Flying with the Bose A20 Aviation Headset
It’s almost 7 years since I bought my Bose A20 Aviation Headset. Initially introduced to the headset by a flying instructor who offered me a few ‘flying trials’ I ended up taking the £1000+ leap just before my PPL Skills Test. Now with a number of years of flying the Boeing 737-800 I thought I’d talk about my experience incase you are also considering making the investment.
Noise cancelling or noise reducing?
A common misconception, especially for those not familiar with ANR (active noise reduction), is that at the push of a button all external noise disappears. I too was in this camp to the point that I purposely didn’t use my freshly purchased A20s in my PPL skills test for fear that the lack of engine noise and change in audio cues would put me off. While yes the cockpit soundscape changes when you fly with an ANR headset, it is a pleasant change – in fact, the A20s, take the often invasive drone of light aircraft engines and the intrusive hiss of commercial cockpits and blends them into a manageable ambiance.
Bose are renowned for their ANR technology, that doesn’t mean to say you don’t notice 12 hours in the 737 – which is admittedly one of the noisier flight decks. Where the A20s excel is their ability to provide a high level of ANR in any aircraft type, with just the push of a button.
Hello, can you hear me?
The answer is yes. The audio output into your headphones is fantastic, or it’s at-least as clear as the aircraft is capable of receiving. The microphone is crystal clear and the windbreak blocks out almost all external noise from your transmissions alongside the built in background noise suppression from the microphone technology. You don’t have to be eating the microphone as you speak, but proper placement is important - the rigidity and strength of the headset means once you have the correct position it won’t move away.
Big Ears, big problem?
I am graced with “human radar dishes” as my friends refer to them, big ears. Many over ear headphones attempt to surround my ears unsuccessfully and instead rest uncomfortably upon them or require ear origami to fit. The A20 comfortably sits around my ears, with room to spare. It’s all part of their design as it provides a level of passive noise reduction. The headset is not invasive, the earcups are inclined slightly to facilitate all ear shapes and sizes making it a headset for anyone.
Wearing thick framed glasses with the A20s does decrease the noise cancelling as it breaks the passive noise reduction seal being provided by the ear cups. Thin framed glasses makes this manageable however for total glasses/headset comparability in-ear headphones such as the new Bose Proflight 2 offer far better results.
Built to last?
I do not treat my headset like it is worth £1000. I am forever trapping the cable, dropping the headset and crushing the storage bag. While I haven’t quite given it the ‘Toto Wolff’ treatment beyond a few scratches on the audio control box, the headset hasn’t dropped a beat. I replaced the ear cups around 6 years into owning the headset, something that will be done if you use the Bose servicing offer (within 5 years of initial purchase). The clamping mechanism does slowly lose its strength but never to a point that it affects performance. The headset frame itself is very high quality strong material. It is built to last, that being said looking after the microphone, headset sensors and correctly storing your headset will ensure it stays ‘good as new’.
Headset Hair
While headset hair probably isn’t your main concern it is the sign of the only downside to over-ear headphones. After any extended periods of wearing the A20s you do notice you are wearing them. However, the A20 is one of the lightest headsets on the market and uses the clamping technology to spread the load evenly across your head. It is never uncomfortable and is almost unavoidable with the over-ear headsets. An option to avoid this would be the ProFlight headset, which is in ear and far lighter than the A20s, or we could just ask aircraft manufacturers to make their cockpits quieter.
Plug and Play?
Possibly a fear for some people is the complexity of an ANR headset, the truth is there is no complexity at all. The A20 is completely plug in and play, one button push for instant noise cancelling. What’s more, if your batteries do fail the headset continues to work surprisingly well with its passive noise reduction.
Size does matter
The A20 isn’t a huge headset, but does add a few centimetres to your head in all directions. In smaller confined cockpits like those of many training aircraft this can be a small source of discomfort, for most commercial aircraft though it’s not a problem at all.
Do you really need Bluetooth?
It seems a common practice to add Bluetooth to any device these days, but for the A20s it is a feature worth considering. It is not designed to allow you to perform wonderful acapella renditions of ‘Dancing Queen’ at 38,000ft, instead when connected to your tablet its able to directly play useful warnings from electronic maps, such as approaching airspace boundaries or traffic being detected by the wave of available electronic conspicuity devices. Offering both MIX and MUTE modes, the headset can either mix your Bluetooth audio in with your standard headset audio or alternative whenever ATC or your colleague is talking the Bluetooth audio will be muted.
The complete package?
When arriving to my first flying lessons, my headset was worth more than my car. At around £1000+ the A20 is a considerable investment, but you are not just buying a headset, it’s an experience and a career long companion. Included is a 5 year warranty, during which time you can also send your headset off for full refurbishment. This covers replacement of all the hygienic elements of the headset and servicing of the electronic elements – in essence returning it to ‘good as new’ after 5 years of use.
The A20 headset bag is made out of clothing fabric and gets more easily worn out over years than the new ProFlight hard built case.
What would I change?
If there was to be a Bose A20 2.0, weight saving would obviously be welcome, as long as it doesn’t impact the strength of the headset. A small reduction in the clamping force would be nice, and more support for glasses wearers – although this is again an area the Proflight headset could compete. A water resistant hard travel case would be a simple but nice addition – but beyond that, very little.
In Conclusion
If you instruct, fly commercially or are learning to fly with the ambition of it becoming a job, 100% you should make the investment. Not only is the noise cancelling going to help you to maintain your medical further into your career, the comfort, functionality and audio quality of the headset more than accounts for its value. It is also far more pleasurable and hygienic wearing your own headset every time you fly.
You may find an individual headset can outperform the A20s in a single area, but no headset can match its all-round performance. It really is a headset for every pilot, in every environment.
