PILOT SPIN
Pilot Zone => Pilot Zone => Topic started by: Jaybird180 on April 16, 2021, 09:00:19 AM
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I think it's time for a new headset. The earcups on my ANR set is gel and feels good going on, but sometimes after a flight I notice a dull ache near my jawbone. I'd written it off as cost of doing business until I had a similar thing with headphones. I'm convinced it has nothing to do with clamping force. The weight and the constant "fixing" of the set isn't what I consider fun or safe. I can ignore it, but for the cost of the headset I should be able to have something I truly enjoy.
Next, I thought about those in-ear aviation headsets. They look like it's what I want.
Are there any that don't have boom microphones? I want to wire up my own electret mic.
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I was perfectly happy with my David Clark ANR headset, but a lot of people don't like the David Clamp brand. In other words, different people will find different headsets the most comfortable - one size does not fit all.
Now, getting beyond the cliches, I think most people are happy with the Lightspeed and Bose ANR headsets.
edit: I'm not sure how the in-ear buds would work well enough unless you get make sure they fit perfectly (or nearly perfectly)
Sorry, I don't know of any without boom mics.
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Can't help with the in-ear headset. I love my Lightspeed Zulu 3. Great noise attenuation, super comfortable, and their customer service is outstanding. A bit expensive, but I think they are worth it. I had David Clark passive for years but didn't like the way they clamped my head to get the noise down. Went with Lightspeed when they came out with ANR. I still use David Clark passive (without the electronics) for shooting.
Correction... I have Lightspeed Zulu. 12 years old and working fine. I bought my wife the latest and greatest Zulu 3 for Christmas. Better built, even more comfortable. She said that I can borrow them to use when she's not in the plane :)
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I used Clarity Aloft.
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I have both a Quiet Technologies and Faro Aviation in-ear headset (bought the QT for myself and wanted to buy a second for the wife, but they were out of stock at the time so went with the Faro.) Unfortunately both have boom mics. But I’m not sure it is possible to get away from having some mechanism that places the mic close to your mouth since most aircraft are so noisy.
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I have both a Quiet Technologies and Faro Aviation in-ear headset (bought the QT for myself and wanted to buy a second for the wife, but they were out of stock at the time so went with the Faro.) Unfortunately both have boom mics. But I’m not sure it is possible to get away from having some mechanism that places the mic close to your mouth since most aircraft are so noisy.
I'm custom engineering a solution for that.
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I'm custom engineering a solution for that.
The boom mic on the headsets can be bent well out of the way - no law says you have to plug both the mic and ear jacks of the headset into the airplane. You could just plug in the ear jacks of the headset and attach a mic jack cord to your own mic. If that setup works out, you could later perform surgery on the headset to remove the boom mic and use its cord for your mic. Or remove both the boom and the mic cord+jack and substitute your own mic. Of course that could be an expensive surgery if it breaks everything.
Speaking of trying things out, not everyone turns out to like in-ear phones. If you haven’t done it, perhaps a simple check is to put in foam ear plugs for a few hours and see how they feel (sleep on them -literally.)
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The boom mic on the headsets can be bent well out of the way - no law says you have to plug both the mic and ear jacks of the headset into the airplane...
Speaking of trying things out, not everyone turns out to like in-ear phones. If you haven’t done it, perhaps a simple check is to put in foam ear plugs for a few hours and see how they feel (sleep on them -literally.)
I don't understand the reasons why there are TSO-certifications for headsets. Apparently a headset isn't a headset and commercial pilots can't do what they want.
I have had mixed success with in-ear. I'm still looking for an acceptable solution for my motorcycle comm setup.
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I don't understand the reasons why there are TSO-certifications for headsets. Apparently a headset isn't a headset and commercial pilots can't do what they want.
I honestly never paid attention to the TSO headset regs since no one in their right mind would pay to have me as a pilot, but a quick search reveals this from Lightspeed, which discusses some common myths about TSO headsets (and why Lightspeed doesn’t bother to seek TSO approval for its headsets):
https://www.lightspeedaviation.com/news/does-tso-matter-for-headsets/ (https://www.lightspeedaviation.com/news/does-tso-matter-for-headsets/)
Briefly:
“Using a TSO headset is not an FAA requirement for any type of civil operation including part 91, 121, or 135 operations and only specifies a “minimum performance standard”. Where the confusion can sometimes occur is that individual operators may choose to require the presence of a TSO headset either “available to the pilot” or “worn by the pilot”. If you fly for an employer with an operations manual that has this requirement it is important to understand the language in the manual and abide by it. We have seen many instances where a TSO headset is present on the flight deck in a storage compartment, and the pilots are wearing a headset of their choice that may or may not be TSO approved.”
I have had mixed success with in-ear. I'm still looking for an acceptable solution for my motorcycle comm setup.
Was that due to inadequate noise suppression/cancellation, insufficient volume, uncomfortable or poor fit, or some other issue? For me the noise suppression and volume of the two types I have are sufficient, but I always have issues inserting the earset in my left ear canal. I suspect the left canal is slightly smaller than my right. I had gently inserted q-tips in each ear and looked in a mirror to see if there was any difference in angle of entry and observed some old idiot with q-tips staring back at me, but the q-tips seemed to be sticking out at same angles, so probably canal size.
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I used Clarity Aloft.
In what kind of plane? I heard they don’t work well in most piston aircraft.
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In what kind of plane? I heard they don’t work well in most piston aircraft.
Piper Warrior, both my wife and I used them.