Headphone News

Following on from earlier positive reviews, CNET have rated the Able Planet Clear Harmony headphones a very good 7.6 out of 10 in a recent test.

Again, it’s the noise canceling capabilities of these headphones that receive the most praise although CNET also approve of the sound quality.

However, Able Planet appear unable to solve some common noise canceling problems like interference although this appears to be a minor niggle in a very positive review.

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Top girls gadget guide Shiny Shiny have listed their top 5 noise-reducing headphones focusing on both electronic noise-reducing and passive noise-isolating technologies.

It features a number of Headphone News favorites including the rather gorgeous V-Moda Vibe and the ever popular Bose QuietComfort 3.

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MP3.com have a review of the snappily named Logitech Noise Canceling Headphones and believe we could finally have competition for the Bose Quiet Comfort headphones.

It’s inevitable that every set of noise canceling headphones are compared to the excellent Bose cans and they usually come up short. Although the review isn’t 100% positive (I’m concerned about their description of the sound quality and noise cancelation) at about half the price of the Bose headphones (the Logitech ‘phones retail at $150 compared to the Bose’s $350) they seem like a good alternative.

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At the moment, it seems nearly every new set of headphones released incorporate some sort of noise-reduction technology. But how does it work? And will it work for you?

How noise-canceling works
There are two basic ways for headphones to reduce external noise. The most basic way is to simply block external noise from reaching your ears. This can be done by either encompassing your full ear with a tight seal like the forthcoming Sony Altus headphones or by blocking your ear canal like the Bose TriPort IE earphones.

Both of these techniques work to an extent, but have their down sides. The over-ear design relies on forming a seal with your head which can get very warm and uncomfortable. It also tends to produce large and heavy headphones, fine for use in the home but not so useful in the sort of situations where you’d actually want to block out external noise, for example, on a train. The ear canal design is more successful at blocking out sound but, unless you can find a set of earbuds that fit perfectly, can quickly get uncomfortable. Many ear-canal ‘phones come with a selection of sleeves to offer you a better fit but even they are unlikely to fit perfectly (those with lots of money might try Ultimate Ears custom-fit headphones if they really crave the perfect fit).
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Related Link: Noise cancelling headphones For the biggest range of noise cancelling headphones in the UK visit iHeadphones. Sale starts now on all noise cancelling headphones!

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Maxell, probably better known for their video tapes (remember them?) have grown their headphone range with the announcement of the HP-NC18 earphones.

These in-ear ‘phones promise to cancel out an unbelievable 90% of external noise using a combination of their in-ear canal design plus powered noise cancelation technology. The earbuds are powered by AAA batteries to give around 40 hours of noise-cancelation although the images don’t make it clear where the batteries are stored.

At the moment, these headphones are only likely to be available in Japan though they could still see a release around the world.

[Found via Akihabara News]

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It looks like Sony are about to take a real interest in noise-canceling technology by bundling noise-canceling headphones with their new S700-series of digital music players.

For example, the Sony NS-S706F player incorporates noise-canceling technology for use with the bundled earphones. The player will cost around $240 for a 4GB version making it more expensive that an equivalent iPod Nano but, assuming you like the headphones, it works out as a decent deal.

[Found via CIO Tech Informer]

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Gizmodo have reviewed Plane Quiet’s Solitude Active Noise Cancellation Headset and frankly, they don’t seem impressed.

Although they praise the Solitude for it’s comfort, the sound quality is disappointing, which is a real shame for a $200 pair of headphones. They’re also left a bit cold by the noise canceling feature of the headset which seems to have some effect, but not enough.

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