Blocking out the background

If you ever travel by train, bus or plane, then you’ve probably already discovered how much more pleasant journeys can be if you can listen to something while on the move. But how do you deal with roar, rattle and background babble? Sound engineer Peter Bosher has some ideas

Whether it’s music, an audio book, drama, catch-up radio or TV programmes, podcasts or even work-related reading material, the MP3-player in all its forms has made listening on the move easier than ever. Now you can carry enough material on an iPod or other player to keep you going for a long holiday – but can you actually hear it?

The volume of the engines inside an aeroplane is astonishing, not to mention the clanging and rattle of over and underground trains.

There are two types of earphones which can solve this problem: noise-cancelling, and noise-blocking. Which type you prefer will depend on what’s most important to you; the quality of sound, the clarity of speech, the convenience, the price, and whether you still need to be able to hear what’s going on around you.

Noise-cancelling earphones take a high-tech approach. They use tiny microphones to pick up the noise around you. They then reverse the phase, and mix that with the audio you want to hear. Then this “anti-sound” part cancels out the real noise and artificially makes everything seem much quieter. It’s hard to believe until you hear it, but it really does work.

Noise-blocking earphones are very simple. They are made like earplugs, usually of soft foam or rubber, and fit snugly into the ear, blocking out the noise around you.

The magic noise-cancelling phones work really well for continuous noise like plane engines, but not so well for random train clatter. They also need batteries, so are more bulky and fussy. The cancelling trickery does tamper with the original audio, so you’ll never hear a really clean version of the sound.

Noise-blocking phones are smaller, simpler, less fuss, and give great sounding audio. They include a choice of earplugs for a snug and comfortable fit which helps improve the audio quality and block noise effectively.

The one downside to this is that you can miss important sounds like announcements. This wouldn’t happen with the noise-cancelling type, so it’s worth thinking about.

There’s a wide choice of both types from popular makes such as Sony, Philips and JVC, but if you care enough to pay more than £50, then we have examples of two of each type of what we think are the best of the specialist makes.