Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Update 12/Dec/2010 - Still going strong after about 200K miles of travel :)
I bought these to use with my faithful iPod which is full of music extending from:
* House, Electro, Techno (minus, Trapez, Traum Records etc), requiring a decent and tight bass response and good crisp uppers for all those 808/909 kicks and bass lines and tight hi hats
* Classical to new and old Heavy Metal (Gustav Mahler to Iron Maiden :)
* Indie/rock/acoustic (e.g. The Eels, 1980's Ska bands, Punk)
* Abstract electronics (Venetian Snares, Luke Vibert, AFX, Mr 76 etc - lots of Warp records stuff)
I'm also a DJ and musician, so have experience with a wide variety of listening conditions, studio monitors, studio headphones, and my faithful Sony MDR-V700 cans when mixing vinyl techno/house. I'm also VERY careful with my ears and use custom fitted earpieces for sound management at gigs and shows.
I travel quite extensively so what I wanted was:
1. Earphones that are comfortable
2. Excellent noise suppression - block general noise - people coughing, babies crying, annoying people chatting whilst standing near your seat on the plane etc.
3. Excellent noise cancellation
4. Excellent dynamic range given the spectrum of my listening library
5. Not over the top pricing
6. Good enough to not need extra amplifier to get a decent dynamic range (like some of my Koss Studio Headphones)
7. No fatigue both physical and due to the characteristics of the drivers - too 'brittle' a high end and its over after 30 minutes - think cheap JBL monitors crushing the mids and highs into a distorted mush. I can't stand that. Since noise canceling is an acoustic process, it was important that this didn't mush up my choons :)
8. Sturdiness - nothing worse than a cable getting snared and having to "tie" it to get a proper contact. Nooooo !I've had quite a few different pairs of noise canceling phones in the past - the very early Philips over the ear ones (both two recent models which i was quite happy with) being the ones I'd settled on and used for about 5 years due to value and meeting most of the above. However, since one of my two pairs plastic broke - they were about 5 years old and used heavily, and I was not too happy about the need to drive them quite hard from my 80G 5G iPod to get a decent level which also meant that it introduced a bit of distortion - the iPod amp isnt actually that great by the way - I decided to look at some other options including Sennheiser top of the range, Bose QC range, the current Philips as well as Etymotic and Shure passive noise canceling. I was prepared to invest in something decent up to $400.
Anyhow, after much research and trying a few out my conclusions were:
* the Bose models were nice, but hugely over the top in price given their performance - especially whilst they did well in noise canceling, this appeared to be at the expense of phase alignment and actually changing the EQ spectrum quite vividly. Sounds were good but it sounded like a kind of flattening effect across the mids which for my music which in the main tends to be somewhat "V" in EQ was a bit odd sounding. I just felt given the price it should have been much better.
* Sennheiser - excellent all round but could not help feeling way too expensive (and a bit bulky)
* The Philips models were the same as my old ones - still perfectly serviceable but still a little lacking and needing driving a little hard - but can be had for pretty low dollars
* The Audio Technica just stood way above the rest on the price/sound quality/value/curve. The downsides are slight and similar to all the others anyhow: Yes, as with ANY noise canceling headphones since we are dealing with an acoustic process by which sound waves of any reasonable magnitude arriving at the earpiece in the range say up to 1500 Hz (aircraft engine noise, train noise, most conversations) are rapidly inverted and "played" into the earpiece at a level to actively cancel out anything arriving at your eardrum - more or less - there are bound to be acoustic artifacts and changes in EQ spectrum/Phase and so on.
However the AT's were much nicer in this regard. Couple this with the nice rubber noise isolation buds (use the largest you can to block noise and have them slot nicely into your ear canal), pressing the "NC on" button is pure bliss. One thing I did note- if you connect them to nothing and use them, you will "hear" the noise canceling process - but this is eliminated when the music is created or if you are in even a slightly noisy environment (e.g. bar, cafe, restaurant, shop).
So, I actually ended up buying both the in-ear buds listed here since they are so compact and hugely effective for creating my own silent or music filled world on trains and planes, as well as the AT over the ear ones - ATH ANC7's. The latter are very comfortable if a little compact over the ear and have excellent performance also - and nice cabling - removable cable and a nice case that also happens to fit my ipod inside too.
Paid $99 for the in ear via one of amazons sellers, and $127 for the over the ear ones. That's TWO pairs of really excellent headphones for less than the Bose or Sennheisers which were getting into la la land on price.
So, I can get close to my Studio and DJ can performance out of these and its made my ipod and other music listening experiences (eg. plane's movie system) really quite pleasurable. I can also use them to sleep on a noise plane or train - so effective you have to watch to make sure you don't miss announcements like your stops. If push came to shove, I reckon I could easily use the over the ears for a bit of impromptu DJ'ing if I had to - they are really great in this regard as they work perfectly without being powered - unlike some others. So, both be used when batteries are dead too.
Hope this helps - just a happy customer of these nice cans.
Mark
Click Here to see more reviews about:
Audio-Technica ATH ANC23BK NoiseCancel Earphone BKAudio-Technica's ATH-ANC3 QuietPoint Active Noise-Cancelling In-Ear Headphones reduce distracting background noise by 85% while offering the superior sound that makes Audio-Technica a world-leading pro audio company. Engineered to create a comfortable listening environment in areas with high ambient noise, these in-ear headphones feature a miniature microphone in each earpiece that picks up ambient noise (such as traffic, air-handling systems, etc.). Electronics in the control box create a noise-cancelling wave that is 180 degrees out of phase with the ambient noise. This wave acts like a noise eraser: it cancels out the annoying sounds that surround you without diminishing the audio you want to hear. The result is a peaceful enclave to enjoy the music or movies of your choice. Wherever you happen to find yourself--on a busy subway, in a noisy office, or settling in for a long flight--there is no better way to experience audio or immerse yourself a quiet environment.
ATH-ANC3 Features
Ultra-compact in-ear design is ideal for travel
Advanced electronics cancel up to 85% (20 dB) of background noise
Innovative ANC circuitry delivers an exceptionally pure audio signal in noise-cancelling mode
Ideal for use with all audio sources, including MP3 & other portable players
Soft interchangeable ear pieces (small, medium & large) provide a custom fit
Monitor switch deactivates noise cancellation/audio so you can listen outside when you need to
Audio functions (in passive mode) even without battery
Sleek control box offers on/off and monitor switches and clothing clip
Two-pin airline adapter connects to in-flight entertainment
Hard carrying case protects headphones & accessories
Y cable includes an adjustable sleeve and extension for secure, comfortable fit
A single AAA battery powers noise-cancelling electronics
Gold-plated mini-plug provides exceptional corrosion resistance, superb conductivity and low noise
About Active Noise-Cancelling Headphones Audio-Technica's ATH-ANC3 QuietPoint in-ear headphones use active noise-cancelling technology to reduce distracting background noise by up to 85%, providing an exceptionally comfortable and restful listening environment in areas with high ambient noise. Active noise-cancelling headphones have components not present in ordinary headphones:
Microphone--Noise-cancelling headphones feature a miniature microphone in the earpiece that picks up ambient noise (such as traffic, air-handling systems, etc.)
Noise-canceling circuitry--Electronics in the ear piece create a noise-cancelling wave that is 180° out of phase with the ambient noise. This wave acts like a noise eraser: it cancels out the annoying sounds that surround you without diminishing the audio you want to hear. The result is a peaceful enclave to enjoy the music or movies of your choice.
Battery--The noise-cancelling electronics are battery-powered.
What's in the Box ATH-ANC3 Headphones (black), Detachable .5 m cable with gold-plated 3.5 mm (1/8-inch) stereo mini plug and jack, Gold-plated airline adapter, Protective carrying case, Replaceable rubber tips, Battery
Click here for more information about Audio-Technica ATH ANC23BK NoiseCancel Earphone BK
