Best headphones for the price.
 

Not sure if this is the right forum to post this but, I was wondering what are the best headphones to use on a flight that don't cost an arm and a leg. I usually use regular earbuds and half the time have trouble hearing the music/movies on my ipad over the drone of the engine noise. I was wondering what everyone else uses and if they recommend them. I only fly 5-6 times a year so paying more than $150 seems a bit excessive for something I would only use sparingly.

You are going to get a lot of responses but headphones, earbuds and the like are very personal things. I probably have 10 different headphones ranging from Bose down to ... well not even sure of the brand and I have a collection of earbuds that will rival a museum. I have odd ears and could never find any that fit comfortably. I've had them made through audiologists (worked great) and 3D scanned and printed (worked OK) and bought about every brand I could find. I've tried foam tips, flanges, and all manner or material.

My current favorites are the AKG set (http://us.akg.com/Y+23U.html?dwvar_Y...=Black#start=1). They were not expensive but sound very good. They fit in my ear well enough to be noise isolating and I use the small in one ear and xtra-small in the other (they come with 4 sizes of tips). they ar every comfortable to me.

Even flying 5-6 times/year, I think you'd benefit from some noise-cancelling headphones. After that, "best" is very dependent on what's comfortable for you...whether it's in-ear, on-ear, or around-ear headphones, and how this consideration ranks compared to sound quality. And whether you want Bluetooth, find certain controls easier to use, or want minimal bulkiness for packing.

I keep finding myself in the Bose pricepoint just because I find their headphones to be the most comfortable on my ears. I just returned a fabulous-sounding pair of Sennheiser Momentum 2.0's because they tortured my outer ears, and ordered Bose QC35's which probably won't sound as good but fit better. YMMV.

Your listening preferences and use cases matter the most. That said, you may not like bose unless you like the "bose sound" found in most of the bose commercials.

I am in no way an audiophile. I just like being able to hear sound. I've never used anything other then my apple earbuds which don't cut in on an airplane.

My son swears by these and he flies regularly.
https://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technic...XAWK65FRPGJH3E

I agree too

surviving on a pair of sony NC earbuds.... they were cheap (~$50), good for my 1-2 flights a year

there are a couple of cheap audio technica NC earbuds on amazon...

I would take a hard look at the Etymotic mc5.

http://www.etymotic.com/consumer/earphones/mc5.html

~40 dB noise isolation and a low impedance of 16 ohms so it won't chew up your battery as fast.

They're also much easier to pack than a full-size set of headphones.

I have a pair of very good Sony NC cans that I've had for 6 years, but on flights of 3-4 hours or shorter, I just take my B&O Play ear buds (non-NC) that block a lot of noise passively while also taking up 0 room. One of my pet peeves with NC headphones is their relative bulkiness, and if I'm only doing carry-on, I sacrifice the added silence for extra socks.

I like over-the-ear headphones and finally settled on this one from Sony, because - like you - I wasn't interesting in spending a ton of money.

I have been using airbuds for the last few years and I really like them. They are cheap and very comfortable (I can wear them for an entire TPAC flight with no discomfort). The do a good enough job of blocking out external noise that I no longer hear crying babies or annoying conversations when I have music or the IFE on :)

Value for Money
 

These headphones are hard to beat in the value for money category.

https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-.../dp/B00NBEWB4U

There are a number of reviews online for these.

I agree you should invest in active noise cancelling headphones -- the difference is well worth it for air travel, IMO. Then you can decide what type. I had some nice Seinheiser, but when they finally bit the dust I stepped up to Bose and am very pleased with the ones I have. If it is possible where you live, try to find a place to try them on -- weight and fit make a big difference.

+1 on this brand. I have the HF 5 and I won't say they are the best headphones. but they do block the noise on the middle and upper frequencies.

the QC series of headphones are nice but I have dog hearing. I can hear the out of phase noise that is supposed to cancel the noise. this gets worse, when my headset touches the seat or any part of the airplane. so, unless i'm sitting straight up like a good student in 4th grade, I have to use the noise isolators....

I am very fond of noise cancelling head phones.. I bought a pair of Sony ANC headphones at DXB wayyy back in 2007 - cost me a ridiculous amount back then (something like USD200) but they ended up serving me very well for many years and the ANC worked great. Also very comfortable for 8-12+ hour flights.

I can't stand over-ear headphones, they make me feel sick from the pressure, so need in-ear. My sony's finally died so recently wanted another pair but didn't have much time before departure.. also desperate to avoid the cost of the the bose QC20.

Really hard to find good options (in Australia at least) it turns out, and the only decent looking option ended up being this Audio Technica set for about $100: http://www.audio-technica.com/cms/he...838/index.html

Sadly, while they are "OK" they definitely get uncomfortable over longer periods of time (2+ hours) no matter which of the 3 included earpiece covers I use. The Sony's had a much more comfortable and much softer rubber ear surround. But they still seem to be one of the better active options for the price. They also have the all-to-typical annoying issue of the battery holder being the perfect length from either the headphone port, or the ear phones, to ever not be "just too short" and pulling no matter where you clip it. Particularly on my pocket/belt or on my collar are both bad.

I also have a set of LG HBS800 which are actually pretty good other than the fact they are Bluetooth. Which is fine for my phone, but I frequently like to use my headphones on the inflight entertainment (you know how bad the included ones often are) so they are not so good for flying.


Still lusting after the QC20 and will probably cave on a set at some point. Though I would dream further if someone made a set like the QC20 but with bluetooth built-in along-side the wired option. Would make them better for combined every day use.