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Though they are double the price you mentioned as a limit, I want to recommend the ones I'm using for other people in need of really good NC headphones coming to this thread.
I got myself refurbished Bose Quiet Comfort 45 and in my opinion they are perfect. I use them to blend out noise in public transport, museums, shopping malls, the office and so on. I can wear them for hours without my ears hurting or the battery running out. They really improved my quality of life.
Also the Bose NC700 are recommendable.
(Hint: Half the noise cancelling happens passively within the cushion foam, so - it turned out that third party cushions sometimes are not be as good as the original replacement kit.)
Bose does make really good NC headphones, but as you mentioned, they can be pricy. I got my NC 700s on Facebook marketplace for half the price brand new. Someone was given them from work, but already had Sony noise cancelling headphones and were selling the Bose ones. I see used QC45s on there all the time too.
I have the QC 35 and QC 45. I prefer the 35 though they are likely harder to find. The 45s have different software and the headphones remind me to pair intermittently when I am not connected to a device, which is annoying because I usually don't listen to anything, I just want the noise cancelling. The 45s also allow more of certain sounds in, like wind and other things that, in my opinion, should have been canceled out.
Have you tried earplugs? They’re cheap and pretty effective, I use them a bunch. Mack’s is my favorite brand
To add on to this, noise reducing earplugs are also a thing - search for "concert earplugs" or something like that.
Using them I was able to watch Godzilla in a movie theater without constantly wincing as well as go to a concert at a bar and actually have a decent time. Highly recommend for general use, I carry them everywhere now.
I’ve got a little capsule on my keychain with an emergency pair of earplugs. They’ve saved me a couple times now
Aka "musicians earplugs" ... which can be premade, or if you actually want the best fidelity, custom molded to fit your actual ear canal! Had a gf who was a post-punk musician once, she absolutely swore by her custom pair.
Good noise canceling + no ringing for under 100 is a really tough category, but I think Anker makes some ok ones with hybrid active noise cancellation (generally less ringing) right at $100: Soundcore Life Q20.
One thing I can’t recommend is a used pair of Sony XM3s, because they caused incredible pressure in my ears when the noise cancellation came on. They worked phenomenally well at blocking noise, but they effing hurt.
Sony's current cheap models are a lot better than the XM3s. I know that pressure sensation, I'd given up on all noise canceling headphones because I hate it, but tried a pair of (cheap!) Sony WH-CH720N and that sensation is 98% reduced, it only appears a little if there's a ton of bass noise in the environment. But even then, it's not nearly as bad as most other (older) NC headphones I've tried.
I don't know if this is an option, I didn't see you explicitly mention that it wasn't so I thought I would mention something a little different that I have personally done when I wanted what you are talking about on the cheap.
Have you considered combining over the ear hearing protection ear muffs with a pair of standard (non-ANC) ear buds? A pair of earmuffs with a noise reduction of 30dB (which I believe is better than ANC can achieve can generally be had for $25-$35 leaving you with $70 to spend on a pair of ear buds where the only consideration is audio quality and fit at that price point.
Having sensory issues myself I think it's worth noting that these types of ear muffs are designed to apply more pressure around your ears than standard head phones. It's usually not an issue for me, but there are those who do not like it for long periods of time.
So, just to ignore your budget, I have the Sony XM4 headphones (over ear), and... they are okay. In the heat, they get very sweaty, and there are annoying sounds you can't turn off (on/off beep, and a voice which tells you when it has connected). The noise cancellation is good for constant noises but not sudden ones. Overall, I wouldn't recommend/buy them again, as they are just fine.
I have tried some in ear ones from Xiaomi (not sure which exactly) which I bought for my partner, and they are, in my limited experience, just fine too, especially for the price (<$50). I don't know about any long-term idiosyncrasies though, so take that with a pinch of salt. These ones look a bit better: Redmi Buds 5 Pro. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Xiaomi-Redmi-Buds-Black-BHR7660GL/dp/B0CQKHK626/
The noise cancellation is good for constant noises but not sudden ones.
This is kinda the nature of active noise cancellation, unfortunately. Blocking out sudden noise is just technically very challenging. Works great for airplane noise, not so much for crying babies.
Sony's XM line is in my opinion just about the best ANC headphones money can buy, in terms of noise cancelling and sound quality combo. I can understand your point about them getting sweaty. Part one of blocking noise is good sound insulation, which tends to hold in heat as well. I live in a colder climate so that works out well for me. You could get in-ear ones, although obviously they don't block out noise as well.
Edit: See sushibowl's explanation below why this is incorrect
What do you mean that blocking sudden noise in technically very challenging? I might be wrong, but from what I have gathered is that ANC is based on playing a "negative" of a pressure wave picked by the microphones in phase with the original wave. Thus it has to react to all sounds in the time that the pressure wave travels from the microphone to the ear, so it shouldn't matter whether the noise is constant (airplane) or sudden (gunshot).
Of course if the headphones have some kind of pass-through active, then it might take a while until software decides to activate ANC, but that is not a limitation of ANC itself
ANC is based on playing a "negative" of a pressure wave picked by the microphones in phase with the original wave.
That's the theory, but it's almost impossible to do in practice. Your microphone and speaker are imperfect at capturing and reproducing sounds. The phase timing is incredibly sensitive. You only have milliseconds to do the processing and generation.
That's why practical noise cancelling relies on feedback loops. A second microphone inside captures the result of the cancellation, and based on that adjustments can be made to the negative signal. This allows you to correct for lots of sources of error and achieve quite a good result. Of course, for a sudden noise like a gunshot, by the time the feedback loop can really kick in, the noise is already over.
Oooooh that makes so much sense, I had been wondering why lifting the earcup slightly doesn't amplify the sound, but that explains it. Thank you for the clarification!
Have you tried the Bose ones mentioned in this thread, or Apple's crazy expensive ones?
Yeah, if I lived somewhere where it went under 20 degrees celsius I can see the appeal. It has been 40+ lately which has made using them pretty horrid, so I've stuck to earplugs when cycling instead.
Bose also makes really nice ones. It's been a while since I tried a Bose but the QuietComfort 35 II were really solid headphones. Little bit less bassy than the Sony (which is a question of taste), very comfortable, and the noise cancelling is quite good.
I haven't tried the apple ones. Knowing apple products, it's probably really good but way overpriced.
Active hearing protection is better for sudden noises and some of them have connections for aux cables but the speakers are low quality and they're designed only to understand someone talking and that's it.
Have a pair of MX4s too. I haven't experienced any other kind of NC headphones so nothing to compare to, but the voice is seriously annoying. What I often do is interrupt it by tapping the side to play/pause media twice.
While they work OotB without the app, there is a bunch of functionality and tweaks locked behind the official app, such as EQ, wind-reduction, and voice-passthru.
I told them as much, and they just said tough shit, essentially. The quality of the voice is also piss poor; why have 'premium' headphones yet you have such low quality (and pointless) sounds? The beeping is also harsh on my ears.
I turned off the touch features as I kept pressing them unintentionally. I won't get the XM5s (or 6, whatever comes next), least of all as they stopped them from being folded up, strangely.
I also turned off the talk-to-speak thing as I just don't need it. If I want to talk, I'll pause my music or take them off. The 'smart' features are really not that clever nor useful. I don't want my music to pause just because I'm wiping sweating off one of the ears.
Check out wicked cushions to replace your ear cups. Super easy and only like 30 bucks instead of double that sony will charge.
Ive found them to be better for long listens (not perfect but more comfortable for longer ive found.. and its fun to customize.)
Green bit is 3d printed replacement hinge. Ive slept with these on many nights in my hammock
I have these and AirPod pros. The Pros are much better. The only reason I use the XM4s is to plug in with AUX.
Do you need an Apple phone to appreciate them?
No they act like any other Bluetooth headphones without Apple devices. You get easier automatic switching if you have Apple devices. I believe Linus from LTT uses them and he pretty much hates Apple.
Damn, I just got my new ones today, Bose QuietComfort Ultra. They are amazing. And that is compared to the Jabra Evolve2 85 I already have at work. Overear is definitely the way to go, I tried in-ear and on-ears before, but they just don't compare once you tasted the high end.
Has to be under 100.
Sorry mate :(
If you're comfortable consider looking into second-hand pairs as well.
Using the CMF Buds Pro. I don't think you need the app, only to change tap controls.
Nothing Ear A $99 - Nothing Ear (a) Wireless Earbuds with ChatGPT Integration, 45dB Hybrid Noise Cancelling Earbuds, Hi-Res Audio, Advanced Equaliser, Dual Connect, 6 Mics, 42.5H Playtime Earbuds Wireless Bluetooth Black https://a.co/d/ddd3elu
CMF Buds $29 - CMF Buds Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds, 42dB Noise Cancelling Earbuds, Dirac HD Audio, 35.5H Playtime, BT5.3, IP54 Waterproof, 4HD Mics Wireless Headphones for iPhone & Android (Dark Grey) https://a.co/d/6oTiP5q
Both work with any device on any platform that can use Bluetooth audio ( I've used them on Mac, PC, Linux, and multiple game consoles) and they don't explicitly need an app to function (just for firmware updates and customization but that's like any Bluetooth headphones) but they do both have Android and iOS apps if you so choose (and I do recommend at the very least for firmware updates)
Get the Ear A if you can afford them, they are the better of the two both in noise cancelling and audio quality (and transparency mode) but the CMF Buds are still fantastic and punch way above their price class.
@thezeesystem I feel you, these are the best I've gotten. They also have in-ear which I've used and are equally good.
App isn't required, but very recommended (firmware updates, calibrating the audio and noise cancelling to your hearing, managing multipoint ie. switching connections between devices)
Also has incredible pass through mode (allowing you to optionally hear people without taking them off, almost as good as without wearing them at all imo).
Plus insane battery life, advertised as 40 hours... enough that by the time I get the low battery warning I've completely forgetten when I charged them last.
My Sony WH-1000XM4 (catchy name there, Sony) are treating me pretty well. They're not perfect, not by any stretch, but they do help a lot esp when you put music on em.
Absolutely indispensable at conventions. Too many people talking at once, no escape, autistic shutdown hits, I become unresponsive and start to lash out at anyone trying to talk to me, 10 minutes walking around wearing those and listening to lofi and suddenly I feel like a human again
I can also recommend the XM4s. The XM5s are $50 more, but everything I've read tells me that whatever they did to upgrade from the XM4s doesn't make much of a difference and that the extra cost is not justified.
The only problem I have with the XM4s is that it is sometimes eerily quiet with noise canceling on. So quiet, in fact, that it is disconcerting and I get dizzy because of it.
Wicked cushions has good replacement ear cups as well for like 30$.
Also the swivel hinges are prone to breaking but i managed to find a 3d print file with not much difficulty and was able to fix mine surprisingly easy, though i didnt have to replace any orings thankfully.
But god damn do i love my xm4s
I got the sennheiser momentum 4s and love them, but sadly outside of the budget. :(
I don't know how the prices are over there, but used wh-1000xm3 over-ear headphones could be an option. They have basically the same anc than the newer models (interestingly rtings rates tde xm3 better than xm4 and xm5), and even more importantly the voice prompts can be completely disabled apart from power-on and power-off sounds, unlike in the newer models.
Check the hinges on used xms! They have a design flaw and commonly break. Though i was able to find a 3D print file and it was pretty easy to fix (thankfully i didnt ruin any if the orings though)
Hi, I would recommend the Sony WH-CH720N as punching way above their weight for a $100 pair.
I am someone who didn't like noise canceling headphones which I tried before, since older models all seemed to cause a sensation of "pressure" on my eardrums which felt like having dead meat behind saran wrap smushed up against them. The Sony WH-CH720N have about 98% removed that sensation, which means I can actually wear them for more than 10 minutes.
The noise canceling feature isn't perfect - you can of course still hear some noise - but it's about as good as the Bose Quiet Comfort 3 pair which cost a LOT more than the Sony.
buy in-ear ones. Entry-level shure model isolates so well, you'll get hit by a bus in no time.
OP, did you settle on any specific headphones you would recommend?
I went with the Sony WH-CH720N only because it was 56% off on Amazon. So far it's pretty decent besides the shit Sony does by gatekeeping things behind a login in order for noise cancelling. And the noise canceling isn't the best but its good enough for me. Very long battery life and good audio at least for me.