Able Planet NC200 Foldable Noise Canceling Headphone

by AblePlanet

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 8.8 x 2 inches ; 8.8 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B001EYU8FI
• Item model number: NC200
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 27, 2008

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Able Planet NC200: The Power of LINX at an Affordable Price

Able Planet made its mark in the portable audio field at the 2007 International CES trade show, where its LINX Audio technology won the Most Innovative Embedded Technology Award. Since then they have won over 16 Awards and significant praise from consumers and top experts alike, all who rave about the phones' ability to eliminate almost all background noise while offering superior sound quality. Ideal for everything from iPods, home stereos and portable DVD players, with full, rich sound that shuts out such extraneous sounds as airplane engines, bus motors, and background conversations.

The Clear Harmony NC200 is an exciting new entry level product that lets you step up into quality noise-canceling headphones without breaking the bank. Enjoy the latest technology at an affordable price and convenient foldable size. The NC200 features an adjustable headband, superior sound quality and clarity, patented LINX Audio technology, inline volume control for easy adjustment to safe listening levels, and state of the art active noise cancelation.

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What Critics Are Saying

"You can hear the difference up in the higher frequencies of your music. These 'phones are very comfortable, especially for people with big heads." --Josh Quittner, Time Magazine, "Top 25 Must-Have Travel Gadgets"

"…Able Planet’s Sound Clarity unit is a big leap forward in quality. And it won’t break the bank. The lightweight earphones are comfortable, and the stereo sound is good – in fact a lot better than good, providing both clear speech and full rich background sound." --Jay Palmer, Barron's

"We put the Clear Harmony headphones up against the Bose QuietComfort 3 headphones for side-by-side tests, all of which the former handily won." --Russ Fischer, Laptop Magazine

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LINX Audio Technology

Listen to the difference between Able Planet's Linx Audio technology and standard audio sources

Originally developed for a new generation of top-of-the-line hearing aids, LINX Audio technology. This makes it easier to hear words, music, and sounds in the higher frequencies where clarity is often lost, while also ensuring that speech and other high-frequency sounds are not smothered by bass tracks. Able Planet compares the results to the difference between hearing a "C" note on a piano as opposed to a "C" chord. The "C" chord, which sounds richer and more complex, demonstrates the impact of adding harmonics to the audio signal.

LINX Audio technology also fits into Able Planet's mission of creating audio solutions for people with hearing disabilities. By filtering undesirable sounds and noise via the state-of-the-art active noise cancellation (ANC) technology, Able Planet headphones encourage users to listen to music at lower volumes to reduce long-term hearing loss. The phones also provide crisp sound for people already suffering from moderate hearing problems, and even accommodate hearing aids thanks to a new technology that restricts electromagnetic interference.

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Special Features

Clear Harmony headphones also reduce distortion at higher volumes by soft-clipping the sound wave rather than squaring it off, delivering a full-bodied frequency range of 20 Hz to 20. And as a bonus, the phones offer an inline volume control that makes it easy to turn the volume up or down without reaching for your portable audio device. Other features include a 5-foot removable cord with 1/4-inch; a lightweight adjustable headband that provides a superior fit; full-size swiveling ear cups with soft cushions; and a soft carrying pouch with a storage area for iPods and other MP3 players.

The headphones--which can be used at home as well as on the road with TVs, computers, portable DVD players, CD players, MP3 players, and assisted listening devices--fold up easily for easy storage and travel.

Note: The noise cancellation feature requires one AAA battery (included), but can also be turned off should the batteries run down. As a result, users can still listen to music without power, unlike many competing noise-canceling headphones.

What's in the Box

Clear Harmony NC200 headphones, removable cord, and 1/4-inch stereo adapters, and soft carrying pouch.

Product Description

Ideal for the traveler, student or music lover. The latest technology at an affordable price and convenient foldable size. The NC200 features an adjustable headband, superior sound quality and clarity, patented LINX Audio technology, In line volume control for easy adjustment to safe listening levels (no more hunting for the volume control) and state of the art active noise cancellation (ANC). With over 16 International CES and CTIA awards, the sound quality will delight even the most discernible ear.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best I've ever heard, July 30, 2009

By 

Bass Lover "Give me my headphones back!" (Detroit, MI) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Able Planet NC200 Foldable Noise Canceling Headphone (Electronics)

I ordered the NC200 Noise Canceling Headphones when my Bose Triports "disappeared" from my dorm room. I THOUGHT that I loved my Triports until the NC 200's arrived.

The NC200's cancel noise. I can listen to them on the train and never hear the conversations going on around me. I am blown away at some of the reviews of these headphones because I think they are AMAZING!

The sound is crystal clear. And the bass hits.

If you want amazing headphones at a reasonable price, buy the NC200's.

I dont write many reviews, but I had to comment because I was almost scared away from the NC200's due to the negative reviews.

One more thing, these headphones have a LIFETIME WARRANTY. If something is wrong, send them back!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars (1.5 stars) A niche product in a competitive field, November 26, 2008

By 

Snap, Crackle and Pop (United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Able Planet NC200 Foldable Noise Canceling Headphone (Electronics)

(What's this?)

QUICK TAKE: If you're looking for the least expensive option for travel use for mostly voices or movies, this might be an option. But users looking for moderately priced options will want to look at some of the many other products in this now-competitive area.

Able Planet has developed technology to make it easier to hear voices clearly to assist hearing, and is applying that technology to headphones for more general use. An additional benefit of this technology is that it allows you to hear well with the headphones at lower volumes than you might otherwise use. If this approach appeals to you, their products may be worth a listen, though you should probably consider their more effective, more expensive models.

The headphones are fairly comfortable and not especially bulky, though still close to full size. They fold up fairly easily and somewhat compactly, some thought was clearly given to that, though they are still somewhat sizeable to carry given the design.

Unlike some other headphones, the NC200 can be used without activating the boost and noise canceling features. The quality with the electronics switched off is reasonably good, though not very powerful. So if the battery runs out, they are still useable.

While the sound quality was fairly good, even for music, I didn't find much benefit in the noise cancelling feature. I also heard a steady hiss when the power was on; that's something some might be able to ignore, though not me.

However, there are so many other choices, depending on one's preferences, that make this more of a niche product. There are many other good options to help you hear your audio with fewer distractions, and block outside noise, though different products approach it in various ways:

Two top options are the Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7 QuietPoint Active Noise-Cancelling Headphones or the Sennheiser PXC 250 Active Noise Canceling Headphones.

For those looking for really small and portable products, with active noise cancellation, the Panasonic RP-HC55 Noise Canceling Earbuds.

Finally, there are noise-isolating earphones like the Shure SE110 Sound Isolating Earphone with Balanced Armature Driver (Black). These have no active noise cancellation - they block the sound by fitting inside your ear, which actually works well though some find it uncomfortable; you need to tweak them to find the best fit. But no batteries needed, and for those who like their audio straight up, nothing modifying the sound.

Lots of people still don't realize how much effect noise can have on you, and how much better you'll feel if you can filter it out. (Try something - even just earplugs - on your next airline flight!) But enough people have become aware of it that a lot of good noise-canceling or noise blocking products have been developed.

15 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Very disappointed. I returned mine, November 20, 2008

By 

D. Cobb - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Able Planet NC200 Foldable Noise Canceling Headphone (Electronics)

The biggest reason I got these was for the noise canceling feature, and hopefully good sound to go with it. Unfortunately I learned real quick that activating the noise cancelation didn't cancel much of anything, in fact there was very little positive change noticed. But even more shocking was this constant low frequency noise or rumble like sound that was only there when the noise cancelation was activated. Adjusting the volume did not affect this one way or another. You couldn't notice it when music was playing, but when there was silence it was very noticeable and quite annoying. I thought they were either broken or just really bad quality. Only positive thing I can say about them is the look and feel is decent.

A coworker of mine has the Panasonic RP-HC500 and we compared the two and OMG what a night and day difference. With the Panasonic, when you activated the noise cancelation it kind of did a vacuum effect which canceled out most of the outside noise and made you feel like you were in a room lined with Styrofoam with dead silence. When I put back on the Able Planet, there was no similar feeling and again just this low frequency noise coming through. As far as the music quality I found them to be just mediocre and nothing special. Clearly the cons outweighed the pros in this case. Not worth the $50 I paid. Even if they were free I would not use them given the issues. It's possible I suppose they were just a lemon set, but again I could feel that when activating the noise cancelation they did try to do something, but the results were just very poor. Given the cost of my coworkers Panny's were just a few dollars more than these, I might just go for that route