DC X11 vs Bose

Tried both the DC X11 and the Bose over a 15 hour holiday trip. Short
version: The DC got returned and I'm keeping the Bose. It wasn't a
tough call in my mind.

Longer version: I've had a DC H10-80 for 17 years now. About 10 years
ago I had Headsets Inc add their ANR kit to it. That all continues to
work fine, but it does get tiring after 6 hours or so due to the weight
and clamping.

I liked the DC X 11 in the shop, but their reviews I've seen have been
somewhat negative. So I got a set and a set of the Bose and compared them
on the trip.

Compared to my old H10-80s, both the X 11 and the Bose are lighter, have
significantly less perceived clamping pressure, and more effective ANR.
So state of the are has evidently advanced.

I really wanted to like the X 11s - some nice added features and less
money. I found the ANR on the X 11s to be less effective than the Bose,
and the speakers to produce sound that was "thinner" - less full and rich.

But for our needs the X 11 was useless. It evidently depends on a very
tight/effective seal on your head. If that seal is disturbed - even by
turning your head and flexing - the X 11s will 'thum'. That is
somewhat annoying, but if you wear glasses - as both of us do - you can't
get a consistent seal, and the slightest movement causes the 'thum'.
Short of holding both hands over your ears and applying constant
significant pressure to the headset, I don't see a way these can be used
with glasses.

The Bose, by contrast, doesn't 'thum'. If the seal on the Bose is less
than perfect - due to glasses or movement - their white noise level simply
increases slightly. Noticeable if you're looking for it but not annoying.

I like the music and phone inputs on the DC and their price, and my DCs
have been good to me - but the fact that the X 11s simply 'don't work'
in my environment negates all of that.

The Bose has better/fuller sound, better (to me) ANR, and works with no
fuss or muss.

We kept the Bose. It was an easy decision.

Dave Anderer wrote:

We kept the Bose. It was an easy decision.

Thanks for the feedback, Dave. I have two Bose now and am considering
slowly adding more for additional passengers/family. When the DCs came
out, I was very curious about how they stood up to the Bose.


--
Peter

Hi Dave!

Could you point me to the "Negative Reviews" of the DC X-11?

I posted several time on various groups in the past looking for
comments .... very little response.... and no negatives on the DC's,
some negatives on the Bose... although both considered very good.
You are correct on the "richer " sound of the Bose though. They sound
better when music is playing, but the coms.. dono

We are currently testing them "side by each".. And I wear
glasses...

I am going to try and duplicate the symtoms you describe.. We are now
BOTH tending to keep the DC's, but not by much!..

Did you happen to test the DC's with the Bose earpads? (they fit!)

We are thinking his may be the ultimate combo... (?)

Dave



On Sat, 23 Dec 2006 03:49:30 -0500, Dave Anderer
wrote:

Tried both the DC X11 and the Bose over a 15 hour holiday trip. Short
version: The DC got returned and I'm keeping the Bose. It wasn't a
tough call in my mind.

Longer version: I've had a DC H10-80 for 17 years now. About 10 years
ago I had Headsets Inc add their ANR kit to it. That all continues to
work fine, but it does get tiring after 6 hours or so due to the weight
and clamping.

I liked the DC X 11 in the shop, but their reviews I've seen have been
somewhat negative. So I got a set and a set of the Bose and compared them
on the trip.

Compared to my old H10-80s, both the X 11 and the Bose are lighter, have
significantly less perceived clamping pressure, and more effective ANR.
So state of the are has evidently advanced.

I really wanted to like the X 11s - some nice added features and less
money. I found the ANR on the X 11s to be less effective than the Bose,
and the speakers to produce sound that was "thinner" - less full and rich.

But for our needs the X 11 was useless. It evidently depends on a very
tight/effective seal on your head. If that seal is disturbed - even by
turning your head and flexing - the X 11s will 'thum'. That is
somewhat annoying, but if you wear glasses - as both of us do - you can't
get a consistent seal, and the slightest movement causes the 'thum'.
Short of holding both hands over your ears and applying constant
significant pressure to the headset, I don't see a way these can be used
with glasses.

The Bose, by contrast, doesn't 'thum'. If the seal on the Bose is less
than perfect - due to glasses or movement - their white noise level simply
increases slightly. Noticeable if you're looking for it but not annoying.

I like the music and phone inputs on the DC and their price, and my DCs
have been good to me - but the fact that the X 11s simply 'don't work'
in my environment negates all of that.

The Bose has better/fuller sound, better (to me) ANR, and works with no
fuss or muss.

We kept the Bose. It was an easy decision.

Dave wrote:
Hi Dave!

Could you point me to the "Negative Reviews" of the DC X-11?


http://www.vansairforce.com/communit...ad.php?t=12505

Dave-
If possible, would you please post any further results from your
comparison. I am in the market for a new headset and the X-11s seem
very appealing. I work at and FBO and I have only experienced one
customer that flies with them and they loved them (more so than the
Bose) and I know he was wearing glasses.

Thanks!

Jon

Hi Jon!

Yes I will..

We expiremented with the headsets, and were able to reproduce the
issue that Dave (above thread) spoke of..We were successful...

DC is sending us new (different) earseals.. We have an extension on
the "trial period" to wait for these and test again.

I will post the results here..

Cheers!

Dave


On 11 Jan 2007 09:51:16 -0800, wrote:

Dave-
If possible, would you please post any further results from your
comparison. I am in the market for a new headset and the X-11s seem
very appealing. I work at and FBO and I have only experienced one
customer that flies with them and they loved them (more so than the
Bose) and I know he was wearing glasses.

Thanks!

Jon

Dave-
Thanks for the help. I look forward to reading your findings! I

Jon


Dave wrote:
Hi Jon!

Yes I will..

We expiremented with the headsets, and were able to reproduce the
issue that Dave (above thread) spoke of..We were successful...

DC is sending us new (different) earseals.. We have an extension on
the "trial period" to wait for these and test again.

I will post the results here..

Cheers!

Dave


On 11 Jan 2007 09:51:16 -0800, wrote:

Dave-
If possible, would you please post any further results from your
comparison. I am in the market for a new headset and the X-11s seem
very appealing. I work at and FBO and I have only experienced one
customer that flies with them and they loved them (more so than the
Bose) and I know he was wearing glasses.

Thanks!

Jon

Dave-
Thanks for the help. I look forward to reading your findings!

Jon


Dave wrote:
Hi Jon!

Yes I will..

We expiremented with the headsets, and were able to reproduce the
issue that Dave (above thread) spoke of..We were successful...

DC is sending us new (different) earseals.. We have an extension on
the "trial period" to wait for these and test again.

I will post the results here..

Cheers!

Dave


On 11 Jan 2007 09:51:16 -0800, wrote:

Dave-
If possible, would you please post any further results from your
comparison. I am in the market for a new headset and the X-11s seem
very appealing. I work at and FBO and I have only experienced one
customer that flies with them and they loved them (more so than the
Bose) and I know he was wearing glasses.

Thanks!

Jon