Clarity Aloft PIREP

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tmdarkansas

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I flew with my new Clarity Aloft Classic headset for the first time yesterday. I also put a couple of hours in with them today. I have to say that I am VERY impressed with them. My other headset is a Lightspeed 20XL headset that I bought back in 2006 when I first started flying a Cessna 150. I now have a Sonex, which is a little noisier, but the Lightspeed still worked well. I have been wanting a lighter, less bulky headset, so I bought the Alofts. Even though the Alofts are not ANR, they are more quiet than my old headset. There is no discomfort from the in-ear design.

I believe that anyone interested in the in-ear headsets won't be disappointed with the performance, so don't be worried about not having ANR. With this type of headset, you don't need it. You do need to keep your ears clean, though, but that's not a bad thing. :)
 
I've been using in-the-ear headsets for about 14 years now. Purchased them from one of the only companies that actually made them at the time.

I use a Quiet Technologies headset. Very good quality, comfortable and no batteries needed. Used them every day as a CFI in piston aircraft, and in the corporate flight environment. They're less expensive than Clarity Aloft, but I wouldn't mind giving them a try.

IMO, in-the-ear are much better than traditional headsets, which feel like a clamp on your head. Even worse if you wear eyeglasses.

Not only do you need to keep those ears clean, that goes without saying. Clean fingers also required, when you squeeze the ear plug so it can fit in your ear.

Good Luck with your new headset.
 
both of the above posters are absolutely correct with the in ear stuff, i use CA's in my 182 and at work flying the CRJ, they work great in both platforms and won't go back to anything over the head or on the on ear. I've been using CA's for the past 6 years and they're great.
 
I've flown over 2,200 hours in he last couple years on my CAs, and there's no chance of going back to head-clamps. Even the lightest models, such as the Bose, can't shake a stick at the comfort of Clarity Aloft; Everything from a loud 4-banger 172 to a B738, with most of the time in a C208B. After an hour you forget you even have a headset on...
 
My wife lover her CA headset. I'm not overly enamored with the "in your year" type and most of the time wear my Lightspeeds. Occassionaly when I have a right seat passenger I'll put my eartips on hers and give the passenger mine. Function is fine (in fact hit has a larger range of volume than the lightspeeds which I have to crank all the way up to hear the XM on). Downside is hers lack Bluetooth (don't know if they have a later model) so no calling for clearances with them.

The clarity aloft guys have been pretty good to us in the booth (offering up different size and density of eartips for her to try). The downside is when hers broke their service isn't anywhere as nice as the competition. Slow and $$$$
 
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I wouldn't trade my CAs for even the top-o-the-line Bose or anything else. They're quiet, lightweight, and don't clamp my glasses uncomfortably to the side of my head.

I've had mine for about 8 years. My only complaint is that I've had to have an ear piece replaced a couple of times, but CA service was prompt and reasonable.
 
Any in the ear headset is typically going to be quieter than headphone/clamp style.

After talking with a family friend well respected in the field of acoustic research and audiology, I'll likely be relegating my (new to me) Lightspeed Zulu2s in favor of a CA headset.
 
I'm not overly happy with the head band the CA uses. It's VERY uncomfortable for my (don't say it) big head.

On the other hand I'm taxiing across IAD one day using my wife's headset and about halfway through...

GND: Navion 27K. That radio...

(I'm thinking now what...)
GND: ... is the clearest thing I've heard. Puts the big guys to shame.

I pointed out it was likely the microphone on the headset I was wearing.
 
flyingron said:
I'm not overly happy with the head band the CA uses. It's VERY uncomfortable for my (don't say it) big head.
Click to expand...
Headband? That semi-circular wire is supposed to go in back of your neck...
 
I have Clarity Alofts and absolutely love them. No more headset headaches. Although I still reach up thinking, where did my headset go?
 
flyingron said:
... I pointed out it was likely the microphone on the headset I was wearing.
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I've been told that the mic is the same one that is used for stage performers and singers. The ear transducers are equally high quality. I have far less trouble understanding ATC with the CA headset than with anything else I've ever used.
 
Everskyward said:
Headband? That semi-circular wire is supposed to go in back of your neck...
Click to expand...

It goes around the back of the head just behind the ears. Whatever you call it, it doesn't fit me well.
 
I've tried to purchase QTs a couple of times but they're always out of stock. If I had a product in that much demand I'd be finding some manufacturing alternatives. Talk about leaving money on the table.
 
flyingron said:
It goes around the back of the head just behind the ears. Whatever you call it, it doesn't fit me well.
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I have been drooling over CAs but also have a huge head. This concerns me.

I really need a lower profile headset with the Trinidad.
 
CA's for me.

I've had DC and Bose ANR sets and the CA's are more comfortable, sound better, and I sound better.

I didn't get the BT option... I can plug my phone into the Audio panel and do it that way. Also, if you look at the pricing, the BT option is within 25$ of buying the BT separately. Not sure what happens when the batteries die on the built in version
 
Everskyward said:
Headband? That semi-circular wire is supposed to go in back of your neck...
Click to expand...

This is such an insensitive thing to say. Privileged people with necks seem to think everyone is just like them, or should be if they're not. With a better work ethic and certain esoteric exercises they could be, if they would only try. Just a little more self-reliance and a little less willingness to presume the government or some charitible organization is going to come along and compensate the not-so-fortunate is all it would take to overcome the deficiency . . . the typical person with a neck might say or think in this fashion. Easy enough for them to think this way since they were born with a neck and just take it for granted . . . never giving a thought to those who were born without one.

Overcoming lack of a neck is another issue however. I merely mean to point out the issue at hand (I know . . . here I go presuming everyone has hands) is the blind assumption that everyone has a neck. It's just not so. We've all seen them if you think about it. Next time you're attending a truck or tractor pull just give some attention to those sitting with you on the bleachers. It's a sad fact that some people have heads that grow right out of the torso. It's not their fault. Then just think how someone reading this thread on POA is going to feel once they realize they can never wear a set of CA's correctly. How can that semi-circular wire go in back of a neck if one doesn't have a neck? If the CA design makes no accommodation for neckless people then it should be brought to their attention. Mentioning something about filing suit under the North American Disability and Short Neck Act should get them stirred up.

And while on this subject, unthinking flight instructors so often tell their students to "Keep your head on a swivel!" when flying in busy airspace. There's just no excuse for saying such thoughtless and cruel things to students who, in some cases, cannot perform a swivel without turning their entire upper body - clearly an impossibility in a C-150 or other typical training aircraft. Instructing a student without a neck to "swivel" could very well be patially responsible for the dwindling ranks of new aviation students.
 
ChrisK said:
I have been drooling over CAs but also have a huge head. This concerns me. ...
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When I was racing, I always had to hunt down the largest size helmet a vendor made, typically 7 3/4" or 7 7/8" The only baseball cap I own that fits came from http://www.bighatstore.com

CA's have worked fine for me since they came on the market maybe 5+ years ago. The way you wear it, head size really doesn't matter much.
 
LDJones said:
I've tried to purchase QTs a couple of times but they're always out of stock. If I had a product in that much demand I'd be finding some manufacturing alternatives. Talk about leaving money on the table.
Click to expand...

I got tired of waiting, so I built a pair of CA knockoffs using a wire behind the head motorcycle intercom frame, some good in-ear earbuds and a Bose mic. Sounds great, quieter than a Bose X, and you forget you're wearing them.

All in parts about $100, not including the Shure earbuds I already had. Best part? Freedom from batteries and power supplies of any kind.

My ANR's are now relegated to the back seats.
 
Chip Sylverne said:
I got tired of waiting, so I built a pair of CA knockoffs using a wire behind the head motorcycle intercom frame, some good in-ear earbuds and a Bose mic. Sounds great, quieter than a Bose X, and you forget you're wearing them.

All in parts about $100, not including the Shure earbuds I already had. Best part? Freedom from batteries and power supplies of any kind.

My ANR's are now relegated to the back seats.
Click to expand...

Interesting. Some construction details and pics would be appreciated.
 
LDJones said:
Interesting. Some construction details and pics would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

My "interpretation" is out at the hangar. I'll see if I can't get a few photos in the next couple days. In the meantime, search this site and Google DIY in-ear headset for ideas. I'm by no means the only one to copy a good concept.

My innovation was using the pre-made wire microphone holder. Bending piano wire in the correct fit seemed too much like a pia. I just drilled a hole in the plastic Bose boom mount and it snapped right in. From there it was just soldering and heat shrink.
 
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wanttaja said:
Some info on mine:

http://www.bowersflybaby.com/tech/h_headset.html

Not wearing it currently; when it's 40 degrees out, the pilots of a open-cockpit airplanes kinda LIKE having two cans pressed over their ears. Worked fine last summer, though.

Ron Wanttaja
Click to expand...

I didn't use a transformer, just an in-line stereo earbud volume control. Works great. To save on labor, I bought a headset wiring harness with the plugs and stereo/mono switch installed. Then I ran it through a Radio Schlock project box. The mic wires just passed through. I cut and spliced a 1/4" phone jack and mounted it in the box for the earbuds. Could have put the volume pot in that, but for $10, it seemed easier to just buy one already wired up.
 
MikeS said:
This is such an insensitive thing to say. Privileged people with necks seem to think everyone is just like them, or should be if they're not. With a better work ethic and certain esoteric exercises they could be, if they would only try. Just a little more self-reliance and a little less willingness to presume the government or some charitible organization is going to come along and compensate the not-so-fortunate is all it would take to overcome the deficiency . . . the typical person with a neck might say or think in this fashion. Easy enough for them to think this way since they were born with a neck and just take it for granted . . . never giving a thought to those who were born without one.



Overcoming lack of a neck is another issue however. I merely mean to point out the issue at hand (I know . . . here I go presuming everyone has hands) is the blind assumption that everyone has a neck. It's just not so. We've all seen them if you think about it. Next time you're attending a truck or tractor pull just give some attention to those sitting with you on the bleachers. It's a sad fact that some people have heads that grow right out of the torso. It's not their fault. Then just think how someone reading this thread on POA is going to feel once they realize they can never wear a set of CA's correctly. How can that semi-circular wire go in back of a neck if one doesn't have a neck? If the CA design makes no accommodation for neckless people then it should be brought to their attention. Mentioning something about filing suit under the North American Disability and Short Neck Act should get them stirred up.



And while on this subject, unthinking flight instructors so often tell their students to "Keep your head on a swivel!" when flying in busy airspace. There's just no excuse for saying such thoughtless and cruel things to students who, in some cases, cannot perform a swivel without turning their entire upper body - clearly an impossibility in a C-150 or other typical training aircraft. Instructing a student without a neck to "swivel" could very well be patially responsible for the dwindling ranks of new aviation students.
Click to expand...


This is the funniest post I've read in a long time. Literally LOL.
 
I never thought about what it might be like to be neckless. Where does you collar go?
 
LDJones said:
I've tried to purchase QTs a couple of times but they're always out of stock. If I had a product in that much demand I'd be finding some manufacturing alternatives. Talk about leaving money on the table.
Click to expand...

I was going to buy the QTs but, same thing, out of stock. That's why I bought the CAs instead. I'm happy with the purchase, but I wouldn't have minded spending a little less money. I have read that others love the QTs.
 
Again, it is not the "neck". The thing starts at your ear (where the mic boom comes over) and wraps around the back of your HEAD.
 
flyingron said:
Again, it is not the "neck". The thing starts at your ear (where the mic boom comes over) and wraps around the back of your HEAD.
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Mine does not touch my HEAD it rests somewhere in back of my NECK.
 
I really find the idea that I can build one of these for 1/4 the price really intriguing and worthwhile.
 
Everskyward said:
Mine does not touch my HEAD it rests somewhere in back of my NECK.
Click to expand...

Exactly. I wear CA underneath a leather flying helmet. The back band rests BELOW the bottom of the leather helmet (and barely touches my neck).

If it is going around the back of your head, you are wearing it wrong.
 
Okay, so here are some pics of my little project.

The first is what you start off with. A few screws hidden beneath foam pads and the integrated mic and speaker strip off, leaving you with the bare frame. Note the little metal tang where the earpiece was, that is critical.

Note the hole drilled partially through the base of the Bose mic. The tang fits in that hole, along with spring pressure from the wire frame, keeps the mic in place. The Bose has a JST connector that is the same as size as an iPod battery connector. Polarity on the mic connections doesn't matter. I just spliced the iPod connector onto the harness mic leads. I wanted to be ale to replace he mic if need be, as with the Bose you can't just replace the mic element at the end of the boom.

Since the headset harness was pre-made, I just checked the positions on the plugs and noted the color wire. Then ran the harness through the box, cut into the cable sheath and soldered in a plug for the earbuds. Make sure to solder the shields. Then I plug the earbuds volume control into the box, and the earbuds into the control.

It's comfortable, quiet and cheap. Stays in place. And I can wear any hat. Best of all, no power required. Got about ten hours wearing it so far, no squalks yet. A clip in the mic lead keeps the weight of the cable from pulling down the frame.
 

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Chip Sylverne said:
Okay, so here are some pics of my little project.

The first is what you start off with. A few screws hidden beneath foam pads and the integrated mic and speaker strip off, leaving you with the bare frame. Note the little metal tang where the earpiece was, that is critical.

Note the hole drilled partially through the base of the Bose mic. The tang fits in that hole, along with spring pressure from the wire frame, keeps the mic in place. That matches a JST connector that is the same as size as an iPod battery connector. Polarity on the mic connections doesn't matter.
Click to expand...

Missed the pics.
 
Timely discussion since I demoed the Clarity on a 2-hour flight yesterday. Count me as one who understands why they are so popular - they really are incredibly quiet - but as one who didn't like the plugged ear sensation at all.
 
So I'm gonna resurrect this thread to relight that head-vs-neck argument...

Just kidding, wanted to make another PIREP in light of recent events:

Late January (on or about the 25th) the right ear just stopped working. The first flight that day they were fine, 10 minutes later it didn't work. I contacted CA to see what my options were, because I didn't think there was that long of a warranty. Unbeknownst to me, it's 3 years. I sent it in via USPS, and it was received on February 1st. They originally said it would take 15 days, but 8 days later, I got an email stating the work was completed and it's being shipped back to me for free, due in on the 10th. According to their invoice, the earpiece transducer failed, and they replaced the right earpiece. (Side note: They also state the microphone cover was replaced. I had actually put on a smaller one I had, because I think theirs are too big. Not thrilled about that...)

Overall I'm still extremely happy with this headset, and am actually surprised it took this long to break. After under 2 years, 2,100 hours, and 1,400 flights (and 1,400 times putting them on and off), I figured those small earpiece wires would break first and sooner. After flying a few times with my backup AvComms, I'me very close to buying another pair and using these refurbed ones as my backups, just so I don't have to lose them again. (Another side note: I also had to buy new sunglasses with smaller frames just to make it bearable to use my backup "head clamps." One flight without passengers I elected to use the overhead speaker and hand-mic just to get some relief...)
 
You've got a better experience with CA service than I did. Not only was fixing my wife's NOT free (cost me $150) but it was incredibly slow turn around.
 
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