Sennheiser CXC 700 Active Noise-Canceling Ear-Canal Headphones

Product Description

Sennheiser's inaugural travel headphones with NoiseGard/digital and TalkThrough function. Engineered for discerning business travelers and frequent fliers.

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 2.5 x 6.5 x 3.9 inches ; 1.6 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: B004HD4L1U
• Item model number: CXC 700
• Batteries: 1 AAA batteries required. (included)
  

Price : $229.95
You Save : $90.00 (28%)

List Price : $319.95

Technical Details

• Active noise cancellation with NoiseGard technology: choice of three different modes to suit listening envoirment.
• Functions without batteries in passive mode.
• Small yet powerful 10 MM drivers and headphone factor allows users to sleep on their sides while traveling.
• TalkThrough function enables users to communicate with others without removing the headphones.

Costumer Reviews

Since I travel a lot, I was excited to learn about Sennheiser's new noise-canceling earbuds; I have a Sennheiser over-the-ear set of headphones that has good sound but which drives me nuts after a few hours of wearing them. I find ear-canal headphones more comfortable for longer usage, plus they have the advantage of taking up less space in my bag.

These are not standard earbuds. Sennheiser has attached a battery-operated (one AAA battery, included) noise-cancelation control box a little more than halfway down the cord. Even though the control box contains the battery, it is lightweight and positioned low enough so that it doesn't tug on the earbuds. You control all of the features from it: noise-cancelation on/off, volume, mode, and mute. The noise-cancelation is "active" -- that is, you have to power it on or else the set operates like regular in-ear headphones. The Talk-Through button is especially welcome since you can instantly stop the sound, even though it may still be running on your device, and talk to people, albeit with the equivalent of earplugs still in your ears. I like that I no longer will have to rip my earbuds out to talk to a flight attendant and then fumble to reinsert them. Each of the three modes, selected by multiple pressing of the mode button and confirmed by one to three beeps, blocks out different frequencies of sounds. The sliding volume control can be used in conjunction with the volume control on your device; its range of volume is fairly small.

I tested these earbuds in a variety of settings at home to mimic certain situations. With the earbuds inserted, I selected a relatively quiet vocal track. I turned on a talk show on TV. I discovered that the third mode (for crowds) blocked out the TV sound best, and then I kept jacking up the volume on the TV until I felt it interfered with the music. When I took the earbuds out, I was blown away by how loud the TV had become. I also tested them in a laundry room with both the dryer and the washing machine running. Again, I found a mode that blocked out the sound almost completely. The last test was running an extremely loud vacuum cleaner in a tiled bathroom where the sound would reverberate. This was the only situation where I was still aware of the noise in the background, although it was greatly minimized. Again, I was surprised by how loud the room was when I removed the earbuds. This set gets exceptionally high marks for its ability to block out different kinds of noise.

But what about the sound? That's where this set gets mixed reviews from me. Although the sound was high-quality, without distortion, it seemed that I had to increase the volume on my iPod much higher than usual AND had to increase the volume on the control box. I decided to compare this set to my favorite passive noise-isolating earbuds, the Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5vi Noise Isolating Earphones. I listened to both classical music and rock through the Sennheiser set at a comfortable listening volume. The sound was clear and didn't have any hiss. Whether the noise-cancellation was on or off, the music sounded exactly the same; the noise-cancellation only affects the perception of outside noise. I then plugged my Ultimate Ears into my iPod -- and almost blew out my eardrums. The difference in volume, with the same iPod settings, was shocking. I had my husband, who hears less well than I do and likes his music louder than I do, listen through the Sennheisers to see what he thought, and he said the music sounded good but "distant." I wouldn't go that far because I was able to get the volume I wanted, but anyone who is hard of hearing or who likes to blast music in their ears will not be happy with these. However, the sound quality of the Sennheisers was slightly better than that of the Ultimate Ears. The sound quality is excellent, but the volume range is limited.

These come with a zippered case, three sizes of silicone inserts (medium is factory-installed), extra diaphragm guards (be careful you don't toss these little pieces out!), a cleaning tool, an audio adapter, an in-flight adapter (two-pronged), and a manual. The cord is coated with a flexible black silicone-like material. The only thing I wish the manufacturer had included was a way of keeping the cords neat so that I don't have to fiddle with them each time to extricate the buds from the cord.'

Pros: comfort, sound quality, noise-cancelation, Talk-Through control, storage case, ease-of-use, ear buds continue to work even when the noise-canceling battery dies.

Cons: sound volume

Frequent fliers and people who listen to music in loud, busy settings will appreciate the noise cancelation features. People who like to listen to loud music, however, are likely to be disappointed. If you would rather have portable noise-canceling headphones outside the ear, try Sennheiser PXC 250 II Collapsible Noise-Canceling Headphones.

-- Debbie Lee Wesselmann

I have gone through a lot of noise-cancelling headphones over the past few years, including both over-ear (Bose QC) and in-ear. None of them had good sound, some were distinctly uncomfortable and the noise reduction was often not good. For a long time I settled on a set of Ultimate Ears headphones with Comply ear tips that provided great sound and isolation, but I often found myself having to pull them out many times during a flight.

The Sennheiser CXC 700 headphones were recently put to a test during a cross-country flight. I experimented with the three "modes" of noise cancellation - each targets a different set of frequencies, and ended up using Mode 3, with the broadest range of cancellation. This was good, but then I used the feature to adjust the level of cancellation on a per-ear basis, and got even better results. (My right ear's frequency response is uneven since recovering from an illness several years ago.)

The noise cancellation itself worked well - it did not completely eliminate noise from the engine, etc., but the noise was reduced enough that I no longer noticed it and it was not wearing, the way loud engine noise can be.

I especially liked the "talk through" feature, missing on many products of this nature. When activated, you hear your surroundings quite clear and with still some noise reduction. Another plus is that when the electronics are switched off, the headphones still work (without the noise cancellation.) The control box has a volume control, but I found that the volume from the Sennheisers was lower than what I'd get from some other models I have used.

The headphones themselves were comfortable and are asymmetrical so it is easy to distinguish left from right, though there is no marking that I could see. They fit comfortably and reasonably securely in my ear. The CXC 700 comes with three sizes of silicone ear tips, and for best sound you'll want to choose the tips that fit most snugly, otherwise you will find the sound weak and shrill. I've never had good luck with silicone tips - these worked reasonably well for me but I am going to see if I can get some Comply foam tips that fit. (Sadly, the ones for my UE headphones don't fit the Sennheisers.)

The sound quality, with properly-fitting tips, was excellent. I had decent (but not overblown) bass and undistorted treble.

The cord is usefully long, both between the headphones and the small control box and between the box and the nicely-shaped right-angle plug, and I did not find the cord to be "microphonic", in that rubbing the cord did not induce a loud noise in the headphones. The control box has a metal clip to attach it to your shirt, etc. A nice zippered case is included, with an interior elastic mesh pocket that can hold the 1/4" adapter and the dual-prong "airline adapter", though I have not seen a plane that uses such a socket in many years. The case is somewhat odd in that there is no obvious pocket for the headphones themselves - I guess you're supposed to just coil them up and stuff them in. It works, but some sort of cord organizer would have been nice.

I recently read a comparison of ten noise-cancelling headphones and the Sennheiser CXC 700 was the "Editors' Choice". True, they are more expensive than many, but both the sound quality and the noise reduction is first-rate. I like them.