Paradigm Shift H15NC Noise Cancelling Stereo On-Ear Headphones Dual Mic Aluminum Fold Design Black

Cons: On the 8-hr and 12-hr flight, the Paradigm H15NC with the NC feature active was a massive disappointment. On both flights, I had the headset on for at least a 2-hour stretch and then on intermittently. The very low rumblings of the engine was removed when the NC feature was active, however, much of the engine noise was NOT removed. The NC was a bit better near the front of the plane, while it was worse from the middle to the rear of the plane. Listening to music on the flight was terrible with the NC feature activated. The bottom line is that the engineers at Paradigm dropped the ball on the NC feature. It appears that no one from Paradigm took this headset on a flight to check or figure out to what extent the cabin noise was reduced. The Bose QC15 outshines in this area during the long flights. This was not even a close match. I cannot emphasize my disappointment. One saving grace was that the Paradigm headset was not uncomfortable to wear for the entire 2-hour stretch that I listened on the flight.

Pros: In terms of design, the solid feel, the memory foam pads, the Paradigm H15NC looks and feel a high quality headset and definitely better looking than the others I had. It does not have the flimsy, easily breakable feel of the Bose QC15 or Bose AE2.At home in a fairly quiet environment, I found the Paradigm H15NC to shine. The deep base response without the NC feature activated outshines the Bose QC15, Bose AE, and the Grado SR80i headsets, so much so that at home, I now use the Paradigm headset for my normal listening. When comparing music by a range of artists, I found that I had to increase the volume on the Bose QC15, while the quality of the sound was much better at even lower volumes on the Paradigm headset. I have no doubt that for my normal listening pleasure I would be continuing to use the Paradigm headset.