The Blackbox M14 by New Zealand's Phitek uses noise-cancelling technology to provide better sound by blocking background noise.
The best kind of technology is the kind that solves a persistent problem. In this case, the problem is noise.
For anyone who's been on a flight, car trip or subway ride and has tried to enjoy their music or maybe watch a movie on a laptop and couldn't, you'll know what I'm getting at. Ambient noise can be terribly irritating when you're trying to fade away. Persistent chatter, droning engines or loudspeaker announcements just interrupt and annoy you. And how do you compensate? If you're like me you jack the volume until your noise is much louder than their noise so maybe you can actually hear the dialogue.
Course, who knows what that's doing to your hearing.
Well, there's a better way to enjoying good audio while you're surrounded by noisy commotion without having to blare the volume and that's with noise-cancelling headphones, made with technology that seems to be getting better and better.
Your ears will thank you as well considering you no longer need to blare the volume in order to hear the dialogue or get the most out of your music.
I've been using a pair of headphones form a New Zealand company called Phitek for the past month or so and am a solid convert not only to the cushy, padded type of headset that feels like I've got a pair of muffins covering my ears, but also a big fan of noise-reduction technology that the Blackbox M14 ($249) and M10 ($199) offer.
If you've never heard of Phitek, that's no surprise. Established in 1998 by Mark Donaldson, a New Zealand native with a masters in engineering, Phitek got its start by supplying airline carriers in the Middle East and Asia with noise-cancellation technology build right into airplane seats. Phitek's SmartJack, which allows passengers on carriers such as Singapore Airlines and New Zealand Airlines to plug their own headphones into the audio jack and enjoy better audio quality, has been installed in more than 200,000 airline seats since Mr. Donaldson secured his first contract in 2004.
"The aviation market provided Phitek with an exciting foundation to grow," said Mr. Donaldson from his office in Hong Kong in an interview with the Globe. "Airlines look to differentiate their product and one way is to provide passengers with a noise-free experience"
Phitek began supplying airlines with headphones and then in 2006 launched the Blackbox commercial line, which currently includes the M14, M10 and C14 ear buds.
All of the Black Box headphones employ passive and active noise-reduction technology. Passive noise reduction isn't really technology at all. Those orange ear protectors you see construction workers wearing block noise passively by insulating your ears. Even a good set of ear muffs will provide a degree of passive noise reduction.
Active noise reduction uses sound to cancel out sound. As we learned in high school science class, sound travels in waves. Hit one wave head-on with another wave and it's like the Hulk smacking heads with Juggernaut. So when it comes to noise-reduction technology, more sound, paradoxically, means less noise.
The Blackbox line uses passive and active noise-reduction technology (Phitek calls their technology ANR - Active Noise Reduction) to achieve much greater sound quality and filter out the surrounding environment.
Out of the box the M14 appears as chic and luxurious as the more expensive products on the market from established names such as Bose and Sennheiser. The headphones come in a zipped carrying case that's smaller than you figure - possible because the ear cups on the M14 swivel so the set can lie flat in the relatively small case. The headphone's outside shell is a hard matte black with a hidden slot for a single AAA battery that powers the noise-reduction technology and a switch to turn noise reduction on and off.
Also in the box - and this is nice - Phitek includes 3.5 mm stereo adapter and an airline adapter. The AAA battery provides up to 40 hours of noise cancellation.
I found the headphones quite comfortable to wear for more than an hour. The M14s are remarkably light and nicely padded, both on the ears and crown, and I wore them comfortably, with glasses, for good stretches at a time. Some headsets I've tried squeeze my head too tightly (insert comical retort here) or press my ears into the arm of my glasses creating a fair degree of discomfort.
Now, newspaper offices are not the quietest places, especially when reporters are on deadline and talking animatedly into their phones, pounding the keyboard or shouting a question to someone in another pod.
Flip on the noise-reduction switch and right away you can tell the difference. Music floods your ears, is much crisper and a little louder than when the ANR is turned off. Phitek says the M14s can reduce noise up to 22 decibels (versus 18 dB for the M10s) and while I had no way to scientifically confirm that benchmark, the difference I found between turning the noise-cancellation switch on and off was surprising. With it activated, not a peep or a keystroke can be hard over the music - even my own keyboard 15 inches from my nose - and even in between songs I have to strain to hear ambient noise. And all of this on a relatively low volume setting.
My only criticism is that at very low volumes you can hear a faint hiss, or buzz, as the headphone's electronic circuits try and compensate for outside noise. But again, that's with volume set so low you can't really enjoy the music anyway.
With the ANR technology activated, I found listening to music at my PC required much less volume to enjoy really crisp sound - something Phitek says actually does the ear good.
Audiologists warn that excessively loud music in headphones is already taking a toll on young and middle-aged listeners who've grown up with iPods and Discmans. Without noise-cancellation technology, I've often found the only way to beat ambient noise - whether it's a neighbour's keyboard or trying to catch the dialogue of a movie playing on my laptop on a flight, I'd compensate by turning up the volume as loudly as I could bear it.
Naturally, hearing everything clearly at lower volumes does less damage to the ear.
Audiologist Ross Harwell, founder and CEO of Hear Toronto, a hearing-care clinic, says active noise-cancellation technology in headphones is worth a look. "There's nothing inherently protective with noise-cancelling headphones, but by [using them]you can isolate yourself maybe 30 or 35 decibels from outside noise and in doing that you can allow yourself to listen at a lower level," said Mr. Harwell.
As for Phitek, Blackbox and what's coming next, I asked Mr. Donaldson if his company planned on releasing wireless headsets or mobile phone earpieces and although he would not get into specifics he hinted the company will be releasing new products along those lines at some point down the road. Meanwhile, the company has just launched a Canadian portal where they're selling their products on par with the U.S. dollar thanks to the strength of the Loonie.
Bottom line, Phitek's M10 and especially the M14 are good value for the money, offering audiophiles enhanced listening pleasure at a price that's competitive.