Ask HN: What are the best noise cancelling headphones?

The QC35. We have had several models in our office and the 35 has by far the best cancelling while retaining speech intelligibility. It's audible artifacs are more in the 300 Hz range as opposed to the two octaves above it as is the case with the 25.

I was a mastering engineer before becoming a founder, and my cofounder was DSP engineer. We're both allergic to bad processing so we were pretty sceptic about everything Bose. Their other stuff is terrible, but this is awesome. Just did 20 hours of travelling, couldn't be happier. I also have 1400 USD custom mould Ultimate Ears but I'll never use those again on planes.

Only downside I've come across is some pitch bending when listening to high pitched strings in soundtracks (Rogue One, Arrival)

There are a lot of Bose votes in here. As someone who wears glasses regularly, I haven't found a pair of over-ears that are compatible, so my experience is mostly with earbuds.

I tried the Bose wireless noise cancelling earbuds, QC30, and they were probably a 2.5/5. Short battery life, daily connectivity issues, awkward neckband (very heavy), and emitting a high-pitched artifact sound when using the active noise cancelling. I gave them two weeks before returning. The ear tips were amazing though — I'm thinking of trying to retrofit the Bose tips to AirPods.

I've been using the DW Pro 2 and absolutely love it: https://en-us.sennheiser.com/phone-headset-wireless-call-cen...

Can't say I care for the QC35, I've seen it have significant microphone issues sometimes if you are using it for the headset feature.

I've been using Bose QuietComfort 35 and they have been great! https://www.amazon.com/Bose-QuietComfort-Wireless-Headphones...

Why would you ask HN? Chances are anyone here has only bought a few different pairs, making it impossible for them to tell you which pair is the best.

http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-noise-cancelling-headp...

Bose QC 25/35 over ear headphones are the best I've come across. Not Ideal for sleeping on a plane but they block out nearly all plane noise (which is why I bought them. Good sound reproduction, and with the 25s you can use them as normal headphones if the battery dies.

Another vote for QC35, though this is my first and only Active Noise Cancelling headphones. But I am amazed at their noise cancelling capabilities. And amazed at how much easier it is to focus with these headphones on.

I dunno about 'best', but I have a pair of CB3 Hush and they work pretty well. Much more affordable than the QC35. I tried both and wouldn't pay a few hundred dollars more for the QC35.

Another vote Bose QC35. A killer feature is it maintains a Bluetooth connection to 2 different devices and is smart enough to know what to do when you pause one and start the other.

QC 25