Honey, I shrunk the noise cancelling headphones

[RCR]

After three years of adoring my Bose QC15 noise cancelling headphones, I noticed Bose has a new toy on offer - QC20 noise cancelling earbuds. I read reviews on the internet and then popped down the road to the Bose showroom. The guy there was more than happy to let me try on a set. Wow! I bought them straight away. I love my headphones. The only complaint I had was they were so bulky to carry around and to sleep in.

 

These new earbuds are just that - earbuds, but they do exactly the same job as the headphones.

 

Complaints on the internet are:

 

The cost. Yes, they are really expensive ($399AUD) but my Bose headphones are still as good as new after three years of rough handling and lots of travel. Hopefully the earbuds will last as long and give me as much good service.

 

Poor sound quality. Well, it's good enough for me.

 

Hissing. Someone on amazon complained he heard hissing with both the QC15 and QC20's. I've never heard it.

 

I didn't see any complaints from folk saying the buds wouldn't fit in their ears comfortably, but I've seen that criticism about other brand earbuds. The QC20's come with three sets of buds in different sizes. The default ones were fine for me. They're a bit fiddly to seat in your ears but then they are extremely comfortable.

 

If you love your QC15 headphones but the bulkiness is annoying, I suggest you pop into the local Bose showroom and try out these little beauties. Note that there are two models - QC20i for folks who use iphones and ipads and the plain QC20 for Android and Windows devices. They come with an airplane jack of course.

 

[frenchdude]

Maybe a stupid question since I've never used noise-cancelling earbuds but what is the black box for.

At first I guessed it's to retract the cable into for ease of putting away but doesn't seem to be the case...

[Atlas]

Hmmm...

 

Great report, pity it's 4 months too late!  

 

I bought some 'plane quiet platinum' and they work well also, but you are right about the bulkiness... 

[RCR]

Maybe a stupid question since I've never used noise-cancelling earbuds but what is the black box for.

 

At first I guessed it's to retract the cable into for ease of putting away but doesn't seem to be the case...

That's the battery and on/off switch. The smaller black box further up the wire is more controls. I didn't give a big description of the device or specs because there is heaps of information about it on the net.

 

If you've never used noise cancelling headphones - they cancel out CONSTANT noise like aircraft engines, aircon, traffic. Abrupt sounds like people talking, babies crying or dogs barking will be lessened but not completely deadened.

[Farangkie]

Just bought the Parrot Zik Noise Cancelling headphones to replace my Bose QC 15's , being Bluetooth and therefore no wires is the main reason I got them , plus they sound sensational.

 

 

 

.

[cmw]

I have the QC15 headphones, and use them for flights. I wouldn't be without them now. I have Bose buds without noise cancelling for normal ipod listening, and they are great. They were £80, but a huge upgrade on the earphones that come with an ipod etc.

[brisbaneAl]

I have some mid range sony N/C earbuds and while they are no where near the quality of the Bose the last few flights have been far more enjoyable because of them. N/C's are the bomb for long hauls and I will never fly without them again.

[losworld]

save some money and buy sennheiser you can get a great pair for 50 bucks and just turn up the volume and you have noise cancellation without loss in fidelity.  As per the bose I am sure they are good but bose is grossly overpriced.  I had friends worked in electronics sales and they would sell the expensive bose all day because the margins were so fat. 

[cockney_fozz]

I too have Bose, I prefer the over ear phones, bulky yes, but the performance is astounding. I would not change them for anything. I even swith them and unplug them for a nice sleep on the plane. 

[Gnorman]

I have the Bose QC15 headphones, I find them fantastic.

 

I bought them to replace my in ear Shure earbuds, I found having the buds in my ears for so many hours annoying and my ears hurting from them. I hope your Bose QC20's are more comfortable than my Shure's were after hours of use.

 

The over ear QC15's are much much more comfortable.

 

Thanks for reporting on the QC20's, be interesting if you could report back after you do a few flights with them.

[Sofa King High]

I'll take a pair or $15 buds and 10 Soi6 STs any day 

[HappyHour1973]

I have a 15/20 quid pair of Sony MXR or EXR or something and they're tremendous, do a fantastic job, no complaints and no strange black box!

[Shaksey]

I have a 15/20 quid pair of Sony MXR or EXR or something and they're tremendous, do a fantastic job, no complaints and no strange black box!

 

How's the noise cancelling work on those? Oh yeah, it doesn't. 

[Shaksey]

I got some of the QC15's for my Grandad and thought that the noise cancelling worked well but as headphones they were poor, the same as most other Bose products on the sound quality front. A lot of good ideas and different kind of products but actual sound quality not so good. 

[ricktoronto]

Maybe a stupid question since I've never used noise-cancelling earbuds but what is the black box for.

 

At first I guessed it's to retract the cable into for ease of putting away but doesn't seem to be the case...

NC headphones use a microphone outside the earphones, in the case or on the outside of over the ear headphones to sample the ambient sound.

 

They then generate an inverse signal (of the ambient sound outside your head) and inject that into the music stream you are listening to.

 

An inverted wave will cancel out the sound leaving only the music you are listening to as what your ears hear. The reduction in constant sound can be quite remarkable, like the jet engine and a/c sounds on a plane. I sleep with them on, on a plane, with no audio signal, just the headphones powered on.

 

They need the box for the battery, microphone and little amplifier to generate the inverse wave. In the Bose QC over the ear headphones the microphone is in the outside of the shell, the battery is in one of the "arms" of the headphone and the amplifier is inside.

 

You can see how this works with audio speakers. If you play one out of phase with the other (red to black and black to red on one speaker) and place them face to face there is almost no sound even when turned up quite high, especially with bass.

 

This is how some audio repair shops test amplifiers overnight into a real load without the neighbours complaining.

[Christo69]

I love the $300 noise cancelling Dr Dre Beats headphones. The clones are sold in Thailand for $60 and sound almost identical. I think a Chinese software engineer left Beats and stole the code!

[L.O.S Lyle]

Panasonic RPHJE120K In-Ear Headphone

(not noise cancelling headphones, but at $6 "including shipping" a good deal for cheap charlies!)

 

http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-RPHJE120K-In-Ear-Headphone-Black/dp/B003EM8008/ref=sr_1_14?s=aht&ie=UTF8&qid=1385340320&sr=1-14

[L.O.S Lyle]

JVC HANC250 Noise Cancelling Headphones

These are a great deal if you don't have $300 for the Bose headphones. These are about $97 on sale

 

 

http://www.amazon.com/JVC-HANC250-Noise-Cancelling-Headphones/dp/B000U07C1U/ref=sr_1_35?s=aht&ie=UTF8&qid=1385340763&sr=1-35

[RCR]

I have the Bose QC15 headphones, I find them fantastic.

 

I bought them to replace my in ear Shure earbuds, I found having the buds in my ears for so many hours annoying and my ears hurting from them. I hope your Bose QC20's are more comfortable than my Shure's were after hours of use.

 

The over ear QC15's are much much more comfortable.

 

Thanks for reporting on the QC20's, be interesting if you could report back after you do a few flights with them.

Well, I have now made a flight using the Bose QC20 earbuds.

 

First, let me say that I didn't primarily buy them for flying. I already had the QC15 headphones which are extremely effective. But they are bulky. In October last year I moved into a new flat. It's in a high rise in the middle of the city and I suspect it is a converted office block. At night when there is no ambient noise, I discovered that the sound of the building aircon and a restaurant extractor fan blasting away was really aggravating. I was committed to a 12 month lease and breaking it would have cost big bucks. The QC15 headphones stopped the sounds totally, but they are uncomfortable to sleep in. So I bought the QC20 earbuds. They did the job beautifully. They banished all the constant aircon and extractor fan roar and they were so comfortable to sleep in that I would forget I was wearing them. they gave me many beautiful, silent siestas. For that purpose alone, they were worth the cost.

 

But now the flight test. The news isn't so good.

 

Batteries: the QC15 headphones use a AAA battery and the QC20 earbuds use a rechargable battery. I prefer the AAA battery system because I can always carry a bunch of spare batteries when I fly. But with the rechargable battery I was anxious about it running out, because there was no way to recharge it while flying.

 

Convenience: The earbuds are tiny, easy to carry and so comfortable I forget I am wearing them. The headphones are bulky to carry around and I am always aware they are clamped on my head.

 

Sound deadening:  I always sit in the same place on flights (a Boeing 777, row 50+, aisle F seat). I couldn't directly compare the headphones and the earbuds because I only brought the earbuds on this flight. So these are just my subjective impressions on the performance of the old headphones vs the new earbuds:

 

I have worn the headphones on many flights and they deaden constant plane noise to just about zero. Passenger chatter and baby crying is deadened to a dull and distant murmur. It's like being at the bottom of a swimming pool and being aware that people are talking on the surface a long way above you.

 

While in my new flat, I was able to compare the earbuds against the headphones simply by swapping them over and they seemed to have exactly the same excellent effect on the constant air con noise. But in the plane, the earbuds seemed to cancel only part of the noise. There was still a deep and constant rumble coming through the earbuds and passenger chatter and baby crying seemed sharper and clearer.

 

In their advertisements, Bose boast they used new software/hardware in their QC20's. So maybe there is a real difference in the sound range that the headphones and the earbuds can handle.

 

Again, I have to say this is only my subjective impression. But I was disappointed with their performance and wished I had brought my headphones as well. On my next flight I will do that.

 

To anyone considering buying the headphones vs the earbuds - I would recommend the headphones. The earbuds are great if you want to sleep in comfort, but for killing noise, go for the headphones.

[me1]

For me I only use noise canceling phones when I fly so about two trips a year. I looked at the Bose ones but after reading reviews of this http://www.whathifi.com/review/goldring-ns-1000-noise-cancelling

 

A set of goldring got 5 stars when it was £150, later it was reviewed at £100 but you can normaly pick em up at around £60. In tests they achieve just a shade under the Bose ones at £300. The goldring ones are not pretty though but then who is at 30,000 feet after 9 hours!

 

In value terms the Goldring are untouchable but bear in mind that all noise canceling phones are for that purpose as you can pay a third of the price and get better results from a standard pair. 

[pornmagpie]

I find that noise cancelling headphones make me feel disorrientated, does anyone else have that problem?

[Gnorman]

Well, I have now made a flight using the Bose QC20 earbuds.

 

First, let me say that I didn't primarily buy them for flying. I already had the QC15 headphones which are extremely effective. But they are bulky. In October last year I moved into a new flat. It's in a high rise in the middle of the city and I suspect it is a converted office block. At night when there is no ambient noise, I discovered that the sound of the building aircon and a restaurant extractor fan blasting away was really aggravating. I was committed to a 12 month lease and breaking it would have cost big bucks. The QC15 headphones stopped the sounds totally, but they are uncomfortable to sleep in. So I bought the QC20 earbuds. They did the job beautifully. They banished all the constant aircon and extractor fan roar and they were so comfortable to sleep in that I would forget I was wearing them. they gave me many beautiful, silent siestas. For that purpose alone, they were worth the cost.

 

But now the flight test. The news isn't so good.

 

Batteries: the QC15 headphones use a AAA battery and the QC20 earbuds use a rechargable battery. I prefer the AAA battery system because I can always carry a bunch of spare batteries when I fly. But with the rechargable battery I was anxious about it running out, because there was no way to recharge it while flying.

 

Convenience: The earbuds are tiny, easy to carry and so comfortable I forget I am wearing them. The headphones are bulky to carry around and I am always aware they are clamped on my head.

 

Sound deadening:  I always sit in the same place on flights (a Boeing 777, row 50+, aisle F seat). I couldn't directly compare the headphones and the earbuds because I only brought the earbuds on this flight. So these are just my subjective impressions on the performance of the old headphones vs the new earbuds:

 

I have worn the headphones on many flights and they deaden constant plane noise to just about zero. Passenger chatter and baby crying is deadened to a dull and distant murmur. It's like being at the bottom of a swimming pool and being aware that people are talking on the surface a long way above you.

 

While in my new flat, I was able to compare the earbuds against the headphones simply by swapping them over and they seemed to have exactly the same excellent effect on the constant air con noise. But in the plane, the earbuds seemed to cancel only part of the noise. There was still a deep and constant rumble coming through the earbuds and passenger chatter and baby crying seemed sharper and clearer.

 

In their advertisements, Bose boast they used new software/hardware in their QC20's. So maybe there is a real difference in the sound range that the headphones and the earbuds can handle.

 

Again, I have to say this is only my subjective impression. But I was disappointed with their performance and wished I had brought my headphones as well. On my next flight I will do that.

 

To anyone considering buying the headphones vs the earbuds - I would recommend the headphones. The earbuds are great if you want to sleep in comfort, but for killing noise, go for the headphones.

 

A belated thanks for your field report RCR.

[taylor1975]

I've read quite a few reviews by audio electronics wizards and bose has commonly been elongated to 'B etter O ff with S omething E lse'.

 

The main gripe was developing a bass sound by tricking your ears using the wrong frequency - or something along those lines. It came from those little cubes they sell which they say deliver powerful bass. The audiophiles say that its not possible to change physics and you need a large enclosed box od air to create bass. again, something like that. The bose componenets were described as the cheapest of the cheap but with fancy packaging/marketing etc. Their sample rooms that are setup in certain stores were described as costing a fortune and creating impossibly perfect dynamics that you just can't do at home.

 

I know that pro car stereo folk would never use them, despite lots of manufacturers have them as an optional upgrade package.

 

I don't trust a review from what-hifi (uk magazine). I bet bose advertise heavily in it.

 

Never tried ear cancelling headphones as the battery pack puts me off. I have a decent pair of skull candy titans which seem great for the cost. I could never buy anything bose as i'm not 100% sure i'm not being tricked into buying a product with premium pricetag and distinctly average components.