Squawk Shoppe ANR headsets...any good?

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TazzyTazzy

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Mitch
Im still working on my PPL. I'm currently using a used sigtronics PNR headset I found on eBay...time to get ANR.

Looking to get an ANR headset. Saw the squawk shoppe and love the designs, not to mention the prices, but can't seem to find any reviews. Perhaps my search skills are failing me. Can anyone point me in the direction of any reviews?

Does anyone know how they compare with Bose ANR or Zulu.2?? I have not used any ANR yet and don't have a reference yet. Any pointers/tips will be much appreciated.

I'm scared to order a sweet looking headset and it not perform well or fit on my head. I wear a medium sized motorcycle helmet, so I guess I have an average sized head. Lol
 
I also wear a medium sized motorcycle helmet - I can attest to the quality and comfort of The Squawk Shoppes headsets - they are of the highest order. I would not hesitate to purchase one (and yes, they are super cool looking)
 
I bought an Arcus ANR headset last year. It is lightweight, feels kind of like a DC in terms of ruggedness, and very comfortable. I went with the flex mic. I tried on the Bose and Lightspeed headsets, and it's tough to compare the two. The Arcus is almost half the price, and in my mind, well worth the purchase. I couldn't tell the difference in the ANR between Bose and the Arcus.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
 
The owner of Squawk Shoppe posts here on POA. Hopefully he will be along shortly to answer some questions for you.
 
Good morning!

Yes, because we are new, there are not a lot of reviews on our product, but they are out there. We have reviews on our site on our Pireps page here: http://www.thesquawkshoppe.com/pages/testimonials

We have 2 professional reviews, one in Helicopter magazine, and one in Plane & Pilot. I don't know if there are digital versions of them, but I think we have the content copied in our blog.

As far as your head goes, you are thinking with the right mindset. Other than performance, the fit on your particular head will be crucial. That's why we have the 30 day guarantee. If they don't work for you, send them right back and we'll refund your purchase immediately. That's not your warranty, simply an easy way to return them without hassle.

It is hard to shop somewhere that is fairly unknown, and especially online. What I can tell you, is that we are a small business that focused on building a headset with the best electronic hardware, and put it in a well known body so that all the stuff that has to be replaced, ear seals, etc. would fit without having to buy proprietary pieces. We build each headset, with components mfg'd in California by an amazing company, Pilot Communications. Together we fixed the things that were missing or sub par in a pilot's headset, and kept the things that worked.

Knock on wood, we haven't had one single headset come back yet. We've also been lucky enough to get some amazing feedback from our customers and these amazing pilots on PoA. As far as designs and colors go, well they are friggin awesome.

If you or anyone has any questions about headsets, I'm not here to shove our headsets on your head. I want you to have what works for you, but I also know that we have a headset that will fit almost any mission and any melon.
 
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Great. Now. One last question and a bunch of comments. I couldn't find the page on your website, but I couldn't find any details about the 3 mic boom options. Half flex, full flex, steel. What's that all about?

Like I said, I'm a newbie and don't know all these terms. I surfed though your blogs looking for an explanation. I also watched the videos, but didn't see any reference there.

I appreciate and support small businesses. I also want to stress how important it is to have a complete website with full details, especially for start-ups that don't have a lot of external reference information or reviews. How are people supposed to know about the fine details you strive to put into your headsets? I think if you displayed a little more about why your product is better...I might have purchased them last night if I knew some basic answers that should have been on your already good website.

Some good things about your website:
* Show all the styles available with each color option. AMAZING! Love it. However, I was viewing this on my 7 inch tablet and the font was super small. The website CSS/HTML prevented me from re-sizing to make it a little easier to read. I have 20/20 vision as checked my by an eye doctor last month.
* Great order form, easy to understand, love all the options and reinforces that every headset is made to order.

Some areas of improvement:
* Provide details of the various booms on a dedicated page. Much like how you compared your headsets to other makers, have a chart like that or a list that provides why one should upgrade to various types. List advantages/disadvantages of each.

* The ear covers and top head rest cushion. Explain in more detail the different options. It's great you provide the choices, but the only information available is pretty vague and doesn't talk in detail. Again, explain the advantages/disadvantages of each. Yes, it's import to list the disadvantages of each - helps the consumer make a better decision, who knows, might upgrade to a different option. They are there to buy your headset after all.

* The control unit. No picture or details about the control unit for the ANR headset. Perhaps a separate page explaining the features, usage, battery compartment, why yours is better, etc etc.

These last three would only take someone a couple of hours to create, however, I think it could really help your company very much. The reason why I was looking for reviews was for more pictures about your control unit and to talk about the various cushion options since I couldn't find it on your website.

If you have to answer these once per day in email, phone calls, forums, then you can see where having this information on your website can save your company lots of time. It's all about deriving efficiency and lowering your cost of doing business in a very competitive world.

I look forward to a response on the various mic booms. :)

Also, I hope you take this is constructive. You already have a good website, just adding suggestions that could make it even better.
 
I LOVE your input, and thank you VERY much for sharing it. We need input, because we're new and we forget things that are common knowledge for us, are not for everyone else! We are working on a couple of those items, and I'll get the rest of those in our hopper to take care of!

As far as the mic booms. You can see the aesthetic differences in some of the photos but here are the details:

Steel-Wire: Old school type of boom, with a new twist. Ours has a ball and socket joint that allows full control of the mic placement, where the old style was limiting in that regard.

Half-Flex: Great for medium to smaller head shapes. It allows you to slide the mic boom back on the steel slides to bring the mic to your mouth rather than the full flex where you have to bend it around.

Full-Flex: Our most popular boom. Has flexible piping inside a rubberized wrap that allows full actuation of the mic placement. The most dynamic of all the booms.

The ANR control box carries a 9v battery and is on the main cable. BUT, ours is different in that we put it on it's own connection at the end of the cable so that you can put it on your hip, or hang it on a pocket and have it out of your way rather than swinging all over like most inline controllers.

Now I'll go write up these details that I just put here and add them to our spec page for others. :)
 
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I'll chime in that a description of Smart com / aux control would be useful. Maybe it's there somewhere but I couldn't find it so I'm just assuming it's an auto muting function... correct?
 
Thanks Shane! A couple more: About how many hours do you get between batteries and can you use rechargables given that they are actually 8.4v? Is there auto-shut off if you forget about it? Thx.

The other half already picked out the style. Apparently, _I_ like purple. LOL
 
Archammer said:
Good morning!.
Click to expand...

sorry off topic.

I was just visiting one of my favorite training websites and I saw that you have picked up a real good endorsement. Way to go! If I was in the market for a new headset there is no doubt you would be my first choice.
 
I ordered my ANR headsets from the Squawk Shoppe. I got the metallic blue water with blue wires. I made a comment to use either royal blue or blue, whichever looks better and that I want the color to pop. I'm a guy, so I don't know the difference between blue and royal blue, navy blue, sapphire.. It's just blue! :)

050610_Color_Wheel_Guys_Vs_Girls_1.jpg
 
Hey Mitch,

Thanks for your order, of course we'll try and not put a girly overhead cable on for you....not unless you want us to...lol.

Our Cable Color Chart for the overhead cables are not on all headsets listed, and we apologize for that, it's just one of those things we have not finished yet.

So in the meantime, I will give you a link for all of our choices in styles and colors for the overhead cables. Just let us know which one you prefer.

http://www.thesquawkshoppe.com/coll.../nimbo-pnr-aviation-headset-designer-defected

Once on this headset go select the bottom picture and it will enlarge for you to look at the cables.

Hope this helps

Paul
 
Tempting as it is Peevee, I hold some restraint and and my creative juices so that Mitch gets something he asked for......MAYBE!!!!


Paul
 
Here is an image of what it will look like with the color you picked:

IMG_000182_grande.jpg


Then we'll make sure to give you the bright pink overhead cable.... I mean blue. :) The neon and the royal blue look the best on that one, but I'll have my wife pick the best one for you. Don't worry, she's really good at picking the right stuff. :yes:
 
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Oooohhh,

You guys at the squawk shoppe are getting some valuable feedback here!

I've been getting increasingly tired of my cheap, second-hand headset not fitting me properly and pinching my right ear against my skull, causing slight pain and discomfort on any flights longer than an hour! Your headsets seem to be priced competitively and well made. I love being able to support small businesses and also locally made products! When I'm ready for my purchase you guys will be serious contenders for my business, I like what I'm seeing!
 
Skyscraper said:
Oooohhh,

You guys at the squawk shoppe are getting some valuable feedback here!

I've been getting increasingly tired of my cheap, second-hand headset not fitting me properly and pinching my right ear against my skull, causing slight pain and discomfort on any flights longer than an hour! Your headsets seem to be priced competitively and well made. I love being able to support small businesses and also locally made products! When I'm ready for my purchase you guys will be serious contenders for my business, I like what I'm seeing!
Click to expand...

We'll be waitin' fer ya!


Shane
The Squawk Shoppe
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
Just to make sure I understand properly, the image three posts up (#18) has a full flex mic, right? And the one I'm linking to here is what you're using as a half flex?

901-DV-2.jpg
 
Add me to the list of people who are going to look at you when they upgrade. My old Lightspeed 30 3G's are a little long in the tooth! I failed to see it on your site: Do you offer trade in discounts on old headsets?
 
darrell said:
Just to make sure I understand properly, the image three posts up (#18) has a full flex mic, right? And the one I'm linking to here is what you're using as a half flex?

901-DV-2.jpg
Click to expand...


Your assumption is correct Darrel. The Half Flex Mic boom on the Alpha Helmet is a David Clark style boom and our Half Flex Boom is just a little different but the same functionality.

Full Flex type was posted in a previous picture above.

Our Standard is a all Black Metal Swivel Boom to match our all Black Chrome hardware (headband and stirrups).

Paul
 
AmazonChitlin said:
Add me to the list of people who are going to look at you when they upgrade. My old Lightspeed 30 3G's are a little long in the tooth! I failed to see it on your site: Do you offer trade in discounts on old headsets?
Click to expand...

At present Paul, we do not offer trade-in's. That's not to say we might in the future. We are a young company and starting to get our groove on, so once this ball gets rolling, we may delve into that area.

Paul
 
Shane and Paul -- A product idea for you....

Offer a compact blue tooth receiver that could fit inline with the cords and add BT music reception capability to any headset.

There is only one other offering that I know of, but at $250, it's too expensive for the utility. http://bit.ly/1c94AyX

Many bluetooth receivers exist for the automotive and home market for less than $50 (http://amzn.to/1c95jzX). If you had a good product at the $125 price point (half of the competition), you might have a winner. It provides an expansion option upsell opportunity. And it might drive customers to you who are looking for the solution, but are not yet aware of your primary product offering.
 
AggieMike88 said:
Shane and Paul -- A product idea for you....

Offer a compact blue tooth receiver that could fit inline with the cords and add BT music reception capability to any headset.

There is only one other offering that I know of, but at $250, it's too expensive for the utility. http://bit.ly/1c94AyX

Many bluetooth receivers exist for the automotive and home market for less than $50 (http://amzn.to/1c95jzX). If you had a good product at the $125 price point (half of the competition), you might have a winner. It provides an expansion option upsell opportunity. And it might drive customers to you who are looking for the solution, but are not yet aware of your primary product offering.
Click to expand...


^^^ That. I just paid $35 for a basic wired "audio input" setup that works for any headset. I would definitely pay a little more if it meant that I didn't have to have MORE wires to get tangled up in. Plus, I could use my smart phone to call out on my old Telex ANR headset.
 
CJones said:
^^^ That. I just paid $35 for a basic wired "audio input" setup that works for any headset. I would definitely pay a little more if it meant that I didn't have to have MORE wires to get tangled up in. Plus, I could use my smart phone to call out on my old Telex ANR headset.
Click to expand...

Unless including this "broadcast" function is a simple and low cost item, I was proposing the unit be receive only to keep the costs down.
 
AggieMike88 said:
Unless including this "broadcast" function is a simple and low cost item, I was proposing the unit be receive only to keep the costs down.
Click to expand...

*Sigh* Fine then. Music-in only. At least my kid can listen to his "Buzz movie" from the tablet without wrapping cables around his legs. ;)
 
One thought I have always had, and was considering doing a shipment from China... is the need for cheap headphones. I don't see why a cheap pair of PNRs can't be sold for $100, not for every day use... but I have a cherokee and normally it's just me and my instructor or in the future me and my girlfriend... but I wouldn't mind getting a pair of $100 headphones for the backseat just incase I take another friend or something.

Since the thread became a suggestion thread... I just wanted to add that.
 
teamcoltra said:
One thought I have always had, and was considering doing a shipment from China... is the need for cheap headphones. I don't see why a cheap pair of PNRs can't be sold for $100, not for every day use... but I have a cherokee and normally it's just me and my instructor or in the future me and my girlfriend... but I wouldn't mind getting a pair of $100 headphones for the backseat just incase I take another friend or something.

Since the thread became a suggestion thread... I just wanted to add that.
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They already exist... A few years ago, I got some new PNR's from www.austinflightcheck.com for $100 with shipping. Not the best headsets when you're used to top end ANR's or a Halo, but they do the job for infrequent users.

Looks like they are still available, but with a slight price increase, $110 + shipping. http://austinflightcheck.com/proddetail.php?prod=AC200
 
AggieMike88 said:
They already exist... A few years ago, I got some new PNR's from www.austinflightcheck.com for $100 with shipping. Not the best headsets when you're used to top end ANR's or a Halo, but they do the job for infrequent users.

Looks like they are still available, but with a slight price increase, $110 + shipping. http://austinflightcheck.com/proddetail.php?prod=AC200
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Thanks I might pick up a pair, as you said these wont be worn frequently (I have my A20s that I wear) but it's pointless to buy a pair of A20s for the backseat which will never be used... even $300 for a pair of headphones that wont be used seems pretty useless to me.
 
Been looking at those Squawk Shoppe headsets, intended to take advantage of that 15% sale, but looked this morning and it was gone! Guess I missed the boat.
 
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AggieMike88 said:
Shane and Paul -- A product idea for you....

Offer a compact blue tooth receiver that could fit inline with the cords and add BT music reception capability to any headset.

There is only one other offering that I know of, but at $250, it's too expensive for the utility. http://bit.ly/1c94AyX

Many bluetooth receivers exist for the automotive and home market for less than $50 (http://amzn.to/1c95jzX). If you had a good product at the $125 price point (half of the competition), you might have a winner. It provides an expansion option upsell opportunity. And it might drive customers to you who are looking for the solution, but are not yet aware of your primary product offering.
Click to expand...

We carry that right now, but $249 is the best we can do with the current technology pricing. Here is the link:
http://www.thesquawkshoppe.com/products/aviation-headset-blulink-bluetooth-adapter

bqmassey said:
Been looking at those Squawk Shoppe headsets, intended to take advantage of that 15% sale, but looked this morning and it was gone! Guess I missed the boat.
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Shhh, be very quiet about this. You can still use the PILOTSOFAMERICA code until Thursday, but that's the last boat leaving until next year... Mum's the word. :)
 
:D I'll check that out. Thanks.


It looks from the website like the passive noise reduction is the same on the ANR models. Is that is true? In other words, if using the ANR model and the battery dies, is it still as quiet as the PNR models?
 
From the Bluetooth device description:

Great for filing a flight plan, checking weather, calling for fuel, getting a clearance at an uncontrolled field, calling for a taxi
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You forgot, "Great for calling the tower when you just screwed up big time!"
 
bqmassey said:
:D I'll check that out. Thanks.


It looks from the website like the passive noise reduction is the same on the ANR models. Is that is true? In other words, if using the ANR model and the battery dies, is it still as quiet as the PNR models?
Click to expand...

That is correct, and the headset continues to work even if the ANR is off or dead.

F01LA said:
From the Bluetooth device description:



You forgot, "Great for calling the tower when you just screwed up big time!"
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Hahaha, right!

AggieMike88 said:
I was suggesting developing a competing product... one of your own creation and less expensive.
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Oh no way, the guy who makes that BluLink is a friggin genius and if anyone comes out with something better, it will be him, I guarantee it.
 
Acepdr said:
At present Paul, we do not offer trade-in's. That's not to say we might in the future. We are a young company and starting to get our groove on, so once this ball gets rolling, we may delve into that area.

Paul
Click to expand...

Sounds like you guys have a great business model to work from.......

Well... other then in your sig line it says you are from Wyoming..:hairraise:;)
 
Acepdr said:
At present Paul, we do not offer trade-in's. That's not to say we might in the future. We are a young company and starting to get our groove on, so once this ball gets rolling, we may delve into that area.

Paul
Click to expand...

Thanks! Until I order, I wish you guys all the success in the world!:thumbsup:
 
What do the anr headsets weigh? I did not see it on the site. Thanks.
 
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