Primarily for general aviation discussion, but other aviation topics are also welcome.
#1655044
Morning all. I’ve just taken delivery of a pair of Bose A20 headphones and I must say they are great. After my first flight with them it occurred to me that I didn’t hear the stall warner chirp on landing when normally I do. I know it works ( well I know it worked pre-flight). There is a chance I just landed quick enough to not activate it but I am concerned that the ANR cuts it out . I would be grateful to hear from other ANR headphone users with their experiences.
Thanks
By BoeingBoy
#1655056
I think it's a very valid point of concern. NC headsets are all the rage but they do cancel extraneous noises, and it's likely to be the noise that gives you an insight as to the state of health of your aircraft, be it mechanical or aerodynamic.

I still run around on a cheap headset with a volume control that serves me fine. My wife, who is clinically deaf found that at full volume the Bose only produced two thirds the volume of the one she uses now so that was not useful. When I was working there was so much protestation about 'hearing damage' from new first officers that the company provided high tech NC headsets. I had to turn them off until the cruise as it was so disorientating not to have external noise. Also on take off, not to be able to hear the 'sudden twang' that was going to ruin my day seemed to be a case of due diligence to the go/no go decision process.

Ah, you say. Your hearing will have been ruined by spending years on a flight deck and in light aircraft not using NC headsets. Really? 26500 hours and fifty years of flying and my ears are of equal efficiency only showing the standard deterioration that any 65 year old might expect. So, no. I am quite happy using my cheap headset knowing that whilst the noises are reduced I can still hear things that go wrong.
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By GrahamB
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1655058
I have Bose A20's and I have no problem hearing the stall warner in the aircraft. I can also hear the engine, but at a much reduced volume and different tone.

Anyway, giving them an air-test by going up and doing a few stalls is a perfect excuse to go flying!
Last edited by GrahamB on Mon Dec 03, 2018 9:05 am, edited 2 times in total.
skydriller liked this
#1655067
I don’t know why mine is different but the stall Warner is doubled through the intercom in my aircraft. The gear warner not so much as it looks and sounds like the bell on a 1950’s fire alarm. It routinely wakes the dead if there is a cemetery below anywhere I retard the throttle to 15”MP with the gear up.
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By Human Factor
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1655068
...my ears are of equal efficiency only showing the standard deterioration that any 65 year old might expect.


Mine too. Except I’m 45. :oops:

Radials and cheap headsets mostly to blame. Luckily I seem to have stopped the problem. Try CEPs (or Clarity Aloft) as an alternative to ANR. That said, I have a DC ANR set for spam flying and use Bose in the T67 and not had a problem hearing the stall warner in either.
#1655073
Hearing deterioration isn’t a subject to be taken lightly - I strongly encourage ANR and other protection methods (I have to wear mini in ear CEPs under flying helmet as well). The improvement in RT clarity and reduction in post flying fatigue from ANR is huge. As others have said you should be able to hear most warnings just fine.
#1655078
BoeingBoy wrote:.. not to be able to hear the 'sudden twang' that was going to ruin my day ..


ah, Roger Bacon .. :)

[never had an analogous problem with DC ANRs in a variety of SEP types]
#1655093
The David Clark H10-13X ANR headset seems to have been designed to have most effect at low frequencies. It reduces the engine noise from the likes of C152, PA28 and Tecnam P2002 by a noticeable amount -- which greatly helps fatigue avoidance -- but certainly doesn't reduce audibility of the stall warning.

Our club used to have a Husky, which generated high levels of LF noise in a conventional headset. The DC headset dealt with this very effectively. It also works very nicely in a Firefly and a Grob 109B.