair of passive ear defenders at the local hardware store

To address the last two comments...

We're not talking about hearing protection. We're talking about

quote:

Originally posted by Ackks:
... an affordable pair of active noise cancelling headphones to use on airplanes.

...for listening to music, in-flight movies, or what-have-you while you're flying.

If all I wanted to do is shut down the noise I'd do what I've been doing for four decades: A good pair of foam earplugs.

The other point of the thread was affordable noise-cancelling headphones. I don't know about anybody else, but paying $250 or more for a pair of headphones that may get used for a few hours once a year does not equate to "affordable" in my view.

These are the ones I have. Noise cancelling is as good as bose in my opinion. I found the bose a little more comfortable, but not worth the price difference.

https://www.amazon.com/Audio-T...777&s=gateway&sr=8-3