Starter Headset

And still miles and dollars behind what he/she could easily have.

Just like others have mentioned - my training would have been much better with a light speed / Boise from the beginning. Instead I went cheaper and came out spending more in the long run.
 
If the OP wants a starter headset, I recommend Flightcom or similar, and keep it under $200. That way you don't have too much invested when you finally make the jump to Bose or Lightspeed. Not every aspiring pilot has $1000 to drop on a headset. I know I sure didn't 30 years ago.
 
$1000? Spend half of that for a lightspeed from pig pen racing. Spending $12000 on getting a PPL and saving a few hundred on a headset IMHO is penny wise pound foolish. That is the mistake I made
 
I bought my Avcomm AC-200s when I was super poor, just months from leaving aviation. They were about $25more expensive than the much more common ASA headsets. The Avcomm's have stereo volume knob on both ears, but work great in mono. You just turn a knob if you want stereo or don't turn it for mono ATC. The headset also have a push-to-talk (PTT) built into the side of one ear cup. If you forget to bring a PTT or the aircraft PTT is broken or missing you are still OK. I see ASA headsets are $130 and the Avcomm are $150-160 from the factory.

Get the gel ear seals, almost any company's passive headset seals will work on any other cheap passive headset. If you/he are flying where weather is warm get the cloth covers or you mill have a pool of sweat inside the ear cups.

I would probably value comfort over quietness in passive headsets, but I work in a noisy environment and remember flying with foam earplugs and an aviation headset. All ear plugs are not the same. Macks slim-fit sleep ear plugs that are soft, very smooth, and you control comfort/sound dampening by how far you put them in your ear. Dip them in water or lick the surface just before you put them in the ear and the moisture alloms the plugs to expand and slip a little which greatly improves comfort.
 
I don't get this "starter headset" .. that's like saying "this is just starter water" and electing to drink out of the local pond. A Bose or Lightspeed is $1K.. that's a small cost compared to $$ flying as a whole. Your ears will thank you and you'll be less fatigued having an actual, nice, comfortable headset.

The "starter headset" is one concept I never understood
 
Tantalum said:
I don't get this "starter headset" .. that's like saying "this is just starter water" and electing to drink out of the local pond. A Bose or Lightspeed is $1K.. that's a small cost compared to $$ flying as a whole. Your ears will thank you and you'll be less fatigued having an actual, nice, comfortable headset.

The "starter headset" is one concept I never understood
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Here’s another way to look at it.

Would you choose to buy an inexpensive headset for passenger use? If so, then why not buy that one first? The savings might get you 7 or 8 hours of flight instruction.

Once you have your ticket, you might decide you don’t like flying as much as you thought you would. Or you might not fly very often. Maybe it’s not worth having the pricey headset. Otherwise, if you’re going to fly a lot, then go ahead and spring for the expensive one and relegate the cheap set to passenger use.
 
Half Fast said:
Here’s another way to look at it.

Would you choose to buy an inexpensive headset for passenger use? If so, then why not buy that one first? The savings might get you 7 or 8 hours of flight instruction.

Once you have your ticket, you might decide you don’t like flying as much as you thought you would. Or you might not fly very often. Maybe it’s not worth having the pricey headset. Otherwise, if you’re going to fly a lot, then go ahead and spring for the expensive one and relegate the cheap set to passenger use.
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It doesn't take a lot of prolonged noise to ruin your hearing, but the effects might not show up for years. What is your hearing worth?

My guess is that I put a higher value on it than you do because I have lost mine and I know what it means. You apparently haven't.
 
JOhnH said:
It doesn't take a lot of prolonged noise to ruin your hearing, but the effects might not show up for years. What is your hearing worth?

My guess is that I put a higher value on it than you do because I have lost mine and I know what it means. You apparently haven't.
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Someone has already said this in the thread. It is a non-issue if you're wearing ANY modern headsets flying light GA.
 
I realize this learning to fly stuff costs a lot of money, but I love when a new pilot skimps and buys a “starter headset” then tells me how much difficulty they have understanding ATC.
 
Tantalum said:
The "starter headset" is one concept I never understood
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What was your first airplane, car, or house? Same thing. You probably didn't buy top of the line (or anywhere close) right out of the box. You probably rented or bought something inexpensive.
 
Clip4 said:
I love when a new pilot skimps and buys a “starter headset” then tells me how much difficulty they have understanding ATC.
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Ain't the headset. It is the calibrated ears. You could listen to a good recording on Youtube while sitting in your quiet living room, but if the terminology wasn't familiar, you'd say "Whaa?" Heck, I still do occasionally.
 
kyleb said:
Ain't the headset. It is the calibrated ears. You could listen to a good recording on Youtube while sitting in your quiet living room, but if the terminology wasn't familiar, you'd say "Whaa?" Heck, I still do occasionally.
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True, but add engine drone in the living room and it gets worse.

I teach in a program Uncle Sugar provides noise cancelling and teach common students who bring what ever they bring. Noise cancelling is worth the expense.
 
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Half Fast said:
Would you choose to buy an inexpensive headset for passenger use?
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About two years ago actually I bought a second Bose for passenger use. My SO flies enough with me, as do non pilot family and friends and I felt bad sticking them with the loaner or cheap pairs

Half Fast said:
Once you have your ticket, you might decide you don’t like flying as much as you thought you would. Or you might not fly very often. Maybe it’s not worth having the pricey headset. Otherwise, if you’re going to fly a lot, then go ahead and spring for the expensive one and relegate the cheap set to passenger use.
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I can see this perspective, but for those first few flights most schools and clubs (at least that I know of) will have a pair you can either borrow for free, or "rent" for a nominal fee. A good headset can be sold close to its retail value anyway if it's been well taken care of, and in the example above, likely very lightly use
 
Clip4 said:
when a new pilot skimps and buys a “starter headset” then tells me how much difficulty they have understanding ATC
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this was me.. I started worrying I had bad hearing.. was night and day when I tried on a pair of Lightspeeds. Holy crap, I could actually clearly hear ATC! I ended up with Bose only because the Lightspeed felt too tight


kyleb said:
What was your first airplane, car, or house? Same thing. You probably didn't buy top of the line (or anywhere close) right out of the box. You probably rented or bought something inexpensive.
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True, but I think the analogy is different in that your hearing and audio experience should be agnostic of skill level. First apartment was crappy with room-mates, but it still kept me warm and dry (despite Boston's best efforts). Take skiing for example.. your first pair of skis will be cheap and you'll be at the local mountain, but you'll still dress up warm - that's how I see the headset.


But maybe I'm different, I have sensitive hearing and at least for me flying became far more enjoyable after I started using a nice headset
 
JOhnH said:
It doesn't take a lot of prolonged noise to ruin your hearing, but the effects might not show up for years. What is your hearing worth?

My guess is that I put a higher value on it than you do because I have lost mine and I know what it means. You apparently haven't.
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1) All modern passive headsets provide adequate attenuation. The ASA has 23dB noise reduction.

2) My hearing has been reduced by many years of exposure to rock & roll, motorcycles, racecars, and shotguns. I’m glad I didn’t waste it on something frivolous.
 
Try seeing it this way - $1000 for a headset was 9 hours of flight training for me. Or 2/3 of my monthly salary. There was no way I was dropping that much on a headset, no matter how badly I wanted one of the nice headsets. It is easy to say "well, flying costs so much already..." but the reality is, that extra 1k for the headset and that 99 bucks a year for foreflight and the 500 dollars for the ipad (etc, etc) can make a difference for some of us student pilots...the difference between flying and not. Would you literally give up flying if you couldn't buy the best headset?

Thankfully, the student in question already has a headset option. He'd like to upgrade and have his own, but may not want to drop several hours worth of flight lessons on it (and yes, that's really how I started thinking of stuff! LOL). I'd suggest looking into used headsets, if possible. I got very, very lucky and bought mine from a member here who gave me a very generous price on his old headsets. They were Sennheiser ANR, old enough to be a discontinued, and the fabric covering the overhead part was beginning to crack, but they work, and well. If you can find someone who no longer needs or wants their second set, or maybe an older pilot who's no longer flying, and who's willing to pass along their set at a reduced cost, that should last quite nicely until he's ready to drop the big bucks on a super nice headset.
 
farmrjohn said:
I've been happy with my passive Crazed Pilot headsets
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I got one of those as a spare passenger headset. It seemed pretty good and they’re cheap. I have an A20 for myself but I’d be fine using the crazed pilot if my Bose died.
 
Bose will allow you to buy their headset on the installment plan with zero interest.

BTW you can guarantee to preserve your hearing with a cheaper passive headset plus wearing COMFORTABLE foam ear plugs at the same time. I recommend the Macks Slim-Fit Sleep ear plugs available at Kroger/Fred Meyer/Smiths grocery stores, Walmart, Amazon. I spent years finding comfortable ear plugs. The majority of aviation ear plugs are less effective and very uncomfortable, compared to the Macks. Look for ear plugs with the smooth texture on the sides and the tapered "witch hat" shape. The foam ear plugs with the higher noise reduction Macks have a NRR of 31 rating usually achieve this quietness by being softer which allows them to be inserted farther. You will need to experiment with your balance of comfort and quietness. A little bit of lubrication on the sides of the ear plug or your ear canal makes a big improvement in comfort.
 
SkyChaser said:
Try seeing it this way - $1000 for a headset was 9 hours of flight training for me. Or 2/3 of my monthly salary. There was no way I was dropping that much on a headset, no matter how badly I wanted one of the nice headsets. It is easy to say "well, flying costs so much already..." but the reality is, that extra 1k for the headset and that 99 bucks a year for foreflight and the 500 dollars for the ipad (etc, etc) can make a difference for some of us student pilots...the difference between flying and not. Would you literally give up flying if you couldn't buy the best headset?

Thankfully, the student in question already has a headset option. He'd like to upgrade and have his own, but may not want to drop several hours worth of flight lessons on it (and yes, that's really how I started thinking of stuff! LOL). I'd suggest looking into used headsets, if possible. I got very, very lucky and bought mine from a member here who gave me a very generous price on his old headsets. They were Sennheiser ANR, old enough to be a discontinued, and the fabric covering the overhead part was beginning to crack, but they work, and well. If you can find someone who no longer needs or wants their second set, or maybe an older pilot who's no longer flying, and who's willing to pass along their set at a reduced cost, that should last quite nicely until he's ready to drop the big bucks on a super nice headset.
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9hrs?!
 
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