The ears of modern people have endured too much.
Hours of roaring in high-speed rail cars, earthy videos on the subway, crackling mechanical keyboards in the office, and variety shows from the room next to the rental house...
Each one makes the ears suffer and the head collapse.
To do this, many people have to make defensive moves - put on headphones and turn up the volume.
But in this way, it is the ear that suffers - the long-term high volume of the headphones is very harmful to the hearing!
A screenshot of the volume of a headset boy in the office, several times rushed to 100 decibels.
At present, about 1.1 billion young people (12 to 35 years old) around the world are at risk of hearing loss due to exposure to noise in the entertainment environment, and the excessive volume of personal audio devices (such as listening to music with mobile phones) is an important cause of risk.
Image credit: Headphone boy's IPhone
I believe that most people have a feeling that the headphones are too loud is indeed not good. But everyone who has been noisy by the noise knows that they really can't control the finger that presses the volume up button...
So, to endure noise and hearing loss, do we have to endure one?
No! Thanks to technology, our ears have a new way out, that is, "noise-canceling headphones"! (There are 10 noise-canceling headphones recommended later, remember to collect!) ）
In a noisy environment
Safer with noise-cancelling headphones
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First of all, a good news: the good effect of noise-canceling headphones allows us to keep the volume of the headphones in a noisy environment similar to that of a quiet environment, and will not be adjusted too much.
Simulation of noise reduction effect of railway station:
The video is 5 seconds long and no more than 3MB in size
Street noise reduction effect simulation:
The video is 4 seconds long and no larger than 3MB in size
Video source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yp-SKR5vIvQ&t=169s
Doesn't it feel like the world is clean!
Without noise-canceling headphones, it is easy to turn up the volume too much in the noise environment. According to the Recommendations of the World Health Organization, the volume setting of personal audio devices should not exceed 60% of the maximum volume, ensuring that they are listened to within the safe range of hearing.
Usually, in a noisy environment, if you want to achieve a comfortable volume and hear clearly, it is easy to exceed this limit.
In the case of subway noise, the most common noise scenario for workers, in a listening experiment with 30 college students, it was shown that in an environment simulating subway noise (75 decibels), the comfortable volume of subjects wearing headsets and in-ear headphones was higher than 60% of the maximum volume, and all of them exceeded the safe range.
How many people like to wear headphones to chase dramas and brush videos when commuting on the subway? The volume that you think is just enough to mask the hum of the carriage is probably already causing hearing loss.
Image source: Stand Cool Helo
However, in the same environment, when the 30 people in the experiment turned on the noise reduction function of the headphones, the comfortable volume of wearing headphones and in-ear headphones dropped by 7.23 decibels and 9.07 decibels, respectively, and both dropped below 60% of the maximum volume, which was within the safe range.
In addition to subway noise, the same is true in simulated street noise environments. With active noise cancellation turned on, the comfort volume of headphones and in-ear headphones dropped by 6.04 dB and 6.68 dB, respectively.
Source: Reference 1
Some people will think that it has dropped a few points, as if it is not much?
However, for every 10 decibel increase, the volume increases by a factor of 10! It can drop by 6 or 7 decibels, which has reduced a lot of burden on the ear.
For people who often need to wear headphones in noisy environments, noise-cancelling headphones not only give you a more immersive listening experience, but more importantly, they protect your hearing better than non-noise-canceling headphones.
Not plugging your ears
It is to "cancel out" the noise
So why can the noise-canceling headphones reduce noise, shouldn't it just plug the ears tighter?
Indeed, some simple and rough products will be so clever - the head beam of the headset is designed tighter, and the sound absorbing material is placed inside the ear cup to achieve physical sound insulation of the headset, which is called "passive noise reduction".
"Passive noise reduction" does not have much technical content, and the sound insulation effect is completely achieved by physical structure, and the cost is generally relatively low. And because of the strong closure, it is more likely to cause ear discomfort.
And we often say noise-canceling headphones, in fact, refers to headphones with "active noise reduction" function.
It uses the principle of sound wave superposition cancellation: the microphone hole on the headphones, it will collect external ambient noise, collect it after the internal noise reduction circuit calculation, will emit the opposite of these noises reverse sound waves, and the noise superimposed to achieve mutual elimination.
Image source: Reference 3
In other words, the "active noise reduction" headphones are worthy of the name, they are active attacks, creating sound waves that are just the opposite of noise, and attacking head-on!
Seeing that there are people here will worry - what? Noise-cancelling headphones also emit reverse sound waves? Isn't that the ear subject to noise + reverse noise, double critical hits?
Don't worry, of course not.
Sound waves are mechanical waves, when two signals with the same waveform and a phase difference of 180 degrees are superimposed on each other, interference phenomena will occur, and the two waves will disappear.
Image source: Youtube
People who are not good at physics can understand it like this: just like Tetris, a concave noise, the headphones emit a pair of convex shapes, the two are superimposed, eliminated ~ ~
Due to the high cost of this technology, it was previously mainly used in aviation, military and other fields. However, with the rapid development of electronic technology, it has only been applied to civilian headphones in recent years.
Of course, "active noise reduction" is not a panacea. In general, due to the long cycle of low-frequency sound waves and the relatively regular waveform, active noise reduction is the best shielding effect on low-frequency noise.
For example, the sound of car engines on the street, subway trains, and the cabin roar of airplanes are all low-frequency sounds, and noise-canceling headphones are effective. On the commute and travel, active noise reduction can give you a clean.
The vocals are usually medium and high frequency sounds, and the waveform is not very regular, so there is not much way to actively reduce noise. Therefore, many headphones will also put a little effort into "passive noise reduction" to physically reduce vocal noise.
Worth buying
Noise cancelling headphones recommended
Noise-cancelling headphone technology is good, but the market is mixed.
Some time ago, there was also news that "only 2 noise-canceling headphones have been certified by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology A-class, and 50% of the noise-canceling headphones have problems".
There are many places where noise-canceling headphones can "fish in muddy waters" -
Some R&D is limited by capital investment, and the adjustment of the noise reduction algorithm and the optimization of the noise reduction ability are not invested enough, resulting in weak noise reduction performance;
Some manufacturers choose inferior components in order to reduce costs, resulting in a large difference in sound pressure between the left and right headphones, and poor hearing effect;
There is even only a physical "passive noise reduction" effect, consumers do not know at all, wear it and feel quite soundproof...
Image source: Weibo
How to buy without stepping on the thunder? The institute invited a former electronic engineer to make a noise reduction headset recommendation for everyone according to different price points, remember to "collect"!
* Battery life is derived from the brand's official test
01
The first experience of entry-level noise reduction of 300 yuan
1 MORE Pistonbuds Pro
Indicative price
399 RMB
The product type
In-ear
Waterproof level
IPX5 waterproof
Depending on the position of the pickup microphone, active noise reduction is divided into feed-forward active noise reduction, feedback active noise reduction, and hybrid active noise reduction.
The most advantageous feature of the noise reduction effect is the hybrid active noise reduction, which is standard for mid-to-high-end noise-canceling headphones. However, this headset achieves hybrid active noise reduction at a price of less than 300 yuan, which can be said to be an over-specification configuration.
Anti-wind noise, intelligent in-ear detection, IPX5 waterproof and other functions are available, the production process is not inferior to high-end products, the fuselage texture is very good, and the overall cost performance is very high.
FIIL CC Pro
59 YUAN
Not supported
Like the one above, it is also equipped with hybrid active noise cancellation at an entry-level price.
In addition, there are 4 levels of noise immunity adjustment, and it is possible to connect two devices at the same time and quickly switch between them at the touch of a button. In-ear detection, call noise reduction and other functions are also equipped.
The battery compartment breathing light plus the rectangular body design also has a bright appearance.
02
Practical level The price-performance choice for daily use within 1,000 yuan
SONY WF-1000XM3
799 RMB
Former in-ear noise reduction models represent products.
Although its leading position has now been replaced by newer products, the noise reduction chip is still Sony's latest self-developed chip.
Features such as 20 levels of noise reduction, anti-wind noise mode, custom touch operation, and 32-hour long battery life are a great experience at this price point.
However, the volume of the battery compartment is slightly larger than the AirPods Pro, and if you want to put it directly into the pants pocket to carry, you may feel a little bulging.
Anker Soundcore Life Q35
1000 RMB
Head-mounted
LDAC support + Hi-res double gold certification, noise reduction performance and sound quality performance are guaranteed.
Features such as quick switching of transparency modes and smart microphone noise reduction are excellent in the price range.
It is worth mentioning that the battery life reaches 40 hours. If noise cancellation is turned off as a normal headset, the use time can reach up to 60 hours.
Really do it once and use it for a week.
03
High-level headphones within the performance class of 2000 yuan
SONY WH-1000XM3
239 RMB
Over-the-ear type
Although it is the flagship product of the previous generation, the noise reduction performance and sound quality performance are still super high at present, and they do not lose their own new models.
20-level noise reduction level, which can also automatically match the noise reduction scheme according to the ambient noise.
30+ hours of battery life, support fast charging.
Considering its price and performance, the XM3 is arguably one of the highest overall recommended headphones in the current overall recommendation index.
Bose QuietComfort 35 II
1500 RMB
Also a former flagship product, the comprehensive noise reduction performance parameters are still in the top ten of similar products.
Weighing only 240 grams, the fuselage is very light and comfortable to wear. The 20+ hours of battery life is not very long, and daily use is basically enough.
The fly in the ointment is that there are only three noise reduction levels that can be set optionally, which is slightly less than the current flagship products.
Bluetooth latency performance is general, especially on Android systems, if it is a mobile game player who is very sensitive to operation and feedback, it may slightly affect the gaming experience.
Apple AirPods Pro
1999 YUAN
IPX4 waterproof
Seamlessly fit with Apple's ecological devices, you can switch freely between multiple devices.
With a smooth and rounded exterior, it is very lightweight and easy to carry, and it can last up to 24 hours with the charging case. IPX4 waterproof and sweatproof, summer love sweat star people are not afraid.
Although the noise reduction parameters are inferior to the top-wearing models, if you have multiple Apple devices, the AirPods Pro can be said to be the most suitable in-ear noise-canceling headphones.
04
Flagship Luxury high-end choice without bad money
SONY WH-1000XM4
2099 RMB
Sony's new generation of flagship models continues the top noise reduction performance of the previous generation XM3 and further optimizes the algorithm.
20-level noise cancellation level adaptive adjustment plus wind noise resistance, first-class quality.
There's also a lot of very user-friendly design — the Speak to Chat feature automatically pauses music when it detects a user talking, and taps the right earcup to actively amplify the ambient sound. In an office scenario where communication is needed at any time, it is simply too suitable.
It lasts approximately 37 hours and is comfortable to wear. The fly in the ointment is that the latency of connecting to the PC is slightly larger, and it is not suitable for playing games and opening audio and video conferences with the computer.
Apple AirPods Max
4400 RMB
The comprehensive noise reduction performance is excellent, and the unique spatial audio function can track the head movement and simulate the listening experience of the movie theater.
It fits seamlessly with Siri and Apple devices, and Android users will have a worse experience.
The parts that come into contact with the human body are made of dome fabric and memory foam, and the wear is breathable and not stuffy.
With 20+ hours of battery life and a choice of 5 colours, the stainless steel frame, while beautiful and sturdy, also weighs a whopping 385 grams, almost the heaviest in its class.
Bose 700
3699 USD
With 11 levels of noise cancellation and a touch of earcups to switch between 3 presets, it's easy to quickly switch between indoor, street, on-board, and more usage scenarios.
4 adaptive pickup microphones for clear and clean calls, optimized for Siri.
Three colors, 20+ hours of battery life, and with the standard battery compartment, the total battery life can be extended to 60 hours. Even if the battery is depleted, you can continue to use it as a wired headset via the audio cable.
There are almost no obvious shortcomings, the performance is powerful and comprehensive, especially suitable for business people and users who often go out.
There is also a little trick: wear noise-canceling headphones in the office, secretly turn on the "transparency mode", you can listen to colleagues talk about gossip without expression ~ remember to "like" when you have mastered.
The institute also reminds everyone: when crossing the road and driving, please take off the headphones, we are safe first! In addition, it is best not to wear headphones continuously for more than 1 hour.
Quickly "forward" to your friends who are still doubting noise-canceling headphones, and help them open the door to a new world
Don't forget to give us who care about your ears a "watching" and then go wow.
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