Sound Isolation & Noise Cancelation Technology

my neighbors slam the door a lot, and my roommate stays up really late when i’m trying to sleep. she opens/closes her drawers a lot, shuffles papers loudly, etc. will sound-isolating earphones work in this situation?

Some are better than others.

Noise cancelling earphones work in two ways:

(1) they block out a good amount of the ambient noise by covering you ear or blocking your ear canal.
(2) they create a negative image of the noise and play it through the earpiece, rather effectively reducing the remaining noise that gets past the intentional blocking.

Noise cancelling earphones work best, of course, when there is other "noise" (or music) to help over-ride the noise you want to cancel. Just using the earphones by themselves, and not connected to an MP3 or other sound-generating device, may not be as effective as you might wish. There will always be some quantity of sound that gets to your eardrums directly through your head. This is, in part, known as "bone conduction hearing", and there is no way to prevent it.

I use a set of noise cancelling headphones to practice on my Casio keyboard while my wife watches TV. With the noise cancelling turned off, the headphones block out a lot of the TV sound. With the headphones switched on, there is a noticeable reduction in the sound I hear from the TV; but I do still hear a little of it. When I start playing the keyboard, I don’t hear the TV at all because the keyboard is louder than what little sound from the TV still gets through.

Such as the microphone is pointing down, and noise is going through the door, would the microphone pick it up and either cancel or reduce it?

You’d also need an amplifier, a processor circuit with noise canceling software and appropriate speakers, but theoretically you should be able to reduce the noise (probably not eliminate it. It may be only effective in specific directions or locations relative to the speakers, however. And it would probably take more than a little bit of work (and expense) to make it worth anything. Not a hobby I would suggest getting into casually.

To see beyond what astronomers can see using traditional telescopes, which count on visible light for their viewing, a radio telescope is designed to hear the sounds from outer space as opposed to the sights. Most designed as a parabolic antenna, a radio telescope allows the user to listen to sounds emanating from sources in space.

Most people with an interest in space have probably heard of the Search for ExtraTerrestrial Activity (SETA), which is a group of people monitoring space for signals with a radio telescope that may indicate life from outer space. To date there has been no success in isolating sounds from space that can be blamed on extraterrestrial sources, except of course in movies.

Neutral hydrogen and carbon monoxide are examples of radio waves picked up with a radio telescope, along with other sources of electromagnetic signals picked up as sound. The first radio telescope in use was back in 1937, a dish about 30-feet in diameter, with interest growing ever since and the first arrays being put in use in the 1950s. Today, the largest is the 1894-foot diameter RATAN600 in Russia.

Sound From Space Sparks Science Fiction Imagination

With the ability to receive sound signals from space picked up on a radio telescope, the imagination of writers and amateur star gazers have fueled by beliefs that some of the sounds are being created by other life in space. Continual argument persists on the existence of life in space and signals not readily identified is used as questionable indications of extraterrestrial life.

A very large array of radio telescope dishes in New Mexico boasts 27 dish antenna, each with a diameter of about 82 feet. They work in tandem searching the skies for sounds, acknowledging that considering the speed of sound is much slower than the speed of light, any sound picked up could be from yesterday or hundred of years ago.

Under construction in Western Europe is a low frequency array radio telescope, which will consist of 25,000 smaller antenna designed to develop radio pictures of the sky based on the origins and current location of the sources of sounds picked up by the array. Clusters of antenna will be spread out over an area approximately 220 miles square. With the added power to pull in radio signals from space it is hoped a better map of this galaxy and adjacent galaxies can provide a better understanding of the space being lived in.

Rohit Chopra
http://www.articlesbase.com/technology-articles/radio-telescope-lets-you-hear-into-space-347308.html

The Pilot PA11-60 mono/stereo headset is ideally suited for pilots and has advanced features such as textured ear cups, PA-7 electret noise canceling microphone, metal as well as flex microphone boom, PA-130 liquid and foam ear seals, to name a few. It also has nickel-plated plugs and dual detent volume controls as well as knurled adjustable knobs that are placed on the headband.

This pilot headset also includes an air-foam head-pad cushion as well as comes with a three year unconditional factory warranty and retails for approximately one hundred and ten dollars. Another pilot headset is the Pilot PA17-70 DNC XL that is a headset having 25dB passive as well as 18-22dB active noise reduction. This pilot headset is fitted with a NiMH rechargeable battery that provides the user with thirty-five to fifty hours of use on a full charge and it also comes with a wall charger that also has a LED light and there is also a communication cord as well. This is an expensive pilot headset that retails for fewer than four hundred and seventy dollars.

The Pilot PA 11-40 Pilot Headset

This pilot headset includes the PA7 electret microphone as well as the PA 10 microphone windscreen and PA 100 liquid ear-seals. It also has an air-foam cushioned head-pad along with molded brass mil-spec plugs and a low-profile detent volume control. To amplify sound, it comes with a metal-flex sliding mic boom and ratcheting mic boom adjustment and also contains hand adjustable knobs. This product has a three year unconditional warranty and there are also special headsets available for helicopter pilots and a stereo unit is also available.

There is also the Pilot PA-1160XLT headset that is extremely light in weight and offers outstanding performance as well as is comfortable to wear and provides the user with amazing passive as well as active noise attenuation. In addition, the Pilot DNC system enables noise canceling at low frequencies and is far superior to any other pilot headsets that may be available on the market today.

This noise canceling feature is combined with Enhanced Voice Intelligibility (EVI) circuitry to provide clean, crisp and clear sound. The unique combination of noise canceling as well as speech enhancement provides significantly improved intelligibility and the set retails for approximately one hundred and fifty-five dollars. Also, there is the Pilot PA-1779 DNC XL that was originally designed for use by the military but has found use in aviation as well and is positioned as the front running ANR headset for the consumer who seeks quality products and the retail price of this pilot headset is four hundred and fifty dollars.

John Ugoshowa
http://www.articlesbase.com/technology-articles/good-intelligibility-with-noise-canceling-features-are-a-must-when-it-comes-to-a-pilot-headset-111414.html

For anyone wanting to enjoy their portable DVD player outside of the privacy and solitude of their own room, headphones are a critical accessory. They allow the viewer to listen to movies and music without disturbing those nearby and often act to reduce environmental noise which can intrude on the audio experience. Both comfort and audio quality are important considerations when selecting earphones.

• For those who will be using their portable DVD player to entertain two viewers at a time it is important to assure that the device has 2 headphone ports on it; otherwise a splitter (Y-plug) will be needed.

• Various styles of headphones offer different advantages.

For anyone wanting small, inconspicuous devices any style of in-the-ear headphones can be a good choice. They are often the headphone of choice during activity, but in the case of use with a portable DVD player this is generally not a concern unless it is used for listening to music. Ear bud style headphones are often less comfortable and offer lower quality sound than in-the-canal type headphones. On the other hand, in-the-canal headphones generally require more frequent cleaning. Both require a good fit to offer the best quality sound.

Around-the-ear headphones with earcups can be quite secure and reduce the intrusion of outside sound without consuming additional battery power although they tend to be a bit more noticeable to the wearer than in-the-ear models.

Over the ear headphones help reduce the risk of hearing loss as the signal from in- the-ear devices is amplified by several dB. For comfort, padding over the earpieces and an adjustable headband is recommended. Some users feel that sound quality with over the ear headphones is superior and helps to reduce noise escaping which can disturb others. Some models even offer behind the neck or headband-less styles for added comfort which allows users to don a hat and avoid disturbing their hair. These types of headphones tend to be lighter but also more fragile.

Wireless headphones free the user from wires but have the drawback of using a great deal of battery power in conjunction with a portable DVD player which already consumes a great deal of energy. With wireless headphones, users are also given freedom to move about when listening to music via their player.

Noise canceling headphones are effective at eliminating environmental noise by creating an out-of-phase signal to cancel unwanted outside noise. As this is not a passive process, additional battery power is consumed to achieve this effect.

• A final, but important consideration in selecting headphones for a portable DVD player is to assure that it is compatible with the device. The cord on the earphones must obviously be capable of connecting to the player or an adapter will be needed, adding more weight and bulk where it is not wanted.

Christine Peppler
http://www.articlesbase.com/electronics-articles/portable-dvd-players-just-the-basics-about-headphones-104701.html

As anyone who has read any of my previous mp3 related articles will know (if not, why not) my original quest was to find the best buy cheap mp3 players.

That, in fact, proved to be not as difficult as I initially imagined, as I managed to locate at least six great buys under $100, all of which did a great job in terms of features, sound quality and storage space (for the price, of course).

I enjoyed testing all of the mp3 players in question.

But, I do have a confession to make.

I tested each and every one of them using what you might call ‘traditional’ hi-fi headphones, rather than with the in-ear earphones that are supplied as standard with most of the players.

The reason for this was very simple.

If I am trying to test mp3 players, then, by definition, I want to be able to listen to, and comment on, the sound quality of the cheap mp3 players under review.

Unfortunately, with the standard earphones supplied with the vast majority of mp3 players, this is no simple task, because of the (generally) extremely average overall performance of most of the earphones provided.

First and foremost, they are supposed to be ‘in-ear’ phones, which, to me at least, would imply that the darned things should fit into your ears. Now, how many people do you know who have perfectly spherical ear holes?

Not many, I would guess.

Nor is it anything to do with size.

I myself am blessed with listening gear that was rejected by Disney staff tasked with casting Dumbo, on the grounds that no self respecting cartoon elephant would ever sport such preposterously large ears.

Still, these blasted things do not fit.

Nor is the quality of these standards phones up to much, either. On the odd occasion when they don’t choose to pop out of your ears, so that you actually have a chance to listen, you probably won’t like what you hear anway!

Now, obviously these earphones are the bit of your mp3 ‘kit’ that transmits the noise from your player into your ears, and thenceforth to the depths of your brain.

Thus, there is no more important element when listening to your mp3 player than the earphones.

I therefore scoured the market to come up with the best in cheaper mp3 earphones, and have listed my findings at http://BuyCheapMp3Player.info/earphones.

You may even be pleasantly surprised to know that my cheapest recommendation comes in at less than $20 brand new, and you can probably find them cheaper still by following the auction site link at the bottom of the webpage.

To summarize, if you are using the earphones that were supplied as standard when you bought your cheap mp3 player, then you are probably cheating yourself out of the full enjoyment of your music.

Far better to consider buying some after market, higher quality earphones, such as those listed on my site, so that you are at last able to appreciate just how good the sounds that you are listening to can truly be!

Steve Cowan
http://www.articlesbase.com/finance-articles/but-my-ears-are-the-wrong-shape-125297.html

Hi all, I’m looking for a new pair of sound isolating earphones under £50. Had a pair of Sennheiser CX300 and 500’s but not impressed (terrible stethoscope effect thru the cord). Any suggestions would be very welcome. Thanks in advance!!

i realy liked the sonys (not sure of the model) i know they cost about £30 and they have the little rubber ear buds

also try checking out any earphones by SURE

hope this helps

I am starting work as a call center reps working from home. I am worried about my kids or dog making noise when they shouldnt. Granted, I will have the office door shut, but when my son has a trantrum, he can pretty much be heard across the house! What is the best Noise-Canceling Headset available under $200? Thanks!

hello….I’ll give you a website where all the professional buy there stuff….tip: sign up with them and you get free shipping an many discounts…I’ve done that!!!