Audio-Technica ATHANC7 Noise-cancelling Headphones
by AUDIO TECHNICA
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List Price: Our Price: $79.99 You Save: $139.96 (64%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
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for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Audio-Technica ATHANC7 Noise-cancelling Headphones
Customer Review: Good sound, great noise-cancellation, terrific value
Summary: 5 Stars
Cut to the chase: these headphones outperform the comparable Bose models at more than half the price. Solidly built, comfortable (for over the ear phones).
Likes:
Sound quality is nice/natural, not "pumped up" or equalized like Bose. Highs are sweeter sounding, not aggressive or strident (if you like that sound, use the EQ on your portable music player). Mids are natural and not overly intrusive (like Bose). Bass is good, not great. If you want thumping, bumping bass, look elsewhere, preferably at in-the-ear phones.
Noise cancellation is just so much better than Bose. Note, if you are one of the few people (like me) who have pressure sensitivity in your ears, you will "feel" the noise cancellation as pressure on your eardrums, which can be initially annoying. This is not AT's fault, it is a consequence of this type of technology and common to all such phones. It will remove most if not all of the low end rumbles (great on a bus or airplane). It does not screen out high frequency noises completely, rather it muffles them, so things like whiny kids or sirens still come through.
Battery life seems good.
Dislikes:
Noise leakage: this is not the headphone to buy if you plan on listening to tunes at night next to your sleeping spouse. The comfy ear pads also serve to less effectively block the sound from leaking out. So passengners, grumpy spouses, and co-workers will hear the tunes if the listening environment is quiet. This will be less an issue on planes and buses, where the background noise is so high, but is a consideration for quiet environs such as library, class, or in your house. I bought these purely for travel and have a separate office, no not a concern.
Sound quality when the noise cancellation is off. Many reviewers like the fact that this headphone works without having the noise cancellation having to be turned on. Yes, but the sound quality suffers dramatically. This phone is meant to be listened to always with noise cancellation turned on, otherwise, sound is muffled and lacking in dynamics, worse in some respects than the cheapie stuff that came with your ipod. But for airplanes, listening to movies, it would suffice if your batteries wore out and you had no options. Just always keep a spare.
Intermittent noise: the noise cancellation function, which uses an external microphone, can introduce a bit of buzz or line noise every so often. I am sure this is not a defect, since other phones do the same thing. It is not so intrusive and frankly rarely is noticeable, just a fact you should know.
I recommend these highly. If you want the best possible sound and good noise isolation, buy high quality in the ear headphones. If you don't like those types, and therefore are considering this type of headphone and the competition (Sony, Bose, Panasonic), these are your best choice. Just try to listen to a few different models and types, because with headphones, there is no "perfect choice", just features, benefits, and drawbacks. The AT ANC-7 has the best mix for me.
Customer Review: Just excellent
Summary: 5 Stars
I've reviewed most of high quality noise cancelling headphones before to make a decision. So, I eared a Bose, a Phillips, a Sony, an the Audio Technica (AT) headphones.
Far from the rest, and as you probably know, were Bose and Audio Technica.
I decided for Audio Technica for these reasons:
- Physical quality construction: they are extremly well designed: the axis where the earcups rotate to fold them are very strong. Perhaps you may find this an inconvenient to rest your head over a side (on an airplane for example), but I do prefer not to worry about take care of them as long as they can handle every normal effort;
- Sound: I couldn't find (honestly !) a difference between this and the Bose ones. Some reviewers appoint the bass are a little stronger with Bose, but I compared them WITH THE SAME MUSIC AND PLAYER, and I cannot assure that. Instead, I found the same bass deep, but a little better mediums and highs on the AT's.
- Comfort: I have to admit that I thought the AT would be "heavy" to wear in a long trip. I've used them on long flights and fall assleep some hours just to awake wearing them with just a small complain of my neck. Why are they so comfortable? a)Earcups are big enough to hold a male-ear inside (bigger than women I guess) without to compromise the ears; b)The cushion of earcups is so soft that simply seals over your head without any faillure: when you put this headphones on, you can feel the air pressure over your ears indicating a perfect fit. This is (IMHO) the reason its bass are so good.
- Functionality: a) With this AT headphones, you can plug or unplug the audio cable needed to connect them to a device (player, airplane or so) from the headphones in order to just "feel" less exterior sound thanks to noise cancelling function: excellent feature; b) The energy needed comes from a SINGLE "AAA" battery !! The receptacle simply "pops up" from a side and you can change whenever you need this so-common-battery, so you can keep a spare in his very good quality pouch and be sure to not get unpowered never. A single battery can last more than 30 hours!. Other headphones need to be "charged" by other system, usually pluging in to a wall charger.
- Price: after this comparassion, I have to admit I coudn't find any reason to pay the extra money the Bose's costs. I understand Bose's are very high quality sound devices, and they are a litle smaller and better portable than AT, but the noise cancelling circuit of AT is really awsome (and better than Bose I guess).Overall quality of Audio Technica's headphones is a no-doubt decision.
IMPORTANT for "first time noise-cancelling users": there is no TOTAL NOISE CANCELLING device. You will always "ear" by your mouth and nose cavities, so please do not imagine to feel in a magic state with any headphone. They will cancel the exterior sound that should go through your ears, not the rest of your body. But believe me: this Audio Technica headphones do the job at the top of today state-of-the-art noise cancelling engineering.
Customer Review: One of the best headphones, period
Summary: 5 Stars
While I would not call myself an audiophile, I do appreciate a good sound system and a good pair of headphones- I have Sennheiser HD 570 for home, Sony MDR-G57 for workouts/walk in the rain, but always wanted a quality headphone that is portable yet blocks out the noise. A Shure E2C used to fill that niche until I broke it in an accident. Since then, I have been on the lookout for a brand new pair.
I tried the Bose On-Ear Headphone at a local Best Buy, liked it enough and thought about buying it- until I found out the cost. Hey, I said I like a good pair of headphones, but I am not gonna spend half of what I did for my iPod! I briefly considered Sennheiser PX100 but thought it looked too flimsy and was doubtful on its noise-cancelling ability. By chance I stumbled upon a review of ATH-ANC7, which praised its quality on par with Bose QC2/3 yet at half the cost. It was enough for me to go out and buy this one, plus with Amazon I got a good deal.
The Pros:
Noise-cancelling. Even without its active noise-cancelling function on, the closed design of the headphones muffles out a lot of the outside noise. I wear this from time to time while I work, and even with the music off, I can barely make it out when people are yelling at me! With the noise-cancelling on, some of the louder stuff, such as coffee grinder in the background, road construction is barely noticeable- and I don't like to crank up my music to the max.
Cord length. My HD 570 is a good pair of headphones, but its lengthy cord makes it unwieldy to carry around with my iPod. While the cord with this unit is a bit long, it's definitely manageable for carrying your audio player in the pocket.
Sound quality. Sound quality wise, this easily trumps the stock iPod earphones, MDR-G57, and definitely comparable to E2C or HD 570.
Comfort. I wear this around when I am out. It's big enough to be noticeable, but it's a slick pair, and I have great music, so who cares?
Construction: While not as sturdy as MDR-G57, this is a pair that is solid in its built. Great for casual listening, and with its included carrying case, I can see this lasting a long while.
Cons:
The sound quality varies when the active noise-cancelling is toggled on/off, and you definitely get a louder/clearer sound when it's on. You can still listen to it without the function on, but I prefer having it on obviously- just make sure you have a rechargeable AAA battery for every week or so.
I wouldn't consider my ears to be dumbo-sized- so if you have big ears, try them on, or consider other cans. My medium-sized ears gets warm after an hour or two, and if I don't position them right, it can be slightly uncomfortable. However, I still prefer this than the ear-rape sensation of E2c's.
If you dig bass, then look for earphones that you find comfortable. While serviceable, you won't get the booms you are looking for.
Customer Review: Best Headphones I've listened to
Summary: 5 Stars
These headphones sound fantastic. I think something with the noise cancellation gives them a bit more power and improves the headphone dynamics giving your music an extra punch that makes it sound more like a live performance. The bass is tight and powerful but not overwhelming. You can hear the initial impact of drums and the plucking of strings. The mids and highs are crisp and clear. Aside from sound quality, these headphones are also very comfortable. The build appears to be sturdy and the case is nice and includes extras you may need on a plane.
I have not compared them to extremely pricey headphones but I do own some that are very highly rated such as the Sennheiser PX100W and Sennheiser CX300. These totally blow them away. I also have a pair of Bose In-Ear headphones. I like the Bose better than the two pairs of Senns I have but again they don't compare to these Audio-Technica.
OK, now for the downside (though I still have to give them 5 stars for the fantastic sound quality). They don't sound nearly as good with the sound cancelation turned off (no big deal as battery life is excellent). They do leak noise terribly. I like to go to sleep listening to headphones and these keep my other half awake. They also don't cancel quite enough noise to be a good lawn mowing headphone plus they are not compact enough and I don't want to wreck my expensive headphones by catching them on a tree. My solution was to buy a pair of the ear canal type Audio-Technica ATH ANC3.
The ANC3 sound close to the ANC7s but are a touch harsher and don't have quite as nice a soundstage. They are, however, much smaller and more convenient to carry around. The sound leakage is also pretty minimal though it might not be library quite. They don't seem to keep my other half awake. They also sound almost as good with the noise cancellation off though if you listen closely you get better bass (especially that initial impact, and string plucking) with the cancelation on. The ANC3 actually don't cancel noise as well as the ANC7s. I was hoping for more cancellation with a canal phone plus noise cancelling. On the other hand they are extremely comfortable and easier to take in and out of your ears than most canal type phones plus they have a button you can push if you want to hear someone talk without taking them out of your ears. The noise cancelation wouldn't be good enough for lawn mowing on its own but they easily fit under a pair of ear muff type passive noise protectors that I use when I mow the lawn, chain saw, leaf blow, etc. With this secondary noise cancelation I get blissful music filled lawn mowing. It makes it a much nicer job!
So which would I recommend? If you can only get one pair and appreciate really superior sound quality, go with the ANC7s. If you want more convenience, excellent sound and sound leakage is an issue, go with the ANC3.
Customer Review: Best-in-class, at one-third the price of the heavily-advertised alternative.
Summary: 5 Stars
Point-blank, an awesome product/solution.
The sound quality is off the charts and these over-the-ears seal off and/or cancel out every drop of sound during an airplane flight. Though they don't fold up, the earpieces turn so it packs flat into a well-thought-out, quality carry case ... and the superiority of the product makes it well worth putting up with something less compact.
There's a lot of thought put into the design of this product as well as into the quality of the build and materials. For example, to replace the battery, you just flip down one of those silver strips you see on the outside of the earpieces and drop the new battery down the chute, then snap the strip back shut. QED. I've seen/owned headsets where you have to twist off one of the earpads, where you had to tote a battery box built into the middle of the cord, and all sorts of other whatnot.
Another example of the detail/thought built into the product: the wire that connects the headphones to the MP3 player (or whatever). The wire is plug-in/plug-out (at both ends). That means that if it wears out, or if it's too long/short or whatever, you can simply replace it. That also means it's quick&easy to pack. And the tips are gold-plated. And one end/tip is done as a 90-degree/right-angle, if that works better for you. [ Personally, I use this Scosche 3.5mm Retractable MP3 Cable - - under five smackers, packs/unpacks in a jiffy, and you just pull it to the exact length that suits you. ]
Currently, the original ATs are in sparse availability, but the company has done a slight spiff on them ... and then re-released them as the ATH-ANC7-b. I snagged the original release version here at Amaz. for about a Benjamin and a quarter. I've compared these ATs to that other certain well-hyped & heavily-advertised brand of noise-cancellers -- which are hanging everywhere from Best Buy to airport kiosks so you can try them out -- and these ATs sound better ... and at about one-third the price.
Yes, you stand out wearing a large set of over-the-ear headphones. Once, I was given an airline employee discount in the airport food court ... simply because I had them draped around my neck (well, I had a suit and tie on as well). But I really don't care if other travelers spot them as a bit odd/huge, I mean the whole purpose of these things is to tune all of them out anyway!
I upgraded to these ATs after a four-year affair with a pair of Kensington Noise Cancelling Headphones, using those almost exclusively in-flight. The upgrade was worth every durn penny.