While the quality of the A20’s music when sourced through the audio panel is quite good, it’s not the best in the group, in our view. We covered this update in the September 2015 issue of Aviation Consumer and liked it. A new field-replaceable cable/ANR module assembly changes all of that for the better, enabling Bluetooth music capability and the ability to prioritize multiple wireless sources. Worth noting is the A20 came out on top in previous Aviation Consumer reviews, but we’ve been dinging it of late for lack of modern Bluetooth features. This past July, Bose released an update to its five-year-old A20, which adds much-needed music Bluetooth features to the set’s stellar ANR performance. Bluetooth volume controls were made at the maximum volume of the iPhone. All audio panel radio and music comparisons were made with the headset volume controls at maximum and no adjustments made to the panel volume controls or music input volume. To determine ease of use, all headsets were used without first reading the manual, for example, to see if the Bluetooth pairing process was intuitive. The quality of radio transmissions, panel-provided music and Bluetooth music was compared directly. Headset comfort and performance was evaluated both with and without eyeglasses.Įvaluation criteria included the noise level with ANR both on and off. iPhones 5S and 6+ were used for Bluetooth. In our trials, each headset was evaluated with its noise canceling on and off, receiving typical radio transmissions and ATIS briefings, and with music streamed in through the audio panel as well as through the onboard Bluetooth when applicable. This can be a hefty invoice, so get a quote first. But to do that, you’ll pay a shop to install an interface jack. There is an option to bypass batteries and plug them in to ship’s power through a LEMO or Redel plug. They also all come with straight interface cords, universally adjustable boom microphones and batteries. What might you expect from a headset that cracks the $1000 price point? A carry case, of course, and all four come equipped. What is critical is fit and finish, Bluetooth performance, music quality, ease of operating the ANR control module and feature set, plus the headsets’ ability to sustain abuse on a day-to-day basic. While we’ve done this in the past, we don’t think raw specs alone are as critical as real-world performance in a variety of aircraft cabins on a variety of heads. No, we didn’t send the headsets through an audio lab. We also plugged each one of the headsets into an avionics test bench to evaluate microphone modulation quality. Eyeglasses, ballcaps, earings, small heads, big heads and big hair were all considerations. As we’ve done with previous headset reviews, we handed them out to a diverse group of pilots for their feedback. We flew with them, of course, in a variety of aircraft (piston singles, twins and a turboprop) and with different audio systems. They include Lightspeed’s Zulu PFX, the updated Bose A20, Harmon’s AKG AV100 and David Clark’s on-ear DC Pro-X. The ones that made the top four got there based on our previous independent evaluations. While our evaluation turned up an overall favorite, each model has its strengths and weaknesses and our takeaway is it’s hard to make a wrong choice. To subjectively determine which model takes the top spot (not an easy task, considering the personal nature of selecting a headset), we spent the better part of a year flying with four models we think represent the best of the best. Moreover, models in this high end of the market sport more advanced features than ever, while promising the best sound quality, comfort and build quality money can buy. For buyers willing to drop as much as $1100 for an aviation headset, the current market has no shortage of choices.
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