4 ms·

I suggest using Hearo's 32 NRR earplugs under the headphones. When people approach to bullshit with you, ignore them for a little bit. If they persist, make a s

I suggest using Hearo's 32 NRR earplugs under the headphones. When people approach to bullshit with you, ignore them for a little bit. If they persist, make a show of taking off the headphones and extracting the earplugs. People will soon learn to leave you alone when you have your headphones on. At least, it worked for me, mostly.

inetknght 9y ago
I've had two different earplugs. I don't remember the first brand, it was close to 20 years ago by now. The second pair is a discontinued Skullcandy. They work well enough but they're not really noise cancelling... more like noise blocking. They're wearing out though. Last week I pulled one out of my ear and it left the rubber piece in my ear. That wasn't fun to fish out. I bought a pair of Bose QC35 on Sunday. Over-the-ear headphones. Their active powered noise cancelling feature works well enough for ambient noise such as the air system, but not so much for voices. If there's an over-the-ear pair of headphones with active noise-cancelling feature that blocks _all_ noise instead of just ambient noise and has great sound reproduction, that would be peachy.
- ricardobeat 9y ago
  The recently launched Sony MDR1000X does the job for me (and also has a voice-passthrough option that is handy at times). It's around the same price as the Bose.
  - andrei_says_ 9y ago
    Speaking of price, were you able to get them expensed?
  - gaius 9y ago
    How long have you had them? Any issues with the headband cracking?
- Veratyr 9y ago
  I owned some QC25s for a while and also found that they're useless when it comes to voices. The solution I've found to voices is IEMs, those in ear headphones. I'm currently using a pair of Etymotic ER4SR with the foam tips that came with them and I can't hear a thing when I'm in the office. They're not as good for deep ambient noise like the rumbling of a bus or train engine but I haven't found anything nearly as good when it comes to voices. The stock foam can get a bit uncomfortable for a while though so I'd recommend getting some Comply branded tips, which I find much more comfortable and close to as good. In the end though, I ended up paying for custom molded silicon tips, which by all reports I should barely be able to feel at all, let alone experience discomfort with. Still waiting for them to arrive though.
- jschwartzi 9y ago
  My Sennheiser HD280 Pros are pretty good, and as a bonus the cable is durable enough that I can use them to lasso uncooperative coworkers while I'm listening to music.
- Steeeve 9y ago
  Clarity Aloft. They are ~$700. Pilots use them because they can drown out engine noise (part of the cost is the certification). They are in-ear and do way better than any noise cancelling headphones.
  - dijit 9y ago
    But the QC35 (which I also own) absolutely thrives in that same environment. The problem is that engine noise is constant where as voices are unpredictable.
dingaling 9y ago
> People will soon learn to leave you alone when you have your headphones on. Or there will be enough complaints about Hnrobert42's reluctance to engage with co-workers that all headphones and earphone will be banned. That's what happened in an office in which I worked. After all, you're not there to work for yourself; you're there to benefit for the company. If the company determines that assisting co-workers is more important than your personal solace then so be it.
- Hnrobert42 9y ago
  If that's the company's reaction, it's time to find another company. I don't use the headphones to ignore colleagues desperate to talk about work out of preference. The comment to which I was responding was specifically about people wanting to shoot the shit. If your company, like you, can't tell the difference, I would say you are well suited to each other and not to work nor work with me.

inetknght 9y ago

I've had two different earplugs. I don't remember the first brand, it was close to 20 years ago by now. The second pair is a discontinued Skullcandy. They work well enough but they're not really noise cancelling... more like noise blocking. They're wearing out though. Last week I pulled one out of my ear and it left the rubber piece in my ear. That wasn't fun to fish out. I bought a pair of Bose QC35 on Sunday. Over-the-ear headphones. Their active powered noise cancelling feature works well enough for ambient noise such as the air system, but not so much for voices. If there's an over-the-ear pair of headphones with active noise-cancelling feature that blocks _all_ noise instead of just ambient noise and has great sound reproduction, that would be peachy.

ricardobeat 9y ago
The recently launched Sony MDR1000X does the job for me (and also has a voice-passthrough option that is handy at times). It's around the same price as the Bose.
- andrei_says_ 9y ago
  Speaking of price, were you able to get them expensed?
- gaius 9y ago
  How long have you had them? Any issues with the headband cracking?
Veratyr 9y ago
I owned some QC25s for a while and also found that they're useless when it comes to voices. The solution I've found to voices is IEMs, those in ear headphones. I'm currently using a pair of Etymotic ER4SR with the foam tips that came with them and I can't hear a thing when I'm in the office. They're not as good for deep ambient noise like the rumbling of a bus or train engine but I haven't found anything nearly as good when it comes to voices. The stock foam can get a bit uncomfortable for a while though so I'd recommend getting some Comply branded tips, which I find much more comfortable and close to as good. In the end though, I ended up paying for custom molded silicon tips, which by all reports I should barely be able to feel at all, let alone experience discomfort with. Still waiting for them to arrive though.
jschwartzi 9y ago
My Sennheiser HD280 Pros are pretty good, and as a bonus the cable is durable enough that I can use them to lasso uncooperative coworkers while I'm listening to music.
Steeeve 9y ago
Clarity Aloft. They are ~$700. Pilots use them because they can drown out engine noise (part of the cost is the certification). They are in-ear and do way better than any noise cancelling headphones.
- dijit 9y ago
  But the QC35 (which I also own) absolutely thrives in that same environment. The problem is that engine noise is constant where as voices are unpredictable.

dingaling 9y ago

> People will soon learn to leave you alone when you have your headphones on. Or there will be enough complaints about Hnrobert42's reluctance to engage with co-workers that all headphones and earphone will be banned. That's what happened in an office in which I worked. After all, you're not there to work for yourself; you're there to benefit for the company. If the company determines that assisting co-workers is more important than your personal solace then so be it.

Hnrobert42 9y ago
If that's the company's reaction, it's time to find another company. I don't use the headphones to ignore colleagues desperate to talk about work out of preference. The comment to which I was responding was specifically about people wanting to shoot the shit. If your company, like you, can't tell the difference, I would say you are well suited to each other and not to work nor work with me.