Headset help!

[Blinkz]

Hey guys,
Am looking into buying a headset. I've tried a load on at the local shop and the bose x are just the daddys, so light and comfortable.

I've got contacts in the US so will be buying it out there but I was wondering if some of you could answer a couple of questions.

1) Whats the difference between the electret and dynamic mics? One gets power from the radio and the other doesn't, but what is standard? Does it really matter what one to get?

2) Will there be a problem with the warrenty from the US? or is it just a worldwide bose warrenty?

3) does anyone have any experience of wearing sunglasses with the bose? I've got a pair of oakley minutes (plastic oakley frames), these have quite bulky arms so will this be a problem with the bose ear seals?

Thanks for any advice guys! (and gals)

[18greens]

Hi,

The only one I can answer is the one about the mics.

Radio/ intercom systems are setup to accept either dynamic or electret. Dynamic won't work with an electret system and electret won't work with dynamic.

Unless you are flying old stuff the chances are you need electret.Even most old stuff has been upgraded to electret.
(electrets need the power).

Good luck with the rest of the questions.

How much are they in the states?

18

[Flying Tooth Driller]

For what it's worth, most US dealers have the Bose's in at $995 or so. Probably will have to add State sales tax to that, which could be 6% or more, depending on where it's bought. Then they have to be shipped, and you 'll pay VAT and a bit of duty.

About £740 here including VAT from Headset Services and others.

I'd rather have the peace of mind of solid backup here, and the protection of the Sale of Goods Act. Bose headsets are great (spectacles are not a problem), but they are more delicate than DCs. They are lighter than competitive products and the ANR is amazing.

If you are prepared to buy Bose, in the overall scheme of "things flying", I reckon it's worth the extra few pounds you may pay here. Remember, it's just possible that you won't like them (improbable), and would want to return them after a few days to exchange them for something else - a bit difficult if they were acquired by somebody else on the other side of the Pond. I know you tried them at a dealer, but you need to try them in a PLANE.

Regards.

[Blinkz]

Thanks for the replies. I agree that the one down side is that I won't easily be able to return them, but like you said that is unlikely since they are widely known as one of the best headsets. Also I've tried them on so I know I find them comfortable, I just don't know how well they work in the air.

As for them being fragile that was what my 2nd question was about. As I read the US and UK bose websites it looks like they would have a worldwide warrenty, can anyone confirm this?

I'm just not sure if its worth the extra £250 to buy them here in the UK.

[redsnail]

I wouldn't stress too much about the dynamic v electret mike worries. I use a Dave Clark number with a dynamic mike. It's better for high ambient noise environments and it has a gain switch that can be adjusted. I have had no compatibility issue with other brands of headsets and electret mikes.

[Flying Tooth Driller]

<<I wouldn't stress too much about the dynamic v electret mike worries>>

Depends on the intercom fitted to the aircraft. Some older types caused the incompatibility problem to manifest itself. Newer intercoms compensate for the different mikes.

The Bose warranty is international and is a limited two year warranty.

[Blinkz]

I'm currently flying an average pa38 doing my PPL training. After that I'll be going onto to do my commercial training. So is electret the best bet?

[Flying Tooth Driller]

Blinkz,

Not too sure about that. For GA these days, electret is the way to go.

As you move up the tree to airliners, I'm not sure, as Sennheiser (for example) make condenser and electret versions of their airline style headsets. You never see airline pilots using Bose X headsets. However, realistically, if your commercial aspirations stop at King Airs or Citations, etc., you need to check. Anyway, you could always part exchange the Bose or sell it when you need to change.

Maybe one of the pros on pprune can tell you more, but a reputable dealer (on either side of the Atlantic!) will certainly point you in the right direction.

[Blinkz]

Well even when I get to ATPL I'll still want to fly GA planes, but at present I'll just go for electret.

[Flik Roll]

with regards to you type of sunnies...i have a pair of Oakley Minutes and only have problems with the cheaper not so fantastic headsets. I have a pair on Avcomm 747's and they don't make difference with my Minutes - the arms are wide at the front but not round the ear area. Suggest you try on a pair in Transair with your sunnies on before purchasing from the US

[Brooklands]

I'll still want to fly GA planes, but at present I'll just go for electret
So all you need to do now is decide what colour they should be :}

Brooklands

[Keef]

Electret is a comparatively new invention, and is another name for "condenser" or "capacitor" microphones. Aircraft intercoms and radios predate electret by many decades.

The difference in aircraft systems is between dynamic (moving coil etc) microphones, which don't need powering to make them work but which need amplifiers after them, and carbon microphones (as fitted in domestic telephones in the 1940s and 50s) which need a polarising voltage but don't need an amplifier.

Old headsets as used by PPLs tended to use carbon microphones, so the aircraft had a power supply to feed them. When electret were invented, they needed a polarising voltage and an amplifier to make them work, so it was easy to adapt them to old aircraft systems.

Before that, there were aircraft headsets with dynamic microphones and amplifiers, the latter powered from the carbon mike polarising voltage.

That's the history (more than you needed!).

The catch, nowadays, is that not all microphone systems (electret, dynamic, or carbon) are the same impedance. If your aircraft simply connects all the micophones in parallel, then only the lowest-impedance one is likely to work properly.

Some DCs won't work with some other DCs, for example. There are ways to fix the problem if it occurs, but a decent intercom unit is the best solution.

For more information, consult Richard Holder, who will also for a very reasonable fee convert your non-ANR headset to ANR. He has done much research on microphone compatibility.

[Blinkz]

Ok last question before i get em :D what u guys recommend? coiled cable or straight? I'm edging towards coiled so that if u do forget about them u won't totally wrench urself lol.

any draw backs to coiled? I've only ever used cheap straight headsets.