Noise cancelling headphones

Sony WH-1000XM4 would be best bang for buck, but if you want latest and greatest Sony WH-1000XM5 are a touch over your budget. Most reviews agree these are better options than the equivalent Bose (which seem to be the default option). Having directly compared Sony vs Bose, I'd opt for the Sonys every time.

For 8 hrs continuous, I'd beg/borrow/steal a go on the options as comfort is actually probably your No 1 criteria.

Might also be worth seeing if they will also work while charging. My old set wouldnt so if you forgot to charge them, or had a long day they could conk out before I'd finished.

Big Sony fan hear too. Have both the over and in ear type and they both work very well. Over ear are slightly better but bulky and warm.

Before you splash out loads of money I'd check to see if you are allowed to wear headphones. I know in many factories they are banned. If the noise level is high then the company should provide you with hearing protection and it will be mandatory to wear it.  Many places also have a ban on headphones as people can't hear what is going on around them. It's been common in most places I've worked when not in an office environment.

The current staff do wear headphones. So im pretty sure its all ok.

I will try some on for comfort, i hadnt considered that aspect for a solid 8 hrs.

I wear the Sonys all day everyday.  I work mostly on my own doing construction in residential properties and don’t like to have radios blaring in peoples houses, so they’re great for blocking out external noise and staving off boredom.  They need a charge at break time to last a full 8hrs IME, but that’s no big problem.

They charge pretty rapidly too.

Whenever I do long flights I swap between in-ear and over-ear noise cancelling phones. I find alternating stops my ears getting too hot/uncomfortable. Depending on your role it's also worth noting that if you lean your head forwards over ear phones tend to fall off a bit

I’m turning into a bit of a broken record on this topic, but for industrial noise you’d probably do better with passive rather than active noise cancellation (or a combination of the two) because of how each works. That’s even at your budget, which is a good level for active technology.

Active/electronic cancellation works by picking up the ambient sound through an external mic, then filtering and polarity-flipping it before playing it through the earpiece as ‘anti sound’.

It works better on some sounds than others: active cancellation is typically better on low frequency and continuous sound, like aeroplane noise, while passive is better on high frequency and sudden/incidental sounds (the type of noise common in industrial settings).

In your situation I’d be looking for active noise cancellation in headphones with heavy duty cans, or using passive in ear monitors like live musicians.

It might be an idea to talk to a company like saferhearing.com.

Yeah, was jumping in to point this out as well, ANC is not the same as hearing protection. Sounds like the level of noise probably doesn't reach the level of requiring hearing protection but if it is then ANC will not protect your hearing.

Over ears for all day. My Sony 910’s have about 30 hours battery.

I’ve also got AirPod Pro’s for everyday and short haul travel. Noise cancelling isn’t as good but is good enough and fit in my pocket.

Probably below your budget, but Soundcore are worth considering - Q45 can get down to £80ish plus cashback. Excellent battery life and sound quality is decent, but the NC does have a slight hiss that is audible when it is very quiet and typical of this price range that is not present on things like the Sony XM4 series (but might not be a issue in a noisy environment).

Also, there is supposedly a issue with cracked bands on the XM4 that is designed out of XM5, although I have not experienced it. Just might be worth looking into before spending £300.

Old fashioned over-ear ear-defenders with some blue tooth in-ear music underneath? <br /><br />

Probably cheaper and just as effective. <br /><br />

Ear defenders starting at £3.99

https://www.screwfix.com/c/safety-workwear/ear-defenders/cat850380

<br />Decent in-ear pods starting at under £50

https://www.myearfun.com/uk/headphones

Have Sony XM3 over ear and XM4 in ear

NC is obviously better on the over ears, but sounds quality is amazing on both.

If you get earbuds, upgrade the tips, makes a big difference. I'll find the name of the ones I have (and that are widely recommended) shortly

Have XM4's for kicking around at home and when on planes.   Use AirPods Pro at work as theyre easier to carry around in my bag than the XM4's.  Even used those instead of earplugs on my motorbike, the NC on them is really good for such a small unit

Although neither are as good as the Peltor Comtac's I had in the my old job.  They were awesome at shutting out the sharp loud stuff

I just upgraded to Sony Xm4 from the 700n. The latter are good headphones but the Xm4 are something else in terms of noise cancelling: I get a fright every time I take them off.

As much as I love my Sony XM4s, I’m now on my third pair within the two year warranty period. My Air Pod Pros have been utterly faultless.  Bose have been similarly fragile.  

Whatever Bose or Sony’s you can get for the money.

Nowt to add really, but Hannah Fry did a programme on headphones it's on I player.

The Secret Genius of Modern Life, Series 2: 5. Headphones: www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001t5xn via @bbciplayer

Just to counter the popular Sony vs Bose opinion:

I've got XM4s and my partner has Bose QC45.  Build quality on the Bose is definitely better.  And on a flight this year we both agreed the Bose cancelled out the engine noise better (very marginally better I should add - both were great, really)

My Sonys have a creaky headband which I may try and warranty as it's very distracting if you're eating or moving whilst listening (annoyingly bought them in Australia so return is not so straightforward.).  That should be rare, as even the well-abused display pair in my local John Lewis don't have the same problem.

I prefer the physical buttons on the Bose, but the touch sensitive pad on the Sony allows for a quick 3-finger tap to hear ambient sounds, which is useful.  The Sony have 3 modes NC On, Off and "Ambient" to amplify external sounds - Bose have no "off" equivalent, which I think can be useful to conserve battery.

In summary I'd still just buy whichever was cheaper, but the Bose if it was a tie.

I'm selling some QC 35s if of any interest -  cheap enough to try!

I used to be in an office (tin box) next to the shop floor and they were invaluable for concentrating on work.

I've just gone for the Sony wh-1000 xm5 and they are better all round but a lot more expensive so should be!

I got bugged with the multi point on the Bose as I couldn't turn it off.  They'd pair with two things and sometimes I'd get my personal phone interrupting a work call. The app could get around it but I prefer mutlipoint off and like the EQ on the Sony.

That’s quite a firm use case. I suspect comfort and durability are going to be the most important factors over absolute noise cancelling. I have Sony xm4s and think they are great, but I’m not sure I could wear them for 8 hours without overheating,

In your position I’d be flexing the distance selling returns periods and trying out a few different brands at work under the conditions you need them to work.

I used to run a big industrial folding machine, sometimes five days a week, for two weeks at a time, and that ran at 95dB constantly. I used canal-phones, with triple-flanged eartips; which are exactly the same as quality silicon industrial hearing protection. They offer -25dB hearing protection, so my canal-phones gave me proper passive protection, with the added benefit of being able to listen to music at normal levels.

I did have an argument with the boss, about not being able to hear the fire alarm, so I pointed out that much of the time I didn’t have music playing, my ‘phones were no different to the hearing protection that we were supposed to use, in which case I wouldn’t be able to hear the alarm over the noise of the machine, while wearing mandated hearing protection .

They installed an alarm in the machine room with an additional flashing light. A win all round, really.

My recommendation, based on recent reviews, would be the Sennheiser IE200 earphones. They come with a range of eartips, including silicon and foam tips, but I would recommend looking online for some triple-flange ones, which fit deeper into the ear canal, hence canal-phones.

They’re about £120-130 or so.

There is a technique to getting them to fit properly, which involves moistening the eartip, then holding the top of the earlobe away from your head while sliding the eartips is with the other hand - this just opens the ear canal letting the eartip seat properly when the ear is relaxed.

I’ve done it so often, for so many years that I don’t even think about it.

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/sennheiser-ie-200.26289/

Hopping on this, I am considering a pair of noise cancelling headphones  - but only for occasional use so I don't want to spend a fortune.

I'd be using them mostly on my commute to work, whch is going to be 1 or 2 days a week. 15 minute walk to the station listening to music from my phone, half an hour on the train watching something on my tablet, then another 10 minute walk to the office at the other end - and of course the same in reverse at the end of the day. Ideally then I'd like multipoint so I can pair the headphones with both phone and tablet, and use the noise cancelling on the train. Would prefer over-ear as I wasn;t keen when I tried in-ear headphones

Have my eye on a couple of Soundcore models - anyone got any feedback on them?

Q30 is currently £50

Q20i is currently £36

Anything else at this kind of price point I should look at? What should I look out for?

Good suggestion, @CountZero. In the OP's position, I'd choose either the Sennheiser in ear monitors (IEMs) that you recommended, or the Shure ones I already own.

IEMs are designed to protect musicians' hearing from the main PA while allowing them to hear their own mix. Attenuation of 30dB or more is possible with the right tips (I use the foam ones myself) and will take care of any external industrial noise better than any solution based on active technology alone.

The other thing that draws me to passive noise cancellation is that I can't bear to spent money on electronics and DSP when I know it's money that's not being spent on good drivers and sound quality.

Another approach is to use good high-attenuation ear plugs to protect the ears, and bone conduction headphones to bypass the earplugs. I find this works well for me in generally noisy environments (walking along busy roads etc). Sound quality wise it won't satisfy the audiophiles, but its plenty good enough for my already dodgy hearing (and I generally only listen to podcasts).

Oddly, in the comparatively quiet office where volume isn't a problem but I find human voices really, really, really distracting I do the opposite - wired earbuds with industrial ear defenders over the top. And playing white noise.

These are the tips to go for with Sony XM4's

Comply

For reviews on the Soundcore models you get a lot of comments on HotUKdeals. I have had a few Q35 and currently using the Q45. Good stuff: decent sound (with the app settings), cheap (with codes, and don't forget the topcashback) with good customer service, excellent battery life, connects to x2 bluetooth sources at the same time. Bad: the headbands on the Q30/35 crack, hiss on the NC when it is quiet (typical of this price-range, so doesn't compare to the Sonys). Overall, I think they are pretty good if you want something cheaper than the Sony X4/X5 and I would happily buy them again.