Headsets for bizjets, which one?

[transilvana]

Hi all

I want to get a nice set of headsets, noise reduction, lightweighted, etc... If you are using any of the famous brands like Bose, Telex, etc, which one would you recommend?

Thanks to all.

[Delta12]

Lightest with a small cover and still kind of cheap you might get is probably the Bose A15 with the UFlyMike microphone set.

Love it :)

[Kelly Hopper]

Telex Airman 850. Lightweight and rugged active headset that takes it's power from the jackplug so no batteries required. I've been using it for a few years now and no complaints at all. :ok:

[Globally Challenged]

We use the A20 - but then the owner coughed up for them.

If I were using my own money, then as above, the Bose QC + uFlyMike is a great solution.

[FrankR]

I've used most everything on the market.

The Bose QC15 and U Fly Mike is the best I've ever used!!

Ballpark USD $225 for U fly Mike, and USD $299 for the QC 15.

FR

[galaxy flyer]

Used the Telex 850 for 7 years, great, no battery, light and compact to carry. No problems,

GF

[733driver]

Not a huge fan of the Telex 850. It is very small and moves easily on the ear, making it less effective as a noise cancelling headset. Its noise cancelling qualities are also limited to begin with. It works well in very quiet flighdecks but not the best for some of the more noisy ones.

[Liftboy]

Used the Bose Aviation X for the last 6 years - 1,5 years on Premier IA, never had any problems. Just thinking about to upgrade to a new Bose A20.

So my "old" Bose will be up for sale :}

[transilvana]

Telex 850 looks good and it´s on the price range, thanks all.

[Joe le Taxi]

Actually the bose aviation x was one I was referring to - Heavy, bulky, falls off the head if you nudge a cup off an ear to listen to someone, very heavy battery/ANR pack which pulls on the lead or gets caught, and overly effective ANR so I cant hear the engines, which I find disconcerting. Horrible (but in a spam-can, I'm sure it would be lovely).

I find Sennheiser come up with the best solution for jet cockpits eg HMEC46. Yes the Telex is good - Ive used that a few times.

[Springbok614]

Telex 850. Light and cheap!

[tradewind]

FWIW I used the Telex 850 for about a year and then found out about the Uflymike (I had the QC2 already). 2 things spring to mind after changing; my fatigue levels dropped considerably and my ability to hear ATC properly (esp. Italy and Spain, but I guess that's a different story!) increased significantly.

Were these because of the headset?

I had to revert back to the Telex for a month or so after the Uflymike picked up a fault and had to be repaired. Guess what? more fatigue and more of "say again" on the radio - less comfortable all round.

I personally feel the small outlay was/is worth it and I wouldn't touch the 850 unless I was forced to.

In the end it comes down to personal preference and the a/c type you are flying

[B200Drvr]

I agree with FrankR and Delta12, the Bose QC 15 with the UFLY mic is by far the best, all in all about USD $540. It is small, compact and lightweight, has the same ANR as the Bose aviation headsets, spares are available from any Bose store, and the AAA battery lasts about 30 hours. I have used them for over 7 years now and would never go back to Telex etc. Plus you can still use them to watch DVD's on your PC in the hotel room, and even pipe the music through to them on long haul.
One headset for all uses.

[EatMyShorts!]

The best is the Bose A20. I used to fly with a Bose X, but after 10 years it was time to replace it with the new version of it, the A20. It is great, you can plugin your IPod or whatever and relax when you are in cruise. What I do not like is the combination of a Bose QC and a uFlyMike. Those colleagues, who use them, end up having distorted voices, it must be an issue with the microphone and the intercom, at least on our type of aircraft (F2000EASy). The A20 is just perfect: it does not weigh a lot, it is astonishingly quiet and as a result you feel fresh at the end of a long day. Those business jets are noisy and it is much easier to pickup ATC-instructions when you can hear the controller crystal clear, so less concentration is needed for this task. The 2 AA-batteries last for many hours, sometimes I fly two tours (of 6 days) without exchanging my rechargeable batteries, great! Go and test a Bose A20 and compare it to a Telex 850. I never liked the Telex 850, because it does push onto my ears that start to hurt after an hour or two. The Bose (or any other large headset sits around your ear and not on it. If I were you, I'd rather invest a bit more money into a decent pair of headsets (or ask your employer/owner to do it, it is for his safety!). This way you will protect your health: less stress, less fatigue, less damage to your ears.

[HermanTheGerman]

I agree with EMS.

I used the Telex 850 for some years, but after some hours on long flights it started to hurt, even it is so light. The noise cancelling is good, I thought, until I got my new

Bose A 20. lightyears difference in noise cancelling, you switch them on- and you feel the sound of silence. Impressive. Batteries last very long (40+ hours), and I really like my own entertainment system with my iPhone plugged to it. It doesn't hurt, I fly up to 7 hours, no problem. Don't want anything else.

and for my own ears nothing should be too expensive. Because I am intending to use them for at least another 40-50 years from now on.

[Private jet]

I vote Telex 850. They all get uncomfortable for various reasons after a long period (lightweights or prop jockey 'can' types)

[Booglebox]

What? 17 posts and no mention of DC H10-13.4? :{

[Delta12]

If you go for the bose 10/20, be aware that you then travel with an additional bag !

[FrankR]

Funny how a post here will jog your memory. I bought my Bose / Uflymike combo after a long trip to a land where the controllers spoken English was horrible. The guy I was flying with kept looking at me like I was a dumba$$ because of the number of times I would mispronounce waypoints and SIDs on read back. My Uflymike / Bose eliminated almost all of those problems.

FR

[His dudeness]

Sennheiser HMEC-25.

Works very well for us.

[what next]

Kind of related - Do people go on speaker/off headset at all?

I would love to, but the passengers might complain... (no cockpit doors in our Citations)

And another vote for HMEC-25, but I never need to turn the noise reduction on so a cheaper passive model might be quite as good.

[mutt]

but I've never come across anyone who does it in biz-jets, (even though the ops manual normally allows it). We do it and I don't like it. I much prefer selecting what i want to listen to.

As for headsets, I love the QC15 with Iflymike, although word of warning for anyone purchasing one, they have short and long mike booms, the short boom is not suitable when you want to have the headset on your right ear.

mutt

[sooty3694]

When crew only we go to speaker only.

[tophe]

Another vote for the QC-15 & UFly Mike. Small case, light weight and able to listen other devises.
When I started using it, I coudn't understand why I waited so long to buy one.
A new flying world started to my joy.

About the speaker, it's quieter and more confortable with the headset, so no need to use the speaker.

And if you transition to the Airbus later, there is a cable adaptor available.

Tophe

[ILblog]

I vote for Bose QC + UflyMike BUT I think they are not legal in cockpit. In case of loosing power in batteries, they do not work at all.

[FrankR]

The question "Is it legal" comes up often. First of, make sure you need a TSO headset, most people do not. This is ONLY a requirement of your 121 airline (I have no clue about you JAA guys)

The UFLYMike website has all the paperwork and proceedural info right there showing that these are just as legal as anything else.

See for yourself.

FR

[sonicpana]

QC15 from Bose and the mike kit from uflymike. Just remember to have a spare pack of AAA batts. U can listen to ya tunes off ya iPad after a hard day in the office too!

[Tomair2377]

I have the Sennheiser ANR Headset.
It is really the best I have ever had.
Mic is sensitive and active for HF.
Noise Reduction passive is very good, active is OK(not so perfect like Bose, but it hums as well a little when selected)
It is very comfortable and light, you could mix in your MP3 (with ANR on only).
I love the master volume which reduces the altimeter alert a lot!
For 380 USD a really excellent price quality!

[transilvana]

Has anyone tried the HALO quiet technologies or the Clarity Aloft?

I´ve read some threats on the Bose A20 and looks like is having lot´s of problems for a 1.000$ headset. Sennheiser looks on the price range for the quiality but these small passive headsets HALO and Aloft look really good.

[Jetspeed219]

Highly recommend the clarity aloft. Have been using them for 4 years now and it's the best set I've owned. I've had David Clark's and Bose.

[buzzc152]

Another vote for the Bose QC/uflymike combo. Less than half the price of the A20 and every bit as good. It's also great for plugging into your mp3/iphone etc. 1 AAA battery lasts forever it seems.

[Moonwalker]

Anyone tried Lightspeed Zulu 2? Equivalent with Bose but cheaper.

[ahramin]

Telex Ascend is excellent except that with Y plugs it needs it's battery which you have to constantly keep recharging.

[B737900er]

Does anyone else find the Telex 750 Mic doesn't cancel out noise to well.
What I mean is that when you speak you can hear yourself breathe at the same time bit like having the mask on your face.

I find if moving the mic away from my mouth I dont get it but i find myself shouting to make up for it.

NB I dont have a sponge on the mic.

[733driver]

The fome sponge makes a difference on the 750 but it's still not a great headset in my opinion.