Customer Reviews

Jensen JNC50 Noise Canceling Collapsible Headphones (Silver)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

My experience with this product reinforces comments from the other reviewers. Bottom line, the audio quality is acceptable for the money (or as a gift, in my case). But I wouldn't pay much more.

Here are highlights from my experience:

- The AAA battery and power switch don't seem to do much. If I'm listening and flip the switch, I can hear a minor difference (volume and tone boost). But if I just put the headphones on without knowing whether the switch is on or not, I can't really tell a difference.

- The headphones lean WAY toward the bass end. Sound quality will be absolutely horrible unless you have a device where you can adjust your treble and bass. My first test was with a Sarah McLachlan CD, and it didn't even sound like her! Once I upped the treble on my CD player, things got better.

- Noise cancelling is quite good. If your primary use is for airplane listening (as is mine), these muffle the outside world quite well. I can also see them working well in a noisy office environment. However, I'll definitely carry my earbuds for non-airplane listening.

- It could just be me, but my ears seem to adjust the longer I listen, and the sound quality seems to get markedly better. Perhaps this has something to do with the noise-cancelling feature . . . some kind of tone change the ear doesn't like at first but then gets used to.

- The inclusion of the airplane adapter is a nice touch. Now I don't also have to carry the cheap headphones I got from ATA and Continental.

If price and muffling engines are more important that fine audio quality, get these. Otherwise, keep shopping.

..., these headphones are a great value. For [the money], these headphones can turn a long flight into a more enjoyable one. I tried these out on a couple of flights and boy was I impressed. I am one who can appreciate good sound. The noise cancellation was about 85% effective which is good considering I am on an airplane. Works really well with widebody aircraft entertainment systems (i.e. Boeing's 777/767). If buying for other than travelling, I recommend another type of headphone. Last but not least...comfortable. More comfortable than the Aiwa HPCN5. Enjoy!!

First of all this review aplies to all headphones (over-the-head, on or over your ear headphones) that "actively" cancell noise i.e. w/ electronics. They are only made to reduce certain frequencies, talking isn't among them, however, things like airplane roar, computer noises (hisses and such) and reduced. This aplies even to extremely expensive headphones like the Bose Quiet Comfort (250-299 depending on new or old version) which act the same way. This explanation also helps in figuring out a reason why some people report NO cancelling (probably using them w/ wrong frequencies) why some say they're wonderful, most who say that talk about airplane roar being reduced, the thing their meant to do. I hope this clears up some of the mystery about active noise cancellation headphones

I ordered on the basis of most of the reviews. The headphones worked well on the airplane and, since I travel frequently, that's what I wanted them for. I didn't even hear the flight attendant asking me if I wanted the complimentary drink and pretzels. However, I also discovered that some planes don't have audio anymore, so bring an alternate sound source (I had an MP3 player with me). The headphones reduce, but don't totally eliminate sounds, but they are certainly worth the $21 I paid and are more compact than the expensive Bose headphones. I was grateful that I didn't have to listen to the constant engine hum for 4 hours and a toddler screaming! The discomfort others experienced after wearing the headphones a couple of hours, I found could be eliminated by moving them every so often. I did not find them any more uncomfortable than most over-the-head headphones.

I want to start out by saying that the noise cancelling feature is very good, in my opinion anyway. I like the comfort of the earpads and the quality of the sound that comes out of them.

However.....due to the hinge at the top part of the headphones that allow them to be collapsible, I get a headache within a matter of minutes and cannot wear them for very long before I need to take them off to relax my head.

Someone else may like them more than me, if you have a type of head that isn't bothered by the hinge, you have a lot of hair, or you wear them over a hat/cap, they might work out for you.

If I can't find anyone to give these to, I'm going to try to sell them.

I've used these headphones for many months and like them a lot. I have an MP3 player that needs a boost, as well as my laptop. These headphones provide that volume increase so I can leave my boostaroo headphone amplifier at home. Noise reduction works when on a plane, near a forced-air fireplace, operating machinery, etc. Battery lasts a long time, headphones work when battery is dead (just no boost/canceling). Comfortable, foldable, has a plane adaptor, carrying bag.

These headphones worked very well on a round-trip to Paris. They cancelled engine noise well enough for me to hear the movie dialogue clearly and to sleep on the overnight flight. They were so comfortable that after wearing them for 7+ hours, I forgot I was wearing them until the flight attendant spoke to me and I could not hear her. The headphones are very light, with fairly small earpads. They fold very nicely to fit into the carrying pouch (included). Battery life is decent, one single battery lasted the flight Paris and a flight to Hawaii from the East Coast.

As usual, you get what you pay for. The active noise cancelling is decent when used in a plane or car, because that's what they're designed for. When used in either of these environments, it does cut out a noticeable amount of noise.

If you need headphones to cancel noise in other environments (offices, public spaces, home) you should go for more expensive headphones which compute the exact sound necessary to cancel out ambient noise, rather than the generic "engine noise" cancelling hiss on these.

I'm not an audiophile and have no complaints about the audio quality. However, I found the active noise cancellation to be less effective than I hoped. These headphones knock out perhaps half the engine noise. That still leaves a lot of noise! Without these, the engine noise was quite fatiguing and left me with a headdache; with the headphones, the noise is merely unpleasant and I can still function. There is a noticeable difference in engine noise level with the active cancellation on and off. Other, higher frequency noises (voices, etc) are not quieted by the active cancellation. For these noises, the Jensen's are no better than reqular, passive headphones.

I agree with other reviewers that the retracting switch is poor quality. Requires a lot of fiddling to push just right so the cord retracts. Battery life is no problem.

Drawbacks:
They can get uncomfortable after long periods of time.
The single battery doesn't last too long, mine last about 2 weeks of occasional use.

Advantages:
The noise canceling actually works fairly well. I assume more expensive headphones actually work better, though.
Since there is only a single battery, they are relatively light.

if you expect to use them only occasionally, these are definitely worth the price (about $23 as of this writing).
If you plan on extended use in a fan-filled environment, find something more expensive, you'll be glad you had.