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ANR Headset

olyolson

olyolson

Well Known Member
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Anyone using the Bose QC 15 with the Uflymike upgrade in the RV-4? My cockpit is rather noisy with the 4 into two exhaust and am currently using a set of Dave Clark modified ANRs. They work OK but I need something quieter. I'm looking for a direct comparison between the Bose A-20s and the QC-15 with the Uflymike.

Different opinions for sure but one guys swears by the QCs with the conversion but he flies a Cirrus which is probably quieter than my -4 to begin with.

Any thoughts?
Oly
 
30 Trial

I believe most of the manufactures give you 30 days to give headsets a try. I have 2 lightspeed Zulu's. We like them. We have one in the plane as a backup. We use the QT Halio. It is subjective but to me the Halio lets more noise through than the Zulu. However the comfort of the Halio cannot be beat. They block noise great but the ANR seems a little better at blocking the noise ... to me. Find out if Boise or Lightspeed still have a 30 day trial. You might be responsible for the shipping back but nothing is better than finding out how you like the comfort and noise blocking ability of whatever headset.
 
I have the QC-15 with the UFlyMike and both my fiance and I like them much better than the older set of LightSpeed's we frequently use (not the Zulu's). I don't think the QC-15 works as well as the A20 or the Zulu's but you might PM Boom3 as he has flow with my QC-15 and his Zulu2's.
 
Bose ANR Headsets

Thanks for the input guys. Has anyone flown both the QC-15 with the Uflymike upgrade and the Bose A20s for a direct comparison? As stated above, my RV-4 is not exactly a quiet little thing. Granted the A20s are good but pretty pricey.

Oly
 
Not a direct comparison, but I flew with the TSO'd Ufly mic in the airlines. It was louder than wearing a full ear headset of any kind, ANR or Passive. It was ok in a jet, but there is no way I would consider one for GA use of any kind.
 
I know you are asking about the Bose ANR, but is there some reason for not considering Clarity Aloft, or QT Halo? They fail safe with passive low frequency attenuation, good for aerobatics, compatible with glasses and hats. And in the typical Van design seating position, better head clearance from the canopy?

Just curious.
 
ANR HEADSET

Bill,

Wow- I am in the presence of greatness. I saw your profile-17 patents, I am impressed! The only 2 patents I have are my grown boys that barely made it through their teenage years (I swear aliens kidnapped them for years).

I had not considered those 2 headsets because I think they are the in ear type aren't they? I think the over ear type headsets would be quieter and I don't have to mess with shoving something in my ear & changing the foam plugs on the Halos. Just personal preference, have heard guys really like both.

Thanks for the input,
Oly
 
olyolson said:
Anyone using the Bose QC 15 with the Uflymike upgrade in the RV-4? My cockpit is rather noisy with the 4 into two exhaust and am currently using a set of Dave Clark modified ANRs. They work OK but I need something quieter. I'm looking for a direct comparison between the Bose A-20s and the QC-15 with the Uflymike.

Different opinions for sure but one guys swears by the QCs with the conversion but he flies a Cirrus which is probably quieter than my -4 to begin with.

Any thoughts?
Oly
Click to expand...

I have a couple hudred hours with both. The QC is good, but was designed to be used in commercial airplane cabins at a maximum. I actually use the QC and Ufly in my 8, and it works pretty good. Every now and then if I turn my head a certain way the ANR gets overwhelmed. The A20 is vastly superior in every way except maybe comfort. That's not to say they're uncomfortable. I've had them on for 8+ hour days and zero complaints. They just aren't as light as the QC. One complaint with the QC is I find they can actually get kind of hot inside. My ears will get really warm, wierd I know.

Hands down the A20 is the best head set on the market. Although I haven't tried that new AKG100 that just came out. Pretty slick looking, I'm intrigued.
 
Last edited:
Oly I think you have seen mine. I had custom in ear moulded buds made by an audiologist and whipped up an adapter for the 3.5mm plug to an aviation plug. I took a microphone off an old headset and put on a coat hangar and wrapped it around my head. Don't laugh. It's quieter than my anr headsets, waaaaay more comfortable, I can wear it for hours with no discomfort at all, and it doesn't fly off my head event with the significant positive and negative g's needed to stay on your wing. :D
 
What intercom are you using? It may have more to do with the squelch circuit on that than the headsets.

I am using the same headsets you described and haven't had a problem. I do have foam mic boots over my mic's and that may help some.

My intercom is a Sigtronics 200s, which they advertise as being good for high noise cockpits.
 
Bill,

I just had an avionics shop install a brand new Garmin GTR 200, brand new stereo mic and headset jacks with all new wiring. The radio is chrystal clear, just not loud enough with my older headsets.

Oly
 
Oly,
I had a QC-15 with the U-fly mic in my RV-4. The headset was just "OK" in that high noise environment, and the mic could not handle the noise level. I ruled it out in one flight.
QC-15 works great in a jet, but so do ear plugs for that matter.

Hope that answers the question.

Dmadd
 
Dmadd,

Thanks for the reply and very timely. I was just thinking seriously about the QC-15 with the Ufly mic but several have PM'd me saying the same thing, not the best choice for a -4. Right now leaning toward the A20 with GA plugs and no Bluetooth. Have some buddies with the A20 and the Bluetooth does work but only for the phone, not music (music is via a cable jack). Even then, they say the mic works great and the person on the other end hears clearly but in the headset the audio phone reception is so weak they can barely hear it. Other than that, the headset is super quiet in a -4 and the music input is clear according to the owners.

Oly
 
I have used the Bose A20, Lightspeed Zulu (old model) and the Sennheizer ANC headsets in my 6, admittedly a noisy (but speedy) beast.

The worst, without a doubt, was the Sennheizer--the headset audio quality was fine, but the transmission quality of the microphone was awful. Despite the salesman's pitch that the noise canceling properties of the headset were above all the competitors, it was simply not the case.

The Bose A20 is the best headset, but only by a smidgeon. The sound and transmission quality is great. I find that the Lightspeed works just about as well (it may be identical, in fact...frankly, I may not be able to tell the difference in a blind test). I do find that the Lightspeed ear cups tend to pull slightly away from my face when I turn my head, breaking the seal and causing a slight increase in noise level. But this happens admittedly rarely, so it's not so much of a bother.
 
Mike,

There's an adjustment on the radio other than the radio volume control? I know there's an internal radio volume adjustment for music & intercom but didn't know there was one for the radio comm also. Will have to look at the manual & play with the radio.

Thanks,
Oly
 
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