Considering getting noise cancelling headphones
 

I've never used this type of headphones before so I'm not sure if I should get them. I have some airmiles (Canada) and don't really collect them anymore so I'm thinking about using them to pick up a pair of JVC HA-NC260 headphones.

I don't fly a lot compared to most people on here, but I have two trips from Ontario, Canada to Asia in 2011. I've done that trip a couple of times and I'm thinking anything that makes is easier to deal with is worth it. My first trip is an award redemption in J but my trip later in the year is all in Y. There will probably be one or two short trips other than those - but it's the long haul trips that I'd want these for.

I'm sure there are better headphones, but I'm not looking at purchasing them - these are the only ones I can get with my airmiles. I know nobody can tell me how I will like them but I'm hoping to get some feedback and decide if I want to use my points for these or redeem them for something else.

Thanks in advance!

How about this Panasonic Noise Canceling Headphones?? Nice stuff. It might meet your needs well. Hope it helps.

I have tried noise cancelling headphones and found that they worked reasonably well but did not silence background noise, they reduced it. Over all, I didn't think they were worth the space they took up. I use in-ear noise isolating ear buds and get nearly the same effect with much less size and weight. When I'm not planning to listen to anything, I use self fitting foam earplugs.

I bought these NC earbuds a month or so ago and they seem to work really well for their compact-ness. I normally have trouble listening to inflight entertainment with the engine background, but with these it works great. I picked them up from amazon based on their high ranking in consumer reports and on amazon. There might be better ones out there by now. They take one AAA battery.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014II9F0

I have the Bose headphones and work well to cancel out the roaring noise of the engines, but you will still hear conversations, babies crying etc. Only thing I don't like is that you have to take them off when landing, earbuds can stay on so I might try the NC earbuds next.

FWIW there are probably dozens of thread on the topic but under the Travel Technology forum so searching topics under keywords like "headphones" or "noise" will yield list long enough to read for days.

Quick shout out for my favorite headphones. Replaced my Bose with Ultimate Ears UE-10's. There's nothing quite like them, though they are costly.

I have always had noise cancelling earbuds. The size and weight savings alone make a huge difference over the people with giant Bose cases in their laps. The Bose noise cancelling is the best, but I'm not willing to to have the case that takes up a significant portion of my carry on as a trade off.

If you get earbuds, make sure they are active noise cancelling. They usually have some sort of battery powered compartment to power the noise cancelling circuit. Passive noise cancelling doesn't work that well, and noise isolation is a crock because all that means is that the earbud is jammed deep in your ear and blocks outside noise.

I have the Audio Technica noise cancelling headphones. ATH-ANC3. It comes with a nice small pocket-sized case with little dividers and a 2 prong airline seat adapter, extension wire, and different sized earbuds. It's not as silent as the Bose, but its worth it for the size and weight savings.

we'll have to disagree. the reason passive is better is exactly the reason you stated. often, the most simple solution is the best. also, the earphones neednt be jammed in ones canal - its more of a function of the seal created by the 'tips' or 'adapters' (foam usually work the best).

whats better at stopping a leak on a boat? plugging the hole, or having a pump continuously cycling the ingressed water back off the sides?

okay , perhaps a bad analogy, but id rather straight-up block external noises, than have it recorded by a circuit and pumped back in my ear with the waveform reversed.

My favorites, the Etymotic ER-6i appear to be out of production. However, the company has brought some new models out, and since Etymotic invented the earbud, they'll probably work fine. They come with different size and type earbuds, which make it easier to find the right one for you. They also sell spares.

The folks at Headroom Audio recommend earbuds over the battery powered type.

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8G4 Safari/6533.18.5)

I agree about the Etymotics. I don't think i would mess with noise canceling earbuds. I have some mid range (I think ER7 is the model) and the sound is quite good and the isolation is also very good. I really only take my Bose on transpacs where I know I won't get ones from the carrier (AA for instance passes out QC15s on transpac and transatl flights in business and first). The sound is better on good earbuds and they are a lot easier to carry. I find the Bose more comfortable on very long flights. I haven't seen a very compelling argument for active noise reduction in earbuds.

For earbuds, I really really recommend Shure EC115 headphones (about $100). I just bought the Bose QC15's & will try them out today for the first time for LGA-ORD - they feel a little funny when you turn the NC function on - so I don't know how much I'll like them - but the Shure's are the best out there (and I've had the Bose earbuds as well - Shure's just feel/sound better)

I am in LOVE with my Audio-Technica ANC25's.

http://www.audio-technica.com/cms/he...404/index.html

They run about $100, come with a sturdy case, and are not as bulky as the Bose.

I bought the first Bose noise cancelling headphones, the QC-1 in 2000. The big, clunky, non folding model. They were still working 8 years later when I began looking at replacing them. I A/B'd my old Bose headphones against most of the other manufactures at an airport store and found the old Bose to be the best - others were getting close though. Later I passed by a Bose kiosk (I think in DIA) and wanted to see how my old ones stacked up against the then new QC-2. The new ones were definitely better (and they folded flat). I am now the proud owner of QC-2's. Bose gave me a deal I could not refuse - trade in my 8 year old headphones, and for $100 they gave me brand new in the box QC-2's. They now have an extremely loyal customer.

Bose are not cheap. When I first bought them, there really was no competitive product to choose, so I had to bite the bullet. I am now going on my 12th year with Bose with not one problem, and great sound.

People do bring up the issue about carry on space. Quite frankly, I agree. If I didn't listen to music as much as I do, I probably would not spend the money on a set of Bose, but I do and they're wonderful.

Thanks for the input and welcome to FT, benmacman! :)