noise cancelling headphones

[Wombat]

I'm sure we've had this before, but...   We are going to New Zealand next January, and its a long flight, and 'er indoors is particularly sensitive to the higher frequencies that exist in a plan passenger cabin (as well as squealing kids, that is)  Short of wearing her full blown ear defenders, are noise cancelling headphones really effective at allowing you to listen to music at a moderate volume yet getting rid of all the whooshing and whining aircraft make?  Any recommendations, preferably not in the Bose several hundred pounds range...?  I tend to veer towards Sennheiser by default.

Another related issue, i am going to the Le Mans 24hr race this year.  I don't want to go deaf, and I do want/need to be able to listen to radio le mans to keep track of whats going on.  My original plan was to wear in ear phones on my phone/mp3/radio, with the good ear defenders on top, hoping they'll seal OK over the thin wire.  Is this a feasible solution, or would noise cancelling headphones be of use here too?

[Biggsy]

For the flight: headphones don't have to be actively noise-cancelling to effectively cut out most of the ambient noise, including high frequency.

I find Sennheiser HD 25-1 work well.  They're well padded and press on the ears quite firmly (but not uncomfortably once used to them).  They're also small enough to be reasonably portable.

The closed-back HD 25-1 IIs are purpose-designed, professional monitoring headphones offering high attenuation of background noise. Capable of handling very high sound pressure levels and of extremely robust construction, these headphones perform exceptionally well in high-noise environments, e.g. ENG, sound reinforcement, studio monitoring and audio equipment testing. The capsule is rotatable for one-ear listening. They are highly efficient, making them ideal for battery-portable equipment. Ideal monitoring headphones for cameramen and DJs.

For Le Mans: you want to check out what motorcyclists use for communications - like combined ear plugs/ear phones.

[Jaded]

I have Sennheiser PXC 250 noise cancellers that I bought in the US for the flight home. They reduce the level of noise and yet allow cabin announcements through. That's probably down the the cancelling working well for constant noise. They certainly don't cut out all the noise, just attenuate it.

They also appear to apply 'loudness' to the output, which seems to be a bit of a con. However it does mean that you can turn the volume down a bit on the device.

[rafletcher]

I've got some Sennheiser ones like this

http://www.play.com/Electronics/Electronics/4-/5537611/Sennheiser-PXC250-Noise-Cancelling-Headphones/Product.html?_%24ja=tsid:11518%7Ccat:5537611%7Cprd:5537611

Which are reasonably effective.

[tonycollinet]

I've never been too impressed with noise cancellation. Certainly it's never been any more effective than the in ear "blocking" type of ear buds such as

Amazon.com: Sennheiser  CX300-B In-Ear Stereo Headphone: Electronics

Which have also revolutionised portable sound quality for me. They can take some getting used to though.

[PaulR]

I've used the sennheiser CX-300 in-ear things for a while now and I am very happy with them.  They helped me through about sixty hours of flights last summer.

[Mrs Pingu]

Love my PXC250's! I never got on with the in-ear Sennheisers',  they just didn't fit my ears and made them hurt.

[simonp]

I have the Bose QC4 ones which replaced my old QC2 ones once the padding wore through.  Definitely a big improvement; far more effective, and instantaneous cancelation rather than taking a few seconds to get up to speed.  I use them at work to block out most of the background noise.

[Wombat]

Thanks chaps!  I don't think the in ear jobbies will suit for the flight, because Madame has not yet managed to get any in ear phones that don't violently disagree with the shape of her ear 'ole.  I don't seem to get on too well with them either but strangely, the ones that came with my Samsung phone aren't at all bad.  My usual headphones for portable use are Sennheiser PX200s.  I'll probably try buying a set of PXC250-IIs to start with.

We are not frequent flyers, far from it, but never having flown farther than Madeira, all the way to the land of the Auk is a bloody long flight!  Now will it be Air New Zealand, or Singapore Air, which lead the recommendations I've had from ex-work colleagues.  Now, is a newish A380 any quieter than a 16 year old 747?  Either way, it'll be cattle class, as the price of upgrading is horrendous.

I'll ask a few motorcyclists about what they use  for the Le Mans effort, if that isn't the answer then i think plan A, i.e. ear defenders over Samsung in ear phones will be it.  Luckily Le Mans cars are getting quieter, especially the diesels, which make a less exciting, but less brain liquidising sound.

[pumpkin]

I have a set of the original Bose ones that i got on offer in Las Vegas and they are superior to the Sennheiser ones that I originally bought and thought were good. A colleague of mine who lectured in audio rated the Bose as well but they aren't cheap. Other makes include Sony and the Sennheiser. i used to do lot of long haul and the good headphones made the flight so much bearable by cutting out a lot of the engine noise and allowing you to listen to the in-flight audio tracks

[bomber]

Maybe not massively helpful, but i wore a pair of bose A20s on the plane back from Vancouver.  Its almost mystical how well they work, was sat in my own little world of tranquility listening to the ipod   You really notice how noisy the cabin us when you take them off!  Probably looked like a bit of a tool though.

[JStone]

... Now will it be Air New Zealand, or Singapore Air, which lead the recommendations I've had from ex-work colleagues.  ...

<OT> I can highly recommend Royal Brunei as a (probably cheaper) alternative to ANZ & Singapore Air. We flew London - Auckland return with them earlier this year and were very impressed. Plenty of leg room, comfortable seats, constant attentive service, on-time, though some might see the 13-hour daytime stop-over outbound in Brunei as a disadvantage. We saw it as a bonus and had a great day's mini-tour of an exotic destination.</OT>

[Valiant]

The trick is to find a pair of sound isolating earphones that fit your ears. Cheaper than active noise cancelling phones in most cases. I prefer the Sennheiser stuff. But for the love of god do not buy them from ebay or Amazon marketplace et all, they're all fakes.

[FatBloke]

I thought I'd report in. Bought a set of noise cancelling headphones in ALDI last year. £20 I think they were. Took them to Le Mans a fortnight ago and they were excellent. For the first time I could hear the race commentary.   

Unfortunately I couldn't hear the Audi cars at all!!!

[sprogs]

I bought a pair from Aldi too, ended up not needing them so they are unused. If you are interested in them give me a pm.

[Wombat]

I'm on an extended stay in Central France right now, and I suspect 'er indoors may have alrrady bought some Sennheisers.  I''m not asking her as I've been a bad boy too!  Thanks for the offer, I'll get back to you if Madame has not done the deed. 

[FatBloke]

The ALDI noise cancelling headphones are on sale again from tomorrow for 18 English quids!!  Go get some!!!   http://www.aldi.co.uk/uk/html/offers/special_buys3_20330.htm?WT.mc_id=2011-08-15-10-20

[alexb]

As a slight aside, I've got the Sennheiser CX300 ear-bud type headphones and much prefer the Skull Candy Ink'd headphones.
The Skull Candy phones have a deeper section to the part that goes into the ear. I find it more effective at excluding noise and more comfortable. My Sennheisers gradually work their way out of my ears which I find irritating after a while.

[Canardly]

Sennys everytime