Headsets

[JohnGV]

Hi All, im lookin for a new headset. i wanna spend between £150-£200.

Can any1 offer suggestions on any? and where can i look for bargains

Apologies if this is a well milked subject thread,but advice would be appreciated.

(im startin CPL next month, so pro suited headset preffered)

Cheers JV

[ChampChump]

A search will yield several threads. Pilot shops have cheaper versions as well as the gold standard ones. What's available in Canada? Sportys, I imagine.

If you've got to PPL level already, presumably you have some experience of what's around and what suits. If you're starting CPL from scratch, look at any of the suppliers' websites and go from there. I believe there's usually a good few sets on ebay as people upgrade.

[tuscan]

Go for David Clarks. Just google them and see what price you can get.
If in future you wish to upgrade you will find these will hold value and are well sought after.

Good luck with your training.

[tuscan]

I just called my sister on Gabriola Island, she reckons most pilots around Nanaimo use David Clarks, she`s no expert but says they are green ones.........:\

I forgot to allow for time diference.... ooooops, shes furious:mad::mad: so I hope this helped.

[liam548]

im just about to buy David Clark 10-13.4 £170 from USA onine retailer.

[DavidHoul52]

I have a Sennheiser HME 95 which I am very happy with. I find the David Clark's extremely uncomfortable (and so does my passenger!)

[flyvirgin]

David clark headsets are the nut's:ok: gets my vote.

[DX Wombat]

There are lots of threads about this but never mind :) I have a Peltor headset on loan to me and find it great but I'm not sure how it would fare for commercial although it was used professionally by the generous FI who has lent it to me. You would be better off looking at something like the BoseX ones. I wouldn't have Dave Clarkes as I find them nasty, heavy, less well fitting, uncomfortable, with a tendency to slide off my head and with poor noise reduction although I'm sure plenty of people think they are wonderful and some won't like my choice. To be sensible about things you should get yourself to somewhere which sells a variety of makes and see which you find suits you best.

[tuscan]

Wombats advice is good, try a few on and even borrow a few if you can.

Remenber compatability though....Bose dont work well with all other types and the chances are your fi wont be using them. DC`s or Peltors work with just about anything.

[172driver]

she`s no expert but says they are green ones.........

well, as long as she doesn't talk you into buying pink ones....:E

Seriously - you say you're going for the CPL. Do you have any idea what kind of a/c you might be flying after you got your ticket? If this is anything with a piston prop out front, then there's really only one choice - Bose-X. They are expensive, but your hearing is priceless. If, OTH, you intend to carry on into jet territory, then you can probably get pretty much anything now for your training and sell it on asap, you'll need different ones then. Horses for courses...

[tuscan]

If you were going to buy then sell on, just get a set on ebay, theres loads of them. heres 1 example David Clark Headset on eBay, also, Aircraft Accessories, Aircraft Aviation, Cars, Parts Vehicles (end time 02-Nov-08 18:46:23 GMT) (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/David-Clark-Headset_W0QQitemZ140277706682QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item1402777 06682&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1301%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318 )

[Droopystop]

I have a Peltor and a David Clark, both used in professional aviation in very high noise environment. Peltor very light and comfortable much more robust than they look. I only wear the David Clark's because that is what the intercom system on the particular aircraft type will accept (apart from the Bose X which were found to be no better than the DCs). Otherwise, they are too heavy.

But be aware, the best headset will depend on the type of aircraft you are flying. It is hard to fault the Peltor, especially if you combine them with ear plugs. I would love to try the in ear types - on paper at least they seem to be the way to go.

[vulcanpilot]

Not being a slave to fashion or badge snobbery I fly with a Racal Jetgard headset which I bought back in 1994; I have seen friends and other club members get through several pairs of DC's which seem to fall to bits after a couple of years. And I cannot wear Peltors as they are THE most uncomfortable headset I have ever tried.

Racal Acoustics (http://www.racalacoustics.com/products/noise_attenuating_headsets/ra101_jetgard_headset.aspx) now seem to market the Jetgard as a groundcrew headset, but mine was configured for GA and has worked flawlessly for 14 years and looks nearly as good as the day I bought it. It has never needed repair and I have yet to find a radio, intercom or headset mix that it hasn't worked correctly with. They also have impressive passive noise reduction too.

Not sure who sell these now or how much they cost, but back in '94 they were comparible in price with the cheapest DC's.

[tuscan]

What were the club members doing to their DC`s,using them to knock in tent pegs??????
I always thought they were robust and have never heard of a set falling to bits. Ive had two for nearly 8 years now that are still like new and I`m a ham fisted fellow at best.
Mine do however have the bendy black mic, could that make a difference to the wear and tear?

[IO540]

The question is how much is your hearing worth.

And how much value you attach to good communications when airborne. From just flying around, it is obvious that a lot of pilots are having problems with comms.

£150-200 will get you a crap headset.

[Shunter]

I don't rate DCs myself. They seem to have a habit of interfering with almost every other brand of headset. With a few exceptions they're heavy, agricultural things which clamp your head like a vice. I bought my set when I was a student, because "everyone else had them". Big mistake; they were crap. Sure, you can throw them around and they won't break, but personally I prefer just to take care of my kit. The £70 Skylite sets I bought off eBay to throw in the back for pax were preferable to the DCs in almost every way!

Got a Bose set for a very good price shortly after qualifying, and I'll never, ever go back. Very light, very comfortable and the noise reduction is excellent. The best I've ever tried, by a mile.

[stocker]

DC`s are not crap. They just dont suit Shunter and a few others.
DC is a market leader and has been for years. You dont get there by selling crap!!!!!!!!

Some people have got heads for DC`s others dont.
Try on a few pairs and find out what fits your head best.

Its a bit like crash helmets. I remember years ago all my biker mates said you either have an ARAI head or a Shoei head. If one fits the other wont. Doesn`t mean its gash.:ugh:

Cant you just borrow from the club until you mature to qualified status?

[Vulcan607]

after a trip to transair over the weekend I couldn't resist a new headset myself.

I've always wanted a Bose-X, but the way I look at that is 7 hours flying for my hours building.

So I opted for the Sennheiser HMEC 250 and I'm very pleased with it, I think its just as good for approx half the price of the Bose headset.

Worthwhile investment I say.

Maybe if I still believed in Santa he'd have brought me a Bose for Christmas :(

[IO540]

DC is a market leader and has been for years. You dont get there by selling crap!!!!!!!!

DC are not crap but they are very uncomfortable, which is not significant (for most people) on a quick training flight (or a quick flight of any sort) but does one's head in on longer flights. And all £200 headsets have poor noise attenuation.

DC are selling because they have always been selling. They are a kind-of Harley-Davidson of the headset market - stick an American flag on it and a certain % of punters will always buy it. They are also solidly built which is an asset if people are going to kick them around, which, I suppose, is important if flying e.g. a single door plane in which the headsets get left on the seats and as people climb in (stepping on the seats) they step on the headsets.

The point is that things have moved on since the 1960s when DC were state of the art. The best of today is Bose X and the Lightspeed Zulu. DC have nothing that even approaches these in performance.

BTW, beware of bogus advertising which has been common on headsets since I started flying in 2000. The attenuation figures are often made up on the spot. In was at a well known pilot shop last week and looking at some of the quoted "total noise reduction" db figures it was obvious they were nonsense. Never buy a headset on the advertised db noise reduction. Bose don't even give this figure...

[Fright Level]

DC is a market leader and has been for years. You dont get there by selling crap!!!!!!!!

Very good build quality but they earned their reputation for noise suppression by getting an effective seal between your ears and the outside world by being a fairly tight fit for the normal sized head.

At work we use Sennheiser HME25's and they put up with a heck of a lot of abuse. They aren't suitable for higher noise environments so I bought a couple of pairs of HMEC450's and am very impressed. Unlike the Bose, they don't lose almost all of their noise suppression if the battery goes flat and they are made by a headphone/microphone company, not a marketing outfit.

They are harder to find in the UK as most places seem to sell the 460's (only difference is an iPod input!). I'm not in the habit of getting distracted by music or mobile phones whilst flying so the 450's are just right. You can buy them online from the USA for around $500 (was £250 until not long ago!).

I've never tried DC ANR headsets so can't comment about those but noise reduction either passive (traditional DC's), active (Bose) or both (Sennheiser) is the way to go.

[TCU]

Still have the same pair of DC's I bought as "nearly new" second handers seven years ago and they still perform well on shortish flights. Anything 1hr+ and they become a little irritating. Now use them as a back up or for my ususpecting pax

Invested in a pair of Lightspeed Zulu's back in the summer and love them, especially the ipod connectivity which i've used several times when flying as rear gunner. The blue tooth connectivity is however useless. Tried to use it on a recent 4hr trans euro flight and only picked up a signal when in the circuit at the destination! Would not actually use either function if P1 ing as probably a bit distracting.

One obvious tip at the moment is to look at exchange rate disparity. US bargains are probably over. I'm currently in South Africa and bagged an ICOM transceiver for a bargain price when the Rand was 17.8/£1. Also a lovely mornings flying out of CPT for just over a £100 quid!

[Mike Parsons]

Apologies for bringing this back from the bottom of the list, but I have a set of Sennheiser HME100's which i bought brand spankers off eBay for £100. I have used these for a few hours and really like them, they are comfortable and block out the noisiest of cabins.

The only thing I haven't tried is peeling the rubber pad off to change the ST-MO switch. If it works, dont fix it...

I have no idea how clear I sound as I never listen to myself, but I would imagine it is pretty good.

99% of people I see down Shoreham have David Clark headset's. I purchased Senn's because I know they make decent Hi-Fi headphones and earphones, plus I wanted to be different...

[tuscan]

So, JohnGV.

Has any of this helped your descision, youve been a bit quiet, I hope you haven`t been put off by allour ramblings!!!:ok: