Noise Cancelling Headphones ??

[Rob Cooper]

Has anyone tried these for listening to tunes while in the shop? To overcome the dust collector and air cleaner, my ipod has to be way too loud.
Hearing protection and music all in one or a waste of precious tool $?:confused:

[Jason Whelehon]

I'm on my second pair of Bose Quiet Comfort 2 (http://www.amazon.com/QuietComfort%C2%AE-Acoustic-Noise-Cancelling%C2%AE-Headphones/dp/B000AP05BO/ref=pd_bbs_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1219254454&sr=8-1). I mistakenly sold my first pair to my uncle and found NOTHING compares to the quality of sound, extended use comfort, and overall value.

They're PRICEY but for me, 100% worth it!

[jason lambert]

I aggree, for sound there is much better but I woun't get in to that discussion here that is a headfi.com subject. However you have to remember the boes are optomised to perform well on a airplain which is a similar sound to the dust collector. For price vs performance in a shop envirnment I think it would be hard to beat.

[Peter Quadarella]

I sometimes worry about the added distraction music might cause which is why I haven't gone this route yet. I read at least one post here where someone injured themselves and felt that the music contributed to the injury.

[Tim Thomas]

Rob, I just use a standard pair of in-ear buds (the kind with soft silicone tips) and then put on a regular pair of earmuffs over that. I haven't found that the small wires coming out from under the muffs causes any noticeable decrease in the effectiveness of the muffs. The nice thing about this setup is that when I turn off the noisy machines I can just take off the bulky earmuffs and still listen to my music. Plus it is a lot cheaper than the Bose. I'm sure the Bose sounds better, but this works well for me. The in-ear buds by themselves seem to provide adequate sound isolation when using quieter machines (like the drillpress). I even use the earbuds and muffs setup when I do yard work (mowing, weed eating, blowing leaves, etc.) One word of caution though: Run the wires for the headphones INSIDE your shirt. I run mine down the back of my shirt and put my mp3 player in my back pocket with any extra wire wrapped around it. This keeps the wires from snagging on anything around the shop.

[rob mason]

I won a pair of the Bose QC3 headphones and they are awesome for listing to iPod. I work in my shop and ride the lawnmower and it is amazing how little ambient sound gets in.

If I hadnt won them, I would have likely purchased them if I had tried them - they really are impressive.

[Bruce Page]

Rob, there's some good info here: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=74430

[Bob Fraser]

Something to be mindful of almost all of the electronic noise cancellation headphones, is that there is only about 10dB attenuation at 300 Hertz and below.

A dramatic change on an airplane maybe - but your power tools and vacs and DCs have a large high frequency componant that the headphones will not attenuate appreciably.

Don't be fooled into thinking you are protecting you hearing, because there is less bottom end getting to your eardrums, and it sounds "better".

Real hearing protectors block almost the full sprectrum by 25-30dB,
a much greater margin of safey.

bob

[Joe Vincent]

Something to be mindful of almost all of the electronic noise cancellation headphones, is that there is only about 10dB attenuation at 300 Hertz and below.

A dramatic change on an airplane maybe - but your power tools and vacs and DCs have a large high frequency componant that the headphones will not attenuate appreciably.

Don't be fooled into thinking you are protecting you hearing, because there is less bottom end getting to your eardrums, and it sounds "better".

Real hearing protectors block almost the full sprectrum by 25-30dB,
a much greater margin of safey.

bob

As someone who not long ago began experiencing constant tinnitus, I agree that hearing protection is not an area for compromise.

[Eric Gustafson]

If you are worried that the cancelling earphones are inadequate, you might try isolating earplugs. I have used the Emtymotic ER6I-B Isolator Earphones for a few years now. They are not as expensive as Bose, but still cost ~$70-$90. The ER6i model is actually their cheapest isolating earplug, as their most expensive is as much as the Bose headsets. The cheapest price I have found for the ER6i is $72.99 on EBAY. They insert in your ear and almost eliminate outside noise. I have to remove them if I want to listen to what the wife is saying. (Sometimes I leave them in! :rolleyes:) While they might not fit all ears, they come with different sizes of replaceable plugs. I never liked earmuffs anyway because they get hot and wet when I sweat! :o

[Chris Stolicky]

I just got a pair of these and they work great. They are a little big, but really cushioned....

http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=19546&filter=noise

[Bob Fraser]

The WorkTune manufacturer page show attenuation over frequency in the specs sheet.

Far more info than the "wear on the airplane" brands, and far better specs.

http://www.aearo.com/pdf/WorkTunes_Digital_SS_1.pdf

Not cute or shiny or foldable, but I will bet they work well.

They do not allow outside audio to reach your ears any higher than 82dB.
If that is true - that would mean that by Canada's labour laws or the States' (I bet), you could wear them for an eight hour shift and still not have endangered your hearing.

Bob

[Wilbur Pan]

If you are worried that the cancelling earphones are inadequate, you might try isolating earplugs. I have used the Etymotic ER6I-B Isolator Earphones for a few years now.

I have in-the-ear sound isolating headphones from Shure, who makes them for musicians performing on stage as well. These have memory foam that you squeeze and insert into your ear canal, and they expand to fill the canal, isolating you from sound.

Whether you get the Shures or the Etymotics, though, either one works much better than the noise cancelling headphones.

[Roland Chung]

I'm using these-
http://www.peltor.com/peltor.com/comm_detail.cfm?prod_family=Alert&ind_prod_num=M2RX7A001

They are great hearing protection, but they have a volume control to let you hear am/fm radio or conversations, but when the noise starts (even dropping a wrench), they instantly shut down to protect your hearing.

For just listening to tunes, I would also consider a good set of ear buds under a comfortable headset, but you would miss out on being able to hear a conversation or someone calling you, or the phone ringing.

[Eric Larsen]

I really want a Bose Quiet Comfort 2 that can pick up my mp3s via Bluetooth (or equivalent).

Even wired in to my mp3 player, I can listen to music at a comfortable level while the tools are suppressed yet still hear the phone. I really don't like the wire, though. I find it distracting.

[Charles Lent]

I have two pair of the WorkTunes headsets and have owned them for several years. I find that they do a great job of attenuating the machine noise in the shop, and I like to listen to the radio at a low level when I'm working. Doing so with these on lets me hear the music while the machines are operating and it's great that they are protecting my hearing at the same time. They're also great for use while mowing the lawn. Mine are the older versions, so they don't have the ability to plug an MP3 or other external music source into them. The new digital version is supposed to have this capability, so maybe I'll be upgrading soon. About the best price that I've seen on them seems to be at Lowes (wish they carried them when I bought mine).

Charley

[Dave Norris]

I have a pair of noise cancelling headphones that were something like $150. I think they're called "Noisebusters". When I turn them on, the noise from my dc and compressor disappears, as well as noise from the ts and pretty much all other tools, which is both good and bad. Good that it saves my ears, but bad that I have actually walked away from the saw and left it on, only to turn off the dc, take the headphones off, and be like "Holy cow... I left that saw on!" They have a jack to plug an mp3 player into, and the music could be played at a reasonable level, but I ran into significant trouble with the cord between the mp3 player and headphones getting in the way creating a dangerous situation. A good headphone in every other regard though.

Now if they would just build a respirator into it, I'd have it made...

[Larry Nall]

I use a pair of AO headphones, $50-60 as I recall.
You can jack in an MP3 player, but the jack doesn't fit an iphone.
Works great. I have to check the shop vac occasionally to see if it's still running.
I found the dangling wire annoying too, so I taped the mp3 player to the the top of the headphones.

[Greg Narozniak]

I have a pair of Ultimate Ears Ear buds and I use them everyday for my commute to and from work on the train.

I would not be without them. It is so nice to not have to hear the "noise" that is in the subway and on the streets of NYC.

www.ultimateears.com

[Chris Weishaar]

I just got a pair of these and they work great. They are a little big, but really cushioned....

http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=19546&filter=noise

I have the non-digital version of these for the shop and I love them. It is a bit hard to fine tune a radio station, but the digital version should take care of this.

I travel alot for work and I use the Shure ear-buds that are not noise cancelling but actual noise blockers. For some reason I have issues with the noise cancelling head sets. I think it is something about the frequencies generated to offset the noise gives me a really strange feeling. I find I would rather block out the noise than cancel the noise.

Chris

[Chris Stolicky]

I have a pair of Ultimate Ears Ear buds and I use them everyday for my commute to and from work on the train.

I would not be without them. It is so nice to not have to hear the "noise" that is in the subway and on the streets of NYC.

www.ultimateears.com (http://www.ultimateears.com)

Those look pretty cool. Which model do you have?