Sony MDR-NC5 Consumer Headphones

I'm sitting right now* on a United Airlines flight from San Francisco to Seattle, wearing my MDR-NC5 headphones to help deaden the noise of the ancient 737 I'm in. There is no video or audio programming offered on this flight, so the headphones are not even plugged in. Nevertheless, I'm leaving them on because they make a difference.

The Sony MDR-NC5 noise-canceling headphones are a middle of the line sort of product. They are neither tiny nor are they bulky. They lack the large padded ear pads of the most expensive models, but then the NC5s are a bit more portable. The NC5s do not give quite the sound quality (dynamic range and frequency response) of regular non-noise-canceling headphones in the same price range, but then regular headphones don't do what these do.

What these do is actively cancel a large amount of noise, specifically that low-frequency rushing/roaring sound inside an airplane cabin. They do this by listening to the sound and generating a matching opposite waveform and playing it into the earphones, mixed it with whatever it is you're trying to listen to.

You still hear noise with the NC5s on, just much less of it. I occasionally flip the little switch on the side of the NC5s to the 'off' position while in use just to remind myself that they are indeed working. As soon as I do, the roar returns to its pre-muted level, and I am pleased to activated the headphones again and muffle it.

I first tried the NC5s in flight a couple of days ago on a flight from Calgary to San Francisco, aboard an A320 that did offer audio and video entertainment. What a difference. For the first time ever on a plane, I didn't have to crank the audio level to its maximum in an attempt to hear dialog clearly. The NC5s cancel enough noise to make it much easier to hear the program, and this resulted in less ear fatigue and less of a strained fatigued feeling overall. I was able to hear the program very well at a setting much closer to the minimum instead of the maximum. I can't wait to try these on my next transatlantic flight.

[Update: They worked great on the transatlantic flights; I enjoyed several films like I never have before. Two notes about extended use, however: Firstly, after an extended period you begin to feel some pressure on your ear lobe, causing some minor discomfort. This can usually be corrected by shifting the earpad or taking it off for a few minutes. I took this as a hint that I had watched enough videos and should get some sleep. Also, for long flights it was a good idea to keep a spare AAA battery in the headset carrying case for when the battery died in-flight. Luckily the headset works with no power, but without power it is much quieter and of course the noise-canceling function does not work.]

The only complaint I might offer is that the headband of the NC5s is not quite as comfortable as it could be. It doesn't exactly cause pain after a long wearing, but you occasionally feel it there on the top of your head. I was able to minimize this effect by keeping the headset adjusted a little more loosely than I might normally do.

The NC5s fold up into a nice leather-like carrying case. They come with that two-prong adapter that many airlines use, as well as your first AAA battery. (The battery supplied with mine was nearly dead, though, which you can tell by the dimness of the power LED, and by the strange sounds the unit makes when the battery is dying.)

One caveat, this unit reduces sounds in a very specific frequency range. It does not block out mid and high frequencies such as voices, rustling paper, etc. If you want something to completely block out the noise, use those cheap itchy foam earplugs.

I recommend these to anyone who flies frequently, as they are a massive improvement over the airline-supplied earphones, and they've made my flights less tiring.


* This review was prepared using DocumentsToGo on a Palm m500 with the Palm Portable Keyboard.