noise cancellation headphones

[Mudfarmer]

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Any recommendations for noise cancellation headphones? l want to listen to audiobooks while mowing this summer.

 

[Ortimber]

My wife bought me a set of “Worktunes” from 3M. They are a blue tooth earmuff and they work great. I highly recommend them.

3M™ WorkTunes™ Wireless Hearing Protector with Bluetooth(R) Technology | 3M United States

 

[Spiros]

Bose all the way!

 

[Gunny]

Another vote for the Worktunes, I love mine

 

[TractorNH]

Are the Worktunes noise cancelling or are they just hearing protection with speakers in them? The only ones I know of that do noise cancelling is Bose.

 

[KennyG]

I've never had the Bose but I've had several sets of cheaper noise cancelling headphones. They seem to be tuned to aircraft noise. They work well on the airplane but not well on commuter trains or tractors. The very expensive Bose may be better. The Worktunes or just earbuds under good hearing protectors work best for me.

 

[rgr33]

Bose. Expensive , but worth it.

 

[LMychajluk]

I use a set of cheap Anker-branded earbuds like these - Amazon.com: Anker SoundBuds Slim Wireless Headphones Bluetooth 4.1 Lightweight Stereo IPX5 Earbuds with Magnetic Connection NANO Coating Sweatproof Sports Headset with Metallic Housing Built-in Mic (Black): Cell Phones & Accessories
(They can often be found on sale for $5-10 off that price.)

They're not 'noise cancelling', but they plug the ear enough to muffle engine sounds, and if it's still too loud, a pair of muffs over them works.

 

[N80]

I discussed this subject here on TBN a while back. My wife knew that I was considering a set and bought me the Bose for Father's Day. My tractor has no cab, I mow in and around trees and I sweat like crazy. I felt like this was too much abuse for such expensive headphones and I took them back.

What I do now is a good set of basic noise protection headphones and I have a good set of ear buds that I wear underneath them to listen to music while mowing. I specifically got ear buds with the soft rubber tip so that they seal in the ear canal which helps to keep out outside noise. I already had the head set and the ear buds with the rubber tips cost about $15. This works great for me and is cheap and doesn't risk $300 Bose.

 

[TractorGuy]

I have the cheaper work tunes with an am/fm radio. Have been very pleased with them. I don't want all the noise canceled anyway. With mine I can still hear the tractor and implements in the background as I listen to the radio. I get off relaxed and happy. If I operate the tractor long without them I get off with my ears buzzing and have a headache. Worth every penny of the $40 I spent. They advertise a noise reduction of 24db.

Wouldn't mind having bluetooth for phone calls but I don't usually keep my phone with me when I'm working on the tractor. I carry my phone in my shirt pocket and when I sweat it tends to unlock and open every app possible so I just leave it on my tool box and check for missed calls when I finish.

 

[mercdv]

I just use the "noise canceling" (not really) ear buds and hearing protection over that. They aren't real noise canceling but they fit in the ear like ear plugs so that helps muffle sounds. If I put on my large ear muffs I can drown out just about everything but if I want to continue to hear the tractor a little I use my smaller ear muffs. You just got to be really careful because you can totally block out almost all external sounds with the right combination of the two and that isn't safe imho. The ear buds are a much cheaper options and you can get some pretty good sounding ones. They will never sound as good as the mid range over the ear headphones but if I accidentally destroy them I can replace them several times before I reach the price of the expensive over the ear headphones.

 

[/pine]

"No highs, no lows...must be bose"

 

[Jim Timber]

I've got two pair of the 3M Bluetooth Worktunes. I liked my first set so much I got a second for my home shop.

I used to wear earbuds and the cord kept either getting pulled out of my phone or pulling my phone out of my pocket. No more of that nonsense!

 

[mikester]

Bose QC35 Bluetooth have worked very well for me 1+ years now. Better than the Sony in ear and on ear noise cancelling headphones I also owned. Expensive but worth it. Don’t buy On-Ear units, they don’t block incoming sounds well and are less comfortable

 

[Howling]

I use the 3M Worktunes with Bluetooth. Have tried corded version - never failed would snag that cord on something and pull it out of phone or earbud out.

Did test the Bose headsets. Definitely better sound quality. But listening to audiobook, podcast, etc on the tractor the background noise will eat up the difference. The 3M are more robust. Probably would have broken those $350 Bose by now.

The Worktunes don't have a microphone. But a phone call will interrupt the Bluetooth audio so you know the phone is ringing.

 

[ChiefBodie]

I've had several sets of cheaper noise cancelling headphones. They seem to be tuned to aircraft noise.

Other than targeting noise in a particular spectrum, which is the auditory hearing range of humans, these headphones are not tuned. But they do work best with a constant noise rather than noise that is changing in volume and pitch.

One other thing is that they do not cancel noise, which is impossible. They identify incoming noise and then emit counter-noise to offset what is already coming at you. I've searched for years to learn whether the noise+counternoise combination is more damaging to your hearing than just the original noise to start. We all know it seems quieter. But is there more or less vibration on your eardrum?

 

[mikester]

One other thing is that they do not cancel noise, which is impossible. They identify incoming noise and then emit counter-noise to offset what is already coming at you. I've searched for years to learn whether the noise+counternoise combination is more damaging to your hearing than just the original noise to start. We all know it seems quieter. But is there more or less vibration on your eardrum?

I guess it depends on your definition of "less vibration". You have less amplitude at certain frequencies with active noise cancellation. In theory, if you have perfectly synched and opposite wave forms then you have zero amplitude at those frequencies. In reality you are never perfectly synched. I think that amplitude is more destructive to hearing vs frequency. With higher amplitude at a certain frequency you are transferring more energy.

Google principle of superposition.

 

[Cougsfan]

Over the ages I have tried numerous different noise canceling headphones, and feel they are all (including Bose) oversold on performance. For tractor use especially, they don't seal out enough noise nor do they "cancel" like advertised. I prefer to use, like MercDV, wireless ear buds under industrial strength ear muffs. That has been what I found to work the best.

 

[rScotty]

Bose Noise Canceling. Gotta say that the cost of the best noise cancleling headphones sure seemed much more acceptable after my hearing had been damaged and tinnitus began.
rScotty

 

[VashonFarmer]

The thing I like about the Bose (I have the in ear, not over) is that you can adjust the level of pass thru. I let it do as much cancelling as it can while running the machine, then dial it back so I can hear my surroundings while off. Love them!