Headphones with best Phone microphone?

[ExtraSlow]

So you know how even cheapo earbuds these days have a microphone for making calls? Which ones are actually a decent quality microphone that doesn't sound like you are calling from 20,000 leagues under the sea? Ideally it's something that can block out wind noise too, since I like to make my calls when I'm out walking.

I don't even know where to start, or what to start googling for this feature.

[ExtraSlow]

Also should clarify, I'm looking for "normal" attachment for existing android phones, not whatever the the hell the ghost of steve jobs is selling these days.

https://verdict4u.files.wordpress.com/2016/09/android-arduino-and-the-headphone-jack-5-638.jpg

[killramos]

Have you considered just wearing a Bluetooth headset?

The biggest thing that is going to make a difference is having a boom closer to your face, but that makes you look retarded if you are going to wear it while going for a walk. Sounds like the inline mic style also doesn't work for you which is the most subtle. Personally I haven't ever had much luck with the fancy unidirectional mics that don't have a boom. You are likely to find returns just diminish substantially past using a normal set of iPhone headphones (or whatever) with an inline mic.

Maybe just look for a telemarketer style headset?

Pretty much everything is going to be a compromise of some kind.

[rage2]

Believe it or not, those new Apple AirPods are awesome for talking on the phone while walking around. I ordered a pair to play with to see what the fuss is about and planed on returning them. Now I look like a moron with them on all the time. With the # of conference calls I'm on daily while walking around, it's made life a whole lot easier. I was on a call today while skating at the lake and the other end heard me loud and clear. I have no idea why they work so well with the microphone basically beside your ears but it does.

They're kinda crappy for music tho, sound quality is on par with the cheap earphones that the iPhone comes with. They work great for android too.

http://www.androidcentral.com/airpods-android-seriously

Buy it, try it, if you hate it return it.

[Sky]

I agree with Rage, the AirPods surprisingly perform very well. Other end hears me loud and clear. My work requires me to be on the phone A LOT. I swear by the Plantronics Legend but that's a dedicated conversation only blutooth. For convo it's the best for clarity and battery life is good with at least 5 hours. Auto switching between phone and headset is sometimes flaky though.

Only issue I have with AirPods is the battery life sucks. Drains super fast but with the charging case it's manageable. Also I use only one side and I just rotate them so I pretty much always have full battery. I have to say for conversation the AirPods may be slightly better than the mighty Plantronics Legend.

[ExtraSlow]

So seems like bluetooth setups are the popular way to do this. Any corded options? I suspect I'd end up running down the battery, forgetting to charge or something.

Also, am I reading this right, those Airpods ar three hundred bucks?

[rage2]

Airpods are $220cdn. US exchange is killing us (they're $160us). Battery life is supposed to be 5 hours, but I've been able to drain it on nearly 3 hours of talk time. On the bright side, charging is fast. 5 mins of charge gets an estimated 3 hours of usage, so realistically a little over an hour of heavy usage. Since left and right are complete separate, you can use one and charge the other simultaneously as both have mics built in. The case charges the airpods, and it holds enough power where I can charge the airpods for around 4 days before needing to plug in the case itself to charge. You'll need a lightning cable (not included IIRC) to charge the case.

I don't know of any corded option that works well but I haven't really tried enough to say for sure. The wired earpods were terrible outdoors, and my Sony set is pretty much useless for microphone but great for music.

Like I said, buy, try, keep or return. Apple has an awesome return policy to try shit. Stock is pretty crappy/random with Airpods. I ordered my set last year and it wasn't due to be shipped till February. I got lucky one morning when the kids dragged me into the Apple store and they had a shipment in that morning and picked them up.

[ExtraSlow]

Hey, sort of related, I see that some phones list "active noise cancellation" in their specs, like the samsung S6
"
SOUND Alert types Vibration; MP3, WAV ringtones
Loudspeaker Yes
3.5mm jack Yes
- 24-bit/192kHz audio
- Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic


Does this mean when using the phone without a headset, or with the factory earbuds/mic? What does it really mean?

[killramos]

That means the phone itself has a second microphone located somewhere else on the device that it uses to provide noise cancellation when you are using the handset during a phone call.

On an iPhone 6S its between the camera and the flash, i think it used to be on top of older iPhones.

I highly doubt the software uses it when connected to a headset.


I think most phones have had this feature for years, such that they might not even bother listing it in specs.

[ExtraSlow]

Ok, makes sense. Would be wicked if that also worked with a headset.

[rage2]

If you're looking for AirPods, they went in stock 2h ago at both Chinook and Market Mall Apple Stores. You can order online or via app for pickup to reserve one right away.

[ExtraSlow]

Necro-bump, I had a few Bluetooth headsets in the last couple of years,and all worked very mediocre-ly. But decided to go full "call centre" and get a boom headset. These are Bluetooth v5, and have a separate microphone for noise cancellation. I have high hopes they will help with my 10+ hours a week I'm on the phone for work.
87611

[prae]

will be curious to hear your thoughts.

[rage2]

Still love my AirPods. I do my morning conference calls roaming the plus 15 to get out of the office.

[killramos]

I don’t usually use my AirPods for phone calls, but when I do they work great.

[mr2mike]

Stop those neck pains and injuries.
87614

[ExtraSlow]

Here's an actual photo of me using it.
87622
Fit is so-so, and sound quality through the one speaker is not amazing, and most disappointing of all, the microphone is not that impressive. My phone microphone is quite bad, so this is no worse, but it's not much better.

I think the best microphone I have is the one on my laptop, which is good for video calls, but that's only about half my work. Was hoping the bluetooth headset would be the solution, and maybe it could be, but not when you buy the cheapo $40 amazon version apparently. Or maybe the phone is just processing sound poorly and it's not the microphones problem? It is time for a new handset in a few months. we'll see if that makes any difference.

Probably still use it, because I feel like I don't have to shout with the microphone right by my mouth.

[ExtraSlow]

I think this might be my new favourite crusade. One of my coworkers, that I spend hours a week on the phone with, has a truly awful headset for call quality. Noticeably worse than other callers who just use speakerphone on thier cellular phones.

Is there any third-party testing of headset/headphone microphones? I want to send out a list to my team of what they need to buy. I know there are lots of "best of 2019" type lists, but they don't seem to be actually based on any kind of testing methodology, and the engineer in me can't trust them.

Heck, if I bought a few different ones, is there a testing methodology that I could use to rate and rank them? I'm writing a testing procedure for a set of tools for work right now, so maybe that's why it's on my mind.

[Mitsu3000gt]

I think this might be my new favourite crusade. One of my coworkers, that I spend hours a week on the phone with, has a truly awful headset for call quality. Noticeably worse than other callers who just use speakerphone on thier cellular phones.

Is there any third-party testing of headset/headphone microphones? I want to send out a list to my team of what they need to buy. I know there are lots of "best of 2019" type lists, but they don't seem to be actually based on any kind of testing methodology, and the engineer in me can't trust them.

Heck, if I bought a few different ones, is there a testing methodology that I could use to rate and rank them?

Not exactly what you're looking for, but rtings tests gaming headsets which do what you want. Might at least provide some insight into some brands to look at:

https://www.rtings.com/headphones/reviews/best/by-usage/gaming

[ExtraSlow]

Not exactly what you're looking for, but rtings tests gaming headsets which do what you want. Do they really "test" them, or are these just reviews?

EDIT: There are legit tests hidden in there. I'll check it out.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Do they really "test" them, or are these just reviews?

EDIT: There are legit tests hidden in there. I'll check it out.

Yeah he does pretty thorough objective testing - same for headphones, IEMs, TVs, etc.

[ExtraSlow]

Yeah he does pretty thorough objective testing - same for headphones, IEMs, TVs, etc.

This is really excellent, here's one sample I'm looking at:
https://www.rtings.com/headphones/reviews/steelseries/arctis-pro-wireless#comparison_2099

EDIT: Also looking through the forum part of that site, it looks like they are doing a dedicated "headsets for phone calls" list soon:

We’re working on a dedicated score set for phone calls that should be ready sometime within the next two weeks.

[Mitsu3000gt]

This is really excellent, here's one sample I'm looking at:
https://www.rtings.com/headphones/reviews/steelseries/arctis-pro-wireless#comparison_2099

EDIT: Also looking through the forum part of that site, it looks like they are doing a dedicated "headsets for phone calls" list soon:

Glad it's helping.

If you do land on a 'gaming' headset for your work, which I think isn't a bad idea, IMHO you would be better off with a Hyper X Could 2 (wired) or Could Flight (wireless version of the same). The Arctis sets test well in the lab but there are a lot of negative feedback out there regarding comfort, the mic, sound quality, etc. It's really hard to find a bad word about the Hyper X Could 2 series. I used to use an older set and I how have the Could 2's and IMHO they are a better unit. The Arctis use a narrow ear cup which might work for some people but for me it sits on rather than around my ear and are uncomfortable very quickly.

I have the Hyper X Coud 2's (wired) and I absolutely love them. I had a Steel Series Siberia V2 before and these are much better in terms of comfort and sound quality. The Clouds are just so comfy to wear for hours on end, which IMHO cannot be overstated if you're wearing them for an 8hr work day.

If you buy from Amazon, you can return them - places like Best Buy, Memory Express, etc. won't let you return headsets for hygiene reasons, but Amazon will - so if you want to try out a couple or if you aren't sure you'll like it, buy from Amazon.

[MushiSushi]

Tried a bunch of the cheap china made BT headphones, but none are good for calls... person on the other end always says they have trouble hearing me.

Found out that my Plantronics BT600 I use for work works the really well on my phone and laptop for calls. I can also have it connected to both and will switch between the two.

Wish the airdots work better for calls, i use these for the gym and every time i get a call i have to switch to using the phone to talk.

[ExtraSlow]

Got a set of SteelSeries Arctis 3 2019 Wired headphones, and I'm not sure I'm going to keep them. the 1/8" TRRS connector means easy compatibility with my laptop and phone, which is good, but I have questions about the microphone. Since I my use isn't "gaming" but telephone and video calls, I find it a little distracting that I can hardly hear myself speak. Also, while the microphone claims to filter exterior noise, it obviously was built for indoor use, because wind noise outdoors is awful. Will test Monday morning with my weekly calls and see if I'm happy with it. Otherwise, sending back to Amazon.

I really don't want to spend $400+ on headphones, but also, I'm picky as hell. We shall see. These ones were $80, which is a lot for wired headphones.

[ExtraSlow]

Did a test this morning on four microphone options.
1) Lenovo X1 Carbon laptop
2) Soundpeats Q30 cheap bluetooth earbuds
3) Mpow H1 over-ear Bluetooth headphones
4) Steel Series Arctis 3 Wired over-ear headphones with "clearcast" boom microphone. Tested with boom positioned very close, as well as further way from my mouth

in a quiet room, they all sound excellent. However, with ACDC's Highway To Hell cranked right beside me, the Arctis headphones were clearly better. They were noticeably quiet if I left the boom positioned a little further away from my mouth, so I think if I need these I'll need to keep that thing positioned quite close to my lips.

Still not sure if this is the solution i want. I may want to get one of the very expensive ones that uses ANC (Active Noise Cancellation) as part of the microphone algorithm to digitally reject background noises. Bonus of those is that they should be excellent for ANC headphones for use on airplanes and buses as well.

[ExtraSlow]

I did return the Arctis Headphones. Decided that for $90, I'd better love them, because if i didn't, I'd end up buying the $400 ones eventually.
I think they are the right headphone for indoor use in noisy environments, because the mic did a great job of only picking up your voice as long as you have the mic positioned close to your mouth. Probably a good podcasting solution if you record your podcast outside of a quiet studio space. However, they can't filter wind noise at all, and they don't have any kind of ANC feature, which would be handy for travel.

I do have the ability to take the majority of my calls from reasonably quiet locations. Still not sure if I need a new solution for this. Will keep looking and waiting for rtings to release their "headphones for calls" review.

[msommers]

The Planetronic 720 we have at work is quite nice.

[flipstah]

Jabra 940

[ExtraSlow]

Bumpy bump. Working from home, need a headset that filters out the noise of my kids screaming. Would be nice if it filters wind noise too, since I leave the house if the kids are screaming too loudly. Still spending hours a day on the phone.

Don't want "true wireless", and in fact, would be fully happy with a 3.5mm wired connection. Rtings is still heavily skewed towards gaming headsets, which aren't really the same kind of use-case. it does seem like Jabra and Platronics are the only companies that take this type of use seriously. I'd really prefer to spend less than $100, but I may not have choices.

[dirtsniffer]

We use Jabra bluetooth speaker / mics at work. They work well. The background noise filter does seem to work, as people who are far from the mic tend to get filtered out completely. Not sure how that'll go for much louder kids though..

[ExtraSlow]

Thinking I need to go to the Plantronics Voyager 5200. Not cool or cheap, but amazing reviews.

[flipstah]

See if you can get one of those Kenwood headsets they use in F1.

[zipdoa]

ATH-M50xbt - They go on sale regularly for $180. I use them daily for phone calls/teams/video conferencing/skype etc. They last forever on a charge and the m50 is known for it's sound signature. They isolate well and have a 3.5mm option if you don't want to run them off BT 5.0

[bigboom]

We were issued the Jabra Evolve 75 and they have been nothing short of awesome for work purposes. Not the most comfortable cups but decent noise cancellation and the mic has been great.

[ramminghard]

Was thinking of picking up the Hyperx Cloud 2's or the SteelSeries Arctis 3 BT for working at home/skype calls and listening to music at work. Would like to be over-ear with a decent mic and some level of noise isolation. Anything else wired or wireless worth considering around $120?

[ExtraSlow]

Rocking some Jabra UC 150's at home this week, as my spouse brought them home. USB works great for my video calls. Anyone know if most cellphones will accept a USB headset if you have the correct adapter? I'm cool with wired connections.
90042

[ramminghard]

I picked up the HyperX Cloud II and am very happy with them so far!

[Xtrema]

My Sony WH-1000XM2 is surprisingly good with phone calls. Wireless is a bonus.

[ExtraSlow]

I'm over wireless. #Wired4lyfe