PlaneQuiet NC-6. Don't laugh too hard, I was just in the market for a pair of noise-cancelling headphones that would give a tolerable reproduction of at least some types of music. The price was just $ 50-60 I don't remember. Of course there also was the Bose alternative but I thought PlaneQuiet would do roughly the same job for a third of the inflated Bose price point. The relatively long delivery time from the US increased the level of expectations which was not exactly high to begin with.
The cans finally arrived. I was put off immediately by the cheapo-looking design, I've seen water squirt-guns more solidly built... Allright how did they sound then? I was astonished to say the least, they were even worse than the crappy headphones bundled with a cheap Sony radio I got (really good radio though with cans like portapro). The PlaneQuiet sounded like a crap clock radio, with an always present background noise to add to the misery.
Ok, I did not buy these to listen to music. How did they cancel noise? I cranked up my stereo to simulate a noisy environment and put on my PlaneQuiets. There was a slight difference in sound level but it was marginal. I just laughed at my stupidity and put them away for several months. What a disappoinment but I should have felt it coming... always falling hard for even moderately skilful advertisment.
For some reason I decided to bring them with me on some journeys, by plane, car and train. I found they actually do work quite well to tone down engine noise and rumble. They attenuate low-mid-frequency noise, especially if it follows a predictable pattern, and let meaningful information like speech through. Amazing actually, especially when the supra-aural pads begun to set properly and achieving a good seal. But wait, was it not exactly what they was designed to do? The more I used them the better they worked for music as well, some moderate eq and they became quite enjoyable. Even the battery time proved to be really fantastic, a single AAA last like forever.
Maybe I'm really good at fooling myself but these cans has been transformed in my mind from one of the worst purchase ever into a tool that is very useful for me to combat fatigue during long journeys. Sure they sound distant and hollow compared to Koss portapro for instance but it does not matter much in this application. Perfect for driving long distance for instance, emphasizing information and attenuating noise is the key to endurance and comfort. I'm sure there are much better gear but this was proof-of-concept for me.
