GreyGoose
Well-known member
I started an earlier thread I cant hear you!! trying to get some recommendations for a good set of noise cancelling headphones. One of the forum members sent me a link to these and i ended out ordering them. Thought i give a quick review for any interested parties.
the comply headphones claim a 48db noise reduction (which most or the forum responders doubted). Just to clear up any confustion on the 48dB claim, The 48dB is the most sound the NR-10 will reduce in a specific frequency (not the Noise Reduction Rating which you are referring to with the earplugs (NRR 32)). An official NRR is determined by testing across the entire frequency spectrum and combining the dB reduction from each specific frequency together for an average dB reduction. NR-10 tested and it came back NRR 29 (better than active canceling headphones).
The unit has a small plastic piece inside of each earpiece that threads onto the heaphone. There a plus and a minus to this. the plus is that the earpiece wont easily come off the headphone piece. the downside is that the shaft that holds the earpiece tends to be a little longer than a typical earpiece. My biggest concern when ordering was that they'd stick too far out of my ears for my helmut to clear. I can now say that it was not an issue. each headphone piece is specifically designed for a particular ear and has a slight curve to it that helps keep it close to your head. the unit comes with a set of large and a set of small earplugs made of some pretty substantial material thats denser than what most of us are accustom to with foam plugs. I have to use the large set to keep these things in my ears, but the fit is snug enough to stay in when i pull my helmut over them. They do require me to reset them back in each time i take my helmut off.
The overall sound is pretty much as what the reviewers of the product have been saying. The sound a bit bassy at rest, but i felt that was an advantage since bass is what we tend to lose "at speed". that remained true with this unit, but the sound was quite good. It also has a volume control in the line, which is a definite plus.
When i took these things out for a test drive, I felt the seal and the overall comfort was good. My plan is to use this with my garmin 765t so i can take advantage of the mp3 player and diligently follow gps jills audible instructions. I had to set my navigation prompts to 70% volume and my audio (mp3) volume to 50%, with my master volume on 100%. I was then able to turn the volume in the line up to 100% and comfortably listen to music and GPS jill at all speeds below triple digits. I only want to use the inline volume control to turn things all way down or all the way up (so these settings seem to work great). the inline control is small , so manipulating this while riding is not recommended.
Theirs no way for me to tell if these things actually reduced noise to NRR29db, but overall they did a nice job. I wear custom made plugs 95% of the time and i could tell that i didnt get as much block as the custom plugs (which i wasnt expecting them to) but did get a large dose of noise reduction similiar to any other type of foam plug i've worn in the past.
Bottom Line: I think these earphones deliver what they promise. Descent sound , confortable fit, good value, and good noise reducing qualities. I still have concerns over comfort on all day rides, so i'll update the review when i make that happen.
Cost is listed as 80.00. i bought mine off ebay for 55 (includeing shipping).
If anyone has any questions, you know where to find me.
GreyGoose
the comply headphones claim a 48db noise reduction (which most or the forum responders doubted). Just to clear up any confustion on the 48dB claim, The 48dB is the most sound the NR-10 will reduce in a specific frequency (not the Noise Reduction Rating which you are referring to with the earplugs (NRR 32)). An official NRR is determined by testing across the entire frequency spectrum and combining the dB reduction from each specific frequency together for an average dB reduction. NR-10 tested and it came back NRR 29 (better than active canceling headphones).
The unit has a small plastic piece inside of each earpiece that threads onto the heaphone. There a plus and a minus to this. the plus is that the earpiece wont easily come off the headphone piece. the downside is that the shaft that holds the earpiece tends to be a little longer than a typical earpiece. My biggest concern when ordering was that they'd stick too far out of my ears for my helmut to clear. I can now say that it was not an issue. each headphone piece is specifically designed for a particular ear and has a slight curve to it that helps keep it close to your head. the unit comes with a set of large and a set of small earplugs made of some pretty substantial material thats denser than what most of us are accustom to with foam plugs. I have to use the large set to keep these things in my ears, but the fit is snug enough to stay in when i pull my helmut over them. They do require me to reset them back in each time i take my helmut off.
The overall sound is pretty much as what the reviewers of the product have been saying. The sound a bit bassy at rest, but i felt that was an advantage since bass is what we tend to lose "at speed". that remained true with this unit, but the sound was quite good. It also has a volume control in the line, which is a definite plus.
When i took these things out for a test drive, I felt the seal and the overall comfort was good. My plan is to use this with my garmin 765t so i can take advantage of the mp3 player and diligently follow gps jills audible instructions. I had to set my navigation prompts to 70% volume and my audio (mp3) volume to 50%, with my master volume on 100%. I was then able to turn the volume in the line up to 100% and comfortably listen to music and GPS jill at all speeds below triple digits. I only want to use the inline volume control to turn things all way down or all the way up (so these settings seem to work great). the inline control is small , so manipulating this while riding is not recommended.
Theirs no way for me to tell if these things actually reduced noise to NRR29db, but overall they did a nice job. I wear custom made plugs 95% of the time and i could tell that i didnt get as much block as the custom plugs (which i wasnt expecting them to) but did get a large dose of noise reduction similiar to any other type of foam plug i've worn in the past.
Bottom Line: I think these earphones deliver what they promise. Descent sound , confortable fit, good value, and good noise reducing qualities. I still have concerns over comfort on all day rides, so i'll update the review when i make that happen.
Cost is listed as 80.00. i bought mine off ebay for 55 (includeing shipping).
If anyone has any questions, you know where to find me.
GreyGoose
Last edited by a moderator:
. Just ordered a set of Comply replacement buds for my Skullcandy FMJ's.
