Noise cancelling headphones! Oh Joy! (and other ways to block sound)

Not sure what type of ear plugs you've used. Foam ones don't work, silicone are too hard, so I only use wax. And yet there are wax plugs that are too hard (and remain hard even at high temperatures). I don't like them. Ototap is my favorite brand - half of the plug is made of moderately hard wax and the other half is so soft that it actually almost becomes liquid in your ear, especially at high temperatures. And you can always reshape them in cone form so they fit your ear.

 

There's a review of headphones in the Guardian today, might be of use to those looking to make a purchase:
https://www.theguardian.com/technol...d-pounds-sennheiser-marshall-anker-lindy-anke

 

Most of my autistic friends use Bose noise cancelling headphones. They are possibly the best at reducing unwanted background noise. However, all the models are very big and bulky. I also have sensitivities to man-made materials, such as PVC/leather look vinyls. So a couple of years age I bought a pair of Bang and Ulufsen Beoplay H8 headphones. They have soft leather pads, are relatively light weight and also fit my smaller headsize. I bought mine on Ebay, which is much cheaper than buying them direct from the company, although if you do the latter they also have a 30-day 'risk-free' trial:

https://www.bang-olufsen.com/en/headphones

They are very high quality when listening to music and the ANC seems to work better when used this way (e.g. with my MP3 player playing calming music).

Edit: They also work very well in a noisy conference room, but only when the speaker is using their microphone properly. So I think a high quality set of headphones (e.g. £200 upwards) are a really good investment if you ever want to attend conferences or large public meetings.

 

I doesn’t feel like more sound. I think it genuinely is a noise “cancelling” effect, like the head phones somehow reduce the sound. With my ones I can still hear some sounds but they are very much muffled, and some background sounds disappear altogether.

 

These are the ones that I have, TaoTronics Active Noise Cancelling Wireless Over ear Headphones,


For the price I'm pretty impressed by the level of noise reduction. I just bought them without trying them out, they had good reviews and I was happy with the price. I'm able to wear them for long periods of time when I need them, the build of them cuts noise down a bit so I don't always need the active noise reduction, when I do have that on the cancelling noise isn't, to me, obtrusive, but then I do typically have music playing.

Also, you don't have to use bluetooth, you can plug them in as normal, which extends how long the battery charge lasts.

 

See below for an explanation of how the technology works:

https://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gadgets/audio-music/noise-canceling-headphone3.htm

 

so there is a sound that the cancelling function makes then? On yours?

I would never be playing music through them, as listening to music, although enjoyed, is very costly on my energy budget when I'm at my best, & i cant do it at all otherwise.
I think they seem like the ones I tried, like they muffle the ambient sounds but you can also hear it functioning... like a low level 'white noise'.
Which is useless to me - i mean it's great if you're trying to block out ambient sound so it doesnt interfere with what you're listening to... but I just want it to get rid of sound full stop, so likely the more expensive ones are worth a try for me if i can save up & have a risk free trial.

Thanks to everyone for their tips.

 

Yep, that is what it is like.

From the article linked above

so my assumption would be that more expensive ones will still do this, but it might be they will be better at doing it and it will be less noticeable than with my cheaper ones.

 

You will probably need to try them for yourself. If you suffer from tinnitus they might make this more noticable (which is why I think mine improve my comfort levels if I listen to soft music on them). I tried my friend's Boss ones in his house and they immediately cut out all the background noise such as the fridge and outside traffic. However, they stlll allowed human speech through. I think all the Active Noise Cancelling headphones are similar in this as they are designed to cut out specific frequencies and leave other ones clear - hence their ability to increase the clarity of music. Orignially the technology was developed for pilots to use in their cockpits, so hearing human speech was vital.

I think the more expensive ones probably have a smaller delay in producing the opposing, cancelling wave and so are more effective in their job. The technology is continually improving so new cheaper models may be better than old more expensive ones.

 

I'm really interested in hearing if the Bose headphones could make my infrequent trips to shops less awful. I had to go to Curry's, (a British home electronics store), to buy a new fridge freezer the other day, and the music in there was horrendous on my brain.

I'd love to start a campaign against music in shops - at least get the volume set at a lower limit. Even in a hardware store last month, I couldn't think for rap music, (Wicks. So incongruous).

And usually these days they aren't allowed to turn it down because there is promotional stuff announced on it. Even the manager often doesn't have access to it to control the volume, or to turn it off just while I'm in the shop.

Have you people who own the Bose tried them in noisy shops? Thanks

 

I wear silicone ear plugs at home to nap in the day to dull down conversation, outside noise, and my dog. I don't get silence, but noise is muted. I use child size, or tear one adult size into 2. I used these for years, they were great:



But I recently found these and as I tear one in half as they're adult size and use it for both ears. I'm something over 5'6" so there's no
reason for my ear canal to be tiny.

 

@Squeezy I'm housebound so I haven't been to shops for years, but when someone in the house is listening to music or something on tv that has unbearable sound/music, the Bose noisecancelling headphones do make it perfectly bearable to stay in that same room. So I would think the same could be true for your shopping trips? It's a very personal thing though... the best option would be to be able to try them out in that specific situation!

One thing I wanted to add about the difference between earplugs and headphones is that in my case earplugs seem to amplify my tinnitus, the sound of my heartbeat in my ear, I can even hear my blood rushing. Very unpleasant.

I don't have that problem with my noisecancelling headphones but there is always a small amount of what I would call white noise (not sure if it's from the headphones themselves or my tinnitus). But it's bearable, I can wear these for a couple hours in a row.

(The last pair of earplugs I bought were Alpine Sleepsoft, they were very nice and reusable. They came with a cleaning device and a thingy that helps you put the earplugs in your ear.)

 

@Effi I can't imagine having tinnitus, I'm really sorry you do. I think I'll have to try out the Bose. White noise is much better than loud music

The one problem for me with the silicone ear plugs is my ears get kind of damp inside after a few hours. I use a cotton ear bud very carefully to dry them.

 

The answer to that is 'Yes'! Lots of autistic friends with extreme noise (and light) sensitivities use them outside and in urban areas. They all describe them as 'life changing'. Theire Boss headphones noticably decrease their social anxieties too.

I have used my Beoplay ones on an airplane (first time going abroad for over 25 years) and on the train in the past, plus at a few academic conferences. They made all these manageable (and I had sound sensitivities as a child before my M.E.).

The other 'life-changing' thing I need to start a thread about is coloured lenses. These have also made a substantial difference to many of my autistic friends. I have had my green prescriptions glasses since the 1990's as I was told about them as a mature student at university, but in regards to my Irlen Syndrome. However, they are what enabled me to learn to drive and whilst on 'see in binocular vision' (never knew that people could see the space between objects as part of normal vision before this...). But it turns out they help autistic people with their light sensitivities too. I'm sure for this reason they may be much better than 'dark glasses' for many people with M.E.

 

In desperation over the sheer amount of noise that I am experiencing, both during the day (housing association mainy) and at night (neighbours with 'parties' going on until 3-4am, both inside and outside) O have finally bitten the bullet and have a 'cheap' pair of ANC headphones turning up tonight.

Just to see if they are helpful, if not they will go back.



Up until I read this thread I had never really given any thought to headphones, I don't 'like' or listen to music, apart from as background sometimes, so why would I consider them as a potential solution to all this racket. I had never heard of noise cancelation apart from as a theoretical application during O'Level physics classes.

 

Hi Simbindi I’m interested in where to get these lenses? Can they go over prescription glasses?

 

I'll start a thread when I am able (soon hopefully).

The lenses can be made up either with no prescription or with a prescription, then fitted to any standard eye glass frames by your own optician.

 

@Wonko hope they do the trick for you!

 

They turned up about an hour ago.

I do not understand where all the positive reviews come from.

The sound quality is bad to mediocre - worse than my TVs inbuilt speakers, with too much bass and a few other things, like reduced voice volume.

For audio it has only been tested as a bluetooth device on my TV (RW application for when the gardeners and cavity wall installers are busy) and on my phone as bluetooth headphones for music playback (yes I do possess some music, mostly from the late 80s - on rare occasions I find it 'comforting' and 'familiar' lol).

The results were not great, and certainly do not warrant the reviews it's been given on amazon.

I have so far been unable to test the noise canceling in real world situations, as unusually, as predicted, it's quiet.

 

I have now found out that Bose has a feature on their webpage to find a store nearby (or as near as there actually is a store--not especially near to me, but not further than I have to go for a doctor visit if I go the further place).

https://www.bose.com/en_us/locations/?page=1&storesPerPage=10
I don't know if they have a version like this for other countries

I also read some Amazon reviews that say they don't seem to last past the warrantee, which is 1 year.

So I am looking for something less pricey.