Phonak
Hi Ray,
I own a freecom 7000. I us it on a Global Express.
I like it very much but I'll tell you a little about it
There seems to be a misunderstanding of what active is with this headset.
It is not an active noise reduction headset. The custom made earplugs are protecting from noise very well as they are. But they are blocking everything, also when the C/A is asking if you need a coffee. For you not to miss that, Phonak integrated their "Active/Dynamic" thing. All it does is picking up the noise through the mic and let it in to your ears. on the little box you can set the volume. It's a bit like a device for a hearing impaired person. Once the coffee is ordered you can turn the volume back down or swith it off.
It's actually more quiet if it's off completely. The level of volume I need since I use this headset if way lower than with the standard Telex.
I don't know how it is in other aircraft but on the Global the only downside is that the squelch of the intercom is a bit to low. If my colleage is mumbeling only, the phonak won't pick it up, whereas the standard Telex did.
The headset has a quick connect at the little box with the controls. You can take it outside to do you walkaround if you like.
The earplugs themselfs are made from a hard plastic. I find it a bit uncomfortable if I am wearing it for an extended period of time. But everybody is different. I can't use earplug or ipod-headphones very long either as it starts getting sweaty and itchy. I usually wear it until TOC and then again from the TOD. Our plane is pretty quiet once we are above level 400.
Overall I can recommend the headset very much.
By the way I've tried the t-bone headset as well. As you might know it didn't have a regular microphone but picked up the vibrations of your voice in your ear on the bone.
It worked well for me but all the complains of my colleagues and all the "say again"-calls from ATC annoyed me so much that I had to revert to my regular headset. The quality of my voice was just too poor. I sent it back and left my money as a deposit for the new version which was supposed to come out shortly....and burnt my fingers, as the went bancrupt.
Cheers