Sennheiser PXC 250 Active Noise Canceling Headphones
by Sennheiser
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Our Price: $214.46 Availability: Usually ships in 2-3 business days Buy Used: from $45.00 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Sennheiser PXC 250 Active Noise Canceling Headphones
Customer Review: Excellent sound, but noise-cancelling causes nauseousness
Summary: 4 Stars
After 5 year's ownership of my Sennheiser HD525's, I decided that when I was going to look into noise-cancelling headphones I'd turn to Sennheiser first. The sound-quality of the PXC250 is excellent for a headphone in this size, but I had a major issue instantly with the noise-cancelling feature.I tested my new headphones out for the first time at work. Sitting in my cubicle I was listening to Nora Jones. It's a great CD to test speaker quality - the voice recording of Nora is clear and precise. The noise-cancelling system worked great in cutting out background noise, but after 5 minutes of enjoyment I became nauseous. I felt this harsh pressure in my inner ear and for some reason it was affecting my balance. I became light-headed and dizzy. I immediately shut off the noise-cancelling system to see if that would help. The pressure in my ears was relieved but I was left with a tenseness in my throat: the same feeling you get with an over-tightened tie around your neck. For the next hour or so I was feeling this pressure in my throat. It was similar to the feeling you get when you want to throw up, but of coarse not that intense.
A year ago I tried on a David-Clark noise-cancelling headset for my private-pilot training. I was impressed with their ability to cancel out noise, but I never felt this pressure in the inner ear. Maybe I did not try them on long enough.
Conclusion is, try the Sennheiser PXC250's out before you buy them. If the noise-cancelling feature makes you nauseous, settle for traditional pair of Sennheiser headphones. For those who do not have the problem I had, buy the PXC250's - I highly recommend them. Their noise-cancelling system works excellent and the quality of sound that these headphones produce lives up to the well-known superior quality of the Sennheiser product line.
Customer Review: Good phones; not the best value
Summary: 4 Stars
Would have rated them 3.5 were that an option... My primary use for these is while operating a lawn tractor (trying to save my hearing while listening to music) and I originally decided to get the Bose QC2 until learning those are $300. After reading many reviews (both consumer and expert) the PXC250 kept popping up as a lower cost alternative to the Bose... I've used the PXC250 indoors with low/moderate background noise and outdoors while operating the riding mower, and cannot compare/reference to other NC sets as I haven't tried others, but here's my 2 cents:
Good: lightweight; compact when folded; tonal qualities with NC on or off (a bit of an artificial bass boost with the NC on however)
Neutral: external in-line NC unit.. good for phones to be lightweight and compact; bad if you are looking for total integration; can't really have it both ways...
Bad: NC performance doesn't quite meet expectations... in looking at the specs the active NC is only canceling frequencies below 1000 Hz (the Bose does full-spectrum active cancellation according to their info); for sounds over 1200 Hz the PXC250 relies on simply blocking out those sounds by how well they seal on your ears (passive); largely but not totally effective in the lower ranges where active cancellation is happening... significant amount of mower engine noise is reduced but was expecting somewhat more cancellation; slight hissing noise with NC active and nothing being played through the phones; doesn't represent a good, but only an average value for the cost
I'm definitely keeping them as I'm unwilling to ante up the additional amount for the Bose... but the PXC250 needs to be priced around $100, or alternately offer full spectrum/improved cancellation to be a better value.
Customer Review: Good For The Price
Summary: 4 Stars
The reason why I bought these is because on a recent flight the person in the seat next to me let me try his Bose headphones.
I was hooked. They really made the plane a quiter place.
So, I set out to buy a pair until I found out they are $300.00.
Also, I was not keen on how bulky they were.
So after some research I bought the Sennheiser.
A couple of days ago I tried the Sennheiser on flight.
What I found is the following
1) They work pretty well. That wind tunnel type noise that drones constantly on an ariplane is gone 100%. However the low hum of the engine is still there. Therefore I would say it reduces the overall noise level by 50%.
2) They aren't as quiet as the bose. I think this is mainly due to the Bose being over the ear. I say this because if I press the Sennheiser to my ears things get quiter.
3) They are small and built well. This is something that was important to me. I didn't want to lug around a large set of headphones
4) They dont work well at all w/ the NC turned off. Even though the manufacturer says they work even with no batteries, you wouldn't want to use them this way. The sound is really bad. Tinny and terrible. I put my iPod earbuds in the case and take them with me just in case. The buds are far supperior to the headphones when the headphones are powered off.
5) There is a bit of hiss, but this is not distracting and not noticable while listening to music.
6) I would rather use the iPod earbuds then these headphones when not on an airplane. The buds are smaller and produce comparable sound.
Conclusion:
They work, Im glad I bougth them. The Bose is a bit better NC wise, but not worth the extra $200.00.
Customer Review: PXC250 - good deal
Summary: 4 Stars
I've had these for three or four years now.
I think they're a real good deal for the price compared to the other alternatives.
I cannot use ear buds, they work their way out of my ears in about 5 minutes.
Mostly I use these on transatlantic flights lasting 9-10 hours.
The PXC250 are quite light and comfortable, I have worn them for hours at a time, alternating from iPod to airplane movies.
The noise cancellation works well enough to drastically reduce the drone of engines and the airconditioning hiss and random conversations and background noise. that gets real tiresome and interferes with listening to movies and music. With them I can actually understand the dialog on the movies which can be hard to understand without.
They collapse into a small enough pouch (included) to fit into my computer laptop case. the ipod fits into the case, too, and the zipper pocket on the side holds a spare battery and airplane jack adapter. I can hold it discreetly when taking off and landing so I don't have to climb into the overhead for it.
The main complaint - the size and weight of the electronic/battery module and the wires. While they seem to be sturdy the wire tangles easily altho with time its easier to mange. the module just gets inconvenient at times - it does have a clip to put in your pocket or other attachment point. Generally ends up in my lap or on the tray.
Sound quality is actually fairly good. There's a slight hiss from the NC circuit when on buts its a very small negative compared to the Noise reduction I get. When someone tries to talk to you you can sort of make out that something is being said, but you have to raise one ear pad so you can understand them.
Customer Review: Light weight and light on performance
Summary: 3 Stars
Researched product and gave them a try due to sale price of $81.00 and descent reviews on Amazon. Like always thought I could get close to Bose performance at lower price. Wrong again.
Upon opening package I noticed the feather light weight of the headset and how comfortable they felt. Almost don't notice them on while adding the two AAA battery's to the electronics unit and said to myself now what?. Oh let me clip it to my belt and run the wires through my shirt and to go run. Oh crap I forgot to hook up my pod. Another attachment? Ugh!! They're are very comfortable and when powering up the whole world became a quiet place. But that's where the good stops.
Once hooking up the headset to my i-pod I selected a No Doubt tune (Hella Gone) and cranked up the volume. Huh? I said. Volume is almost all the way up. Hmm! Sound volume was much less than expected. Good highs but weak base which I suspect is inherent in over the ear units. Still my colleagues' quiet system 3's sounds better due to higher levels of lows. "Yeah" "Yeah" I know this sounds just like one of those neighbor commercials. You get what you pay for right?
Anyway I am returning the units for lack of performance. Heck I don't even want to try them out in the airplane for which I seem to spend half my life in. That's how poor I found the sound quality.
Coincidently my son purchased some high quality ear buds as a Christmas present and I found myself happier wearing the buds.
So, the good and bad.
Good
Good price
Ultra light weight
Very comfortable
Bad
Weak sound output
Poor base response (Other songs tried as well)
Awkward electronics / battery unit