Gadling gear review – Audio-Technica QuietPoint ATH-ANC3 noise canceling headphones

In one of the final Gadling gear reviews of 2009, I’ll show off the Audio-Technica QuietPoint ATH-ANC3 noise canceling headphones. The ATH-ANC3’s use active noise cancellation to drown out the noise around you. The exact technology behind noise cancellation is pretty complicated, but all you need to know is that these headphones use tiny microphones to listen to the sounds around you, and use something called “antinoise” to cancel out engine noise, crying babies and nagging seatmates.

The ATH-ANC3’s consist of a small control box, a regular 3.5mm headphone jack and 2 earpieces. The earpieces are slightly larger than “normal” earphones, but are extremely comfortable. Included with the package are 2 additional sets of replacement ear-gels, so you’ll always be able to find the perfect fit.

Since the earpieces are “in-ear”, they provide a very good sound seal, which is the first level of defense against unwanted noise. Even when not powered on, the headphones block out a considerable amount of sound. The control pod houses a single AAA battery (one is included in the box). The best part of the electronics is that the headphone still work when the battery dies. This means you won’t lose your music if you forget to bring a spare battery.

Controls on the pod are simple – power and monitor. The monitor button allows you to listen to the outside noise, without having to remove the headphones. This is of course perfect if you need to listen to a cabin announcement.

Audio performance from the QuietPoint ATH-ANC3 headphones is quite simply spectacular. Music sounds vibrant, with plenty of bass. When you enable the noise cancellation circuit, you obviously hear a minor reduction in sound quality, but unlike with some other headphones, this reduction is very minor. In addition to this, the ATH-ANC3’s produce virtually no background “hiss”, something many other noise canceling headphones suffer from.

The noise cancellation rating from Audio-Technica is 20dB, or up to 90%. While the ATH-ANC3’s may not kill all engine noise on your flight, they will greatly reduce it, to the point where your flight (and music) becomes much more comfortable.

The headphones come in a very nice hard carrying pouch. Included in the package is a half meter extension cable, airplane jack adapter, a AAA battery and an assortment of replacement earpieces.

Final thoughts

When you start shopping for noise canceling headphones, you need to make several choices – you can go with passive headphones (that only isolate the noise), you can pick large on-ear headphones, or in-ear ones like the ATH-ANC3’s. The advantage of in-ear headphones is that they work well for side sleepers making it possible to take a nap on your flight.

The sound quality of the Audio-Technica QuietPoint ATH-ANC3 headphones is fantastic, as its ability to cancel outside noise. But perhaps its best feature is the price – the MSRP (from Audio-Technica) is $169.95, but smart shoppers can often find them for as low as $50. We have regularly featured them as one of our daily deals here on Gadling.

To be honest – even at the $170 price point, these headphones are very much worth it. They are compact, run forever off a single battery, and produce exceptional noise cancellation. But when you find them at $50, you are practically stealing them.

Audio-Technica ATH-ANC3 product page

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Daily gear deals – $1 Bluetooth headset, rolling luggage and more

Here are the hottest gadget deals for today, Saturday June 13th 2009. Remember, these deals are often only valid for one day, so act fast before they are gone.

Earlier this week, I posted a $2 Bluetooth headset – that very same one is now on sale for just 99 cents (after a $15 mail in rebate). Best of all, it ships for free! Click here for this deal.

In need of a really sexy digital camera, but don’t want to overspend? eCost is selling the 7.1 Megapixel Fujifilm FinePix Z10fd (in orange) for just $61. This camera is refurbished, but still comes with a carrying case and a 2GB memory card. Click here for this deal.

Woot.com is selling a three piece Sharper Image luggage set for $99. The set includes 2 large (4 wheel) rolling bags and a 21″ carry-on bag. As always with Woot, the deal could sell out at any moment. Shipping is just $5. Click here for this deal.

And finally in today’s lineup – these Audio-Technica ATH-ANC3 noise canceling headphones are perfect to block out any unwanted noises on your next flight. Best of all? They are on sale for just under $60, making them one of the most affordable pro-brand noise canceling headphones on the market. Click here for this deal.

Noise Cancellation Headphone Review: Bose vs. Audio-Technica (And You’ll be Surprised Who Wins!)

For a long time now, Bose has been the king of noise canceling headphones. Walk through any First Class cabin and 90% of the passengers have a Bose firmly attached to their ears, adding just one more layer of bliss to their already envious levels of comfort. For those of us stuck in Coach, this was just one more reason to hate them.

Of course, Bose headphones are the one slice of First Class comfort which those of us slumming in Coach can actually take advantage of. Ironically, they are so expensive ($299) that if one can afford a Bose, one can probably afford First Class.

This is no longer the case.

Whereas Bose was once the only headphones to consider, other manufacturers have finally caught up with the technology and now promise comparable products at cheaper prices.

But can they compete with the Bose legacy?

I was determined to find out. And so, I recently took to the air with $500 of noise canceling headphones in my carryon; a $299 Bose QuietComfort 2 and a $199 Audio-Technica QuietPoint ATH-ANC7.

I had picked the Bose QuietComfort 2 instead of the more recently released QuietComfort 3 because of numerous reviews I had read stating that the QuietComfort 2 was actually a better product than its successor–a headphone which doesn’t completely cover the ears.

I had chosen the Audio-Technica based upon an article in Wired Magazine promising how they had outperformed the Bose QuietComfort 2–a practically sacrilegious statement in the world of noise canceling headphones!

A few weeks ago, I boarded a flight to Washington D.C. and tried them both out, quickly becoming the envy of my fellow Coach passengers as I proceeded to alternate wearing them throughout the flight.

At first glance, both headphones appear almost exactly alike. Both come with a sturdy carrying case, a gold-plated airline adapter, a gold-plated stereo adapter, a 1.6 m connector cable, and a mesh pocket Velcroed into the interior of the carrying case. It was actually very odd how remarkably similar both packages are. The only difference is that the Bose includes an extension cord and a strap for the carrying case. Otherwise, if I’m not careful I might accidentally take my girlfriend’s Bose on my next trip thinking it was my Audio-Technica.

The actual design of the headphones is very similar as well. Both cover the entire ear and both fold nice and flat for storage. The Bose is just slightly lighter at 6.9 oz. versus 7.1 oz. for the Audio-Technica. Although this is hardly enough to make a difference, the Bose does sit a little lighter on my head and is a little more comfortable than the Audio-Technica. The real difference, however, is the leather-covered ear cap cushions. The leather is soft and nice on the Audio-Technica, but somehow crosses into the realm of sublime and caressing with the Bose. I don’t know how they treat their leather over at the Bose factory, but baby is it smooth!

At this point, before actually flipping the switch on the headphones, the Bose had a slight edge over the Audio-Technica. Things started to change, however, once I turned on the headphones. While Bose has a great reputation for sound, the heritage of Audio-Technica is in professional recording studios where the world’s most talented musicians regularly use their products. This reputation for quality sound was quickly evident the moment I plugged the headphones into my stereo at home. I decided to test them out with Dave Brubeck’s seminal work, Time Out–the best selling jazz album of all time. The sound was amazing. The sax floated ever so gently through the headphones while the snare drums and percussion barreled in sharp and clear.

The Bose were just a slight step behind, not quite as tight, a little too much boom and bass, but still a rather good performance. There was, however, a much larger difference in sound quality when I plugged in something a little harder: Irish punk band, Flogging Molly. The Audio-Technica remained exceptional, capturing the swinging shifts between Irish instrumental and punk rock cacophony. The Bose, however, tended to mute the shifts and produced a booming irritance which overwhelmed the notes and made the CD sound like it was mixed in a garage somewhere.

With such extreme notes and more powerful music, the Audio-Technica clearly dominated the Bose. Much of this edge, however, nearly disappeared when I plugged into my iPod where MP3 music files are of lesser quality than CDs. The Audio-Technica was still superior interpreting the MP3 files, but the Bose wasn’t too far behind.

Well, this is all great, but the real reason most people buy noise cancellation headphones is to simply cancel noise. Before I get into this aspect of the headphones, however, let’s spend a moment discussing what, exactly, “noise cancellation” means.

Many people assume that such a device completely cancels all surrounding sound as though the headphone user has suddenly found himself in the vacuum of outer space. This is not the case. Noise cancellation is based upon the theory that sound can be cancelled by creating a sound wave exactly opposite of the one being heard. The new sound wave simply cancels out the existing one. This is exactly what noise cancellation headphones do. A small microphone picks up incoming noise and then cancels it out by generating an opposite sound wave.

The problem is that a pair of headphones, no matter how advanced, cannot predict the next sound wave coming its way. As a result, the canceling sound wave is always a fraction behind the actual noise itself. Constant noise that doesn’t change pitch, however, can be negated much easier since the wave remains the same for extended periods of time–like a plane engine, for example.

So what this means is that noise cancellation headphones do not remove all sounds, just constant ones like the humming of an airplane engine while in flight. You’ll still hear that crying baby and the flight attendant taking drink orders, but these sounds will be greatly muffled. Turn on some music (Flogging Molly!), however, and it all disappears.

And so, I spent most of my flight to Washington DC taking off one pair of headphones and putting on the other. It didn’t take me long, however, to determine which pair knocked out the most ambient noise. Yes folks, it was the Audio-Technica. Not only do these little wonders provide superior sound quality but they also kicked some Bose butt in the noise cancellation category. And as if this wasn’t enough, the Audio-Technicas are also $100 cheaper.

Sorry Bose, but you’ve been dethroned!