Thanks to NoiseHush for the review sample!!
Here we have the NoiseHush i7 Noise Cancelling headphones.
These headphones have some high points, but fall a bit short in terms of sound.
Accessories - Carrying case, airplane adapter, 3.5mm to 3.5mm headphone cable (around 6' I would guess)
Build - The i7 is made almost entirely out of plastic. It doesn't feel too sturdy, but I don't think I would call it flimsy. It's pretty lightweight overall. On the left cup, the electroplated plastic (I'm not sure if that's actually what it is, or if it's just a term that NoiseHush uses) comes off to reveal two AAA battery slots for the Noise Cancelling function. There is also a basic 3.5mm jack for the cable. Non-locking. On the right side is the switch to turn on or off the Noise Cancellation. A blue LED light indicates it being on or off. There's also a volume wheel on the right cup. It doesn't control the output volume of the music player, but the headphones themselves. I'm guessing it's just a variable resistor in the circuit. NoiseHush boasts the fact that the pads on their i7 are made of genuine leather. This is a very rare thing to have on headphones this cheap. NoiseHush definitely has the right to boast about it. It helps comfort as well. The upper portion of the headband is also leather. Bottom part is a different type of fabric.
Comfort - The i7 are among some of the most comfortable headphones I have ever used. The abundance of padding inside the cup combined with the genuine leather pads and generously padded headband make for an extremely comfortable headphone.
Noise Cancellation - As with all other Noise Cancellation headphones, there is some pressure on the ears during use. The Cancellation of the i7 is actually quite good. A lot of NC headphones that I see generally have 18 db of noise cancellation. The i7, however, goes up to 20 db, according to NoiseHush. Compared to my passive isolating cans, The cancellation of the i7 is about on par with my most isolating headphone, the DT770 Pro. NoiseHush designed the i7 so that it can be used without any batteries, which is good for many reasons. The obvious reason would be that the batteries died, but the desire to listen to music still lingered. However, the most important reason to me would be the differences in sound when NC is on or off...
Which leads me to the sound.
Sound - The sound is drastically changed when the NC function is switched on. However, I'll start with what it sounds like when it is off.
Bass - I would probably say that the i7 suits bassheads, especially ones who crave warmth, most. The bass is dominant while the NC feature is off. It's not the most controlled, but it isn't overly boomy. I would, however, call it muddy to an extent. I find the bass output to be relatively sloppy at best. Quantity > Quality for sure.
Sub-bass is present for sure, but the mid and upper bass regions overpower the sub regions somewhat. Some may like this, but it doesn't suit my tastes. The abundance of mid and upper bass means a warm-sounding headphone. Too warm for my preference.
Mids - I find it pretty hard to actually hear mids. I actually struggle to find them sometimes. In other words, the mids are quite recessed, especially in the lower midrange region. Normally, I like V-Shaped sound signatures. This just takes it to a new level of recession; at least in comparison to any other headphone that I've heard.
Treble - I personally find the treble to be somewhat confused here. It's laid back, but still has a sibilant nature to it sometimes. Perhaps it is just the lack of mids which makes the treble sound this way? I like treble that has presence and energy, but this is just annoying.
Soundstage - Pretty congested. Not the worst I've heard, but there isn't really any space in the presentation still.
Noise Cancelling ON - The sound becomes much different once the NC feature is on. Whether it is better or worse is solely your opinion. In my opinion, I don't like the sound as much as I do when NC is off.
I personally feel that it loses any sense of transparency that it may have had in the 'off' position. It gets significantly more grainy.
Bass - The headphone loses its basshead quality. There is still more midbass than subbass, which ultimately accumulates to a lack of subbass response as a whole.
Mids - I can hear mids a little better when NC is on, but they don't sound any better. Only louder.
Treble - There is a large spike in the 2-3KHz region that equates to the loss of transparency and increase in grain. Not to mention a loss of clarity as well. I don't really know what exactly NoiseHush was trying to do here, but it didn't work out too well, that's for sure.
Soundstage - Still congested. I would say there is even less space than there is when NC is off.
Overall - Perhaps the NoiseHush i7 would be good for general consumer use. It's obviously not aimed at audiophiles. For travelers looking for good NC and don't want to spend more for Bose's QC15 (which isn't too much better anyways, excluding the extent of the NC), the NoiseHush i7 would probably be a good choice.
For a general use headphone, I would advise to stay away from NC in general.
Here we have the NoiseHush i7 Noise Cancelling headphones.
These headphones have some high points, but fall a bit short in terms of sound.
Accessories - Carrying case, airplane adapter, 3.5mm to 3.5mm headphone cable (around 6' I would guess)
Build - The i7 is made almost entirely out of plastic. It doesn't feel too sturdy, but I don't think I would call it flimsy. It's pretty lightweight overall. On the left cup, the electroplated plastic (I'm not sure if that's actually what it is, or if it's just a term that NoiseHush uses) comes off to reveal two AAA battery slots for the Noise Cancelling function. There is also a basic 3.5mm jack for the cable. Non-locking. On the right side is the switch to turn on or off the Noise Cancellation. A blue LED light indicates it being on or off. There's also a volume wheel on the right cup. It doesn't control the output volume of the music player, but the headphones themselves. I'm guessing it's just a variable resistor in the circuit. NoiseHush boasts the fact that the pads on their i7 are made of genuine leather. This is a very rare thing to have on headphones this cheap. NoiseHush definitely has the right to boast about it. It helps comfort as well. The upper portion of the headband is also leather. Bottom part is a different type of fabric.
Comfort - The i7 are among some of the most comfortable headphones I have ever used. The abundance of padding inside the cup combined with the genuine leather pads and generously padded headband make for an extremely comfortable headphone.
Noise Cancellation - As with all other Noise Cancellation headphones, there is some pressure on the ears during use. The Cancellation of the i7 is actually quite good. A lot of NC headphones that I see generally have 18 db of noise cancellation. The i7, however, goes up to 20 db, according to NoiseHush. Compared to my passive isolating cans, The cancellation of the i7 is about on par with my most isolating headphone, the DT770 Pro. NoiseHush designed the i7 so that it can be used without any batteries, which is good for many reasons. The obvious reason would be that the batteries died, but the desire to listen to music still lingered. However, the most important reason to me would be the differences in sound when NC is on or off...
Which leads me to the sound.
Sound - The sound is drastically changed when the NC function is switched on. However, I'll start with what it sounds like when it is off.
Bass - I would probably say that the i7 suits bassheads, especially ones who crave warmth, most. The bass is dominant while the NC feature is off. It's not the most controlled, but it isn't overly boomy. I would, however, call it muddy to an extent. I find the bass output to be relatively sloppy at best. Quantity > Quality for sure.
Sub-bass is present for sure, but the mid and upper bass regions overpower the sub regions somewhat. Some may like this, but it doesn't suit my tastes. The abundance of mid and upper bass means a warm-sounding headphone. Too warm for my preference.
Mids - I find it pretty hard to actually hear mids. I actually struggle to find them sometimes. In other words, the mids are quite recessed, especially in the lower midrange region. Normally, I like V-Shaped sound signatures. This just takes it to a new level of recession; at least in comparison to any other headphone that I've heard.
Treble - I personally find the treble to be somewhat confused here. It's laid back, but still has a sibilant nature to it sometimes. Perhaps it is just the lack of mids which makes the treble sound this way? I like treble that has presence and energy, but this is just annoying.
Soundstage - Pretty congested. Not the worst I've heard, but there isn't really any space in the presentation still.
Noise Cancelling ON - The sound becomes much different once the NC feature is on. Whether it is better or worse is solely your opinion. In my opinion, I don't like the sound as much as I do when NC is off.
I personally feel that it loses any sense of transparency that it may have had in the 'off' position. It gets significantly more grainy.
Bass - The headphone loses its basshead quality. There is still more midbass than subbass, which ultimately accumulates to a lack of subbass response as a whole.
Mids - I can hear mids a little better when NC is on, but they don't sound any better. Only louder.
Treble - There is a large spike in the 2-3KHz region that equates to the loss of transparency and increase in grain. Not to mention a loss of clarity as well. I don't really know what exactly NoiseHush was trying to do here, but it didn't work out too well, that's for sure.
Soundstage - Still congested. I would say there is even less space than there is when NC is off.
Overall - Perhaps the NoiseHush i7 would be good for general consumer use. It's obviously not aimed at audiophiles. For travelers looking for good NC and don't want to spend more for Bose's QC15 (which isn't too much better anyways, excluding the extent of the NC), the NoiseHush i7 would probably be a good choice.
For a general use headphone, I would advise to stay away from NC in general.
Soncially lacking but other wise good? Then it is not good!