ANR Headsets Bad?

[Wm226]

I am considering on purchasing a new ANR headset to alleviate my sometimes aching ears, as a result of wearing my DC 13.4s during long cross countries and flights. However, I heard some controversy about ANR, and how it can actually do your hearing worse. Can anyone contest to the truth about this?

Thanks,
William

[JEP]

I have flown with them only once, they were borrowed, but the difference was night and day. If I win a little $$$ in Vegas, I may be picking up a set. We will just see. I am not sure how they would make your hearing worse though. That is the first time I have heard that.

[Acadia]

Never heard a single negative thing about ANR. Once you have it you will never go back to a passive set.

[C650CPT]

Are your ears aching because you are wearing passive headsets or because of fit. You can still get "hot spots" from ANR headsets. I would recomend adjusting what you are wearing and adding jel seals or extra thick foam pads to increase comfort. You would want to also consider this with ANR headsets.

Without a doubt ANR will improve your flying experience as they will reduce noise and fatique related to that noise, You will be able to better hear and communicate with ATC as well. I fly with ANR in both jet and turbo prop airplanes and would never go back to the old passive types.

Jim

[ananoman]

I have a big mellon head and cannot wear any of the headsets with metal bands, they clamp too tight. When shopping for a headset I only looked for ones with a plastic head band, and settled on the Pilot DNC 17-79. They are ANR and have built in rechargable batteries. I have had no problems other than having to replace the cord, which just plugs into the side at about 1200 hrs of use.

As C650 says, ANR makes a big difference after a long day. They are the way to go.

[Cherokee_Cruiser]

You know, I've heard that somewhere that ANR headset's noise-cancelling waves can actually damage your ear in certain frequencies. Not sure if it's true.

[SteveC]

Not true.
[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[kellwolf]

[ QUOTE ]
You know, I've heard that somewhere that ANR headset's noise-cancelling waves can actually damage your ear in certain frequencies. Not sure if it's true.

[/ QUOTE ]

Only if the sound waves they're cancelling can also damage your hearing. Basically all an ANR headset does is emit a cancelling wave to eliminate the background sounds. The sounds are still there, but you don't hear them. Or something like that. Physics got blocked out after I passed the class and threw away the textbook.

[Josh]

Lemme see if I can help illustrate what ANR does in a way that may be a bit easier for the single engine drivers reading this.

Sound waves that you hear, as simply a movement of air (wind).

Kinda like when you start up a small plane on a hot day. Taxi around with the door open to keep cool. Know how when you are on a downwind taxiway, the wind wants to open the door more, prop blast wants to blow it closed. Holding it where you need is easier at this point, as the wind pressure from each side is balanced. Easier on your arm or foot used to hold open the door.
ANR is essentially the same idea. The sound wave (from the prop in this example) has a force that would normall push the door most of the way closed. The sound wave (the tailwind in this example) is fighting that force, and wants to blow open the door. The result, is the door is very easy to move through the air, and feels light, rather than a lot of wind (sound) pushing it back from the prop.

Don't know if that helps, but maybe?

[jtrain609]

ANR works like this:

Sounds is promulgated through a fluid as a wave (in this case, air) and then our ears recieve these waves. These cool ear things think that different waves have different "sounds" and that's what you hear. What ANR does is listens to these wave things and determines what the wave looks like. Then it produces the opposite wave. When the two waves run into each other (BEFORE it reaches your ear), they are both destroyed. If that dosen't make any sense, go take a physics class and it'll make a lot more sense, but that's how it works. The sound is not amplified before it hits your ear because there are two waves; the sound is destroyed; like it never existed. There is no extra damage to your ear because the original sound wave is absolutly, completely destroyed.

There, what Steve said only a little longer [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Cheers


John Herreshoff

[SteveC]

Yeah. What John said.


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