Tips in Buying Noise Cancelling Headphones

Noise-cancelling headphones are our saviours in this noisy world, but we need to possess the ability to choose the right. Different situations and noises need different headphones.

Basically, there are a lot of reasons why people choose noise-cancelling headphones, one is because they spend most of their time working and they need a quiet environment to listen to music, but not mostly to listen to music alone but as well as to use it in office situations- especially during remote meetings that needs to be done online.

Whether you work in an open-concept office, spend a lot of time on aeroplanes, or are simply in search of a solid pair of headphones to keep outside noise out and your music in, noise-cancelling headphones are one option to consider.

Noise Cancelling VS Isolation

There’s a big difference between noise “isolation” and noise “cancelling.” It can be easy to confuse the two and hard to figure out which type you really need. The former simply minimizes the amount of extra sound that gets into your ear, and there’s serious technology behind the latter. Here’s your guide to the differences and what to look for in a good set of headphones.

Noise Isolating

Noise-isolating headphones block external noise through physical means. You may also hear this category referred to as “passive noise cancellation.” Noise isolating earbuds block out external noise with a snug fit. Over-ear models that fit all the way around your ear have thickly padded cups designed to block out as much outside noise as possible.

Noise Canceling

Noise-cancelling headphones use digital signal processing (DSP) technology to actively cancel out the sound waves from ambient noise. Put simply, when you see “noise cancellation” or “active noise cancellation,” it means the headphones have an internal microphone and audio processor that “listens” to the sound around you and plays an opposite sound to cancel it out. This is called destructive interference.

Decide which type of headphones

Beyond active vs. passive or noise-cancelling vs. noise isolating, you should also familiarize yourself with the types of headphones available and decide whether you’re in the market for earbuds (or in-ear headphones), earpads (or supra-aural headphones), or full-sized headphones (or circumaural headphones that fit around your entire ear).

The Price

Premium noise cancellation comes at a premium price. Since active cancelling headphones have their own audio processor, the quality of that processor (and its circuit) factors heavily into the price of the device. Similarly, the build quality, internal drivers, size, and shape all play into the cost. If you want great audio and great noise cancellation, be ready to pay for it. If you’re looking for just one or the other, you may be able to skimp a bit.