While doing my field test of the, I compared these headphones side by side with four other noise cancelling earphones : Bose QC3, Audio Technica ANC7, and Sennheiser PXC-250. I was in the marketplace for a noise cancelling headphone because I travel a lot and I needed to be able to watch films or hear music in relative quiet and isolation. The one thing I don’t like about ipod earbuds is that you have got to blast your ears to battle with the airplane’s engines. I don’t know about you but I would like to preserve my hearing and keep from going deaf. My main factors when rating these headphones were: sound quality, noise cancelling ability, and comfort. All three of these qualities were crucial and I did not actually need to reach a compromise on any of those classes. The sole headphone that did exceeding well in all there quality categories was in fact the Sennheiser PXC-450, which makes them one of the best noise cancelling headphones available today.
The Audio Techicas are one of the hottest phones on Amazon. I examined the evaluations of this headphone at length, and the majority rave about these earphones. The main complaint, which were few, seemed to all be about sound seepage. So unfortunately I found this to be true, when I was listening to these headphones in closed quarters, people around me noticed what I was playing. Other than that these are a great set of headphones. I recommend them as well with the caveat that they may not be good in closed quarters as you will most likely disturb your neighbor. The sound and noise cancelling is amazing considering the relatively low cost paid.
The PXC-250 sounded dazzling. I was surprised that such tiny headphones could produce such good sound and do such a good job at noise cancellation. However during my tests I had to flunk these headphones due to ergonomics. Like many other headphones, I felt that the battery was a little too bulky and got in the way of the headset. Also with my headset I had this problem where from time to time if I moved the wrong way the headphones would rub against my ear and cause a weird noise that would reverberate inside the ear cup. This sound was very noticeable when it happened and it was irritating.
The Bose Quiet Comfort 3 series that I test out were really great headphones and were really amazing. The QC3s are on ear headphones and to my surprise they had the best noise cancelling of any of the other headphones I tried. The materials used for the earcups and padding are noise absorbing and just kill all external noise. I was immediately immersed in a dead silence right away just by putting these QC3s on. My one gripe is that these headphones were too tight and caused pressure in my ears. After putting them on for a little while it became uncomfortable.
So there are a lot of headphones that are great at noise cancellation, but I feel Sennheiser PXC 450 are the best ones for any situation and can be worn for a long period of time. Here is how the 450s did in terms of sound quality:
Bass. I read lots of reviews and a lot of folks bitched about a scarcity of bass on their headphones. These Sennheiser are okay in this department, while playing my music, the bass is unquestionably there. If you like a large amount of bass, these phones may not be for you and you may want to opt for a Bose instead.
Sound Quality. Moving past the bass to sound quality in total, these earphones are in a different league. I mean, I’m hearing details in songs I’ve heard dozens or even hundreds and hundreds of times and never spotted until I put on these Sennheisers. Background vocalists that before were lost with all the other sounds can be heard clearly on these phones.
Noise Cancelling. These earphones have a tight fit, which gives them a lot of passive noise cancelling. This mixed with the active noise cancelling makes these earphones almost as good as the QC3s. I feel just like the QC3s were better at cancelling the higher frequencies, but I suspect that’s the reason why they have the stress on the eardrum problem. I did not feel any pressure with the 450. The slight advantage the QC3s have on noise cancelling is more than compensated for by the 450s supremacy in sound quality and comfort.
Comfort. Notwithstanding being snug, the 450s are comfortable. The material the earpads are made from is extraordinarily soft and I quickly forgot I was wearing them on my flight.
So in conclusion if you don’t mind paying the high price for the Sennheisers, and value sound quality and comfort, definitely go with these headphones. These are quality headphones and are among the best noise cancelling headphones available now on the market. They will last you a long time and give you years of pleasurable listening. If price is an issue the next set of headphones I would recommend would be the QC3s.
