DIY Cheapo Headset? ....

[Slipstream86]

:} Im running my flying career on a shoe string!

Could I get an adapter from here:
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/pdf/2007Individual/Cat07529.pdf



with the capacity to convert this headset to something usable for any passengers in an aircraft?:

PC Leather Pad Skype Headphone Headset w/Microphone Mic on eBay, also, Headphones, Portable Audio, Consumer Electronics (end time 28-Oct-08 22:45:00 GMT) (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PC-Leather-Pad-Skype-Headphone-Headset-w-Microphone-Mic_W0QQitemZ250315636735QQihZ015QQcategoryZ109019QQtcZphoto QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262)

Surely, all Id need is an adapter to convert the pair of 3.5 mm jacks to their respective 1/4" and .206" jack connectors???

[Brian304]

I surely would not reccommend it. A headset, apart from letting you hear ATC e.t.c is also there to protect your hearing. I've used mine for about 4 years now, and still nothing wrong with it. So I would 100% reccommend you buy a proper pilots headset.

Brian304:}

[Slipstream86]

I surely would not reccommend it. A headset, apart from letting you hear ATC e.t.c is also there to protect your hearing. I've used mine for about 4 years now, and still nothing wrong with it. So I would 100% reccommend you buy a proper pilots headset.

Brian304http://static.pprune.org/images/smilies/badteeth.gif


I did consider that but then I figured that some little foam ear defenders could be worn with the headset to block any damaging volumes out!

I know its a bit of a thrifty solution but its gotta be tried!

[BigEndBob]

I have worn the same David Clarke H10.40 for the last 20 odd years instructing in GA aircraft. Has cracked in the usual place and gone through 3-4 gel earsets which only seem to last a few years.
As for hearing damage i am now starting to get a ringing in my left ear, which i notice when lying in bed.
Short term i think they protect your hearing, but long term i suspect the noise just penatrates your skull and does the damage from the inside.
Also the constant racket on the radio.
Other than wearing a bone dome i can't see how hearing damage can be avoided...other than giving up flying noisey aircraft.

[Mark1234]

Hang on a minute...

Protecting your own hearing aside, there's one really big difference.. a proper headset has a noise cancelling mic that chops out the background racket of the engine etc., so that the people you're talking with can actually hear a word you say; a skype headset will not.

In all honesty, you can get a cheapo headset around the 100 quid mark, and it'll last you for years if you look after it. Compared to the cost of flying, it's miniscule.

[Pilot DAR]

Slipstream,

About 30 years ago, it was all I could gather together to buy a good David Clark headset. I still use it. You will never regret buying good quality for such personal equipment. If times are tight, buy used off eBay - a choice not available all those years ago!

Show those of us who you will meet during your flying, that you take seriously our chosen profession, by equipping yourself properly.

If that is not convincing enough, remind yourself that a headset is a vitally important part of the communcation system of the aircraft. It's failure to operate as intended by the design standard could create a safety problem. ATC and pilots can't hear you, you can't hear them, or worse, the mic blocks the frequency open, and nobody can hear anyone else. And, do you want plug non-conforming mystery electronics into someone's many thousand dollar avionics system. When you let the smoke out, you'll probably get the bill! The proper headset will seem cheap then!

If you have to, buy a junk aviation headset. You'll be replacing it in a few years, but it will get you going for a while. I bet though, that you can find a used David Clark for the same price, and you'll appreciate the quality for decades!

Please buy the proper equipment for the task. Your hearing will be properly protected, and everyone else will appreciate your doing things right. A good starting point in aviation.

Pilot DAR

[flyingman-of-kent]

You will probably find that the impedance is wrong for either the mic or earphones or both, and apart from not working could cause damage to the aircraft radio, or any other headsets plugged in.

When I was learning, once we tried to use adapter cables so the rear passengers could listen, and the first two types we tried did not work, in the end we had to buy the proper splitter which was expensive but it worked first time and worked very well.

So everyone has a valid reason for you not trying this!! Put them back on ebay to get your money back!

[Ultranomad]

Slipstream86, one more very important feature of pilot headsets is their ruggedness/reliability. I am intimately familiar with the model you refer to. Its typical lifetime when used at the desk is 3-6 months. When fixed, it will break again even sooner. I fixed mine three times just to check if it will ever stop breaking or not. It didn't. In fact, none of 5-10-20-euro computer headsets I have had in recent years (four or five different models) lived for more than a year. They all fail unexpectedly and intermittently, irritating the hell out of you when they suddenly die at the most important moment. I do wear 10-euro sunglasses and they serve me well, but will never use such a headset in the cockpit.

[rauxaman]

A very experienced pilot once said to me... "a good headset can improve a poor radio but a poor headset will spoil a good radio"

Or something like that... but I got the drift

[Mariner9]

Hmm, several responses, but it seems few have read or understood the original question:

with the capacity to convert this headset to something usable for any passengers in an aircraft (My bold)

Clearly, you're unlikely to want pax to communicate with ATC, and you probably don't overly care about their long term hearing :E, but there is the risk that non-aviation headsets will be incompatible with aviation headsets, thus preventing any comms whatsoever.

Save up and buy another pair you tight git :=. Or better still, ask your Dad if he's got any spare sets he could lend you till you can afford another set ;)

[BackPacker]

What would your passengers think of you when you show up with a fancy aviation headset, and then you hand them over something botched up from a pair of cheap eardefenders and a skype headset, with a few connectors soldered on?

My flying club has a bunch of headsets for (cheap) rent. Works fine.

And about a year ago I was in a situation where I was going to do a short pleasure flight with two passengers, but had no ability to get to these headsets. So they had no headsets at all, I only put up my headset during take-off and landing and had ATC on speaker during the cruise with my headset around my neck. Yes it is noisy and I would not recommend this as a long-term solution but twenty-thirty years ago nobody used headsets and that worked just fine.

[BigEndBob]

If you want them just to listen then thats straightforward, just make a splitter box for the 1/4" plugs. OR 1/4? Stereo Plug to Two 1/4? Stereo Sockets Adaptor > Maplin (http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=989&DOY=29m10). Go buy some cheap stereo headphones from Argos.
You could modify some David Clarke ear defenders which use the same cup and headband and fit your own speakers.

Problem with microphones is getting them all to balance otherwise one mic will rob the others of power if missmatched. This can happen even when you mix Dave Clarkes of different mics.

[modelman]

Ebay...................