Zulu or Sierra,... what's the difference?

[Rob Schaffer]

Brief PIREP.

Well, I have only flown about 3 hrs on them now, but they are fantastic. Keep in mind, I am comparing them to my typical headset which was an entry level passive Sigtronics S-20 with Gel-Seals.

Clamping - Very light, and hardly noticable for the typical 1 hr flights I have made with them so far. Looking forward to Windwood where I'll have them on longer for the flight. I do feel they clamped a little more than the DC X-11's I tried a few weeks ago, but not much. Could be that they just fit me better than the X-11's.

Sound - Passive (ANR off) - these still block out a great deal of noise and seal up well, better passive than my S-20's. Turn on the ANR and Wow, this is cool technology,...

Bluetooth - Easy connectivity to my iPhone, clear and easy to adjust volume. Haven't tried a call yet from in the plane. When I received them at work I called Gary and could hear his voice message in the headset, but he couldn't hear me when I thought I left a message. Apparently The Mic only works only when plugged into the intercom, unlike the Zulu's, where you can make a call from your office chair when you get them (AdamZ) Not an issue as I'll have them in the plane when I need to make the call, just an odd difference.

Fit - For me, these fit great. The ajustable width on the headband allows me to get the width right so the earcups aren't tipped on way or the other and fit squarely against my head. Seems to be a good seal yet with my aviation sunglasses on, as they have a flat sided arm that slides in nicely and the earseal wraps easily over. Foggles though, don't fit up easily as they cause an opening in the earseal letting all the noise back in For now, I tip my foggles to rest on top of the earcups. I may try a set of JeppShades to see how they fit. The padded headband is nice.

Case - The case is nice, and I'm glad it has the little pocket inside to organize the cord and control box/battery box. The On/Off button is sensitive, so I have to be sure I didn't accidently turn it on when packing it up.

Very Happy with the Sierra!

 

[GMascelli]

Good report Rob!

They do fit nice, actually clamp less than the Zulu's. Maybe a tad more than the X11's. They look great and they have blue tooth.....the price looks good too!

Almost forgot.....Mary said the X11's are working great! She could hear music and ATC last saturday with no problems. She also passed along a thank-you for confirming what she has been trying get through my thick skull for the last month or so.

 

[kingair300]

Brief PIREP.

Well, I have only flown about 3 hrs on them now, but they are fantastic. Keep in mind, I am comparing them to my typical headset which was an entry level passive Sigtronics S-20 with Gel-Seals.

Clamping - Very light, and hardly noticable for the typical 1 hr flights I have made with them so far. Looking forward to Windwood where I'll have them on longer for the flight. I do feel they clamped a little more than the DC X-11's I tried a few weeks ago, but not much. Could be that they just fit me better than the X-11's.

Sound - Passive (ANR off) - these still block out a great deal of noise and seal up well, better passive than my S-20's. Turn on the ANR and Wow, this is cool technology,...

Bluetooth - Easy connectivity to my iPhone, clear and easy to adjust volume. Haven't tried a call yet from in the plane. When I received them at work I called Gary and could hear his voice message in the headset, but he couldn't hear me when I thought I left a message. Apparently The Mic only works only when plugged into the intercom, unlike the Zulu's, where you can make a call from your office chair when you get them (AdamZ) Not an issue as I'll have them in the plane when I need to make the call, just an odd difference.

Fit - For me, these fit great. The ajustable width on the headband allows me to get the width right so the earcups aren't tipped on way or the other and fit squarely against my head. Seems to be a good seal yet with my aviation sunglasses on, as they have a flat sided arm that slides in nicely and the earseal wraps easily over. Foggles though, don't fit up easily as they cause an opening in the earseal letting all the noise back in For now, I tip my foggles to rest on top of the earcups. I may try a set of JeppShades to see how they fit. The padded headband is nice.

Case - The case is nice, and I'm glad it has the little pocket inside to organize the cord and control box/battery box. The On/Off button is sensitive, so I have to be sure I didn't accidently turn it on when packing it up.

Very Happy with the Sierra!

In case you accidently turn on the ANR when packing it, these headsets have a auto shut off feature. so not much to worry about.

 

[AdamZ]

In case you accidently turn on the ANR when packing it, these headsets have a auto shut off feature. so not much to worry about.

Yup lightspeeds have had that for years. I love that feature cause sometimes I'll forget to turn it off post flight.

 

[TangoWhiskey]

Yup lightspeeds have had that for years. I love that feature cause sometimes I'll forget to turn it off post flight.

Is the auto-off feature only enabled when not plugged into the intercom? Or after a certain period of not hearing signal on the line? I'm wondering how it knows when it's okay to auto-shut-off (long flight at night with little ATC interaction vs been in the case or on the seat for xx minutes).

 

[flyingcheesehead]

Is the auto-off feature only enabled when not plugged into the intercom? Or after a certain period of not hearing signal on the line? I'm wondering how it knows when it's okay to auto-shut-off (long flight at night with little ATC interaction vs been in the case or on the seat for xx minutes).

My guess is that it's able to sense whether it's on your head by whether the ANR is working. If it's not on your head, the anti-noise signal that's fed in is going out into open air and thus there's not much difference, which the ANR microphone (the one in the earcup) would allow the ANR circuitry to detect.

 

[N5571Q]

I've never been able to stand wearing DCs for more than 2hrs, and that was after suffering for 1:45 of head squeeze and crown burn. For me they have always been the most uncomfortable headsets ever. After 15 minutes I'm having to fiddle with them looking for a comfortable way to wear them which always eludes me.

If you mod them with the Oregon Aero hushkits you will find them to be transformed. I did it to mine and they are now the most comfortable passive headsets I have ever worn.

 

[gismo]

My guess is that it's able to sense whether it's on your head by whether the ANR is working. If it's not on your head, the anti-noise signal that's fed in is going out into open air and thus there's not much difference, which the ANR microphone (the one in the earcup) would allow the ANR circuitry to detect.

The older LS headsets (and likely the newer ones) did exactly that (monitor the acoustics for the presence of someone's ears) plus they had a 6 hr timeout which I assume was added because the acoustic detection wasn't 100% reliable for shutoff. I had suggested to them that they simply monitor the mic bias voltage which could enable an auto turn-on as well as turn-off but for some reason (NIH?) they never took my advice on that.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

I had suggested to them that they simply monitor the mic bias voltage which could enable an auto turn-on as well as turn-off but for some reason (NIH?) they never took my advice on that.

Well, there is something cool about hitting the switch and having things go quiet(er) suddenly. Maybe they were trying to preserve that.