ANR Conversion Kit - reviews?

[5400AirportRdSouth]

Thinking about getting an ANR conversion kit for my DC's. I found these online and wondering if anyone has ever tried them?

http://www.headsetsinc.com/ANR_kits.html


Still cant bring myself to shell out 1000 bucks for a big-boy headset, so the 169USD pricetag on the kit is appealing.

I have no problem with my old DC 10-13.4's other than the growing volume of the raving about ANR from those sitting beside me that are apparently not as cheap as me.

Application is in a King Air and I have the ability to wield a soldering gun with only minor burns.

Thanks!

[cgzro]

They work and I easily built and converted a headset years ago but they are not good enough for very loud environments and after a few good earaches I said screw it and got a Telex 50D.

[Pavese]

Highly recommend them, have two sets of DC style in service. The mod is easy as long as you're not dangerous with a soldering iron.

Unless you're flying all day every day and feel that you need the comfort of the premium brands they're a good economical choice to save your hearing. Get the gel ear seals and the auto-shutoff battery module.


A few stories including scientific testing:

http://www.headsetsinc.com/fly01.pg58-63%20copy.pdf This is an article from the UK Magazine FLYER.

http://www.avweb.com/news/reviews/182488-1.html

http://www.piperflyer.org/catagories/it ... grade.html

D

[I WAS Pez]

I recommend these, with a few caveats. Great bang for the buck, though the cost is closer to $200 USD once you add an auto off battery box cord (I believe the $169 has you strap the battery to your headset, and will run down if not turned off).

ANR quality is good, but not as good as the big guys - I finally bit the bullet and bought a Bose A20 this year and haven't looked back. The other major problem I ran into was that, on long flights (typically past the 4 hour mark), I'd start to get a whooping or squeal that required turning off the ANR. They said this was due to moisture in a mic. Taking it off for half an hour to vent out and using the overhead speaker usually brought it back and allowed the ANR to work....but that's not great. Also, features that have become mainstream and standard on the high end headsets just aren't there - ie, Bluetooth for phone or audio streaming, or even just a line in jack for music.


I installed my first set into my old H10-13.4S in 2009, and they were great for the price. One module failed (started clicking) after a season, and their support was fantastic - I'd installed the modules myself, but sent my whole headset back for service, and also asked for a new mic muff. At that point, I was past the 1 year warranty point, and included a CC number and letter authorizing charges up to $150 for repair and purchase of new mic muff. Repair was completed within a week and headset shipped back with new module and mic muff - no charge.

Subsequently, when I started having the squealing issues after I started doing survey work that required long flights, I went back and forth with them, bought new modules as only one side was squealing, sent headset in again...The ANR, at least in my case, becomes useless usually in the 4-6hr window. Often failing to a violently loud and deafening feedback squeal at the most inopportune time.


These modules have their place, and are great for the price. If you frequently do flights over 4 hours, I would not recommend them. If you're typically under that, and taking them off for a bit between legs, they should be great.


Cheers,
Colin

[bbingham]

I put one of these in my old Avcomms. It's still going strong. Decent battery life also (mine is just the 9V box with the on/off switch). Handled the noise of a Metro perfectly fine, so it should handle most aircraft, I would think.

[fleetcanuck]

Hi Colin, thanks for the info about the squeal. Mine have started doing this lately as well and now I know how to correct it. Usually it only happens when I am on descent for landing and so I only lose the noise cancelling for a short period.

I think they are a good product and they work well in my Canuck which is supposed to have a noise level of 105dB in the cockpit. For the price, I think they are definitely worthwhile.

[5400AirportRdSouth]

Thanks for all the feedback, great stuff. I think I will give them a shot!

[Kejidog]

One thing that I did to my DC 13.4's was to swap out the ear cavity foam to thicker denser foam; it made them noticeably quieter. I had some memory foam from a mattress that worked excellently. Well worth the free upgrade. And If it wouldn't have worked I had the old foam to put back