Noise! What head set are you using?

[snx590]

Jab 3300: Zulu 2s as well - 200+ hours on them, not all Sonex time - very comfortable and excellent audio quality. Also have an older first gen Bose X but prefer the Lightspeeds - they do a much better job (according to my ears anyway) in the Sonex environment - either one good in a Cessna or Piper. I haven't had problems hitting the canopy...but I don't have upholstery yet...still riding around on a slab of 1" foam. Eager to hear the report Andrew...how to they compare? Did you play with FightLink?

[Afsbz]

Bose A20. Works great, using for about 1 year now. I fly a Sonex with a Jabiru 3300

[tonyr]

I had a cheapie ANR that still left my ears ringing after a day of flying.

I recently received my Zulu 2 headset and the ANR is far superior to the cheap thing.
After a few flights now, I find them really comfortable and my ears no longer play up during the week!
My only issue would be my glasses, the side frames are large and they let noise in confusing the ANR. I just push them up above the earcup, looks weird but I can still see and the attenuation is bliss.
I was waiting in the cockpit the other day with headset on, canopy open and ANR active.. an aircraft taxied by and I could not hear the engine ticking over.. very strange ha ha.
My wife does not want to use the cheap one now either, so I'll have to spring for another Zulu!

Cheers Tony

[Bruce593SX]

quiettechnologies.com

I own these, and a lightspeed Thirty 3G ANR, can't remember the last time I used the lightspeeds

[daleandee]

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[mike.smith]

Clarity Aloft! They are basically earplugs with a speaker inside. All day comfort and great noise reduction. Perfect with glasses, small and light.

Looking over this thread I have to also throw a vote in for the Clarity Aloft as the best set I have used. I had a set of passive David Clarks. Not very good in a Corvair powered Sonex. Bought a used set of ANR Lightspeeds from a friend and these are pretty good and are the ones I let passengers use when they ride with me.

But IMHO the Clarity Aloft would be hard to beat. The clarity is not only on the receiving end but also what is being sent out. I have a FlightLine FL-760 radio and use the built in intercom. Works very well even with the mismatched headsets.

Dale
N319WF

I'd be very interested to hear others' experiences with the Clarity Alofts. I tried them at OSH this year and really liked them. But I'm a researcher before I buy things, so I did some research online and found a lot of complaints about how they are too flimsy to stand up to use (or storage in a flight bag), the ear buds are difficult to put in (and need to be replaced often), wires break, and customer support can be marginal.

Amazon was not my only source, but here were a few of the negatives there.
http://www.amazon.com/Clarity-Aloft-Sta ... ewpoints=0
http://www.amazon.com/Clarity-Aloft-Sta ... Descending
http://www.amazon.com/Clarity-Aloft-Sta ... Descending

So I'm curious, as I might still consider them. They had a good deal at OSH.

[daleandee]

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[DCASonex]

Another vote for Clarity aloft. If you sit tall in the saddle, they are the only way to go. Nothing over top of head, so maximum canopy clearance. Got used set, wife, co-pilot, did not like the idea of something in her ears so got a large active noise cancelling headset for her. Then she tried my Clarity aloft. and had to go buy a new set for her.

Being a hearing aid wearer, I had an old pair of ear molds around. Carefully screwed the speakers' threaded stubs into the tubes that run into the ear molds. Very comfortable and easy to put in and take out without any need to pull on the wires. Ear molds are not expensive, and can be obtained from any hearing aid shop. but do shop around, too many fast buck artists in that business. Take your head set with you to insure that the a proper sized tube is selected that can EASILY be installed on the speakers' threaded stubs. Wife is happy with the standard foam plugs. Neither set has needed any service.

David A.

[mfazio]

I bought a pair of Clarity Aloft at OSH last year. Prior to buying I stopped by their booth and picked up a set of earbuds and wore those around OSH for several hours. I found them comfortable. When they warm up to body temp they are supposed to be as supple as skin.

I wore the set from a flight from Houston to Chicago in a 172 - 8 hours. They worked great. The light weight is a great benefit as well.

In the past I have had passive headsets but the clamping pressure was just too much for me. After an hours flight I would have a major headache. A long flight would be torture.

I can't comment on customer service yet but all good so far.

Mike Fazio
Waiex #63

[wlarson861]

My wife and I bought a pair of Light speed Siera last year at Oshkosh. They are very comfortable and the attenuation is very good. They were $1200 for the pair which was 1/2 the price of the Zulu. My inner techno geek wants the newest and fanciest but the siera is quite adequate. I have not had any fatigue from the headset as the clamping pressure is quite low. I had a passenger fly back from airventure say he didn't notice the difference from the passive until he turned off the ANR...his response was "wow... I never realized" The later versions are probably even more noticeable but at a huge cost difference. I like the Siera's but would suggest you get what ever you can afford and then a little more!!! You are only going to buy headsets every few years!!!