Any conventional headset with passive noise attenuation is bound to be bulkier and require to be clamped more firmly to your head than one without. That's why Bose X are so comfortable to wear, but useless with a flat battery. The alternative is a headset that plugs directly into your ear canals, like the upmarket earbuds for MP3 players, or hearing aids. Aviation models are available from Lightspeed and Clarity Aloft, and the latter definitely work as well as Bose X's.

It is a bit fiddly plugging them into your ears, and you do have to replace the tips every so often, but the major downside is that you don't look like a pilot. However, I don't care about that, as long as I can hear clearly, don't have my head in a vice like grip, and can get my specs on and off easily.

Frank raises an interesting point. I'm researching them at the moment, and I can't find any tech data on the Bose. Anyone any ideas?
On a different note, does anyone know how much tax you can claim back on purchases when leaving the US?

Florida shops
 

For Silverknapper

"Any recommendations for shops in Florida gratefully received!"

Well, it's a big state! However, if you are in the Miami /Ft Lauderdale area, Tropic Aero next to Ft Lauderdale Executive airport (KFXE) has a large choice of all the major headset manufacturers at good prices.

Also, Banyan has an excellent Pilot Shop on the same field - but they may not discount as much......

Various makes of ANR headsets sound different. The Bose headset is fabulous, but (as others have mentioned) has virtually no passive attenuation. Still, the batteries last a long time, and you carry spares!

"On a different note, does anyone know how much tax you can claim back on purchases when leaving the US?"

Taxes are State taxes, not Federal ones. I am fairly certain that you can\'t reclaim them - but they are pretty low anyway.

Some stores (e.g. Macys and Bloomingdales) will offer foreign nationals a discount card to be used during their trip. Go to customer services and ask. Well worth it!

I started out with the flying school peltors and had great difficulty with the radio work, I borrowed a steinheiser ANR set and what a difference I could all of a sudden understand what was being said.
After much research I bought a pair of Lightspeed 30-3G which are brilliant BUT I have susequently had the opportunity to use the Bose X for a couple of flights and I shall now be buying 2 sets of the Bose (1 for me and 1 for my wife) just as soon as I have saved up enough money. The Lightspeeds are superior to anything else I have tried except the Bose X which beat them hands down on everything except price!
Hope my experience is helpful.

Nigel

I wonder why Bose don't quote performance figures, which otherwise seems to be standard practise. Their idea of Specifications is "What's in the box"!

I have the dc's13.4

I think they are superb although not so good when doing aerobatics as they have a tendancy to come off the head.

I too sport 13.4s and am generally very satisfied. However, the 'clamp pressure' is fixed - my bonce is a tad larger than average (but only on the outside) and they can squeeze a little after a few hours' wear.

Taxes: Some states (e.g. Louisiana) refund sales tax (9%) if you depart with an international flight ticket. I believe an alternative loophole is to order online from a different state to the one you're visiting, for delivery to your hotel. But of course (ahem) you'd be liable for British excise duty if they're worth more than 145 quid. Even if you're wearing them... :E

Nick

I have used Avcom AC-200 for about 10 years (Same pair - no problems) I bought them in the US.. You dont say where you are doing your training, but if the USA then buy from the pilot shop there.

I found the AC200 to be ideal, as the company apparently make the ear muff shells for the likes of Dave Clark they are virtually identical. They are robust, reasonably comfortable, have reasonable sound attenuation, and are competitively priced.

As they were cheap, I bought a second pair after five years of good service from the first for passengers.

Cheers


Mark

Don't forget Ebay as a resource - I have a pair of DC 13.4's off of ebay - just about in your 50-150 price range, as well as a pair of cheap as chips avcomm av-200's (?) which were well at the bottom end of your price range. At one point last month when I was looking for my DC's there were 8 DC 13.4's on ebay at the same time!
The DC's are excellent, and I haven't tried ANR but the DC's seem as good as anything else I've tried.

My 0,02 eurocents,

I've owned DC 13.4 with ANR, loved the ANR, hated them after every hour of flying, also interference with intrecoms, real skull crushers. Got rid of them :D for a Sennheisser HMEC 300. What a relief !

Then bought my SR20. Got a Bose X with it (with the Lemo / redel plug, standard on Cirrus, so no battery needed).

They are worth every $ IMHO Needed some more headsets for my family so I als bought a Sennheiser HMEC 100. Its the same as a 300 but no ANR, still good passive performance.

And a HMEC 25KAs for my wife. I also used it for my twin training. Its a hidden treasure in headsets. At the same time I trained a friend of mine bought a Bose-X in the States. He is in a club of 6, owning 2 SR20's and they all but one (BoseX) use Lightspeeds 25XL's.

They are good while flying, but they have a serious quality issue. All of them broke at some time. That is why he also went for a Bose. If you want a decent Lightspeed, PM me and he might make you a great deal on it.

S.

After having several David Clarkes for years and getting great service from them with a small problem 5 years after I bought one of their headsets I bought their ANR... Whoops what a mistake. I can't stop it oscillating and making a sound like a motorboat. This goes if you press the earpiece against your head . Its been back to Headset Services and DC in the US and it comes back with the usual " it works perfectly now sir" Well lo and behold it doesn't.
I purchased a Bose ANR... brilliant and well worth paying the extra over the DC.
The problem is I use a DC helmet which only takes DC headsets.
So now I have to decide between the helmet with oscillations or silence. Have opted for the helmet as I fly aeros. I wonder if anyone else has had a similar experience.

The bottom line is DCs are very good ( both the product and after sales service) but if you want an ANR headset then make sure you try it out first... or you could just buy the Bose, you will not be disapointed.

I wonder if anybody could help me with info on the clarity aloft headsets. I am not sure if they will work in the R22/R44 helicopters. Some of the older R22's, like the Beta, do not accommodate the ANR headsets. Will I have the same problem with the clarity aloft headset?
Thanks

flying shrink, why not ask Clarity Aloft directly (service at clarityaloft dot com)? I found them very helpful when I asked pre-purchase questions.

Thanks S , yes I have spoken to them and they say it will work. Have you compared them with ANR headsets? Are they providing as good noise reduction as advertised, with almost the same reduction as ANR's?

flying shrink, prior to Clarity Aloft, I used Sennheiser 400 ANR. The noise reduction is as good, without the head-clamp effect, and sound reproduction is excellent. See my post at the beginning of this thread for other comments.

Get a set of David Clarks. Its really the only sensible option, for the sake of pete.

Why?

Can't speak for Playtime, but I bought DCs 13.4, really clear and quiet in an R22 (which is pretty noisy!).

Very happy with them, but longer term I'll buy a helmet.

BW

I was wondering why, with the multitude of headsets available, DC's were considered the 'only sensible choice'.

originally posted by Playtime_fontayne
what a load of &#$*! there are plenty of good headsets around!!