killbilly
Vocals, Lyrics, Triangle, Washboard, Kittens
Over the last month, I’ve had the opportunity to fly with BOTH the Clarity Aloft Classic and the Quiet Technologies Halo headset, and decided that I would go ahead and post a review. I’ve flown with both headsets a little over three hours now and I’ve determined that both have their pluses and minuses. At the end of the day, it depends on what’s most important to you.
Cost – edge goes to the QT Halo. At $325, it’s cheaper than most ANR headsets They claim equal levels of noise reduction, and I don’t think they’re wrong. Clarity Aloft’s least expensive headset is $525, considerably more for a TSO’d version if your employer requires it. I don’t fly for a living so the TSO feature wasn't important. CA does have some other, more expensive options. More on that in a minute.
Features – Clarity Aloft – They simply offer more options. If you want bluetooth, need TSO certification or want the more robust design, Clarity Aloft has those options. The Pro Plus model retails for $725. It’s worth noting that the mic design is slightly different on the Pro vs. other headsets that CA makes. Not sure why this is, but if you’re clearly in the CA camp, make note of the different mic attachment point between the Pro and the Pro Plus. Remember, this review compared the Classic ($525) with the QT Halo ($325.)
Build Quality – Tie. CA is a mass-produced headset vs. the Halo, which I think is handmade but I am not sure on that. I find the build quality on both headsets to be very, very good.
Case Protection – Clarity Aloft, hands-down – comes with a much better carrying case than the Halo. The Halo’s case isn’t really made for it, as near as I can tell. It works, but I think I’m going to seek something a little more substantial.
Comfort – This is subjective, but for me, it was the Halo as the hands-down comfort winner. I had a Clarity Aloft first, and I was actually disappointed with the level of comfort. Here’s why: the CA uses a metal band that goes around the head in a similar fashion to the Halo, but it has ear-loops that put the bulk of the weight of the headset against the sides of your head, just above and in front of your ears. It squeezes just enough to be uncomfortable on my long-oval (motorcycle guys will understand that) shaped melon.
For me, this gentle, constant pressure got really uncomfortable after a while. I’ve heard of people padding the band with shrink-tubing or foam or some combination, but at $525, I’d expect that kind of modification to be included or at least have an adjustment somehow. I think my head is just not Clarity-Aloft-shaped, much like it’s not most-Shoei-helmets-shaped.
The Halo is lighter (at least it feels lighter) and while it sits on top of your ears, it’s very, very light (did I mention it was light?) and almost un-noticeable. The versatility is nice, too – you can wear it on your shoulders (haven’t tried yet) or over your head (ditto) but I’ve been doing the traditional method and I’m happy with it. The band sort of hugs your head in a not-unpleasant way, and there is a nice little adjustment in the band to accommodate various head circumferences.
Sound Quality – tiny, slight, teensy edge to the CA – I think they both sound really good – better than I expected them to. The CA produces a little more side-tone than the Halo, and that's why they get the tiny edge, mainly because I prefer a bit more side-tone.
Aesthetics – not that it’s important, but I think the Halo looks cooler. I like the yellow, too, although it’s available in black. Doesn’t affect function one way or another.
Customer Service – Tie - I bought the CA through Amazon and with Prime shipping had it in just two days. The 30-day return policy was handled seamlessly when I returned it, and there are numerous retailers who sell the CA. No complaints there.
With the Halo, you buy direct from Quiet Technologies. Being a small company and not sold through distribution, they don’t have access to sophisticated e-commerce systems. That being said, it’s not necessarily a bad thing. If you call them, you’ll speak with the owner, and he seems to be a pretty nice guy. It did take about a week to get my Halo, but that was a pleasant surprise since I had expected a two-week lag with their backorder situation from the holidays. It came in one week.
I haven’t tried to return it, though, so if I did and it was a hassle, it might swing that experience around. As it is, I’m happy with the Halo. I'll acknowledge that there could be different logistical problems with a smaller, less-supported company. Just haven't happened to me, nor do I have any reason to expect them to. Some people just like doing business with larger companies.
Durability – hard to say since I’ve not had the Halo that long, and had the CA for a couple of weeks. While neither design is flimsy, you can’t smash them in a car door like you can a David Clark – that’s fine – we’re talking apples and oranges with that kind of comparison.
The Halo is a lower-tech/simpler design, which means it has less that can go wrong with it, and QT has been pretty open about what can be done to field-repair it if necessary; in fact, they seem to encourage that. CA relies on some different technology and is not field-repairable as best as I can tell. I’m not sure. A bit of internet research has indicated a high-degree of reliability from both brands.
Conclusion – The Halo won me over based on the comfort alone. I do wish there was a bit more side-tone in the audio like there is on the CA, but this is a minor gripe, the $200 price difference and superior comfort more than made up for that.
In truth, I don’t think you can go wrong with either headset – I found the Halo to be more comfortable, but I suspect it’s a Coke-Pepsi thing with different pilots. The remaining decisions to make beyond the comfort are about features vs. cost and possibly whether or not you need a TSO’d headset.
Hope you guys find this helpful. I found lots of reviews for one or the other, but no recent ones where the author had worn and used both.
There ya go.
Cost – edge goes to the QT Halo. At $325, it’s cheaper than most ANR headsets They claim equal levels of noise reduction, and I don’t think they’re wrong. Clarity Aloft’s least expensive headset is $525, considerably more for a TSO’d version if your employer requires it. I don’t fly for a living so the TSO feature wasn't important. CA does have some other, more expensive options. More on that in a minute.
Features – Clarity Aloft – They simply offer more options. If you want bluetooth, need TSO certification or want the more robust design, Clarity Aloft has those options. The Pro Plus model retails for $725. It’s worth noting that the mic design is slightly different on the Pro vs. other headsets that CA makes. Not sure why this is, but if you’re clearly in the CA camp, make note of the different mic attachment point between the Pro and the Pro Plus. Remember, this review compared the Classic ($525) with the QT Halo ($325.)
Build Quality – Tie. CA is a mass-produced headset vs. the Halo, which I think is handmade but I am not sure on that. I find the build quality on both headsets to be very, very good.
Case Protection – Clarity Aloft, hands-down – comes with a much better carrying case than the Halo. The Halo’s case isn’t really made for it, as near as I can tell. It works, but I think I’m going to seek something a little more substantial.
Comfort – This is subjective, but for me, it was the Halo as the hands-down comfort winner. I had a Clarity Aloft first, and I was actually disappointed with the level of comfort. Here’s why: the CA uses a metal band that goes around the head in a similar fashion to the Halo, but it has ear-loops that put the bulk of the weight of the headset against the sides of your head, just above and in front of your ears. It squeezes just enough to be uncomfortable on my long-oval (motorcycle guys will understand that) shaped melon.
For me, this gentle, constant pressure got really uncomfortable after a while. I’ve heard of people padding the band with shrink-tubing or foam or some combination, but at $525, I’d expect that kind of modification to be included or at least have an adjustment somehow. I think my head is just not Clarity-Aloft-shaped, much like it’s not most-Shoei-helmets-shaped.
The Halo is lighter (at least it feels lighter) and while it sits on top of your ears, it’s very, very light (did I mention it was light?) and almost un-noticeable. The versatility is nice, too – you can wear it on your shoulders (haven’t tried yet) or over your head (ditto) but I’ve been doing the traditional method and I’m happy with it. The band sort of hugs your head in a not-unpleasant way, and there is a nice little adjustment in the band to accommodate various head circumferences.
Sound Quality – tiny, slight, teensy edge to the CA – I think they both sound really good – better than I expected them to. The CA produces a little more side-tone than the Halo, and that's why they get the tiny edge, mainly because I prefer a bit more side-tone.
Aesthetics – not that it’s important, but I think the Halo looks cooler. I like the yellow, too, although it’s available in black. Doesn’t affect function one way or another.
Customer Service – Tie - I bought the CA through Amazon and with Prime shipping had it in just two days. The 30-day return policy was handled seamlessly when I returned it, and there are numerous retailers who sell the CA. No complaints there.
With the Halo, you buy direct from Quiet Technologies. Being a small company and not sold through distribution, they don’t have access to sophisticated e-commerce systems. That being said, it’s not necessarily a bad thing. If you call them, you’ll speak with the owner, and he seems to be a pretty nice guy. It did take about a week to get my Halo, but that was a pleasant surprise since I had expected a two-week lag with their backorder situation from the holidays. It came in one week.
I haven’t tried to return it, though, so if I did and it was a hassle, it might swing that experience around. As it is, I’m happy with the Halo. I'll acknowledge that there could be different logistical problems with a smaller, less-supported company. Just haven't happened to me, nor do I have any reason to expect them to. Some people just like doing business with larger companies.
Durability – hard to say since I’ve not had the Halo that long, and had the CA for a couple of weeks. While neither design is flimsy, you can’t smash them in a car door like you can a David Clark – that’s fine – we’re talking apples and oranges with that kind of comparison.
The Halo is a lower-tech/simpler design, which means it has less that can go wrong with it, and QT has been pretty open about what can be done to field-repair it if necessary; in fact, they seem to encourage that. CA relies on some different technology and is not field-repairable as best as I can tell. I’m not sure. A bit of internet research has indicated a high-degree of reliability from both brands.
Conclusion – The Halo won me over based on the comfort alone. I do wish there was a bit more side-tone in the audio like there is on the CA, but this is a minor gripe, the $200 price difference and superior comfort more than made up for that.
In truth, I don’t think you can go wrong with either headset – I found the Halo to be more comfortable, but I suspect it’s a Coke-Pepsi thing with different pilots. The remaining decisions to make beyond the comfort are about features vs. cost and possibly whether or not you need a TSO’d headset.
Hope you guys find this helpful. I found lots of reviews for one or the other, but no recent ones where the author had worn and used both.
There ya go.
