Customer Reviews

Creative Labs HN-505 Collapsible Noise-Canceling Headphones

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

These headphones are a great value at $30. The outside noise reduction appears to be accomplished in three manners. The first is by having earphones that "seal" well around one's ears. The second is by slightly elevating the pitch of the music etc that you are listening to. The third is by the addition of a "white noise overlay" that results in a slightly perceptable hum. There doesn't appear to be any active noise cancellation such as in the Bose headphones. Functionally I believe the noise reduction of the Creative HN-505 to be very good. The sound quality with the noise reduction turned off is also excellent. I have used the Bose and while the Bose are definitely better I can't justify the price differential between the two based on performance. If you are in the market for a noise reducing headphone at a bargain price I highly recommend the Creative NH-505.

Just got 'em in today. We'll start off with the visual aspect. The design is superb, specifically the headband, the way they fold up, where they put the AAA battery, the switch to activate the noise cancelling/volume boost. Other manufacturers should follow the same path. Couldn't have been designed better!

Now for the audio rating. I was extremely disappointed!

First off, you can't really listen without activating the noise/volume boost. If you try too, the volume is very low, to the point of barely hearing the music. Flip on the noise/volume boost, and instantly you'll get a HUGE increase in volume! That must be the way they arrive at a 121db rating, which btw is on the packaging, and one of the reasons I bought these!

Upon making the headphones lets say "active", by turning the power to "on", I went through several rock songs (hard and metal), on my ACT-400 Philips/Nike CD/MP3 player. No matter what combination of settings I tried on my MP3 player (no treble, treble, no bass, bass 1 and bass 2), the sound was bad. There was either no bass, too much bass, no treble, or too much treble. When I'd listen to songs that played right on other headphones with this player, these headphones couldn't arrive at any kind of acceptable middle-of-the-road setting. You increase one thing and something else decreased. Increase what had decreased, and then something else would drop-out!

Furthermore, these headphones totally dropped out of the range in which bass guitar operates, to where no matter what you did, bass guitar was gone from the sound spectrum. It muddied up the lead guitar, and symbols/high-hats seemed very distant in perception. I fiddled around forever with the settings on my player, and no matter how much I'd try to compensate and adjust bass-and-treble setttings to try to fix this, I just couldn't get at a level I'd listen too.

I gave Creative a shot on this because:

1. 4 star review up-to-now
2. I've had good results with their computer spkrs.
3. They advertised a 121db rating
4. These fold-up very small
5. Noise-Cancelling (more like active volume boost!!)
6. All the above, combined with a $29 price, seemed a bargain

I don't believe the pair I got was defective. I just think they can't accurately reproduce sound.

To sum it all up, I plan on returning them and if you're looking for advice, I'd say avoid this pair!

With the price below $30 for a Noise-cancellation headphone, it does what it supposes to do. For my information, Noise-reduction is a more appropriate word describing this headphone, since I don't think there is one headphone that can eliminate outside noise totally, even those with price over hundreds of bucks. So why not giving a try to this nice and light one at first and having some impression of what on earth Noise-reduction feature can bring you. Although there is kind of humming sound while the Noise-reduction feature is on, it's not so loud that I can barely live with it. it's comfortable wearing over head since it's light. It's easy to carry around since it's collapsible and comes with a travel bag. I am going to love it anyway.

I have used these on a few flights now and they do provide a substantial improvement when listening to music/dvd viewing. They allow lower volumes to be set and once the sound is played the background engine sounds are almost none existent. I also keep them on whilst sleeping with the noise cancellation activated. I don't use them for non-travel use but for travel the quality is more than adequate.

Although I agree with the other reviewers about the price being very reasonable for what you get, you do however still get what you pay for. I also notice the light and steady static when the noise cancelling is turned on, and you do sort of get used to it, but should you have to? Also, I've had my headphones for a year now, and as happens with many cheap headphones, I have lost sound on the right side. If you are in the market for a cheap pair of noise cancelling headphones, I do recommend these. If you want quality or better noise cancelling, go with Bose.

I'm completely satisfied. I just flew commercial carrier across the country. The engine drone was reduced significantly allowing me to really enjoy an MP3 player, read, and sleep, yet still being able to easily hear airline personnel, announcements, and passengers. The under $30.00 price is perfect.

Reading Erik Mann's review above was just like living my own experience. I bought these headphones for their noise canceling ability, attractive price, small package and easy folding capability. All these features definitely get a big thumbs up from me.

The sound, however, is very disappointing. I used these with my 5G Ipod and took a good lot of time to try and adjust the sound various ways so I can enjoy it, but to no avail. The Ipod stock earphones sound a LOT better, even on a plane if you lock them into your ear by twisting them so the pieces of wire shooting out of the ear buds points up towards your temples.

I guess I will just keep looking for better cans.

I've always found the cheapie little ear buds sold by the airlines in order to watch their movies utterly useless. Besides not fitting my ears (they fall out), even with the volume turned all the way up, I simply couldn't understand movie dialog in softer passages over the roar of the aircraft noise. I'd watch other passengers with envy while they relaxed comfortably using noise canceling headphones. I decided that's what I needed!

When I started shopping for a pair of noise canceling headsets for a long cross-country flight my wife and I were going to take, I decided that even though the Bose QuietComfort models were highly rated, I couldn't justify spending that much money for something we'd only use maybe 2 or 3 times per year. After a lot of research looking for less expensive alternatives, based on the features, price, and reviews I read, I settled on the Creative Labs HN-505 as the one to buy.

My wife and I recently used this model for over 10 hours each on the cross-country trip and we found they worked quiet well... but with a few minor shortcomings. Interestingly, on one leg of our trip I had the opportunity to try out the Bose QuietComfort II headset of a passenger sitting next to me and compare it side-by-side to the CL HN-505.

Here are my observations:

* The CL HN-505 is an absolutely incredible value for the money! I'd definitely buy it again.

* The fit of the earcup is sort of a hybrid between a true "over-the-ear" (like the Bose QC II) and an "on-the-ear" design (like the Bose QC III). The earcups sit part way over the ear and do not completely seal off outside noise. Presumably this design makes them more compact and less bulky for storage.

* My wife found the earcups to be a bit tight on her ears (squeezing her head). She got tired of having them on her head after 3 or 4 hours. With careful adjusting of the headset I didn't have this problem.

* While they do effectively remove the "roar" of aircraft noise, they have their limits. Since they can only mask noise within a certain frequency band and up to a certain volume level, they'll still allow some noise through at a reduced volume. If you're expecting complete silence when you turn them on, then you'll be sadly disappointed! Yes you can still hear the announcements on the aircraft PA system and still faintly hear that baby crying in the back of the plane, but they do effective reduce the overall volume of all noise to a tolerable, comfortable level. There's a very noticeable difference between being when they're turned off and on.

* A soft rushing sound (almost like white noise) can be heard in the background when turned on. This isn't noticeable in a noisy environment like an airline flight.

* When I compared the Bose QuietComfort II headset and the CL HN-505 side-by-side, I found the Bose quieter than the CL... *but* keep in mind the Bose QC II is a true "over-the-ear" design whereas that CL HN-505 is not. I can say that the performance of the Bose QC II wouldn't convince me to pay *ten* times the price of the CL HN-505

* I watched several movies on the flight and found the dialog in even the most quiet passages easy to understand.

* I like the fact the CL HN-505 only uses one AAA battery and it's conveniently hidden in the head strap (not on the cord).

* The on-off switch is located on the rear of the right earcup within easy reach while wearing, but this same location makes it way too easy to accidentally turn it on when storing it in a carry on baggage. Several times I've gone to retrieve my headset from it's storage bag, only to find it had been turned on for some unknown length of time. The good news is the battery seems to last a very long time. I've used mine for over 10 hours plus the time it was on accidentally on only one battery so far, and it's still going strong.

* I'll never again travel without them!

I'm an not an audiophile guy nor have I ever bought a pair of noise-canceling headphones. I was a bit skecptial when I bought these headphones becuase of the price. I used them on a flight to Europe and they worked great. I was able to listen to my music and the movie the whole time without hearing the the airplane noise. When I turned off the Noise-Canceling I noticed a big difference. They also work great in the office. I used to have a loud coworker and now I can't hear them anymore. The headphones foldup which is nice but they still take up some room in your bag. If your looking to save some money but still want the effect of Noise-Canceling Headphones I would recommned that you buy these.

I used the Bose once before and these seem to do a comparable job for a fraction of the price. I think those who say that there is no noise cancellation, just white noise are wrong. I thought the same thing as well when I first put them on. I was in a quiet room without any ambient noise. However once I got into a room with a lot of ambient noise (like a server room), the difference was easy to hear.

Dunno how long they are going to last or how they compare to the Bose, but for about $20, I'm not complaining yet!