I have been looking for a pair of well-performing and well-priced noise-cancelling headphones for a while now. After looking through a bunch of reviews, both professional and user, I settled on these JVC HANC250.
The first test took place on a window seat of a 757 right by the engines. What I found is that these headphones successfully cancelled out the low- and low-mid frequency noise of the engine. It does not mean you hear nothing altogether - there is a "white noise"-like background - but the 85% figure in JVC specs seems to be about right. Once the music is on, you barely notice that. My previous headphones were in-ear Shure e2c, which blocked out the sound pretty well (I used foam heads). In comparison, JVCs are a very nice improvement. The sound quality is quite good - nice and clean across the range, for various types of sound - music and movies.
I am normally quite sensitive to wearing on- and over-ear headphones, so I was pleased to find that these cans are light and comfortable over time - I tried them on 2 and 3 hour flights and my ears were just as comfortable at the end of use as they were at the beginning. Considering its on-ear design, that is remarkable in my opinion. At the same time, they do reach a nice seal on the ear. The padding on the earpieces and the headband help that a lot. Plus, I believe these are the lightest headphones in the class (vs. QC2-3s, AudioTech). So that helps too.
My only real complaint, and the reason for 4 instead of 5 stars is the design of battery placement. To replace the battery you have to take off the ear pad from the right earpiece. I can foresee that being a prime opportunity for something to break, thus creating doubts about the durability over long-term.
To summarize: this is very good pair of noise-cancelling headphones that do the job at least as well as any other headphone out there (particularly Bose QCs which I had a chance to try in the past), but a half or third of the cost of the more expensive ones. My research before buying suggests that $100-150 is the actual reasonable price range to get good NC headphones today. Anything over that makes very little sense and is a waste of money. My only concern is the placement of the battery, where replacement may result in your breaking something off - you have to be careful.
One note: In some reviews there was a mention of an air-popping sensation when NC is on. Amazingly enough, I got to experience that the first time I wore the headphones, but it turned out to be strictly a matter of headphone placement on the ear, the fit. I moved the earpiece a smidgeon back and the effect was gone.
9 months later, I am still very happy about my purchase. I have had flights where I wore them for more than 3 hours and still no significant discomfort. Which is a first with any of the over-the-ear headphones I have ever had. I am also less concerned about the placement of the battery - I have changed it a few times now, and it appears to be much sturdier than I thought originally.
you can buy "JVC HANC250" for best price or read more reviews at: Amazon.com
