CRJ headset
 

Hello all! I hope to be flying a CRJ sooner rather then later and am curious about what you friendly, knowledgable folks prefer for a CRJ Headset?!?

I've heard the David Clarke Pro-x and the Bose A20 are recommended or widely used? I've worked in a loud environment for years, so I am looking to prevent any further hearing loss... Any Thoughts or advice is appreciated!

When I flew the 700, I used the Telex 850 ANR. It's a lightweight headset based on the classic 750, but adds ANR, which works really well on this headset, considering it's a lightweight. The 700 was about as loud as a 737 up front, and SWA uses the 850 as their official company headset. In fact, I still use that headset in the Airbus, and I used to use it in the 737. No, it's not as quiet as the larger headsets like the Bose you mention, but it's significantly more comfy to wear for an extended period (in my opinion, anyway).

I'm currently using the A20s which are nice but you have to remember to turn off the ANR between legs if you aren't switching aircraft. But I plan on switch to the ufly Mike combo with the new quite comfort headphones and selling my A20s. Mainly to save space in my flight bag. The A20 case takes up way too much space.

I like the A20s. Once the new uflymike comes out I may switch to that.

I am using the A20s now on the CRJ and they work great for the most part. I guess I have been using them so long that I don't notice how heavy they are anymore but they do certainly take up a lot of room in my flight bag.

When the uflymike comes out for the QC25s I plan to switch over to them. Lighter, smaller, and can use them for music in public.

QT Halo or Clarity Aloft. Much more comfortable than even the best ANR headsets and have great audio quality and nose reduction.

I had a Bose A20 headset when I started flying the CRJ200 and I wouldn't get rid of it. The cockpit isn't too noisy but the ANR makes it so much nicer. About 3% of the pilots I've seen take off their headset above FL180. Half of those pilots wear earplugs afterwards. Most jumpseaters don't wear a headset. Moving one ear cup off to the side makes for easy conversation with any jumpseater.

Most pilots I see are wearing David Clarks, because either they had a set already or they are using the David Clarks already on the plane provided by the company. Second most would be some version of Telex and then Bose.

My regular good old fashioned David Clarks work just fine.

Bose QC15 + Uflymike is my favorite

A20 user here. Bought them early on to use for work and GA flying.

I don't like to mess up my greased up hair and there's no room in my backpack so I just freeball it. Hand mic for me.

I've now tried the A20, QC15/Uflymike combo, Clarity Aloft, Quiet Tech Halo, Sennehiser HMEC-26 and DC Pro X. All worked well.

The A20 is giant, gets hot on long legs and is a pain to carry. The mic gain is way too high and keeps the CRJ intercom on with background noise at all times. On the good side, it is the quietest out of the ANR sets I've used, and the music input that cuts out with ATC is nice. I returned the A20 after a 4 day.

QC15/Uflymike is 95% of the noise cancellation, and much smaller, comfortable, and not as hot as the A20. It also has a screw to adjust the Mic gain which is awesome since you can adjust it to cut out completely when you aren't talking, makes the cockpit much quieter. Music input sucks since it's up on the mic itself, and unless you get the TSO version and also wear a set of earbuds, it dies when the battery in the Bose dies. Some airlines might not let you use it if you don't have the TSO version. I had one check airman who had a vendetta against people using this combo and only let me use it when I put the ear buds in.

DC Pro-X I flew one leg with. CA I was flying with picked them up at the Stopover Store in the middle of a trip, didn't like them and let me try them on the next leg. I liked them. Fit well, felt a lot like my QC15. Not quite as quiet as the QC15, great mic on it. Look very cool.

Sennheiser - I've owned these for nearly 20 years and flight instructed with them etc. Very light and comfortable, not as quiet as any of the others, but mine are an old model, they've probably advanced since then. By far the most comfortable of the normal style headsets I've owned. They are more and on-ear style like the DC Pro X than an over the ear like the QC 15 and A20, so they have a different feel and are not hot. I also wear glasses, and they are by far the most comfortable of the normal headsets when wearing glasses, and the glasses don't break the noise seal like the A20 and QC15.

Quiet Tech Halo - Bought these about a month ago and returned them right after the trip. The Mic gain is way too high and super loud, can only be adjusted by sending them back to manufacturer. They are good with glasses since they don't depend on a seal around your ears. I could never find a great way to wear them that was comfortable. The part that goes over your right ear is thick and created pressure. You can wear them a bunch of different ways but I was never able to find on that was really good for me. They do sound great, and the music input is very good as well but doesn't cut out with transmissions. Not TSO, so might not be legal to use at your airline. Great price.

Clarity Aloft - Overall my favorite. Flown with them as my main set for 5 years and thousands of hours. Very comfortable for me, even on 4 hour legs. For me more comfortable than the Halo since both sides are very slim rubber coated wire and is great with glasses. Sounds great, very quiet just like a set of ear plugs. Mic gain not adjustable, but comes set at a good level that cuts out the intercom when not talking. Music input is down on the control box but does not cut out with transmissions. I only use one ear when I have a jumpseater so I can talk to him/her and still monitor ATC. Mine is the TSO version so it is legal at any airline. Downsides are that it and the ear tips are expensive. It works with any Etymotic ear tip though, and they can be bought cheap on Amazon. The control box on mine also broke after about 4 years. I was quoted $100 to repair it, when I sent it in they ended up fixing it for free and sending it back after completely refurbishing it with a new box, wires, etc etc etc. I also like not having batteries.

Hopefully that'll help you, they were all used in the I used the QC15 and Clarity Aloft in the 200 and 900, Halo only in the 900, and the others in the 200.

uFLYmike. Google it. It's amazing.

Until the battery dies... On final... At LAX...

New one for qc25 won't require batteries.

Ya but I have been waiting for the new Uflymike for a while. Hope its out soon. Between that and no more flight case I can consolidate some bags.

Can you tell me more about these Etymotic tips? I'm about to run out of my regular Clarity Aloft tips and was thinking of a different replacement. Do these last longer? How is the noise reduction? Do they fit pretty comfortably?

I use Clarity Aloft's they work just fine.

the new uflymike has nothing to do with batteries, it the bose headphones that need batteries however the 25 will not loose sound when the battery dies as was the case with the 15. when the battery dies you will still have sound just not the noise canceling. with the 15 when the battery quit so did the sound.

DC Pro X here with active noise canceling. Very well constructed. Recommended. I'd give it a 9.5/10. The only reason I can't give it a 10 is that it shifts around on my head but that might just be the shape of my head.....

Never tried the Bose but it's the only one out there I'd use besides the DC. I had a Sennheiser and it was very good but not as well made as the DC and used batteries at a much, much faster rate. Noise canceling was good though.

I like my David Clark.

Amazingly quiet! As in nobody knows what the heck you said.

I think that's what the ones that CA sells are made by, just marked up and not as widely available. Just do a search on Amazon for "Etymotic tips" and you'll find hundreds. Not all are the same, but in the pics you'll see the ones that have the harder center on the back to screw onto the CA speakers. I've got some of the flanged rubber ones which are not as quiet but feel great, and foam ones that are basically identical to the ones that came with the headset. Not all are made by Etymotic, but they came up in the search.

Have you tried others? I've used DCs while mine were getting repaired etc. They are horrendous.

TSO
 

Does anyone know if SkyWest requires a TSO headset?

Negative.

Welcome!

Bose X
 

So I've got a military corded U174 single plug Bose X headset. Does anyone know if I can buy a conversion kit to work with the CRJ (Assuming 2 cord set up)? Looked at uflymike conversions and it said you cannot convert a low impedance mic to a high impedience system. Has anyone tried this? Thanks!

Thanks Facebiter!!! Looking forward to flying!!!

QUOTE=FaceBiter;1942873]Negative.

Welcome![/QUOTE]

Bose X and UFlyMike are two different things. You should be able to just get a new cable and swap them out from Bose for your Bose X.

Aviation Headset X - Bose Product Support

You know there is an adjustment that turns up your microphone volume and sensitivity...