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ANR Headsets

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Booker

The Ladies Man
Joined
Apr 5, 2002
Posts
693
OK, I know I'm bringing up something that's already been beat to death, but the previous threads don't seem to apply to me entirely. I have a DC 13.4 that I've used faithfully since 1998. I love the comfort and quality, but I'm thinking of moving up to an ANR model (not necessarily DC). I am a flight instructor and spend about 70 hours a month in Piper Warriors, Arrows, and Seminoles. If anyone has had a similar experience, I'd appreciate some buying advice. I know comfort is subjective, but I really like my 13.4, for what it's worth.

Thanks in advance.
 
i have a lightspeed 25K that i bought on ebay about a year ago, and i love it. very light, and quiet. it's kind of large, making it a tight squeeze in my flightbag, but i've been able to live with it. some have questioned it's durability due to the fact that it's made almost exclusively of plastic, but i have yet to have a problem with it in regional turbo-prop operations. lightspeed has an excellent reputation for customer support.
 
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I have a LightSpeed 25XL which is extremely comfortable and cuts the noise very well. Before that I owned a pair of David Clark 13.4's and the first time I wore them it was a 3 hour flight and I literally felt like I had been hit in the head with a hammer about 1 hour after getting on the ground. I have not had this problem with the LightSpeed. I've only got about 30 hours in them but have had no problems at all and don't anticipate any.

RT
 
I've used the Bose before, although I don't own one. I've got a DC ANR.

The Bose headsets are VERY comfortable and light. With the ANR, they're every bit as quiet as my DC's but just barely squeeze your head. It's like wearing a pair of stereo headphones. Batteries last about 10-15 hours for them (in my experience), which is a bit less than the 20 or so I get out of the DC's. The only problem with the Bose is that they're not really a good passive headset, so when the batteries fail, things get very loud! Carry spare batteries at all times. When the batteries die on my DC, I just end up with a pair of expensive 13.4's.

Are they worth the money? If my DC's hurt my head on long trips, I'd say yes. But I've done 5+ hour legs in them without any discomfort, so I'm happy where I am. I do know lots of people who can't ever seem to find a completely comfortable headset, and in those cases I can see someone shelling out the big bucks for a Bose.
 
I have a pair of DC 13.4 that I used while flight instructing. I then bought a Lightspeed 20XL. The lightspeed significantly cuts down on the noise from the larger twins and turbprops that I have flown. I do not have to wear earplugs with my headset, which a lot of people do. Negatives to the lightspeed - I have had to send my pair back to Lightspeed because of cord and power supply problems twice. Their tech support was very fast and courteous though. Also, they are kind of bulky. I feel like I have Micky Mouse ears on. Overall, I am happy with Lightspeed's.
 
The good, the bose, the ugly...

I fly very load freight trash, and have the the 13.4 DC (passive only) and the Bose. I gave in to the outragous price for one reason only.... comfort. Some people can fly with a vise on thier head and don't mind; I'm not one of those people.

Bose is the best out thier... sofar. (I've tried about a dozen- friends mostly.) Having said that, there is a few things that they could do to stay on top.

1. Price- come down a few hundred, they would sell many more

2. Have an "Auto" off function. (buy stock in 9v. batteries)

3. Battery life- I only get about 15-17 hrs. on good batteries.

4. Better on/off switch

5. better "battery life" indicator.


All in all they are good to me, but not perfect.

happy hunting
 
I have been instructing for 2 years with lightspeed 20k's. They are great only had one problem with them since i've owned them and they basically rebuilt the whole headset even replaced things that had just worn over time. Very good company and very comfortable. I will be mickey mouse as a trade for the comfort.
 
I DON'T recommend the Telex ANR500. Mine has burned-out the circuit card twice in 2 years despite only being used on heavy jets with stable electrics. When the card burns out the headset is completely inoperative. Both repairs were under warranty (would have been $200 repair costs each time), but it points to an inherent design/material flaw. If mine burns out again and they won't extend the warranty, then it goes in the junk pile along with any future thoughts of buying anything Telex.
 
Lightspeed Rule! They are coming out with 2 new models shortly. I have been very happy with mine. I get over 50 hours of use on the batteries. I think the DC are nice as well. They may be a bit more durable than the Lightspeeds. I have kept my headset in the bag it came with and have had no problems. They are a bit big to fit in my headset pockets of my flight bag.

I recommend going to a local store and asking if you can fly with the headset. This is what I did. I paid a bit more than buying it from Marv Golden, for example, but I felt since the owner was nice enough to let me try the headset it was fair to buy it from him.

- AZPilot
 

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