# Recommendations on noise-canceling/reducing headphones

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommendations-on-noise-canceling-reducing-headphones/456713>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [July 16, 2008, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommendations-on-noise-canceling-reducing-headphones/456713 "2008-07-16T17:32:33Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![RickQ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/35a633/32.png) [@RickQ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickQ)\
**Post date:** [July 16, 2008, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommendations-on-noise-canceling-reducing-headphones/456713/1 "2008-07-16T17:32:33Z")

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My wife and I will be traveling to England in September so we have a nice long flight to look forward to.

We recently took a couple of short flights and it made me realize that noise-canceling/reducing headphones would be great because it is just so freaking noisy on planes and in airports.

I am looking online for reviews and ratings to see which would be the best value for money and the best in different price ranges. I also thought I would turn to the teeming millions for opinions and anecdotes about which are the best headphones/ear-buds out there.

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**Author:** ![xash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c6cbf5/32.png) [@xash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xash)\
**Post date:** [July 16, 2008, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommendations-on-noise-canceling-reducing-headphones/456713/2 "2008-07-16T19:50:25Z")

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Here’s my recommendation:

> **[Amazon.com: Sennheiser PXC 250 Active Noise Canceling Headphones (Discontinued...](https://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-Canceling-Headphones-Discontinued-Manufacturer/dp/B000089GN2)**
>
> Product Description With all the latest advances in digital music and sound fidelity, should you be using those headphones that came with your portable MP3 or CD player? Here's a way to get the best possible sound - The Sennheiser Way. The...

I have these and am very happy with them. Great sound, and good noise cancelling.

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**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\
**Post date:** [July 16, 2008, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommendations-on-noise-canceling-reducing-headphones/456713/3 "2008-07-16T21:06:35Z")

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[QUOTE=xash]  
Here’s my recommendation:

> **[Amazon.com: Sennheiser PXC 250 Active Noise Canceling Headphones : Electronics](https://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-Canceling-Headphones-Discontinued-Manufacturer/dp/B000089GN2)**
>
> With all the latest advances in digital music and sound fidelity, should you be using those headphones that came with your portable MP3 or CD player? Here's a way to get the best possible sound - The Sennheiser Way. The Sennheiser PXC 250 is a...

I have these and am very happy with them. Great sound, and good noise cancelling.  
[/QUOTE]

Sorry, but I would avoid those. I bought a pair thinking that they would be better than my Sony’s, but they’re not, and the external battery holder is the worst design idea I’ve seen recently. Also, they sit on the ear, not around it, so they don’t cancel noise as well as other models.