Bumblebee
Commodore
I don't care who you are . . . that's some funny stuff right there!
Omar, what do you want for your Bose?
Turbo Prop Pilots
- Thread starter Airdale
- Start date
Omar, what do you want for your Bose?
surreal1221
Well-Known Member
ZWflyer
Well-Known Member
That would be me. I tried four different pairs of sunglasses with them and none of them worked at all. If the seal was the slightest bit broken on the ears the ANR was basically useless.
JaceTheAce
Well-Known Member
flyguy
Well-Known Member
I used to use the Telex Stratus 50-D, and I still keep it as a spare. That was by far the quietest headset you could buy, and probably still is. The only thing I didn't like about it was the size and weight. Then I got the X11. At first I was very disappointed. It didn't fit right, the noise cancellation was nothing compared the the Telex and I was just about to send it back, but after giving it couple weeks I started to get used to it. I just needed some time to learn to adjust it to a comfortable fit (which adjusting it properly to my head improved the noise cancelling), and comming from the extreemely heavy Telex, you can immagine how weird it must have felt at first. Now that I'm used to it I think it is the most comfortable headset I have ever put on, and that includes the Bose. The noise cancelling isn't quite what I'd like it to be, especially the passive cancelling, but the comfort definately is worth the small sacrifice in noise cancelling. A couple months ago I forgot to check the batteries and they died on me early on a long flight. I pulled out my Telex because the long flight would have done a number on me with just the passive correction of the X11. I remember how quiet the flight was with the Telex after being used to the X11, but it felt like a vice clamping my head. As long as I make sure I have extra batteries on hand, I'd have to say the X11 is the best headset I've ever tried. Its as light as the Bose, more comfortable, and as good or better noise cancelling.
SmitteyB
Well-Known Member
I have tried all three like you...and have to say the opposite.
50D- Bulky, clampy, ANR marginal
X11- Rediculously comfortable, ANR poor, passive horrible
Bose X- Extremely comfortable, little more clampy than X11, ANR excellent, passive horrible
I guess its the size difference of our heads.
ZWflyer
Well-Known Member
That's one thing that I noticed with the X11. If you get them adjusted PERFECTLY on your head then the ANR is pretty good. The problem was that the first time that I did anything at all, such as look for traffic, the darn things moved a bit and the ANR was screwed up again.
This just proves that headsets are different for everyone. My experience was that the X11 was super comfortable, but the ANR wasn't even in the same league as my old Lightspeed. So I guess the point of all of this is try out a headset before buying it to see if it works for you!!
Ralgha
Well-Known Member
Aren't you the guy who's never used a Bose X and bases your opinion of them on Bose's other non-aviation products? Or am I thinking of someone else?
JaceTheAce
Well-Known Member
You're thinking of someone else. I used the Bose X for about 1.5 Hobbs. I hated them.
Cessnaflyer
Wooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
I think the best headset has to be the Pilot Avionics PA-1779T. It lasts me about 40-50 hours and when the battery goes out I don't go deaf like I do when using the bose. They also have a canon plug for the mic and speaker cords so you can unhook yourself from the aircraft and do the walk around with them still on.
mikecweb
Well-Known Member
Yeah the X11 definetly needs to be worn for almost 10 hours until the gel cells form to your ears/head. The first couple times in anything worse then a light chop the ANR would mess up. Now I can fly in moderate and it doesn't mess up at all. I tried switching it around once though and it wouldn't work so it definetly needs time to fit to your head. I've never worn a bose so I don't know if it has that same problem. As far as the sunglasses thing I honestly have never flown with sunglasses with the X-11. I know it won't work if I wear a hat but I've heard the bose has that same problem with some people.
WAFlyBoy
Well-Known Member
My David Clark 13.4's have served me well for the last 7 years from the C-152 to the Dash-8. I don't really think ANR is necessary in a turboprop, but I haven't been in them all of course.
The Bose set is nice, but not worth a grand in my opinion. Even at 0% financing and $100/month... a thousand dollars is still a thousand dollars. (Think: how many post-tax credit hours is that?)
The Bose set is nice, but not worth a grand in my opinion. Even at 0% financing and $100/month... a thousand dollars is still a thousand dollars. (Think: how many post-tax credit hours is that?)
Ralgha
Well-Known Member
Ah. I've used them for 1500-2000 hours and I love them.
Airdale
Well-Known Member
That looks like a very nice headset and its affordable. Military spec too. After being in the military I tend to prefer military spec stuff, I think it holds up better. I might see if I can find that locally and try it on.
wheelsup
Well-Known Member
Not sure where you got that impression. I've tried the QC2's and X side by side in a turboprop and jet and there is NO WAY the QC2's compare to the noise reduction of the X. In a jet, where it doesn't matter *much*, the QC2 setup is *OK* but in a turboprop? Forget about it.
Airdale, if you care about getting deaf/fatigue at all you'll get a bose X (or similar ANR headset) and make it work $$ wise.
Lee D
Well-Known Member
I used a passive Flightcom Denali for my first 18 months on the Brasilia. They worked OK, but they were 5 years old and started to short out. I bought a Lightspeed 15XL about 8 months back. Basic ANR and they cost around 375 bones. I think they are the least expensive ones that Lightspeed makes. Honestly they work just fine in the loud EMB 120. Nice and comfortable for long 13 hour duty days. Like Smitty mentioned they are bulky and perhaps they don't look as slick as a Bose, but I'm not wearing them while I walk through the terminal. . . . Well usually I don't wear them while in the terminal. . .
However, I have a large cranium, so they look OK on me. "That boy's head is like an orange on a toothpick!" (What movie??)
However, I have a large cranium, so they look OK on me. "That boy's head is like an orange on a toothpick!" (What movie??)
Bumblebee
Commodore
I've used Bose for 850 hours and still love 'em:rawk:
Foxcow
Well-Known Member
Same here. About 800 hours so far and still going strong. I wish I had done it sooner.
excessthrust
New Member
I used to be one of those guys that said, "Who in their right mind would spend $1000 on headsets?"
Then I did.
Worth every penny, and worked great in everything from about a dozen Pistons to 3 different Turbo Props, to 2 different Jets, and 2 helos.
Wish I would have gotten over myself sooner and bought them when I first started flying, although the new ones like mine with 2 AA's is way easier than a 9V. If you forget to buy some batteries and you are getting close to needing replacements, it seems hotels keep 2 AA's in the remote controls for just an occasion...
If you want to hook them up to an MP3 player, Radio Shack sells an adapter for 2 bucks that's half the size of a pen that does the trick fantastically. My kid uses them all the time.
Then I did.
Worth every penny, and worked great in everything from about a dozen Pistons to 3 different Turbo Props, to 2 different Jets, and 2 helos.
Wish I would have gotten over myself sooner and bought them when I first started flying, although the new ones like mine with 2 AA's is way easier than a 9V. If you forget to buy some batteries and you are getting close to needing replacements, it seems hotels keep 2 AA's in the remote controls for just an occasion...
If you want to hook them up to an MP3 player, Radio Shack sells an adapter for 2 bucks that's half the size of a pen that does the trick fantastically. My kid uses them all the time.