DC X11 ANR

[flav8r]

Over the last 26 years I have owned several different pairs of DC headsets.
I have seen the fancy headsets come and go but my trusty DC headsets have always served me extremely well.

The DC company has earned my undying loyalty with their superb customer service.

With that said I would like to hear from current owners of the DC X11 ANR.
Note: I'm not looking for opinions on other brands.

Are you happy with your headset?
Are they comfortable?
Do they work as advertised?
Would you recommend them to a friend?

 

[silver-eagle]

I have the DC 10-13x I bought as a gift to me for getting my PPL. They were my first ANR. I compared the active AND passive qualities with that of all the others on the market. DC came out on top. My only complaint is the batteries dont seem to last long enough. When they start to go, there is a thumping in the headset. Turn them off and even passive is good quality.
I also have BOSE and Lightspeed. I bought these second hand because the price was right and I needed the extra sets and wanted ANR. In terms of quality, they are all about the same. I have not had to return the DC for service but expect they will do a fine job keeping me happy.
Buying new, I'd go with DC.

 

[Fearless Tower]

Haven't tried the X11's, but like John, I love my DC 10-13X. Never had a problem with it, and passive noise reduction is plenty good enough that I have been known to be a little lazy about replacing the battery for the ANR......can't get away with that using a Bose.

I chose it at the time over the X11 because some of the reviews on the X11 were mixed....some complaints about the X11 being cheap plastic construction vs. the traditional rugged DC frame.

 

[GeorgeC]

Haven't tried the X11's, but like John, I love my DC 10-13X. Never had a problem with it, and passive noise reduction is plenty good enough that I have been known to be a little lazy about replacing the battery for the ANR......can't get away with that using a Bose.

I chose it at the time over the X11 because some of the reviews on the X11 were mixed....some complaints about the X11 being cheap plastic construction vs. the traditional rugged DC frame.

Yes, that. I carry a spare 9V for when the ANR goes south, but I too find it better to turn it off rather than listening to it go wub-wub-wub when the voltage is low.

 

[denverpilot]

I finally got another 4+ hours with the new Lightspeed Sierras, going from KAPA-KRTN-KAPA last weekend.

I must say, I'm impressed. I'm a dyed-in-the-green-plastic DC fan, and there's a twinge of "aww crap, I bought Chinese made plastic" with the LS, but the ANR difference is night and day.

I think I'll order a DIY ANR kit for the DC 10-13's and they'll become my backup/passenger pair. Now that they're not the primary headset in my bag, I can tear into them to wire up ANR.

One of the LLC/airplane co-owners has some older Peltors for pax, but it's nice to hand pax a "real" headset.

Also nice to store a headset in the hangar for that "oops I forgot my flight bag" or the "man it's gorgeous out here, I should go run around the pattern for a bit" when driving past the airport in the summertime. (Gel ear seals freeze in winter. Messy.)

Would also be a good time to order new earcup "socks" and mic windscreen and "refurb" the old faithful DCs. They're not ready to be put out to pasture just yet.

I also need to build up a little box to provide the Sierras mic-bias voltage to trick them into allowing Bluetooth on the ground not plugged into the aircraft. What a goofy/cheesy way to convince folks to go for the Zulus.

Should take about an hour on the electronics workbench to fix that silly problem, most of which will be to find the workbench under all of the crap stored/piled on it.

Hmm just had an idea. I think the handheld also provides mic bias voltage. Problem may already be solved. Plug into HT, tune to quiet frequency or just turn the HT all the way down. Where's my HT headset cable? Need to go test that.

Silly Lightspeed.

 

[flav8r]

Well thank you everyone for your imput, it really helped me with my choice of headsets.

I have decided that I am going to stick with the headsets pictured below and spend my money on additional flight time.

 

[GMascelli]

Are you happy with your headset?
Are they comfortable?
Do they work as advertised?
Would you recommend them to a friend?

My Bride loves them, no clamping pressure and very lightweight
They are quiet, I love my Zulu's but she likes the DC's.
Yep, they work fine, just wish they had blue tooth.