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Just wondering if anyone uses them, and if they provide a real benefit. Obviously they are helpful in loud places, e.g. studying in a cafeteria, but assuming you're studying in an already pretty quiet place, does the complete silence they provide make it easier to study? Worth the ~$300?

nol607 wrote:Just wondering if anyone uses them, and if they provide a real benefit. Obviously they are helpful in loud places, e.g. studying in a cafeteria, but assuming you're studying in an already pretty quiet place, does the complete silence they provide make it easier to study? Worth the ~$300?

I've wanted these for a while. I've heard mixed reviews. One of my friends said they were actually surprising good, but only if you get the expensive ones. Another one of my friends said they were only really good if the noise was relatively constant, like the drone of airplane engines.

Haven't you already studied in this type of environment before? If you have some sort of ADD where the noises are distracting then go for it but if you don't then the benefit is likely exceedingly marginal.

No ADD but I'm distractible. I was wondering if anyone who has them feels that it is noticeably easier to study in complete silence.

I have used an expensive pair and they were great!!!! (Bose ones, but I cant afford that stuff I am in law school). Prospective law student memorize that phrase: "I am in law school, I can not afford [insert name of thing you, or another wants]."

They don't really cancel everything, they are more for dampening specific pitches. I have a $70 pair of Sonys I got at Best Buy, they're not bad but really I use them more for gaming and watching movies than studying. Battery life matters too - I hear Bose headphones run through AAAs like a fat kid through cake

I have had two different Bose pairs and would echo what some others have said. They are much better for drowning out constant noise of a certain frequency. I personally would probably go for noise isolation over noise canceling if it were just going to be for studying. Noise canceling wouldn't offer all that great of a difference in an already quiet environment; there is still sound.

One of the saddest things I've done lately is to try out the Bose noise-cancelling headphones then proceed to buy the cheap Sony version. I'll put it this way: I put on the Try Me! pair of Bose headphones in Best Buy, pushed "play" to see what they sounded like, and was like, wow, no biggie. Took them off and realized that the display had created a pretty noisy airplane takeoff simulation and I hadn't even noticed. They were so awesome. The cheap-ish pair I got is okay, but if you have a birthday or something coming up or ~$300 to blow, I'd go with the Bose.

As far as noise cancelling headphones in general, I love them because I get distracted by background noise, and if you travel a lot they are WONDERFUL for trains/public transportation.

Closed circumaural headphones or in-ear earphones (like this) may be a better idea, as they won't use AAA batteries up, and will probably do a good enough job getting rid of outside noise. With just a little bit of music, you won't hear much of the outside at all. The music itself won't suffer either...in my experience, noise cancellation comes at the expense of frequency response.

Thanks for all of the replies!

I'm confused, isn't OP referring to this:



and not this:

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I guess that's the credited answer. Ill go to the JFK airport's forum to solicit advice.

nol607 wrote:I guess that's the credited answer. Ill go to the JFK airport's forum to solicit advice.

Well I mean if you're talking about noise cancelling headphones doesn't music eat up all the outside noise?

My old pair, when music wasn't playing, muffled all outside noise but often replaced it with a slight but noticeable high pitch whine. It definitely worked best on droning sounds like an airplane but it also did a good job of making people almost completely silent as well.

Bose makes solid noise-canceling headphones, but they don't sound that great. The mid-bass is sort of weird and they sound really bloated and not that sharp. If you want better advice than we have try head-fi.org. I'm sure they can point you in the right direction. For all the full page ads that Bose takes out in whatever magazine, we pay. There are better brands that aren't as visible to the public but that are well-known and even more respected in circles of discerning listeners.

I don't understand the use of noise-canceling headphones for studying. If you are going to play music then just use regular headphones and you won't hear anything else. If you just want silence, either buy a 10x cheaper pair of those air-traffic controller headphones or find a quiet place to study.

I picked up some 4.95 ear plugs at CVS and they work like a champ.

I use mine in the library every day and I love them. They were pricy but worth every single penny.

I use Beats by Dre Tours. The headphones aren't made as noise canceling but the ear piece goes in deep so it blocks out every thing out. Also the music doesn't leak out. Really comfortable. I used them on the airplane as well. Just as good as noise canceling headphones.

$150 compared to $300 Bose.