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How Do You Drown Out the Office Noise? 91

Posted by Cliff from the silence-is-golden dept.
An anonymous reader asks: "We've recently had yet another office re-organization, which is not so bad in itself, but the noise level has increased significantly due to the type of furniture as well as job functions of those whom I share the office with. The first thing I think I'm going to do is to get a pair of noise canceling headphones, but before I spend hundreds of dollars I'd like to hear some opinions or alternatives. Two of the ones that look neat are the Extreme Isolation Headphones and Plane Quiet Headphones. What have others done to cope with noise level?"
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How Do You Drown Out the Office Noise? More

How Do You Drown Out the Office Noise?

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  • For me it's a non-issue: (Score:5, Funny)

    by TeleoMan ( 529859 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @05:58PM (#11194690)
    Since my constant flood of profanity drowns out most everything where I work.

    I only wish I were joking.

  • in-ear headphones (Score:4, Informative)

    by Bastian ( 66383 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:03PM (#11194725)
    I saved myself a whole bunch of money and bought some in-ear headphones that use foam earplugs to block out noise.

    Mine is a pair of Koss The Plug [koss.com] headphones. Honestly, they're not very good by themselves, because the foam earplugs that come with them are very poor - it's impossible to get a good seal with them. I replaced them with a pair of my own earplugs modified with a hole through the middle (for the 'acoustic tube' that channels the sound into your ear). With that one change, they become a decent pair of headphones. The sound is still weak comparied to some professional in-ear headphones that you can get for 10-20 times as much money, but they are better than your standard earbud.

    But on the upside, they also block out background noise much better than my friend's Bose noise canceling headphones that also cost 10-20 times as much money.

    • Re:in-ear headphones (Score:3, Informative)

      by fm6 ( 162816 )
      Absolutely correct. Sound-cancelling headphones have their uses, but they're all in environments much more noisy than any office. I bought a pair of Sony Fontopia [amazon.com] in-ear headphones, which come with a multi-sized set of plugs. As a bonus, the sound quality is better than for any other headphones I've ever owned. And they're a lot easier to store than over-the-ear headphones.

    • Re:in-ear headphones (Score:4, Interesting)

      by WebCrapper ( 667046 ) on Tuesday December 28, 2004 @02:19AM (#11197568)
      While I'm not in an office environment anymore, I can recommend a set of headphones my wife got me for X-Mas since she got tired of me rockin'in the house down every day. That and my office currently sounds like an airport due to being small, no carpet (wood floor) with 5 computers (3 servers and 2 laptops) running in it. Add another person and a dog walking around clicking on the floor with its nails and its enough to drive you nuts.

      Now, with my Altec Lansing's (Amazon [amazon.com]), I can't even hear her talk to me (just like a mute button - lips move and thats it) when the volume is just on medium. I can't hear the keyboard when I type anymore either... Not bad for a $23 dollar solution.

      Now, when the volume is just off (which I've caught myself doing a lot here lately), I can still here some noise, but not nearly as loud. My only gripe is that, originally, I didn't like the feeling of the cups, but thats because I had never used this type before.

      Last but not least, I have a pair of ear buds too and I like the Altec's better due to in-line volume control and the cup over ear instead of in-ear. I tend to get headaches after about 2 hours of buds in the ear. That and I tend to walk around on breaks with the buds in to keep from killing my ears putting them back in within 5 minutes.

      And no, I'm not trying to push them that hard, I just happen to like the cheap solution my wife found. Oddly enough, she knew about these due to her profession - professional flute player in a band...

  • Sennheiser HD 280 Pro (Score:3, Insightful)

    by joeslugg ( 8092 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:04PM (#11194739)
    I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 280 Pro headphones.
    They do not have any specific noice-cancelling technology per se,
    but they are the "closed" variety of headphones with circumaural
    pads (surround the ear instead of rest upon it). For me, they
    block out the world quite nicely. Oh and they also sound great too.

    I got 'em online for under $90 back in summer.

    Before that I had a set of Sony headphones of the same style (closed,
    circumaural) but they cost more, wore out faster, and didn't block
    out the noise as good as these Sennheiser's do.

  • regular old headphones (Score:4, Funny)

    by pizza_milkshake ( 580452 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:04PM (#11194742)
    a decent old pair of headphones and shoutcast [shoutcast.com]. no noise cancellation. no blinking lights. no frequency-hopping reverse polarization. no iPod. the music is non-GPL and non-BSD compliant. the headphones were not Free. they don't even run linux.
    • I second that. Over my summer office job, I had one headphone over one ear listening to Howard Stern so I could hear the secretary yell "Where's your fucking time sheet?"

  • Air Circulation/White Noise system... (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Richard Steiner ( 1585 ) <rsteiner@visi.com> on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:05PM (#11194748) Homepage Journal
    My previous and current exployers both have an air ventilation system which ran almost constantly, resulting in enough uniform background noise to drown out most casual conversations and such that weren't immediately next door to where you were sitting.

    I don't know if the effect was intentional or not, but it might have been. In any case, it helped (and helps!) to remove unwanted distractions.

  • Shure E3c (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Visigothe ( 3176 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:06PM (#11194749) Homepage
    I test drove the E5c and the E3c, and I purchased the E3c. Brilliant noise isolation, and fantastic sound. Shure even allows you to "test drive" them with no obligation to purchase.

    • Re:Shure E3c (Score:2, Informative)

      by davco9200 ( 13848 )
      I have two pair of these (the E3c and E2C) and find them to be stellar at drowning out noise. I use them at the gym where I am moving around a lot (And where big air plane sized ear muffs are unsightly) and they work really well at almost completely drowning out the surrounding gym-blather. I have used the other style before and I have found my ears getting hot, and thus uncomfortable over long uses.

      Check out the Comparison Chart [shure.com] of the different models. Yeah, they are pricey, and I wouldnt' spring for th

  • The first thing I think I'm going to do is to get a pair of noise canceling headphones...

    Have you tried any non-noise canceling headphones? The HVAC system in my office is quite loud, but, using some cheap Sony headphones, I have never needed to turn my music up to painful levels to drown background sounds out.

    If you feel you need such expensive headphones I think you should consider looking at what is locally available - making returns much easier.

  • Simple and effective. Just go to a pharmacy and pick up a pair. I have a few pairs of them and I prefer those that have plastic "string" embedded in them so you don't lose them. Much cheaper than those noise canceling earphones which don't work very well and are not heavy. Soft foam earplugs are extremely comfortable (to me anyway).
  • Office noise? I'm too busy reading / posting at /. to notice.
  • I have a nice set of Sony MDR-V6's that I can put on so I can listen to tunes (and drown that unwanted background noise out).

    Most of the time I don't have to be social 'cuz I'm busy either analyzing or writing code. :-)

  • Strategy: Escalation (Score:5, Funny)

    by RedHat Rocky ( 94208 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:09PM (#11194776)
    Begin the arms race, expand your noise-making capacity and take the fight to your cube mates.

    Remember, in the cubes everyone can hear you scream.
  • David Clarkson aviation headset/normal headphones &/or home made phase(or ready made) reversal circuit:

    http://www.faqs.org/docs/electric/Exper/EXP_4.ht ml #Experiment:%20Sound%20cancellation
    http://www.no ise-busters.com/soundproofing.htm

  • You will see many people trying to sell you on in-ear phones such as the Shure E3 [shure.com] or the Etymotic ER6 [etymotic.com]

    Trust me - these are mostly overkill. I have a set of Shure E3s that I bought to cope with our extremely loud drummer - however, unless your coworkers are using jackhammers, a good quality set of closed-back headphones (AKG 270, Sennheiser HD580, Sony MDR-7506) will sound better and be more comfortable.

    • You will see many people trying to sell you on in-ear phones such as the Shure E3 or the Etymotic ER6 Trust me - these are mostly overkill. I have a set of Shure E3s that I bought to cope with our extremely loud drummer - however, unless your coworkers are using jackhammers, a good quality set of closed-back headphones (AKG 270, Sennheiser HD580, Sony MDR-7506) will sound better and be more comfortable.

      I have spent a few thousand hours wearing in-ear and closed regular headphones for periods of 4+ hou

  • Or in other words, I'm slowing going deaf after a life of listening to really, really loud noise. It isn't a bug, I tell my wife, it is a feature!

  • Furniture Noise? (Score:3, Funny)

    by StarWynd ( 751816 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:15PM (#11194816)

    the noise level has increased significantly due to the type of furniture

    My office furniture doesn't make any noise as far as I can tell. Of course I'm not lucky enough to have my "wastebasket vibrate with happiness when trash is thrown into it [cnn.com]."
    • Thanks for reminding me... I wanted to use a peltier, a loop of liquid to the plate, and a switch to flip which side of the peltier is in contact with the liquid, to try making that hot/cold plate! Almost forgot about that...
  • As posters have pointed out, active noise cancelling isn't required.

    I use inexpensive Sony MDR-EX71SLB Fontopia in-ear headphones. I like their sound very much (not too harsh on the high end, and with a very deep and solid bass). You don't need to turn the volume all the way up to make all disturbances (including a yakking wife or girlfriend ;-) disappear.

    I find them much more comfortable than over the ear headphones (YMMV), and they're very inconspicuous.

  • Plain Old Full Ear Headphones (Score:5, Informative)

    by Doug Dante ( 22218 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:20PM (#11194846)
    Such as Sennheiser HD 202 Closed Headphones [amazon.com] for about $20 will do fine.

    Unless you work next to a drill press or milling machine, a good pair of cheap over the ear headphones will do you fine.

    Just put them on with the music off, and you'll notice that they muffle the noise around you excellently.

    BTW, I loved mine, perhaps too much. I think that my hearing has suffered somewhat from them. You may catch yourself listening at '10' to catch every detail, and that's not a good thing to do for several hours every day.

    If you insist on getting noise cancelling headphones, you may want to wait for the Aiwa Noise-Canceling Headphones - HP CN6 [amazon.com], which are only about $50.00.

  • Try cheaper first? (Score:4, Informative)

    by cjhuitt ( 466651 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:21PM (#11194849)
    I got some of the (cheaper) Koss noise-reducing headphones. Note the reducing part, instead of cancelling - it made the headphones about 1/4 the price of the noise cancelling kind. For my environment, they work pretty well. It definitely cuts out a lot of the noise that is not usually noticable until you haven't heard it for a while. Monitor hums, computer fans, small clicks and whirs, and even small squeaks from people shifting around and whatnot. I generally never noticed these until after I'd tried my headphones out for a couple of hours and then took them off again. They don't drown out everything, however. I could usually faintly hear the bus going by outside (I was at the street wall), and while they greatly reduced the noise from my riding lawn mower at home, it still sounding like you were sitting on top of a riding lawn mower.

    For the ability to ignore/drown out more of the rest of the noise, I kept the headphones hooked up to a music source. Walkman, iPod, or whatever. If I really didn't want to be disturbed, I turned up the music until I couldn't hear normal-conversation voices from outside the headphone. Generally worked great, but if someone came up to me said "Hey!", I'd still hear them.

    One interesting note to this type of headphones - your own chewing/swallowing noises aren't reduced much (if at all) while wearing them, as it is mostly transmitted through your jaw. When I had the headphones on and was chewing gum for the first time, it sounded like a disgusting mess. Something to bear in mind.
    • I have a set of Aiwa Noise Cancelling HP-CN6 head phones. My story is roughly like yours. The one thing I've been told about mine, is people try and talk to me and I can't hear them at all. Generally to get my attention from behind, you had to knock on my desk. It took me a while to convince people that shaking my chair wasn't such a good idea (it's like having your own personal earthquake), just tap me on the shoulder, or knock on my desk (I can feel that if I can't see it).

      For about $60, they work r

      • It took me a while to convince people that shaking my chair wasn't such a good idea (it's like having your own personal earthquake)

        Exactly. What is it with goofy coworkers that think scaring the hell out of you to get your attention is funny?

        I swear, if I didn't need the money, I'd throw one in particular through the wall the next time they do it, and deal with the consequences.

      • Re:Try cheaper first? (Score:4, Insightful)

        by BillyBlaze ( 746775 ) <tomfelker@gmail.com> on Tuesday December 28, 2004 @12:33AM (#11197166)
        If I were you, I'd get a mirror to go on my monitor - frankly, I'd be freaked out if people could enter my room/cube without my noticing.
        • I am glad I am not the only one with this problem. Where ever I go I always choose a seat with my back to a wall and where I can see most of the room and the door. I cannot stand people coming up behind me muchless looking over my shoulder.

          Chop

  • Plane Quiet, Bah! (Score:5, Informative)

    by klausner ( 92204 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:22PM (#11194853)
    Your "Plane Quiet" [protravelgear.com] headphones are nothing other than Sony MDR-NC6 [sonystyle.com] models, which can be had for as little as $25 with a little shopping around [monstronix.com].

    Lot's of choices with a little looking.

  • noice cancelling headphone reviews (Score:5, Informative)

    by gothzilla ( 676407 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @06:23PM (#11194858)
    Epinions has reviews of the Bose headphones here:
    http://www.epinions.com/elec_Audio-Headphones_Koss _HB_SPZ-Bose_Noise_Cancelling_Headphones/display_~ reviews [epinions.com]

    Here's some more headphones from Epinions:
    Maxell:http://www.epinions.com/Maxell_H P_NC_1_Nois e_Cancellation_Headphones__Lightweight_Headphones_ HPNC1/display_~reviews [epinions.com]
    Coby:http://www.epinions.com/Coby_Digital_Noise_ Ca ncelling_Stereo_Headphones_Headphones/display_~rev iews [epinions.com]

    The Kenwood headphones have no reviews.

    This search from Epinons lists a lot of different brands but the only reviews are above. Check it out if you want to see more brands.
    http://www.epinions.com/search/?submitted_form=sea rchbar&search_string=noise+cancelling&tax_name=Hea dphones&dyn_nav=0&dyn_nav_id=&search_vertical=t130 375&searchbar_submit=Search [epinions.com]
  • really.

    well.. otherwise i'd just leave the Sony MDR-EX 71 SL's in my ears all day long.
  • I just use plain rubbery earplugs, available cheap at any hardware store. For reference, one U.S. brand name of the type to which I refer is "AOSafety" (here's a rough equivalent sold in Australia [safetystore.com.au]). They generally cost less than US$3; they reduce noise by about 20 decibels; I find them to be comfortable for hours; and they last for months, before they start to disintegrate from age and/or earwax.

    Note that some of these earplugs come with a longer-than-necessary fingergrip, which you use to insert/remov
    • Actually this is exactly how I do it.

      I spent a few years doing remote developent work (program from home) and got used to being able to control every environmental aspect of my work day ... and was welcomed back to the real world this year.

      I get a handful of the neon squishy ones at the gun range and keep them in my drawer - over the course of the week I spend as much time with them in as out. Serves a double purpose : in addition to the sweet serenity within my head, their bright neon yellow / pink give
  • It's much easier to ignore noise you create yourself than to ignore noise created by others.

    I always use a "clicky" buckling spring UNICOMP keyboard. Once I start typing the rest of the world just disappears.

    Tough nuggies for everyone else.

    I guess the downside is everyone can tell when I'm on my 45 minute space-out.

  • Blocking out noise is easy. I just do a lot of typing on my IBM Model-M keyboard. I can't even hear myself talk over the satisfying clickity-clack of the keys, much less anything else.

    This only becomes a problem when I don't hear the fire alarms, but that's an edge scenario.
  • Shut up, quit complaining and get used to it. You're lucky to still have a job, with all the outsourcing we're doing lately. Your system is on the chopping block for H2 2005.
  • Is there any chance you could persuade your coworkers to be a little more quiet?

    I personally use Leightning 31, but that's not for music...
  • Have you tried saying that the noise is now reaching levels where your ability to do your job is compromised? Have you tried shouting "WHAT? Can you speak up?" down the phone a lot? While most management types are immune to personal comfort issues, they are sensitive to anything that obviously affects the bottom line.
  • Get a good pair of headphones (I use the Etymotic ER-4P but that is probably overkill) and this recording of a thunderstorm:

    http://music.barnesandnoble.com/search/product.a sp ?EAN=14431028526

    That combination drowns out just about everything.
  • It doesn't long for most people to decide that they have work to do elsewhere :-)

  • Two words: (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Black Parrot ( 19622 )


    "Led Zeppelin"

  • Knee jerk reaction..... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by jotaeleemeese ( 303437 ) on Monday December 27, 2004 @09:11PM (#11196113) Homepage Journal
    ... has been headphones, earphones, louder music!

    What /.ers fail to tell you is that prolonged loud music will make you deaf or will impair your hearing in the medium or long term.

    In noisy environments you have a few choices:

    - Get earplugs or over the ears headphones (no music, or if you inisist not loud music all the time).
    - Hint to your employer that if you go deaf due to the noise they may have a legal case on their hands (not joking, if the noise is real bad your employer may be in hot water, pointing this out to them may get tehm into action, i.e. changing furniture or the office arrangements in order to reduce noise).
    - Talk to your colleagues! You could come up with ways to make your environment less noisy (no talking in the corridors, no music, no conference calls in the phone's loudspeakers, all mobile phones put into vibrating mode or off, etc.).
    • What /.ers fail to tell you is that prolonged loud music will make you deaf or will impair your hearing in the medium or long term.

      Well, that would take care of the original posters problem?
    • If you think that your work place is too loud (i.e. your hearing is being damaged, not you have an annoyingly loud co-worker) and that your employer should do something about it there is something you can do.

      1. Ask your employer if it needs to be fixed. They have an obligation to prevent/mitigate exposure of their employees to hazards.

      2. Go to radio shack and buy a cheap sound meter and measure it yourself. The action level is 85 dBa, Time Weighted Average over an 8 hour shift. The action level for i

  • I have some cheap (approx $10) headphone-style hearing protectors I picked up in the sporting gear section of Wal-Mart.

    They work pretty well, and are pretty comfortable.

    In-ear plugs make my ears feel all nasty and waxy after a little while, and I don't like the way they seem to enhance perception of bone-conducted internal sounds.
  • Just do what I do: Focus so totally on what you're doing that the world falls away and people have to say your name sharply, twice, before you look up and utter a vague "Wha...?"
  • I've wanted to buy some since about 10yrs ago. But theres never anywhere to 'test' them out, I dont want to drop $100 on a mail order headset.
    • I tried some that a coworker of mine had a few months ago (Sony, IIRC) and I wasn't impressed. They did a decent job of cancelling the noise, and the sound of the music was decent, but the noise cancelling produced a low level hum that started to give me a headache after a few minutes. He seemed quit happy with them, so YMMV.

  • I turn off my hearing aid :)

    Losing one's hearing certainly has its advantages!

  • Everyone here seems to be discussing various noise reducing headphones in scary detail. However, wearing headphones is not an option for be, as I work in a "conservative" work environment, and doing so would be "unprofessional."

    Given that, what are my other option?

    [Despite the supposed conservative culture, I still have to contend with co-workers obnoxious phone conversations and loud (sometimes lewd) gossiping]

    • Earplugs are the most obvious alternative. They come in many varieties, some of which are not noticeable by others.

      Of course, what you should do is buck your workplace's conservative culture and use the headphones! Are they going to fire you if you do? And if they do, perhaps that's a sign that such a company isn't really the best place to work. After a week or two, you'll probably find others also wearing headphones, now that you've shown that it's "okay". Dare to be a little different...

    • WEll if noise reducing/cancelling headphones or earplugs are not an option then your only choice is to confront the source of the noise and ask for it to be fixed...

  • Simple (Score:3, Insightful)

    by kinema ( 630983 ) on Tuesday December 28, 2004 @12:38AM (#11197188)

    Telecommute. It saves fuel as well.
  • The Plane Quiet Headphones appear to be the same product as the Kensington Noise Cancelling Headphones [kensington.com], with different colours and rebadging.

    I've read some very negative reviews of the latter.

    • I have a pair of Plane Quiet headphones which look almost entirely unlike either the Kensington or the Sony that someone else mentioned. I have no doubt that Plane Quiet is simply re-branding some other manufacturer's stuff, but the particular model I have is neither of these two.

      In general, I like them. My "office" is in a converted cleanroom. Hard walls and floor and a monster ventilation system designed to keep a positive pressure in the room. Plus there's an environment chamber running all the tim

  • 1. move the B&W G3 development server to son's bedroom and ban other half's noisy W2000 box from house

    2. use hush [hushtechnologies.com] as workstation

    3. when kids get back from school speak quietly and carry a large stick
  • have them both!

    ...works wonders for me. cn't hear shij with this combo.

  • Much cheaper than noise-cancelling headphones (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Tom7 ( 102298 ) on Tuesday December 28, 2004 @10:43AM (#11199078) Homepage Journal
    You can get industrial grade hearing protection for much cheaper than noise cancelling headphones (check out the Leightning 31s, which are only about $20 and very comfortable). They also work much better than noise cancelling, across the spectrum, and need no batteries! You can even wear small ear buds under these if you want music too.

  • I own the Plane Quiet headphones (Score:3, Interesting)

    by wonkavader ( 605434 ) on Tuesday December 28, 2004 @01:09PM (#11200208)
    I bought a pair of the Plane Quiet headphones and am VERY VERY happy with them. But only on planes.

    The sound they're good at cancelling is engine noies and other fairly low frequency stuff. They damp voices, but not by that much. If you wear them in a conversation, you hear the other folk -- they just sound low-fi.

    My hugely favorite thing for damping noise and actually getting work done is called a DOOR. If you don't have one, ask your boss for one. If he's smart and able, he'll get one for you. Your productivity will go up.

    As for using music to dampen, see Tom DeMarco's book, _Peopleware_. In it he runs tests with silence, office noise and music. The music ain't much better than the office noise for concentration. (page 78)
    • My hugely favorite thing for damping noise and actually getting work done is called a DOOR. If you don't have one, ask your boss for one. If he's smart and able, he'll get one for you. Your productivity will go up

      Well heck, why didn't I think of that! It's so simple! I'll just ask my boss for a private office! Great idea, I'm sure he'll be just fine with it, hang on, he sits in the next cube over so I'll go ask him.

  • simple (Score:3, Funny)

    by justforaday ( 560408 ) on Tuesday December 28, 2004 @01:28PM (#11200387)
    I just hum along to my tinnitus...
  • Most of the people here are suggesting regular headphones because they are far cheaper than noise-canceling.

    What they are forgetting is that to benefit from cheapo headphones is that you have to be playing music or some other kind of noise.

    The major advantage of the noise-canceling headphones (especially the ones from Bose), you can just put the headphones on and get silence.

    In my last job I would borrow my cube-neighbor's every so often in order to concentrate harder.
  • If you are wearing headphones, it will be noticed. They may not say anything, but they might complain. Get a waterfall, or a white noise machine, or something. You will still be able to talk to your coworkers, but the white noise will mask most of the noise. And, having an actual waterfall will definitely be more fun!
  • Before you spend a fortune on fancy noise cancelling jobbies, pop into the local motorbike shop and pick up a bag of earplugs. They'll cost you a few quid for a bag of 20 pairs or so, and they're designed to quiet the noise from a helmet at 185mph, so it's bound to make a difference to orifice noise.

    I used to sit next to one guy, his whole family had loud gobs. When he called home you could actually hear both sides of the telephone conversation (no exaggeration!) The earplugs didn't cancel the noise out
  • I hate it when people two cubes over are talking just loud enough to be distracting, but not loud enough to accurately overhear their personal conversation. That's REALLY annoying. But I find switching between noise-blocking headphones and directional sound amplifiers to be a hardship. Any thoughts?

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