Sony MDR-NC60 Noise Canceling Headphone

See it at Amazon.com for $120.54

Average Customer Rating
(3.5 out of 5)

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Solid NC Headphones, probably the best choice under $300

First a few words about a noise canceling headphones in general. I'm a frequent traveler, flying about 50% of time internationally. I'm not a musician by any means, but I understand that having a pair of good "cans" sometimes is the difference between arriving to your destination wasted or completely relaxed. You owe it to yourself to have a pair of good quality noise cancellers if you travel internationally or coast-to-coast at least 3 times a year. I've owned my share of noise canceling headphones, starting from Sony "in-the-ear" MDR-NC11A, then graduating to Sennheiser "on-the-ear" RPXC 250. Finally, I borrowed Bose "over-the-ear" QuietComfort 3 to my conference flight to California and back to Ohio. If you are deciding which general design of headphones to choose - let me tell you up-front that "over-the-ear" design gives you the best comfort you can have on the long flight - hands down.

Now in the detail about this particular set. After experiencing the "over-the-ear" design of Bose, I decided to get a pair. But being burned by my previous experiences, I decided to do some careful comparison shopping. After a few weeks of research, I went to the actual store to compare 3 models that I've selected: Bose QuietComfort 3 ($299), Sennheiser PXC 350 and ($359) and Sony MDR NC50 ($199). The MDR NC60 Model was not even on my list then, and Sennheiser PXC 450 ($449) being as good as they are (canceling 90% of the noise) was simply too pricy for me.

I've tested Bose QuietComfort 3 first. Being so highly advertised, I was expecting it to be the top performer, but was extremely underwhelmed. It performed much better then any of my previous headphones, but it was no match for Sennheiser and it was even worse then Sony, that, may I remind you comes up to be $100 cheaper. On the top of it, I could not find the actual acoustic characteristics for the Bose pair anywhere in the manual. (Since then, I've done search on the WEB and I still cannot find them... amazing!). Then I moved on to the Sennheiser PXC 350, and was not disappointed. I almost left the store with that pair in the shopping bag. Cancelling up to 85% of noise, it was an excellent pair. When you turn the NC on - it fills like you suddenly went deaf. The BASS is very punchy and powerful even when the noise cancellation is off. Third on my list were Sony MDR NC50 and they were surprisingly good as well. Not so good with the BASS when NC is off as Sennheiser, and they felt a bit awkward on my head, but the sound quality was better then those of Bose. I was almost ready to leave, when a store clerk showed me a pair of NC60's and that's when I was sold - right then and there.

They are as good as they come, canceling up to 85% of noise, with excellent sound quality, and with a good BASS output when NC is off. I'd say that if Sennheiser PXC 350 is better - I could not determine it. After researching this model on the WEB for another week, I've purchased it from Amazon for $149.00. I've already had my first flight experience with it and let me tell you - I'm not disappointed. Here is the list of Pros and Cons from where I'm sitting...

PROS:
- This is the most comfortable pair of cans I've ever tried. The overall fit is very comfortable - I was able to fall asleep on a 3 hour flight. There is absolutely no "suction" effect as I've experienced with another phones I've tried.
- Both, the cups and the bridge are wrapped up in very fine leather. I read some reviews that some people do not like leather on the headphones as it may cause sweating - I personally never experience that, not with this pair nor with any other headphones I've owned. So, even though I cannot say anything negative about that aspect, I might not be the best judge in this case - some people can be more sensitive then others. As far as leather quality and feel - they are as good as they come.
- The unique feature of this model is a "monitor" button that allows you to hear surrounding sounds without turning off the NC or taking the cans off. The only comfort comment I have about this model is that this button is hard to find for someone who's just beginning to adjust to this set. As I'm getting used to this pair, though, I'm getting much better at it - minor problem with a design in my mind.
- This pair runs on a regular AAA battery, illuminating the need to carry a battery charger and having to worry about how to charge it in Europe. This is a big plus in my books. 1 AAA battery gives you 30 continuous hours of NC; if you think that it is not enough - just take a couple of spare AAAs with you - it is still better then a charger, and sure will be enough for a trip to any destination.
- Overall build is very sturdy, yet easy to adjust to whatever position is desirable. Folds neatly into a carrying case, and as far as "over-the-ear" designed go - do not take much space when folded. Again, if the portability is your main concern - you might want to check out "on-the-ear" designs.
- Sound quality (again) is one of the best ones I've tried when it comes to NC headphones for travelers. BASS output is very good with NC on and just slightly worse with it being off (expect it on all NC headphones). I'm listening to all kinds of music and these NC's perform very good for everything from Cleveland Orchestra to Jimi Hendrix. That being said, if you do not plan to use the NC feature of the headphones and just need something to listen to your stereo at home - you'll definitely be able to find a better set for less money. Better yet - take this simple test: if speakers for your home theatre system are made by Boss, Sony, or Panasonic - this pair is going to be good for use at home, at work, or on the plane. If, on the other hand, you have Boston Acoustics hooked up to your stereo - you might want to keep MDRNC60 for travel purpose, and for home use pick up a higher end model without NC feature.
- Noise Cancellation feature works great - definitely better then on Bose QC3 (and I'm not kidding). In my opinion it is the best NC you can get for under $300 - as simple as that.

CONS:
- There is only one negative comment that I have about this product. Carrying case that this model comes with is a softer kind which is a big minus in my mind. I like the hard case that comes with Bose QC3: having a harder case allows you to clip it to your laptop bag, for instance, and not to worry about smashing your headphones to pieces as you walk down the isle on the plane. This case I would not recommend to keep clipped to the outside of your luggage, as you can end up damaging your headphones. Also, as a future suggestion to a lonely Sony engineer who might read this review in his spare time - it would be nice if the inside compartment in the carrying case had enough room to accommodate iPod Video (just a suggestion)

NOTES:
- The airplane adapter is "foldable" - that is when you can fold one of two mini jacks "in". Is it really necessary to preserve 2 millimeters of space when you already have a carrying case? Fixed one would be just fine; instead another possible breakage point is being introduced. I'm not sure how this adopter will be functioning in 3 years if it is constantly "folded - unfolded", and I'm not going to test it, though, I'll just keep it "unfolded" all of the time.
- The cable that comes with these headphones connects the actual cup with the stereo mini jack. There is a plus and a minus in this feature for me. I understand the desire to make a cord interchangeable, and I guess some people might want to disconnect the cable so that they can sleep on the plane, but it might backfire if the connection becomes loose over a period of time. I read a lot of reviews and did not see people complain about it, but who knows if this becomes a weak point for me - will I write a review after 3 years of use, or just go and buy another pair?

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Equal to Bose

I got the new Sony NC60 base on reviews from the 2007 Las Vegas Electronics show. Took them on a recent flight to Japan so I could compare then directly with the American Airlines supplied Bose QC3 headsets.
Comparisons:
Noise Cancelling: No perceptable difference between Bose and Sony
Noise Isolation: Sony the clear winner over the "On ear" Bose QC3
Sound Quality: No clear winner here, the Bose might have a slight edge at lower listening levels. When you crack it up the Sony sounds better to me. The only issue I had with the Sony is the bass response was a little buzzy if I used the bass boost EQ feature of my IPod.
Comfort: The Sony by a wide margin. For my 7 1/2 size head, the Bose QC3 padding was almost painful. The Sony I could sleep with.
Other Features: The QC3 is smaller and lighter if that is important. The cable unplugs from the Sony (which is nice when you try to sleep on the plane). Some people complain about the on/off switch on the Sony, it didn't bother me since I only turn them off when I put them away. I found the battery life for the Sony is about 20 hours (pack an extra AAA).

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Don't buy. Vibrating background pitch noise rander these useless.

Other reviewers already noted that the noise canceling feature creates a constant vibration and humming noise, kind of pulse that starts when the Noise Canceling button is switched on.
I get this vibration sound only on the right ear, not on the left side. I thought it might be my ear but after I turned the headphones around it moved to the left ear, so it must be coming from the right-side cup of the headphones.
It's true you can move the cups around and it might reduce the problem sometime but it doesn't go away completely.
I'm disappointed. I don't understand how Sony can sell such product. Don't they have quality control?
Not sure if the other reviewers experienced this problem on one side of the headphones or if they had vibrations in both ears. Anyhow, the product looks great, feels great, but it doesn't deliver.
It is impossible to use the headphones with the noise canceling feature turned on because the humming and vibrating background noise is bad and probably is more annoying then other noises you try to fade out.
I'll get identical replacement headphones, and see if that solves the problem. I hope so... for that kind of money it will be very disappointing to find this is a no-go.

7/22/2007 - a second pair has same problem, slightly less noticeable, and in the left cup. I'm returning these and won't try another pair because I think it is a design flaw.
I did more research and the older model MDR-NC50 is known to have same issues.

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As good as Bose at less than half the price

I've used Bose's over the ear noise canceling headphones for a couple of years while traveling across country. On an overnight flight from LA with my wife along, I loaned them to her to watch the movie and never got them back. To make a long story short, I cast about and came across a review (here) that favorably compared this Sony model to Bose's, so I ordered a pair to have for those occasions my wife is along on trips. Guess what, I'm now using the Sony headphones and the Bose's are the ones sitting at home waiting for those occasions when she's along for the trip.

For those new to noise reduction headphones, don't expect miracles. They reduce noise, not eliminate it. Moreover, they react best to sound waves that are long; i.e., low tones. This means they take out a substantial portion of the noise on an airplane, which is a consistent roar, but will not remove intermittent sounds. It's still startles me to be able to hear the conversation going on in the seat behind me since the parties are talking loudly to overcome the airplane noise. You can still communicate with the stewardess or your seat partner, although somewhat muffled since your ears are encased. There is a mic switch you can press to activate the earphone mic if you actually want to make conversation. That may be the source of some of the problems encountered by negative reviewers. Myself, I've found these phones to be superb, especially in contrasting them to the Bose model, which is generally acknowledged to be the top of the heap. I doubt any headphones of this sort would pass audiophile muster, but that's not what they're designed for. What they do is make very long flights bearable, providing much less intrusive sound levels, and permitting actually hearing the plane's sound system effectively. The other crucial factor is comfort and these easily match the Bose's in that regard (try my 9 hour flight to Honolulu during which they were hardly ever off of my head).

The package includes things like an airplane jack and a protective carrying case. The case may not be quite as crush resistant as Bose's but it's plenty tough. I strap it across my lap top handle and it has yet to show any wear and tear, even with all the shoving under airline seats or in overhead compartments.

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Design Flaw leads to loud low freq oscillation

First of all, when not oscillating, the headphones work very well-- noticably better than the earlier model NC-20 which I also own.

However, this particular design seems to have a flaw that other reviewers have also mentioned. It is possible to set up an oscillation between your ear and the pickup mic in the headphones. The result is a LOUD ~15hz oscillation that can be felt as much as heard. On the pair I recieved, the oscillation occurs only in the right headphone. It is not always present, but needs something to set it off. Once going, it doesn't stop until you lift the headphone off your ear.

I found by expermentation: Stand in a quiet room, with the headphones unplugged from any music input. Lift the right headset very slightly off the ear. I presume I am changing the distance between my ear canal and the pickup microphone. Once the oscilation starts, it is unmistakable.
It is clear the noise is created by the headset, and contained within the space between the headphone and your eardrum.

Since the same flaw has been mentioned by others, I assume it's inherent in the design. But perhaps it also requires an ear canal cavity of a particular shape, and therefore only some users may be effected. Or perhaps its due to manufacturing variability. Either way, you're taking a chance since you can't tell if your pair will work until you open the package and try them out.

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