Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7B QuietPoint Active Noise-Cancelling Closed-Back Headphones, Wired, AUD ATH-ANC7B, Black, one Size

I consider myself a budget audiophile, and I'm always looking for the best deal on good quality sound, i.e. at home I have Polk speakers because they sound amazing and don't cost a fortune. So, when my coworker next to me showed up to work one day with a brand new pair of Bose QC15 headphones, I almost dropped my jaw. I had listened to them in the store, but I knew they were $300 and didn't seem to me to be worth the money. So I asked him to borrow them for a little bit and I was amazed at how all the noise in the office disappeared and the music appeared to sound much better. Then my company moved us to a new floor with an open floor plan where we all sit out in the open together. My desk, unfortunately, got located directly below a noisy air conditioning unit and there is no drop ceiling over my desk. Finally, the noise canceling headphones were a must. I was ready to drop $300 on the bose when I decided to do some google research and see what's out there. I stumbled upon these Audio Technica headphones. As a DJ, I knew the Audio Technica brand well, they make my wireless microphone system that I use for all my weddings. Their mic system has NEVER failed me, so I knew they make good quality stuff at reasonable prices (their mic system was $100-200 cheaper then the competitors). Anyway, I finally pulled the trigger and ordered these. They arrived the next day with my $3.50 overnight shipping upgrade on Prime, and I couldn't be happier. These headphones sound amazing. I hear new details in all my music that I never heard before. They also do a perfect job of making all my gabby co-workers disappear. It's actually kind of funny to watch their mouths move and not hear any sound coming out... And that noisy AC unit? Gone! As many other reviewers have mentioned, these headphones do have a LOT of sound leakage. If you like to crank your music up, others may hear you. I must admit though you do have to turn it up pretty loud. These definitely won't work if you're in the same QUIET room as someone who is trying to sleep or read a book. And that's where the Bose headphones win out in this category. With or without music playing, the Bose are SILENT. You can't hear any sound coming out of them. However, when you're in a noisy office or a noisy airplane, the noise will drown out most of the sound leakage. In addition, with no music playing, the Bose win hands down on cancelling out noise. So, I would say if sound leakage and noise cancellation are your primary goals, you may want to spring the extra $169 for the Bose QC15s. But, if you're an audiophile and want your music to sound amazing, you need these Audio Technicas. I compared several tracks side by side with my co workers Bose QC15 headphones and my Audio Technica ATH-ANC7B headphones, and hands down the Audio Technicas win out in every type of music - classical, disco, pop music, rock. I didn't try hip hop - because frankly my ears refuse to be polluted with that stuff. In addition, the Bose headphones are not nearly as loud as the Audio Technica so you have to turn them all the way up to get the same volume as the Audio Technica ones. As a DJ I also like to play a lot of house music, and I made a new demo tape with these headphones on. They just sound amazing in any circumstance. Accessory wise, the Bose is the obvious winner, they provide a headphone splitter, as well as an inline mic/audio control for your iphone. The case on the Bose is a bit more compact then the Audio Technica. In fact, if it's one thing I had to complain about, these suckers are big, and cause my laptop bag to bulge out a little. Comfort wise, the Audio Technicas feel better to me. When I put the Bose in and turn them on, they seem to apply too much pressure to my ear drum. That is something I'm sure you get used to. That's probably why the noise canceling works better on the Bose. I think the padding on the Bose is a little more comfortable then the Audio Technica's, but not enough to make me forget the discomfort in my ear drums from the pressure on the Bose. UPDATED to my review: The power switch shorted out after about a month of use, you have to jiggle the power switch of the noise canceling to get them to work properly in stereo. I contacted Amazon and was promptly refunded my money. I will order another pair and hope they work out better this time. For $139 these are an absolute steal and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to everyone I see. Here's a summary of my review: Sound Quality: Audio Technica - 5/5 Bose - 3/5 Build Quality Audio Technica - 3/5 Bose - 4/5 Note: I lowered this one notch because the power switch on my AT headphones started shorting out. Accessories/carring case: Audio Technica - 3/5 Bose - 5/5 Noise Canceling without music: Audio Technica - 3/5 Bose - 5/5 Noise Cancelling with music: Audio Technica - 4/5 Bose - 5/5 Sound Leakage: Audio Technica - 2/5 Bose - 5/5 Comfort: Audio Technica - 4/5 Bose - 3/5 Note: The padding on the Bose is better, but the ear pressure is less extreme on the AT's Overall Audio Technica - 4/5 Bose - 3/5 (BTW I weighed sound quality the highest in my review, otherwise I would say it's a tie. I only have to turn these things half the volume as I do on the Bose to get the same amount of sound, and the music just sounds THAT much better)

I've had these headphones for a little over a month now and I'm pretty satisfied with them. As others have said, they do not really filter out sharp noises or higher pitched frequencies, but the lower pitches are canceled nicely. Just putting on the headphones, the amount of ambient sound is decreased dramatically. Add in the noise canceling and you really do get transported to your own world. The earcups are pretty comfortable to me, although the band irritates my head after wearing them for prolonged periods of time (1.5+ hrs). They are very easy to use, just one switch on the left earcup, and the accessories that come in the package, which also includes a nice storing case, are useful. I like the fact that the cord can be detached from the headphones and you can just use them by themselves, although without music the noise canceling isn't THAT powerful. But for the price, it's great and the sound quality is more than adequate; you will definitely hear things in songs that you have never noticed before. One of my biggest complaints is the quality of the materials. These headphones feel abundantly plasticky, and not in a good way. They feel rather flimsy and you can hear the plastic creaking when you handle them (especially when you swivel the earcups). It doesn't really bother me all that much, but I don't expect them to last an awfully long time, either. The second thing that's a minor nuisance is a popping sound that I hear on occasion with the noise canceling on. It's not loud and it doesn't disrupt the music at all, it's just mildly irritating. All in all, these are a solid set of headphones, especially considering the price. I'm a college student and they block out all the noise from my neighbors and the A/C unit in my room. The biggest plus for me is that when I'm playing music on my Macbook at a volume of 3, I can't hear my roommate talking =). I haven't had a chance to test them out on a plane yet, but judging from the performance around campus, they should fair just fine. The battery life is pretty good; I went about a month with constant usage before the battery finally died. And since it only uses a single AAA, it's not expensive to replace. Overall, these are very capable headphones and I personally don't see why you would spend $300+ for a name brand with similar performance. Highly recommended. ***Review Update (9/11/2013)***: I've been using these headphones in myriad situations for the past two years. I just read over the review that I left previously and stand by my statements 100%. On airplanes, the noise cancellation really shines, as countless others have attested to. Not being subject to the inane conversations, caterwauling of distressed children, or deafening engine noise undoubtedly improved my mental state and allowed me to actually being to appreciate commercial travel again, an experience I have come to detest over the years. One added plus is that, since the noise cancellation can be used without playing any music, you can put these on as soon as you get on the plane and the flight attendants won't bother you about "turning off your electronics before reaching 10,000 feet." Even if they do, just tell them they're not on, demonstrate the lack of a cable/iPod, continue to stare at them, and they'll eventually walk away. Unfortunately, these guys are on their last legs. Over the past year, I've had to use super glue numerous times to reattach the lining of the earcups. It actually got so bad at one point that about 3/4 of the foam was clearly visible in the right earcup. I feel that this may have been a result of my ears getting sweaty after wearing the headphones for extended (2+ hours) periods of time. Two days ago, I noticed a crack on the right side of the headband where the joint is that allows the cups to be turned so they can fold into the case. On the left side, there are multiple cracks and part of the headband is actually detaching, compromising the structural integrity of the phones and making them feel entirely too flimsy whether on my head or just holding them in my hands. I have also lost the firmness of the seal and sound seems noticeably distant on the left side. I fixed them with duct tape, but I'm already shopping for a new pair. To be completely fair, I haven't been using the case when I travel, opting to swivel the earcups flat and hang them around my neck for both ease of access and reduced utilization of space in carry-on bags. Don't get me wrong - the case is great and you really should use it if you have a preponderance of space, but it is pretty bulky and it simply took up too much room for me when traveling. That being said, I don't know if the lack of using a case contributed to their (relatively) early disrepair. I don't travel much at all (2-3 flights per year), I am not hard on my electronics by any means, but I do use them for hours every day. Either way, it is certainly something to think about. The original cord that came with the headphones was pretty cheap and wore out shortly after I wrote my first review. Fortunately, that's a quick fix and I got a male to male cable from Amazon for like $2 or something; it has been holding up just fine. All in all, I am still very happy with my purchase, albeit somewhat saddened because I loved these headphones and now I have to let them go. I'm looking at their more expensive big brother, the ANC9s, and I think I'm going to give them a shot. Hopefully, the build quality of those will match the higher price tag and I will get substantially more life out of them. I'll try to remember to come back and update this review, or compare the two on a review of the ANC9s.

This Review is updated from a previous Review. I have owned these headphones for several months now I use them on a nearly daily basis for Music, Movies, and Gaming. I travel on Long Haul International flights quite often and have found these head phones to be great for all applications that they are used for. I am very glad to have purchased these head phones. If I forgot them I would definitely miss them. When I travel I usually travel in Premium Economy and Business class. In these classes of service the Airline that I travel with offers much nicer headphones to use with the in flight entertainment. The airline advertises Noise reducing in Premium Economy and Noise Cancelling in Business Class. There is No comparison I have found that the offerings of the Airline are nothing more than standard over the ear headphones the airline headphones however are much better than what the Airline offers in economy. These headphones are excellent. Highly Recommended and for the price can not be beat. I am curious about the Audio Technica ATH-ANC 9 and the performance over these. There are some improved features that may make them worth the price. I purchased a set of Beats Audio noise cancelling headphones previously to these and found them to be terrible. I wanted a set of good Noise cancelling headphones. Several of my coworkers have the Bose Quiet Comfort 3 and 15 headphones. I wanted to save some money and see what else was out there. I happened upon reviews of these headphones and though Id try them. They were after all less than half the price. Where the beats Audio leaked and the music I was listening to could be heard clearly across the room while being worn the Audio Technica leaked very little comparatively. My co workers can hear the music I am listening to but only at High levels of volume and with no noise in the office. On an airplane this is not the case I have found that very little noise can be heard outside the cups at all. The Beats Audio noise canceling headphones needed to be turned up to higher volume to bring out the full range of the music while the Audio Techinca headphones did not. This is a sign of quality, I do not want to go deaf listening to my music or movies, likewise I do not feel it appropriate to bother my coworkers, other passengers, and people withing a close proximity of me with the audio portion of my chosen form of entertainment. Quality of sound is great and comparable to any high end headphones that I have ever used. I have used the Bose Quiet Comfort headphones momentarily but not at length having had that experience I can see why these headphones are compared to the Bose so often. While these are not Bose and are not quite at that level, they have the advantage of being much more affordable. For my tastes these headphones are right in the wheelhouse. You will not regret purchasing these headphones. If you want to try noise cancelling headphones Id try these. Remember these headphones do not cancel out all noise. They cancel out a specific range of noise. Mostly the background dirty noise such as air conditioners / heaters, fans, humming, jet engines and other such ambient noise. These do a much better job of it than the Beats Audio headphones do. With no music being played you can still hear conversations, television, radio and the like going on around you. Basically it filters out the bad stuff leaving you with only the good stuff to hear. When watching a movie or listening to music the audible world around you goes away leaving you with nothing but your music or movie. The sound out of these is great. You won't be disappointed. While I am sure there are headphones out there that produce much better and pure sound for this price I don't think you'll be able to find anything better. If your battery goes dead mid flight and you don't have a spare Not to worry. You can still use your headphones. A feature that many noise cancelling headphones do not have including the Bose and the Beats Audio. The sound you will get is not nearly as good, the background noise is not filtered, and the sound is not amplified. Suffice it to say the peace of mind is nice knowing that you won't be stuck without the ability to use your headphones should you run out of batteries. These headphones do a better than average job of isolating much ambient noise without the noise canceling feature turned on. I wear glasses, the ear cups fit nicely and comfortably around my larger than average ears and don't make my glasses uncomfortable as many other headphones do requiring me to adjust my glasses while wearing the headphones after a while. In short these Headphones are well worth the price. I highly recommend them. I will post an update to this review after using them quite a bit more and have more to add.

First, these headphones sound really great - especially the low tones. The active noise-cancelling feature worked well, too. It wasn't too airy or anything like that. I didn't get a chance to try them on a plane. So I'm not sure how they perform there. The part of the headphone that I really didn't like was the lack of comfort. I thought the earmuff foam was too stiff - like a firm memory foam pillow. I would much prefer the softness of the Bose QC15's. Also, the headphones seemed too small for my head - the straddle part. I had them completely stretched out, and they still felt like they were pulling on the bottom of my ears. This might not be fair since I have a pretty big head I think, but I had no problem with the Bose QC15's. Also, I don't think I have big ears, but the muffs failed to fully enclose my ears comfortably with very little touching inside. Again, I think the Bose QC15s do really well with this. Another problem I had with the headphones was that I would get static interference when I used them with my iPhone 5 and having the cellular service on. They worked perfectly in airplane mode or with only bluetooth or the wireless turned on. For some reason, these headphones wouldn't work properly without static if I had a phone signal. So, that was a bummer. Another thing that I really like about these headphones is the price. I think they're a good alternative to the Bose QC15's and significantly cheaper. I wanted to give them 4 stars bc I think they're probably a good fit for ppl who have normal sized heads and who dont mind a stiffer earmuff, but I was really disappointed with the cellular signal of the iPhone 5 (LTE) interfering with the noise-cancelling feature. So, if you have a normal sized head and you wont be using these with your iPhone 5 + cellular and you don't mind the ear muffs being a tad bit stiff, then these are great set headphones and they are definitely a better buy than the Bose QC's. It's really hard to justify paying $300 for a set of Bose. However, I think Audio-Tech has a great price point for these. Good Luck

Now I am going to make this one star review as useful as possible because i hate it when i read a one star review and it doesn't help me at all. So I bought these headphones and they sounded amazing, cancelled sound out great, and were super comfortable.....until i noticed a major defect. When i put my left ear cup on a certain way and/or i sat down in a certain way, the speaker would start vibrating like crazy shaking the whole earcup. Now i noticed that this only happens on noise cancelling. However, with noise cancelling off, the sound quality was fine and it still cancelled out sound amazingly so i realized that its not really a big deal. But then after listening to a few songs, i noticed that the bass was unequal in both ears. So i ran some bass frequency tests and found out that the left earcup would not play low frequency bass. Now I am sure that these headphones would be amazing if they had no defect like this but to me it was a big turn off, I returned them right away, and i probably won't get another pair from this company. So basically my main reason for this 1 star review was for the defect but i will still list some pros and cons based on the ear cups when they worked and my bass conclusion in solely on the right earcup since left didn't work. Noise Canceling: Great. Very Isolated. Blocks out most sound ambient sound. Same quality as bose i tried out. Sound Quality w/noise canceling on: Very clear. Treble is boosted and louder. Music is overall louder. Less bass. Sound Quality w/noise canceling off: Still clear. Treble is not as prominent and bass is more prominent. Music is not as loud and seems distant (good for listening to calming music) Bass: Not loud at all. Not strong and booming. Good but not for hip/hop or techno songs that have major bass (i tried the bose headphones and the bass is amazing. I also tried the Dr. Dre Beats headphones and they shake your head the bass is so loud. They are much louder and stronger than these. Quality: Well i guess besides the earcup defect they were alright. They felt sturdy and felt durable. Comfort: Very comfortable. I could wear them for a long time until my ears over heated. So really its your choice to get them. If you want to take a risk like i did and get defective headphones go for it. If i buy headphones again i'll probably get the bose quiet comfort or Beats by Dr. Dre. cuz i tried both out and they are better in my opinion.

My wife asked for the Bose Quiet Comfort 15 for her birthday. I'd never heard a pair of active noise cancelling headphones but we travel a lot and the drone of jet engines is a nice thing to escape so I was curious. When I received it from Amazon, I opened i up and tested it out. This made me curious about them so I started researching for my own set. Why didn't I just order a pair of Bose QC15s for myself? They cost $300 They are overpriced, as Bose product typically are IMHO. Bose is good stuff... they just charge too much and the build quality of them is not what you'd expect for the price. After researching for my own pair, it became apparent that Audio Technica is a brand that has a full spectrum of active noise cancelling products. They even have a pair that competes on price and (presumably) quality with the Bose QC15s (Audio Technica ATH-ANC9). A small step down in quality (but a very large step down in price) is this product, the Audio Technica ATH-ANC7b. This review is going to be a direct comparison to the QC15s but bear in mind, I paid $114.95 for my ATH-ANC7b. My wife's Bose QC15s cost $300. Even though the Bose cost 2.6 times more than my Audio Technicas, they are actually quite similar in quality except in the following areas: Noise leakage: This is how well people around you can hear your music while you're listening to the headphones. The Audio Technicas actually leak quite a bit of sound and more than the Bose. However, since you'll wear these in situations where there is a lot of ambient noise, i don't think it will be an issue. Sound Quality: I'd actually give the much cheaper Audio Technicas the edge here! I'm not an audiophile but they both sound sublime, as any decent around the ear headphones should. I liked the sound of the Audio Technicas a little better. An added bonus is that the Audio Technicas work without noise cancellation on - probably handy if you run out of battery. The Bose don't work without a battery. The sound isn't as good though...listenable but sounds a bit distant. I doubt anybody would run out of batteries, though. Both use 1 AAA battery and the carrying case could store dozens of them with each lasting 40 hours. Noise cancelling: not quite as good as the Bose but the Bose are considered the best set of headphones for noise cancellation. The Audio Technicas do a great job... just not quite as good as the Bose. AT says these cancel 90%, Bose says their set cancels 95%. Seems hard to quantify such a thing but those numbers seem appropriate. Comfort: Both are very comfortable but the Bose has a slight edge here too. That said, I have no problem at all wearing either for extended periods of time. Both are nice and light and don't make your ears sore after a long period of wearing them. Case: Both have a very nice carry case that is rigid so the headphones will be protected. The Bose have a smooth plastic shell case and the Audio Technica uses a tough fabric material like you'd find on a camera case. Bottom Line: As I said, I'm comparing these headphones to a set that cost 2.6 times as much as I paid. What you have in the Audio Technica ATH-ANC7b is a headset that is a solid 90% as good as the Bose QC 15, but costs 38% of the price of a pair of Bose QC15s. I see the price has gone up to $150 but they are still a steal, even at that price. Even if these had cost $200-250, I wouldn't have had any regrets because I don't feel like I'm sacrificing much of anything by going with these. Excellent product for an excellent value. For the record, if these had been $300 like the Bose, I'd have given them 4.5 stars and the Bose QC15 5 stars. Since I paid a small fraction of that price for this set of ANC headphones, I give them a very enthusiastic 5 stars.

***Note: Update given at bottom of review*** The details of the review are given below, but I decided to write a short summary for people just interested in the overall message from this review. Summary: The Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7b Active Noise Canceling Headphones are well made and come with nice accessories. The noise canceling feature works very well, however the significant sound leakage of these headphones makes them unusable in an office/coffee shop setting. The headphones also have much poorer sound quality than I was expecting for headphones in this price range. I would strongly encourage potential buyers to really consider whether or not they can tolerate very significant sound leakage (i.e. do you care if everyone around you at work is listening to what you are listening to?). More details and explanations below. More Detailed Review: After a few weeks of research about Noise Cancelling headphones on the internet I finally decided to purchase the Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7b Active Noise Cancelling Headphones. These are the new version of the ATH-ANC7 series of headphones which generally got pretty favorable reviews. As "A Texan" mentioned in their review above, the general comments about these headphones from most reviewers are: 1)Much better price than Bose Quiet Comfort 2)Noise cancelling is just as good as Bose Quiet Comfort 3)Sound is good - maybe slightly worse than Bose Quiet Comfort, but not $100 worse 4) Some reviewers complained about sound leakage or bleed through when listening to music. I bought these headphone aware of point 4 above and hoping that the sound leakage wasn't nearly as bad as some made it out to be. In fact, the review by "A Texan" on this page help put my fears about sound leakage to rest. Once I received the headphones, I unpacked them and gave them a whirl. Read the sections below for my impressions. Packaging/Accessories: 10/10 The headphones come packaged nicely in the hard carrying case. This case is very nice and about as sleek as you could hope for with large over the ear headphones like these. You get some nice headphone cables and adapters that all appear to be gold plated and all fit nicely in a small zipper pouch on the inside of the carrying case. You also get a AAA battery which is very easy to install in the right ear of the headphones. Headphone Construction: 10/10 The headphones themselves seem very well made. The ear cups are made of very nice foam with a soft leather like material covering them. There is a padded area when the headphones rest on top of your head which is made of the same material. The design looks very nice and the overall look of these headphones makes you feel justified in buying them. It is also very nice that the headphone cable is detachable on both sides (headphone side and player side) so that it can be easily replaced if it is damaged or has exposed wires. The ear cups swivel flat so they can be placed in the case and this is done very well. The headphones feel are very comfortable to wear and your ears should fit easily in the ear cups and be completely covered. Also the soft mesh inside of the ear cups covering the speakers is very nice and better than many over the ear headphones I have owned. Noise Cancellation (w/ no music playing): 10/10 This feature works great. You flip a switch located on the outside of the left ear and a blue LED light comes on to tell you that Noise Cancellation is activated. These do a very nice job canceling out ambient noise and while all sound is not gone, everything is much quieter and muffled. If you were only going to use these with no music to help you work or concentrate I would definitely recommend them. I gave it a 10/10 because while they aren't perfect, they were what I expected to get with 85% noise canceling. Sound Quality (w/ noise canceling off): 2/10 When you listen to music through these headphone with noise canceling off, they are extremely muddled. It almost sounds as if you were listening to music playing from under water. The lows are very muddled together and it would be pretty unenjoyable to listen to these headphones like this. I think the reason this is done is because most of the low end disappears when noise canceling is activated (see below). It is almost as if they had to compensate for this. While it is nice that you can listen to these without a battery (unlike the Bose), the sound quality is very poor like this and there is no clarity in the music. I am not an audiophile snob who wouldn't be happy without thousands of dollars worth of equipment either. These had poor sound quality with noise canceling off and anyone would recognize it in my opinion. Sound Quality (w/ noise canceling on): 5/10 When noise canceling is activated the muddled music is lifted and the music becomes much clearer. While it does sound much better than listening without noise canceling, to me it is definitely lacking in the low end of the music. It almost seems as if the noise canceling feature eliminates all low end from the music. The bass has no punch at all and overall the music has too much treble and no real impact. Also, I am not trying to listen to music where I wouldn't be happy unless the headphones were rattling with bass. Just for reference, I did all of my listening tests with The Beatles Abbey Road album. Also, it appears that activating noise canceling boosts the volume as well. At first I wasn't sure if this was just the effect of other ambient noise being cut out or not, but I went to the most quiet place I could find in my house to do a test. Without music, noise canceling made very little difference because the room was so quiet already. However with music, the volume definitely was pumped louder when noise cancellation was active. This may explain something with sound leakage too (see below). Overall, my $50 in-ear Sony headphones that I was planning on replacing with these have much better sound quality than these. I was very disappointed in the sound, because in my opinion for this much money you should get decent sound quality. I wasn't expecting to be blown out of the water, but this was very weak. Sound Leakage: 0/10 This is a huge, huge problem. These headphone have very significant sound leakage at moderate volumes. I am not sure if there is anything different about the headphones that "A Texan" got for his review and the ones I got, but the sound leakage is very bad with these. Again, listening to Abbey Road at just a moderate volume I am totally unable to use these headphones at my office. I work in a cubicle space and even at low volumes I was told that the music is clearly audible for the people around me. Basically I would not feel at all comfortable using these headphones to listen to music in my office, in a coffee shop, or anywhere remotely quiet. It sounds like the speakers are on for my laptop and I am playing at a moderately quiet volume for the whole office to hear. I work as a scientist and also listen to my headphones in the lab. At my office the lab is quite noisy with lots of equipment running full time and in this environment the sound leakage was barely audible to people working near me. So if you were only going to use these in a loud environment, they may work for you. Also, the noise leakage is much worse when noise canceling is active. I don't know if this is simply because of the volume boost that exists when noise canceling is active, but there is obviously more sound leakage when noise canceling is turned on. In the end, this noise leakage is a really significant problem and is definitely a deal breaker for me. I chose to disregard some of the reviews saying that the sound leakage was bad and it was my mistake. It really is a big problem and you should be aware of it. You won't be able to listen to these in an open office area without everyone hearing your music. I am not exaggerating. Conclusion: I was really excited about these headphones and they seemed like the best alternative out there to the ultra expensive Bose noise canceling headphones. I haven't used the Bose so I won't try to compare (they may have the same problems for all I know), I will say that these headphones have left me very disappointed. The sound quality is pretty poor in my opinion, but I could live with that if it weren't for the sound leakage. I can't use these at work or to study with at a coffee shop, so basically I can't use them for my purposes. I will have to return these and try something else. If you are planning on using these in a noisy environment than they may be the right choice for you, but otherwise I would recommend you think long and hard about if noise leakage is a problem for you. ****UPDATE: 10/2/2009**** As I mentioned in the comments section of this review, I tried out the Bose QC 15 headphones at a local Bose store shortly after writing this review. In my personal opinion, the Bose headphones were better overall than these headphones (but they should be for $100 more right!). They didn't appear to have the sound leakage issues I had with these ATH-ANC7b's and overall I thought they had better audio quality. However, they are more expensive and don't play music with noise canceling turned off (a problem for some). Anyway, my slight frustration with the overall audio quality of these headphones led me to look into comparably priced non-noise canceling headphones. I just wanted to see how the audio quality of these compared to their noise canceling counterparts. I am very glad I took the time to do this. It turns out that for my needs, a nice set of closed full-sized headphones (closed = headphones that don't leak sound and block some noise from entering; full-sized = over the ear) were the best solution for me. The audio quality improvement of a $150 or $200 headphone without noise canceling over these was very pronounced for me. The details and real beauty of the music really jumped out to me, and the overall audio quality was much improved over the ATH-ANC7b for me. I researched many brands/models from $100-$250 and in the end decided on a pair of Audio Technica ATH-M50s headphones. These are $150, have great sound quality, and isolate plenty of noise for what I wanted to use them for. There are many favorable reviews on Amazon that you can read. Now this may not be the best solution for everyone. You may really, really need noise canceling headphones, and if that is the case then ignore this suggestion. However, if you are like me and aren't 100% sure if you need noise canceling or not, take the time to try out some closed full-sized non-noise canceling headphones to compare. For my use (studying, blocking noise at work) these were the perfect solution. I was never really planning on using these without listening to music and I wanted good audio quality as well as isolation if I was going to spend so much on headphones. This conclusion obviously makes sense in the end. You are paying for the noise canceling technology, so comparably priced non-noise canceling headphones should have higher quality audio (I know this is a duh...but I didn't fully appreciate it until I tried them side by side). Anyway, I just wanted to update on the path I decided to go down. Do yourself a favor and try out a pair (you can do this at Guitar Center, other music stores)of nice non-noise canceling headphones and see how you like them compared to noise canceling. In the end, all that matters is what you like and what you think. Audio products like headphones are so subjective, so take reviews with a grain of salt and remember that if you have the opportunity you should always try them out yourself and decide what you think. Good luck with your headphone search and I hope my whole experience finding the right pair of headphones for me helps some find a pair they love.

Great headphones. The active noise-cancelling is amazing. I flipped the switch and my PC's loud fans are instantly deafened. They're not totally silenced, but it sounds like my PC is instantly moved 50 feet farther away. I can't wait to try these on my next plane trip! Even better, unlike Beats that MUST be powered On to hear anything, these headphones *DO* work without being turned on or even without any batteries at all. Of course it doesn't sound anywhere near as well, but good to know you won't be 100% without sound when the batteries die (which according to the manual will last 40 hours). I purchased these "Used - Like New" from Amazon and the box was mangled (the top was crumpled heavily). (The headphone box was in an Amazon shipping cardboard box, so the headphone box damage was by whoever purchased and returned the headphones before me.) Everything inside seemed to be in perfect shape however, and I'm listening to some music with these headphones right now. For the cost (*under 3-digits*), this is an incredible value and I am *extremely* pleased with my purchase. I definitely recommend the headphones, and I definitely recommend purchasing Amazon's "Like New" products for the cost savings (this is my 3rd "Amazon Used - Like New" purchase). ----- [Edit 10/27/2014]: Update after nearly 2 years of using these headphones, including a warranty replacement after 1 year due to loss of hearing in one ear (fantastic customer service by Audio-Technica by the way). There are a few things that bother me about these headphones and why I am removing 1 star. First and foremost, with the noise cancelling turned on, the sound leaking is TERRIBLE. In a quiet environment like an office, everyone around you will hear everything you are listening to, guaranteed. I have tried the ANC9, and it is the exact same. In a quiet environment, either you can't use NC, or you have to listen to your music quietly with NC turned on. Next, the toggle switch to turn the NC on and off is extremely rigid. This is what caused my first pair to break. After a while, it would play music in only one ear and I would have to jiggle the switch into the "perfect" position in order to get hearing back. Eventually this trick no longer worked. To Audio-Technica: for future versions, please make this a button instead of such an incredibly hard to move switch which is prone to breaking and causing loss of hearing in one ear cup. And lastly, the low battery warning is *extremely* annoying, especially because it comes on many hours before the battery is dead. You are forced to a) waste the remaining 10-20% of every battery or b) deal with an annoying sound. I haven't read anyone else comment on this, even after extensive Google searches on this. This leads me to believe that this sound is a high enough frequency that you no longer hear it as you age. So if you're a young person like me, this will be annoying. If you're older, perhaps you won't hear it. ----- In an effort to fix the above issues, I have tried alternate headsets. I have tried the Solitude XCS headset (read my review on that product page), which was just terrible. And I have tried the Audio-Technica ATH-ANC9. I tested and compared the noise cancelling on ANC7B vs ANC9, literally putting them on one after another dozens of times. The result? I could not tell the difference between the ANC7B and ANC9. That extra 5% noise cancelling from 90% to 95% is completely indistinguishable. And regarding sound quality, this is extremely surprising, but I actually liked the ANC7B better. It sounded richer and clearer. Very surprising considering the ANC9 retails for $100 over the ANC7B. In the end, I returned the others and kept my ANC7B. Now I know for certain that I somehow made the absolute best choice on Amazon when it comes to noise cancelling headsets 2 years ago. I tried to go less expensive, and that was a mistake. I tried to go more expensive, and that was a mistake. (Note: The Bose QC15 can't be used if the batteries die, so that rules them out for me.) Bottom Line: If you can deal with the noise leaking, the ANC7B is by ***FAR*** the absolute best value product on Amazon for noise cancelling headphones. Buy these Used - Very Good from Amazon Warehouse for an even better deal. Fantastic sound, noise cancelling, and customer service, in one low price make a package that can't be beat.

Ich habe mir den Kopfhörer für längere Flüge und Zugfahrten zugelegt. Da ich bei meinen letzten Flügen in den Genuss von einem Sennheiser Kopfhörer mit Geräuschunterdrückung gekommen bin und natürlich auch den Bose Quietkomfort 15 testen konnte. Im Vergleich zu den beiden Kopfhörern liegt der Audio Techinica in der Mitte. Er hat zwar nicht eine ganz so gute Geräuschunterdrückung wie der Bose aber gefühlt ist er besser als der Sennheiser den ich testen konnte. Die Qualität gerade in zusammenspiel mit meinem Smartphone ist sehr gut, selbst meine Frau ist von der Klangqualität und der Geräuschunterdrückung sehr begeistert. Einziges kleinere Mankos sind, dass der Sound auch sehr deutlich nach aussen dringt, und dass zumindest ich, eine bequeme Position für den Kopfhörer auf meinen Kopf finden musste. Bei einigen Einstellungen tat es nach kurzer Zeit weh. Ansonsten bin ich vom Gewicht sowie Tragekomfort sehr begeistert. Das Preis-/Leistungsverhältnis stimmt hier auf alle Fälle. Ich habe den Kopfhörer mit verschiedenen Musikstilen und Filmen probe gehört und war von der Klangfülle sehr begeistert. Toller Kopfhörer den ich ohne bedenken wieder kaufen würde, und der mein Teufel aureol in Rente geschickt hat. Wie einige hier berichten soll der Kopfhörer / Kabel Störgeräusche von Handys sammeln, dass kann ich nicht bestätigen. Ich kenne das Phänomen von Boxen an meinen PC die Knistern 1 sek bevor mein Samrtphone klingelt, diesen Effekt konnte ich bei den Kopfhörern nicht feststellen.

I gave my first pair of these to my girlfriend, and had no hesitation with buying myself another. As noise cancelling headphones for long haul flights, these really do the trick. Music is rich and detailed with ample bass, clear treble and great vocals. Meanwhile the surrounding drone of aircraft noise is pushed into the distance. You might wonder what the fuss is about when you first try them at home, but activate the noise cancelling feature when airborne and you'll be amazed at the difference it makes. A note of caution: it's not magic! The low frequency background noise is reduced, not eliminated, and if the people sitting immediately behind you insist on having an energetic conversation throughout an eight-hour night flight, you'll have a much better understanding of the difference between low and mid-range frequencies by the time you land! If anything, removing the rumble only serves to unmask the sound of stray conversation, so make sure you have a good music collection that you can sleep through. That said, for in-flight entertainment these cans are unbeatable. No more straining to hear the dialogue in movies, or searching for your loudest rock/metal album to punch above the noise. Now even quieter classical pieces are listenable, and almost all music enjoyable. They're just about comfortable enough for a long haul flight. Back on the ground it's a different story. These are still good headphones with the noise cancelling mode enabled, but in passive mode the sound is flat and lifeless. You'll need to push the volume up a couple of notches anyway, but that won't bring any life back into the sound. To be honest, I'd only bother with these when flying (or maybe long train/car journeys - I've tested them on a train with less pronounced effect than on a plane). As normal headphones they're pretty average, and I'd find it annoying having to "switch them on" (despite the excellent battery life). I'd give them 3 or 4 stars in this role. Solely as a product that reduces low rumble on a plane, making music and movies vastly more enjoyable, I would rate these 5*. It will make your flight more enjoyable than a class upgrade, plus of course you can use them time and again!

tutti mi han parlato splendidamente di queste cuffie. l'audio-technica è un'ottima azienda ma a me sembra sia andata male. le cuffie da subito mi han dato problemi con il riduttore di rumore: dopo 1-2 minuti, l'audio della cuffia sinistra tendeva a "spegnersi". per risolvere il problema dovevo dare un colpetto al microfono della cuffia sinistra (quello che rileva il rumore) in modo che venisse ricalcolato il rumore esterno e la cuffia riprendeva a funzionare correttamente per qualche minuto, quindi il problema si riproponeva. il problema non si presentava sempre, credo dipendesse dal tipo di rumore: quando la usavo tagliando l'erba, funzionava egregiamente. prodotto restituito e rimborsato. veramente un peccato.

Buena calidad de sonido con el noise canceling conectado. Confortable para 2-3 horas de utilizacion pero no para orejas grandes. El precio es muy interesante. Se escucha un soplo ligero cuando en silencio. El telefono móvil hace interferencias.

I purchased these years ago and they still work like they are brand new! I would use these headphones over the very expensive brand name ones I bought around the same time. The quality is amazing! HIGHLY RECOMMEND! I was looking for something I could use while travelling and these hit it spot on. I always have a hard time hearing the movies in an airplane using any other headphones.. These are reasonably priced and worth the money. If you are looking for sound quality as well as durability these are the headphones for you. I was able to not only hear my movies but I was able to turn the sound down because it was crystal clear. The noise cancelling works amazing!! No horrible engine noise! Looking forward to using these on my next trip! The noise cancelling I have heard causes an irritating buzz for some.. I didnt find that with the Audio-Technica at all. On a side note: The carrying case and fold ability of these make them that much better!.