4 ms·

I'm still waiting for the app that makes other household members shut up... now that would be distraction-free writing. :-)

oscardelben 17y ago
It's not an app, and it doesn't work for others, but for you: use noise-canceling headphones.
- pasbesoin 17y ago
  If you know of noise canceling headphones that are effective against the irregular waveforms of human speech, I'd be most interested.
  - jrockway 17y ago
    In that case, you want something that actually blocks the sound, like these: http://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-Portable-Earphones-Black/dp/B000XPG2QI/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1267383351&sr=1-11 http://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-Portable-Earphones-B... 35db of isolation. You basically can't hear anything, which is nice when you need to work somewhere noisy, or want to listen to music on an airplane. It's infinitely better than noise cancellation.
    - pasbesoin 17y ago
      Thank you. I recently spent $80 on another brand that uses foam tips. It had the highest rating I could find amongst the choices at a specialty shop, at IIRC 31 dB attenuation. I haven't been in a suitable work environment since then, to try them out. I'll probably give those a go, first, but if they do not suffice, these look worth trying, and at about $120 are within my price range (as opposed th the $300 plus that I've seen for some other items). As you say, though, these work via passive blocking and not active cancellation. Some time ago, I came across an explanation by an audio engineer claiming that cancellation will never work fully with headphones. Even if the processing is fast enough, he argued, the distances involved between the speaker and eardrum just won't permit it. Perhaps this was in combination with the inertia and therefore delay in the speaker elements; I no longer recall fully. When people state "wear canceling headphones", I've never yet seen the statement backed up with a real / real world use case. EDIT: I guess/imagine it might be more a matter of the location of the microphone that drives the noise cancellation, than that of the speakers. Although I do seem to recall also something about the limitations imposed by pressure waves operating in such a small, confined space.
  - rms 17y ago
    Being ineffective for speech is actually a "feature" of Bose headphones. I second the recommendation for Etymotic earphones.
    - pasbesoin 17y ago
      Thanks, I appreciate the second. With so many products and opinions out there, it nice to have some concurrence in an endorsement. I know I'm not the only one facing this problem of environmental noise as distraction, although I may be towards the extreme end. If and when I find a solution like this that really works for me, it will be for me one of if not the most effective workspace "hacks" in my toolkit.
- Estragon 17y ago
  I'm still waiting for the app which makes the voices in my head shut up. :-)

oscardelben 17y ago

It's not an app, and it doesn't work for others, but for you: use noise-canceling headphones.

pasbesoin 17y ago
If you know of noise canceling headphones that are effective against the irregular waveforms of human speech, I'd be most interested.
- jrockway 17y ago
  In that case, you want something that actually blocks the sound, like these: http://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-Portable-Earphones-Black/dp/B000XPG2QI/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1267383351&sr=1-11 http://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-Portable-Earphones-B... 35db of isolation. You basically can't hear anything, which is nice when you need to work somewhere noisy, or want to listen to music on an airplane. It's infinitely better than noise cancellation.
  - pasbesoin 17y ago
    Thank you. I recently spent $80 on another brand that uses foam tips. It had the highest rating I could find amongst the choices at a specialty shop, at IIRC 31 dB attenuation. I haven't been in a suitable work environment since then, to try them out. I'll probably give those a go, first, but if they do not suffice, these look worth trying, and at about $120 are within my price range (as opposed th the $300 plus that I've seen for some other items). As you say, though, these work via passive blocking and not active cancellation. Some time ago, I came across an explanation by an audio engineer claiming that cancellation will never work fully with headphones. Even if the processing is fast enough, he argued, the distances involved between the speaker and eardrum just won't permit it. Perhaps this was in combination with the inertia and therefore delay in the speaker elements; I no longer recall fully. When people state "wear canceling headphones", I've never yet seen the statement backed up with a real / real world use case. EDIT: I guess/imagine it might be more a matter of the location of the microphone that drives the noise cancellation, than that of the speakers. Although I do seem to recall also something about the limitations imposed by pressure waves operating in such a small, confined space.
- rms 17y ago
  Being ineffective for speech is actually a "feature" of Bose headphones. I second the recommendation for Etymotic earphones.
  - pasbesoin 17y ago
    Thanks, I appreciate the second. With so many products and opinions out there, it nice to have some concurrence in an endorsement. I know I'm not the only one facing this problem of environmental noise as distraction, although I may be towards the extreme end. If and when I find a solution like this that really works for me, it will be for me one of if not the most effective workspace "hacks" in my toolkit.
Estragon 17y ago
I'm still waiting for the app which makes the voices in my head shut up. :-)