How Do Noise-Canceling Headphones Works?

Many people love music, but some love to listen to music only on their headphones as it offers them privacy. Listening to music using your headphones offers you privacy and do not disturb others. However, external noises can mix with your music and make your listening experience less enjoyable.

You might have experienced noise problems while traveling on a bus, train, or plane. For such problems, there are noise-canceling headphones that dampen the external noises and stop them from reaching your ears. Let us check how do noise-canceling headphones work and offer you a noise-free listening experience.

Passive noise cancellation

There are two types of noise cancellation in headphones- active and passive. Most standard headphones offer passive noise cancellation as their materials block some of the sound waves, especially the high frequencies. However, the best passive noise reduction devices are circumaural types that are designed for maximum noise filtration.

They have a stronger seal over your ears and use noise-absorbing material such as dense foam, as found in some expensive headphones. They simply fit better into your ear canal form, as in-ear buds do, sound-insulating devices can block up to 20 decibels of background sound.

Active noise cancellation 

There are various noises like the construction machines running near your home or office, the sound of the jet engine that you hear in a plane, that passive noise-canceling headphones cannot handle. This is where the active noise cancellation headphones come in. There material and structure creates a high-quality barrier between the external environment and your ear to block the noises.

They have a microphone that listens to the high frequencies and produces a sound wave that cancels out the existing sound. In this way, they reduce external noises significantly.

As a result, you hear less of the main’ noise,’ and you may hear nothing at all in certain situations of strong, active noise cancellation. It works best with steady sounds because these frequencies can be picked up and reversed by the microphones.

The machine will not cancel unusual noises like shouting, honking, or anything that is not normal, and you will still be able to hear it. Active noise cancelation is, therefore, not the same as sound-proofing; it simply reduces noise in some environments.

Size of the headphones

In addition to the microphone and components used to pinpoint and generate the new sound, active noise cancelation requires a battery to power the system. It means that any headset with active noise cancellation must be big enough to accommodate these components. Since wireless headphones need powered batteries and usually come with hands-free calling microphones, combining these two makes sense.

The best active noise-canceling headphones support wireless and voice calling with a paired smartphone. However, this raises the element size and makes each headset a bit bigger and more bulky with the technology.

Should you use noise-canceling headphones?

The usefulness of headphones that offer active noise cancellation depends largely on what you want to do with them and where you intend to use them. If you listen to music indoors or in quieter environments, noise-canceling headphones would not be of much importance for you. Also, if you listen to audio in noisy environments, in certain situations, noise cancelation is only really effective.

For active noise cancellation headphones, frequent flyers and cyclists are likely to benefit the most. These devices work the best while traveling in an open commuter train or bus with the hum of an aircraft engine or hiss of the train. These headphones can also help you to concentrate or sleep in these environments, but the inability to cut off all sound means you won’t see any significant difference in what good passive noise cancellation headphone offers.

Final Words

These are the points about the working of noise cancellation headphones. If you live in an area that receives a moderate amount of noise, installing the accessories like noise canceling windows Melbourne can also help. However, you can use the noise cancellation headphones while traveling (not driving), and in other noise filled places. You must comply with the traffic rules while driving a car or any other vehicle and not use headphones. Now, as you understand the working of these hi-tech devices, you can decide whether or not to use noise cancellation headphones.