Help With David Clark?

kimberlyanne546

kimberlyanne546

Final Approach
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Kimberly
Hello,

I recently flew with a bunch of pilots in Sacramento. All of them had headsets I can't afford, such as Bose / Lightspeed / etc. I thought "no big deal" until my third flight, when I chose to wear MY OWN HEADSET. Gosh it hurt like hell that time.

My flight school has a very old ANR - takes like 8 batteries - by David Clark. The owner swears it is from the 1980's. It is his nicest headset, so he won't sell it to me. I've started wearing it when I fly as PIC - I like it very much.

My question is this:

I would like to buy one (very old, very used). It doesn't have any cool features, I get that, but mine really hurts my head too much and it would be nice for me to have a passenger headset and stop borrowing the school headsets for my passengers. Mine even has an audio in jack so I could let my passengers listen to music on it. I wouldn't hear the music but that is OK.

Do any of you know the model name for the very old David Clark ANR with the heavy / ugly battery pack? And what would be a good price for one (used) on eBay?

Thanks in advance,

Kimberly
 
I don't know the model number, but I bought my first DC ANR from eBay for around $325-350 2 years ago. It had the oregon aero gel ear pads, and the (4) AA or (1) 9v battery box with a toggle on/off switch. ANR is pretty good, but not as good as the Zulu. The headset is better than the Zulu when ANR is off, MUCH better. No bells and whistles.

I'd still be wearing it today, very comfy, heavyish, but not bad, if I didn't get me a Lightspeed Zulu 1 in Sept. I also have a pair if 13.4's for the third px.
 
Kimberly, check the classifieds section of the forum. If you buy the DC 13.4s I think you'll like them even without the ANR, and then you can add on ANR for not a lot of money. Your BF can probably install the ANR kit easily enough.
 
TMetzinger said:
Kimberly, check the classifieds section of the forum. If you buy the DC 13.4s I think you'll like them even without the ANR, and then you can add on ANR for not a lot of money. Your BF can probably install the ANR kit easily enough.
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:yeahthat:

I've seen the add-on ANR kit for something like $139 or $169. Installation looks pretty easy for someone who can pick up a soldering iron and not burn their fingers, best 2 of 3 attempts at least.

eBay is also crawling with DC headsets. If you're patient you can get them for a pretty good price. My H10-13S were under $200 including shipping, a brand new spare set of gel ear pads and a Bose headset case, and they were like brand new after I spent 2 minutes with some cleaning wipes.
 
Changed my avatar (last weekend's passenger sent me a screen grab from a video of the Bay Tour).

That is the headset in question.

I thought I could get an old 80's ANR for under $100 or under $200. Wouldn't want to buy one and then spend money adding on features. If I'm going that route I'll just get a used "fancy" one.
 
Nevermind, seems they are over $300 and not from the 80's. I just wanted a junky old one.

I've seen used bluetooth ones for a bit over that so I will just wait and keep borrowing the old one at my school.

Free is free!
 
btw - the original David Clark ANR headset can be converted to the newer version. I did that with mine <mumble> years ago. I cheated, I drove to the David Clark facility in Worcester MA and had it done while I waited.
 
Kimberly,

I looked into adding an ANR kit to my existing headset and its easy to do and inexpensive. You could probably find a nice headset you like in Non ANR and add it very easily. I chose not to as I wanted to have a second headset for fmaily and friends one day. I splurged with my tax return and bought a used bose A20 for $700, but in my searching I found a ton of used older model Bose and lightspeeds online that were very reasonbly priced. Lots of people jump full in to learn to fly and then quit and sell their stuff chep on craigslist. You may want to give CL a try. Go here to search All craigslist at once. There is bound to be a headset for sale that works for you. www.allofcraigs.com


Marc
 
I've got to agree with the craigs list suggestion. I got my dc h10-13x headset from someone on cl who was getting out of flying. the best part was the price $200. those are a $600 set so I didn't haggle or dicker. so the deals are out there. make it a point to check every day. timing is everything.
 
I have two 10.34's that'll be for sale as soon as I clean them up and check that they work. They came with my Arrow.

edit:H10-13.4, I mean.
 
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Kim, You can do a payment plan on the Bose if that eases the pain. A good headset is not only a smart investment, but so important to fight fatigue and hearing loss.
 
On a related note, I have a Bose NR headset I used in my old plane which had a Bose jack. I do not have the adaptor to use it with a standard two plug audio jack. What's the phraseology of that item?

I'm currently using my David Clark headset, but I'd sure like to put the Bose back in to service.
 
The PNR in ear things might be an option too, they're not as expensive. Halo's I believe they are called. I hear people raving about them, I've never used them. Don't want to, I'm afraid I might regret buying the A20s if I did.
 
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alfadog said:
I have two 10.34's that'll be for sale as soon as I clean them up and check that they work. They came with my Arrow.

edit:H10-13.4, I mean.
Click to expand...

Thanks, were these in another thread (or was that another poster)? I thought I saw only one for sale from that other pilot? Let me know what you want to sell them for.
 
Addicted2climbing said:
Kimberly,

I looked into adding an ANR kit to my existing headset and its easy to do and inexpensive. You could probably find a nice headset you like in Non ANR and add it very easily. I chose not to as I wanted to have a second headset for fmaily and friends one day. I splurged with my tax return and bought a used bose A20 for $700, but in my searching I found a ton of used older model Bose and lightspeeds online that were very reasonbly priced. Lots of people jump full in to learn to fly and then quit and sell their stuff chep on craigslist. You may want to give CL a try. Go here to search All craigslist at once. There is bound to be a headset for sale that works for you. www.allofcraigs.com


Marc
Click to expand...

Didn't know about "all of craigslist". Thanks, though not sure I'd trust someone to take my money and then ship (via paypal).
 
bartmc said:
The PNR in ear things might be an option too, they're not as expensive. Halo's I believe they are called. I hear people raving about them, I've never used them. Don't want to, I'm afraid I might regret buying the A20s if I did.
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I love my QT Halo. No bulk. No clamping. No batteries. Quiet. But they go deep into your ears, and some people may not like that. Also, it is easy to lose that damn microphone sock.
 
1200AGL said:
I love my QT Halo. No bulk. No clamping. No batteries. Quiet. But they go deep into your ears, and some people may not like that. Also, it is easy to lose that damn microphone sock.
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$360 new. I'm seeing David Clarks used for under $200. Not sure how that deep in the ear thing would feel, when I walk / jog with in the ear devices my ears hurt really quickly after starting use.
 
I paid $200 for a pair of Bose Series II 3-4 years ago. Worked great, a little heavy. Finally traded them in on Lightspeed Zulus.
 
I just bought a pair of DC 10-13 brand new for 300. For me, could I afford lightspeed, even Bose. Can I justify spending that mich, No! I have been using Telex that I bought in 1994 when I first started flying until now. Sometimes the fancy are jus that fancy.

And I don't trust bying used, I have a little germaphobia when it comes to stuff like that. Also if it craps out a week later, you SOL.
 
I have never worn a set of David Clarks that didn't cause me physical pain within the hour. Look at Clarity Aloft and QT Halos as well as ANR.
 
TommyG said:
I just bought a pair of DC 10-13 brand new for 300. For me, could I afford lightspeed, even Bose. Can I justify spending that mich, No! I have been using Telex that I bought in 1994 when I first started flying until now. Sometimes the fancy are jus that fancy.

And I don't trust bying used, I have a little germaphobia when it comes to stuff like that. Also if it craps out a week later, you SOL.
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Sometimes not, IMHO you just made the worst value judgement you possibly could unless you only fly a couple of hours a year.
 
The bose, in my opinion, are worth it.

Presently I use the u-fly-mic, which is a microphone which is inserted in any off-the-shelf Bose QC-15 nose cancelling music headset. The company will TSO the whole arrangement if you need the TSO, but it's not necessary unless you're flying professionally. It's got the same sound and electronics as the A20, for a lot less money. The battery lasts a long time, and I've been using one for a couple of years now, worldwide.

They work well in light airplanes and noisy big airplanes, too.

If DC style headclamp headsets are uncomfortable (most of them are after an hour or two), there are ways to make them more comfortable, and quieter. Oregon Aero makes what they call a "hush kit," which is density foam that goes into the headset to attenuate noise. They also make a pair of earseals out of "temperfoam," which is dense, temperature sensitive foam that molds to your facial contours.

I always feel "hot spots" on my head when wearing a DC-style headset. Oregon Aero makes a wide sheepskin headband that makes a world of difference when wearing those headsets for a long time. I used to use the Oregon Aero setup in large radial engine aircraft that were quite loud inside,and I found them invaluable. They worked really well in light aircraft.

Another option is something like a Lightspeed headset off Ebay. they're quite light and comfortable (a little bulky), and can be had at a good price.

When I began flying, I didn't have a headset, and when I got my first one, it made a lot of difference in my ability to communicate. I decided that a good headset was one of the most important investments in personal equipment I'd make, and have always tried to get a good one. You don't need to spend a fortune, but you should invest in a quality headset, and do it after trying as many as you can.

Last year I flew with someone who had a new A20; they loaned it to two other crew members to try out on the flight, and both bought one online as soon as they landed. It was that good.
 
Yes, I've heard good things about the ANR conversion kit. I think it comes from somewhere in the North West. I want to say Seattle Avionics, but I'm sure that isn't right.

A couple of the guys on another forum have done the conversion and are quite happy with it.
 
I suggest you take an hours flight wearing them or at least put a pair on in the pilot shop and browse or read for an hour or until they hurt; for me it's 15 minutes.
 
Henning said:
I have never worn a set of David Clarks that didn't cause me physical pain within the hour. Look at Clarity Aloft and QT Halos as well as ANR.
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I was in pain with my DC 13.4's towards the end of an 8 hr. cross country flight. Now I got Zulu's and couldn't be happier. :)
 
I have never donned a set of Bose, but I did try some lightspeed zulus and for my narrow wedge head , they were not tight enough . If I turned my head fast, they would feel like they were going to fall off.


I bought a DC H10 13.4 S and have had no problems. I also grabbed the cloth ear covers right away and been using them from day one. The only problem I have ever had was sometimes , depending on the sunglasses I wear, It tends to dig in behind my ears.


I have been on the fence on doing the ANR upgrade from http://www.headsetsinc.com/

but have not made the plunge yet.

Kimberly. Feel free to try mine out on Saturday if you like.
http://www.headsetsinc.com/
 
Sometimes not, IMHO you just made the worst value judgement you possibly could unless you only fly a couple of hours a year

I easily fly approx 100 a year. I have been doing that since 94. That was with my telex too. So in my opinion I now have an addition $700.
And not for me but someone that is looking to build time, thats some good flight hours.
 
Yep, I flew over 100 hours last year with a David Clark H10-13.4 on my head. I find it to be TOTALLY comfortable. It's difficult for me to understand how anyone experiences anything else. It doesn't weigh much, it adjusts to my fat head. No complaints.
 
MBDiagMan said:
Yep, I flew over 100 hours last year with a David Clark H10-13.4 on my head. I find it to be TOTALLY comfortable. It's difficult for me to understand how anyone experiences anything else. It doesn't weigh much, it adjusts to my fat head. No complaints.
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I've had no problems with mine either, and I have found plenty of high quality non-aviation headsets to be uncomfortable. It's like cowboy hats and motorcycle helmets... either it fits your noggin and it's comfortable, or it doesn't fit your noggin and it's downright painful. Everybody's head is different.
 
Softcomm C-90 for me. Noice cancelling, low clamping force and they just work fine. Keep in mind, everybody is different. What works for me might not work for you. If possible, try before you buy.
 
I was actually talking to the guys at Pilot-usa today regards to another issue. I have a bluelink blutooth adapter but can not stand the excess cable lengths and the HUGE female connections that the headset plugs into. I was going to order one of their plugs and hard wire it to my DC's when I did my ANR upgrade. But I actually may order one of their DC replicas with ANR built in and they would custom build my connector at no additional cost. ( once they verify with their engineers that what I want is doable)

They are an option for ANR headsets at a fraction of the cost of LS and Bose....
 
I really like my Lightspeed Zulu's. The noise canceling feature works great. That said they weren't cheap but I fly often enough (almost daily) so it's worth the money to me.
 
I've got like boo coo headsets right now, I might sell a couple of the cheapies. I'm keeping my Bose and my David Clark though.
 
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