Do AirPods Have Noise Cancellation?

Not all AirPods models come equipped with noise cancellation technology. Apple currently offers Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) on its high-end AirPods Pro and AirPods Max models.

These specific models are designed to provide an immersive audio experience. They actively analyze and oppose external sounds, effectively canceling out ambient noise from your surroundings.

How to Use Noise Cancelling on AirPods

AirPods’ noise cancelling technology is ideal for situations where you need to tune out external noise and fully immerse yourself in your audio content. It’s perfect for activities like listening to music, podcasts, or audiobooks while commuting, working in a busy office, or studying in a noisy environment.

To fully understand the ways to use noise cancelling on AirPods, let’s first discuss the noise control modes that AirPods have.

Noise Control Modes on AirPods

Noise cancelling on AirPods works in four modes(since the introduction of the second generation of AirPods Pro.) Those modes are active noise cancellation, AirPods transparency mode, adaptive, and off. Let’s go through each of those.

Active Noise Cancelling on AirPods

The ANC feature on AirPods Pro and AirPods Max creates a private auditory space.

Model
Active Noise Cancellation

The peaceful space ANC creates allows you to focus solely on your music, calls, and podcasts without distractions from the outside world. ANC technology effectively cancels out ambient distractions, from the hum of an airplane to the bustle of a busy café, allowing you to focus solely on your audio content. 

AirPods Transparency Mode

On the other hand, AirPods Transparency Mode is designed to let in ambient sound, making it ideal for situations where you need to be aware of your environment.

This mode uses built-in microphones to amplify sounds around you. The latter enables you to listen to music and podcasts or make calls while still hearing traffic, announcements, or conversations. It’s perfect for situations where safety and awareness are paramount, such as walking in the city or waiting for flight calls at an airport.

The Differences Between Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency Mode

When comparing active noise cancellation technology against AI-based noise cancellation algorithms, it’s crucial to understand that the former relies on physical sound wave manipulation to reduce noise, while the latter uses intelligent algorithms to filter and adapt to ambient sounds dynamically, enhancing the clarity and quality of audio.

The primary difference between Active Noise Cancellation and AirPods Transparency Mode lies in their intended use cases:

• Active Noise Cancellation is about isolation. It creates a private auditory space by blocking out the external world, allowing you to immerse yourself in what you’re listening to without interruption.

• Transparency Mode is about integration. It blends your audio content with the natural sounds of your environment, keeping you connected and aware of your surroundings without removing your AirPods.

By toggling between these modes, users can customize their audio experience based on their current needs, environment, and personal preference, making AirPods incredibly versatile tools for both focus and safety.

Adaptive Noise Cancelling AirPods Mode

This feature has been presented in the second generation of AirPods Pro. This innovative technology takes noise management to a new level by dynamically blending the existing Transparency and Active Noise Cancellation modes, tailoring the audio experience to your surroundings and interactions in real time.

It introduces features such as Adaptive Noise Control, Personalized Volume, and Conversation Awareness that respond to your environment automatically to fine-tune your audio experience.

Adaptive Noise Control combines Active Noise Cancellation with AirPods Transparency Mode to tailor the level of noise control for you based on the changing environment’s noise conditions. It is also quite easy to switch to, as shown above.

When you begin speaking with your AirPods Pro (second generation), Conversation Awareness automatically reduces your media volume and amplifies voices in front of you. It looks like this:

Once the conversation finishes, the volume is restored, and the noise-control setting is reverted to its previous state. You can also manually end a conversation by pressing and holding the AirPods stem or swiping up on it.

Now that we know the AirPods noise cancelling modes, let’s look at how to activate noise cancellation on AirPods.

How to Turn On Noise Cancelling on AirPods?

Activating noise cancelling on AirPods Pro is a straightforward process.

Switch Between Noise Cancelling Modes on AirPods Pro

Experience the ultimate silence with AirPods Pro noise cancelling technology, seamlessly adapting to your environment for the perfect audio experience. To activate noise cancelling on your AirPods Pro:

1. Press and hold the force sensor on the stem of your AirPods Pro until you hear a chime. This switches between ANC, Transparency, and OFF modes.
2. You can also control these settings directly from your connected iPhone or iPad: Go to Settings > Bluetooth, tap the “i” next to your AirPods Pro, and select Noise Control to choose your preferred mode.

Switch Between Noise Cancelling Modes on AirPods Max

For AirPods Max, the process is similarly user-friendly:

1. Press the noise control button on the top of the right ear cup to toggle between ANC and Transparency mode.
   
2. Adjust these settings via your iPhone or iPad by following the same steps as with the AirPods Pro.

Switch Between Noise Cancelling Modes on iPhone or iPad

Both AirPods Pro and AirPods Max allow you to switch noise control modes directly through your connected device:

1. Open Control Center on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Press and hold the volume slider.
3. Tap the Noise Control icon to select between Noise Cancellation, Off, and AirPods Transparency Mode.

Switch Between Noise Cancelling Modes on a Mac

For Mac users, adjusting noise control settings on AirPods Pro or AirPods Max is straightforward:

1. Ensure your AirPods are connected to your Mac via Bluetooth and selected as the output device.
2. Access the Control Center on your Mac from the menu bar.
3. Click on Sound, then select your AirPods.
4. Choose your mode: From here, you can toggle between Off, Noise Cancellation, and Transparency mode directly.
   

This quick process allows Mac users to seamlessly switch noise control modes to match their needs without interrupting their workflow.

The Reasons Behind AirPods Noise Cancelling Not Working

If you’re experiencing issues such as AirPods noise cancelling not working with active noise cancellation, ensure that they’re correctly seated in your ears. Additionally, check for any firmware updates, and restart your device.

Sometimes, simply cleaning your AirPods can resolve the issue, as debris can block the microphones used for ANC.

However, while AirPods’ ANC technology is adept at canceling noise, it might not fully eliminate distracting background voices during meetings or calls.

This is where Krisp’s AI Noise Cancellation feature comes into play. Unlike traditional ANC, Krisp focuses on eliminating background voices and noises during calls, ensuring crystal-clear communication without any distractions.

Cancelling Noise with Krisp

Using advanced noise cancelling software, Krisp elevates the standard of virtual communication by intelligently distinguishing and eliminating unwanted sounds. This, it facilitates a distraction-free dialogue that benefits every participant in the call.

For an in-depth understanding, consider looking into a noise cancellation quality evaluation, which provides insights into how Krisp’s capabilities stack up against traditional methods.

Krisp takes the concept of noise cancellation to a new level, going beyond the capabilities of Airpod Pro noise cancelling technology to ensure crystal-clear communication during calls. While noise cancellation on AirPods focuses on reducing ambient noise for the wearer, Krisp enhances the audio quality for all parties involved in a call.

It actively analyzes and filters out background noise from both ends of a conversation, ensuring that only clean, clear audio is transmitted and received.

Here’s Krisp in action:

Wrapping Up

AirPods noise cancelling technology significantly improves listening quality by reducing unwanted ambient noise. However, when it comes to ensuring the utmost clarity during calls and meetings, particularly in noisy environments, Krisp’s noise cancellation technology takes audio quality to the next level. By integrating Krisp with your AirPods, you can enjoy an enhanced auditory experience that transcends the limitations of traditional ANC technology.

Frequently Asked Questions

The post Your Ultimate Guide to AirPods Noise Cancelling appeared first on Krisp.

The noise cancelling headphone pair your choose can have positive reviews all over the place when you buy it. But you might end up being disappointed that it didn’t meet your own expectations. 

This is why we will go over all the important things you need to know before you make your choice: 

• How do noise cancelling headphones work? 
• What noise cancellation types are there? 
• What type of noise cancellation is best for you?
• How you choose the right headphones?

Let’s get started then.

Noise cancelling headphones: The basics

Active noise control dates back to the 1930s, and noise cancelling headphones were part of the story for a while now. The first companies that started producing them were Bose and Sennheiser. The full story is exciting, but that’s an entirely separate post.

Let’s address the types of noise cancellation first: 

• Passive noise cancellation
• Active noise cancellation
• Adaptive noise cancellation

Passive noise cancellation is more widespread and common, while active and adaptive noise cancellation stepped into the game way later. People often confuse active and adaptive noise cancellation, so we’ll go over each of them.

1. Passive Noise Cancellation (Noise Isolation)

The bulky headphones you see that seal around your ear with the massive earcups are exactly what passive noise cancellation is about.

It’s all about blocking the noise through some material and isolating your ear from the noise. There is no technology involved in this, the passive noise cancellation works thanks to the physical features of the headphone.

This can be done through almost all headphone types:

Over-ear headphones – These headphones cover your ear entirely creating a slight pressure where no air flows through the earcup. The padding or the earcup cushions help block the external noise to some extent which is otherwise referred to as “passively cancelling the noise”. 

On-ear headphones – These sit right on your ear, they don’t cover it. If you were to put them on you would feel how your ears press against your head as the headphones seal tight around it. The passive noise cancellation works the same way, with slightly less bulky cushions and more pressure on your head.

In-ear headphones – Regular earbuds that come with your new mobile phones. This mostly have plugs that fit into your ear canal and block out the noise covering your ear canal. You will get the same effect if you cover your ears with fingers. 

Which headphone type is best?

When you choose between these, note what kind of environment you are gonna be using them in. If you’re not interested in listening to music or having any sort of audio support, then your alternative is cheap and quality earmuffs. This provide no audio but great passive noise cancellation to protect your hearing. 

If you plan to wear headphones for long, try over-ear headphones because they are the most comfortable out of all. They may be bulky and heavy, so you’d have to choose the pair that is more lightweight for you. If you opt for on-ear headphones you might experience headaches at some point after a couple of hours. 

In-ear headphones are not the best when it comes to very noisy environments, because they don’t provide as good of passive noise cancellation as the padded options. Besides you will have more pressure on your eardrums which may result in damaging your hearing. Short periods with moderate volume will work best here.

2. Active Noise Cancellation (ANC)

Active noise cancellation can work along with passive noise cancelling. Let’s say you choose the same over-ear or on-ear headphone pair which also provides you with active noise cancellation. You get both passive (earcup padding) and active (built-in mics, noise cancelling circuitry) cancellation.

Note: In-ear headphones or earbuds can also have ANC.

There are built-in microphones on each earcup, which receive the external sound before it reaches your ears. Then the noise cancelling circuitry (built-in audio processor) detects the microphone input and notes the amplitude and frequency of the soundwave.

Later it creates an anti-sound to the original sound. The noise cancelling circuitry mixes the original and anti-sound together and transfers it to the speaker of the headphones. 

To make the process work, you will have to have energy, which is provided by a battery (also an important indicator for choosing headphones).

The battery affects the weight and the price of the headphones and once it runs out, you can keep using the headphones regularly without ANC.

As a result of this entire process, the anti-sound removes the external low frequency annoying noise but the desired audio still stays and you get to listen to what you want to listen. 

3. Adaptive Noise Cancellation

This is the regular active noise cancellation which has a bit of a modified concept. Simply put, it’s a new term used in the headphone industry for more customized noise cancellation. 

What it does essentially is adjusting the cancellation strength based on the type and intensity of noise. Noise cancellation gets more intense if the surrounding external noise is loud. So the lower the noise, the lower the adaptive cancellation.

Usually, with Krisp noise cancelling headphones, you are able to control the amount of noise cancellation you need through a mobile app of the company you buy the headphones from

Some pairs adjust the cancellation in real time, so they automate the process and you can’t interfere. You have to be cautious though, if noise cancellation gets more intense it might have an impact on the quality of voice. 

If you choose this type of cancellation you will be aware of the surrounding world a lot more. You will be able to hear some conversations or announcements that are important, and in some cases it’s easier to stay alert. 

What noise cancelling headphones do you pick then?

Let’s go step by step by what you have to pay attention to when you get your own noise cancelling headphones. 

Step 1: Type

You need to choose whether you want over-ear, on-ear or in-ear headphones or whether they should be wired or wireless. For both passive and active or passive and adaptive noise cancellation, your best pick would be either over-ear or on-ear headphones.

This could work great for a noisy office, or remote work or traveling if you deal with noise on the daily. 

In-ear headphones could work for less noisy environments and for shorter wear periods.

Also pay attention if the headphones can be folded, if the headband can be extended and if the earcup padding material is the one that you like. The most competitive and expensive noise cancelling headphones right now are Sony vs Bose. 

Step 2: Price

If you need a noise cancelling headset with decent noise cancellation, outstanding sound quality, great design, and comfort, you will have to pay up a lot. Besides, every single headphone excels with their features in their own way.

Some pairs can have great sound quality and average ANC, while others can have an awesome design but be quite uncomfortable.

If you are not ready to invest in noise cancellation, there are average affordable headphone options that still do the deed. Still, you will get the feel of real noise cancellation with more advanced and expensive models. 

Step 3: Battery life & Accessories

The battery life of the leading noise cancelling headphones pairs exceeds the 20 hours. So make sure that the pair you pick allows at least 15 to 20 hours of playback with the ANC on. Long battery life will only benefit you if you need to travel a lot, or won’t be able to charge them anytime soon. 

Accessories can be pretty handy as well, whether it’s a headphone case, a replaceable battery, or a cushion kit. You can check for other accessories like a USB cable, audio cable, adapter or maybe a clothing clip. However, even if you don’t end up getting those you can still purchase them online later.

Always make sure you are given a warranty so that you have a possibility to get them repaired or replaced if any issues arise. 

Step 4: Sound leak

This is a serious issue when it comes to the usage of headphones. If you work with plenty of different people in the same room, it’s possible that if your headphones leak sound, others will also hear the awesome song you listen to.

Sometimes, you just want to keep the music to yourself, so make sure you check whether the headphones leak sound or not. The primary way to do it is to ensure that the headphones are closed-back.

Regular over-ear and on-ear headphones are closed-back, but if there are any vents or perforations then they will definitely leak sound. 

Headphones with such vents that let the air flow in and let you see through the earcup are called open-back headphones. These don’t have noise cancellation and leak the sound super well. Their best use is for solo listening somewhere peopleless  for outstanding musical and sound quality experience. 

Other than that, if you choose good noise cancelling headphones with no sound leak check the durability of the material and the seal around your ears.

Step 5: Comfort

Try them on. Make sure you can cover your ears, especially in case of on-ear headphones. They have to sit tight and you should immediately tell the difference when they’re on as you can sort of “hear” the pressure.

You can listen the music and experience the sound quality on the spot. You will also be able to tell if the headphones are comfortable, and if they pressure you too much or don’t pressure at all.

Walk around or even jump around in them to see if they’ll pop right out or if they’ll stay put. Don’t skip this step and take your time. Trust me, you’ll thank yourself later.

Bonus Tip:

If you want to upgrade your noise cancelling headphones specifically for your remote work experience, you can get a noise cancelling app for windows. When you combine noise cancelling headphones with Krisp or similar noise cancelling software, you can enjoy a work environment free from distracting sounds. 

Noise cancelling headphones + Krisp = no noise whatsoever.

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So you can speak and listen without noise and use it with any noise cancelling headphones or conferencing apps that you choose. You will be able to take calls from anywhere, with no need of any meeting rooms or quiet places. 

We hope this guide will help you find your future favorite pair of noise cancelling headphones. Happy shopping!

Read next: Pros and Cons of Active Noise-Cancelling Headphones

The post Noise Cancelling Headphones and How to Choose Them appeared first on Krisp.

Noise cancelling technology is applied to headphones, and its also the most widespread use which concerns people regarding their health.

There are many type of headphones so first of all, let’s see how noise cancelling headphones work, so that we can get the full picture if noise cancelling damages hearing or not.

The basics of noise cancelling headphones 

There are small built-in microphones in the earcups of noise cancelling headphones. The microphones receive the sound before you do, which is later processed by the noise cancelling circuitry (again in the earcup).

The noise cancelling circuitry notes the frequency and amplitude of the sound and then creates an anti-sound. The latter is mixed with the original sound and fed to the headphone speakers. The noise is cancelled and you are able to listen to your desired audio. 

Now this works with low to mid frequency sounds in noisy environments like traffic noise, airplane and train noise, and more. However, there’s another type of noise cancellation which doesn’t involve active noise control – passive noise cancellation. 

Passive noise cancellation mainly happens thanks to the padding of over-ear or on-ear headphones that seals tight around your ear and isolates the surrounding noise. This is also possible in case of in-ear headphones or earbuds which go into your ear canal and block the noise from going through. Different types of headphones have different ways of cancelling noise, whether passively, actively or both. It’s up to you to choose the right noise cancelling headphones that fits you best.

Does noise cancelling damage your hearing?

Overall, noise cancellation in headphones doesn’t affect your hearing negatively. You may hear a slight hissing sound when you the ANC is turned on, but that’s about it. However, for some people this can be irritating and even result in dizziness. In this case it’s better not to use it too frequently or keep ANC switched off if it’s not too noisy. Keep in mind, that this hissing sound does not damage hearing.

Another important thing to note is that noise cancelling headphones do not emit radiation like our mobiles phones do. 

By the way, you can add up to the noise cancellation from your headphones, if you have frequent conference calls or remote meetings. You can use noise cancelling apps like Krisp which will ensure that the noise is removed on both ends of the conference call. 

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In fact, noise cancelling headphones are even good for your health. Let’s take a look at that as well.

Are noise cancelling headphones good for health?

Dealing with constant noise if you happen to work in a noisy environment is a real struggle. In this case, if you use noise cancelling headphones, those will actually help protect your hearing. Being exposed to low frequency noises for a long period of time is also harmful. We’re used to thinking that loud noises do the most damage, but long term low frequency noises are impactful as well.

Loud noises mostly do the damage to your hearing by interfering with your sleep, raising your stress levels and resulting in awful headaches.

Low-level noises that are constant are just as dangerous as loud noises if not more. For people who live and function in a noisy environment the stress hormone levels are higher than for those who work and live in quiet area.

The increased level of stress hormone called cortisol is linked to high blood pressure and cholesterol – this increases the risk of heart diseases. Low-level noises can also cause noise induced hearing loss (NIHL). 

Noise increases the level of stress hormones…

According to the study published in the Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, children who live in noisy neighborhoods with low-level noise have higher levels of cortisol than children who lived in quiet neighborhoods.

Now, if you wear noise cancelling headphones, you minimize the chances of your stress hormone levels increasing. You protect your hearing and possibly reduce the risk of gaining noise induced hearing loss. 

The coolest part is that since noise cancelling headphones cancel the surrounding noise, you don’t feel the need to crank up the volume to enjoy your music more. Listening to music on high volume is yet another big risk for your hearing.

If you want to get the best effect from noise cancellation, you may want to choose headphones that have good padding along with ANC, which will provide you with both passive and active noise cancellation. 

What can you do to preserve hearing?

Remember to always  keep the volume moderate as you listen to your headphones. That’s one of the primary issues that pose a health risk. 

Here is how you can figure out if the volume on your headphones is moderate. The intensity of noise is measured in decibels and the maximum intensity of noise that won’t harm your hearing is up to 85 decibels (according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration). If you listen to anything above that it will start to impact your hearing. 

Casual conversations in office or somewhere quiet are about 60 decibels. Try to keep your volume as much as to that – a casual conversation. And make sure that conversations don’t get too intense either. Loudness from all the speaking parties can get up to 95-100 decibels. 

Another way to find out if the volume is too loud for you is to listen to your own body. Take your headphones off and pay attention to what is going on. If you hear a slight hissing sound or ringing in your ear, or if all the other sounds seem dull and muted, then the volume is too high for you. 

Wrapping up…  

There is no risk for your health involved with noise cancelling headphones. The noise cancelling technology is safe for hearing and there is no need to worry about any possible radiation, because there is none.

Noise cancelling headphones actually to a great deal with protecting your hearing from the surrounding noisy environment. They help remove the noise and improve your listening experience.

All you need to pay attention to is the volume level on your headphones. The higher the volume the bigger the risk of damaging your hearing.

Now you can go and enjoy your noise cancelling headphones in peace and quiet. And remember to keep the noise level not higher than a casual conversation of 60 decibels. You will thank yourself for that one!

The post Is Noise Cancelling Bad for Your Ears? [Spoiler Alert: Maybe] appeared first on Krisp.

There’s an obvious limit to what they can do in terms of eliminating distracting noises, they are known to work best with continuous noise: noise that is constant, predictive and repetitive. 

Anything aside from that and you might as well save your money and get yourself a couple of cheap earplugs and a standard headphone.

In this post, I’ll answer the question of who really needs noise cancelling headphones. I’ll also cover some of the most common disadvantages of noise cancelling headphones, and some situations where they won’t even work at all and some alternatives you can use in those situations.  

Who needs noise cancelling headphones?

Do you even need noise cancelling headphones? That’s the first question you need to answer before you decide whether or not you want to shell out the cold hard cash required to get one.

Let’s screen people out first, if you want to get a pair just because you’re curious and would like to have a feel for what noise cancelling headphones might sound like when you wear them in a noisy environment then you don’t actually need to buy one, simply go to a store and try on one of the test samples on display.

Okay, with mere curiosity out of the way, let’s look to more genuine reasons. 

If your own reason for wanting to buy these headphones is that: you get annoyed by unplanned and unpredictable high frequency noises like sudden shrieks of laughter, people talking loud, automobiles or trains honking and noisy co-workers then these headphones might not work for you, and you’d be better off with a pair of inexpensive earplugs or noise isolating earbuds 

So who actually needs these headphones?

To get a clear idea of those who will benefit most from this type of headphones we’ll need to understand the type of noises that these headphones are capable of eliminating.

There are roughly three types of noises viz:

CONTINUOUS NOISE

Continuous noise is usually just that, continuous, it’s constant and predictable and continues to run without stopping. An example of these are the heating and ventilation systems that keep humming non-stop or the continuous drone of an aircraft engine for the whole duration of a flight.

If you are constantly exposed to this kind of noise for extended periods at a time then you’re one of those people who need these headphones and it might be a good idea to consider getting noise cancelling headphones equipped with an active noise cancellation circuitry. 

INTERMITTENT NOISE

These are usually a mix of sometimes quiet and sometimes noisy periods. And they occur at irregular intervals. Examples of these are the noise from factory machinery that operates in cycles or sounds of a train passing by.

If you’re constantly exposed to this kind of noise then these headphones might help muffle the noise but aside that they won’t be able to change much for you. 

IMPULSIVE NOISE

Impulsive noises usually come in sudden and very high pitched short blasts. The noise from these unexpected blasts usually dissipates as fast as it came, and as such you only hear them for a split second and then it’s gone. Examples of this noise are blasts from various construction sites. 

If you work in this kind of environment, these headphones will not help you much and what you need are some effective earplugs.

Now that we know what kind of noise can be eliminated by the headphones, let’s talk about some situations where they won’t work.

What are some common disadvantages of noise cancelling headphones?

Cost

Noise cancelling headphones are not like your standard everyday headphones, the standard headphones simply transmit sound signals from your audio device to your ear cups and eventually to your ears and that’s all.

 The noise cancelling headphones do that too, but in addition, they are equipped with the technology to cancel, or at the very least, suppress background noise (noise from your surroundings).

This extra functionality comes at an additional fee, and that’s why noise cancelling headphones are a lot more expensive than the standard headphones.

Decent noise cancelling headphones on the market today will set you back by about $300 and unfortunately, not everyone can afford that.

Battery life

Another problem with these types of headphones is that they run on batteries.

 And as I pointed out earlier, these headphones are equipped with a technology that allows them to listen to background noises from the surroundings and then generate an anti-noise signal that cancels such noises.

But to power this technology, the headphones require a battery of their own, these batteries can either be disposable or rechargeable and they’re known to have a short span of uptime. 

With a full charge, most batteries will last for about 20hours and for some noise cancelling headphones, once the battery is flat the headphones die completely, you won’t even be able to use it as a normal headphone and that’s bad news.

Audio quality

Yes, noise cancelling headphones help to eliminate background noise, but at what expense? 

A lot of users have complained that it is usually a give-and-take game, the headphones give you audio devoid of distracting noises but in exchange, it takes away audio quality, so much so, that some have even suggested that they deliver audio quality that pales in comparison to that of a standard headphone that is within the same price range.

The active noise cancellation circuitry is best only at canceling repetitive, predictable sounds such as a constant noise from an aircraft engine. Noise cancelling headphones won’t help much if you’re in an environment that is rich with intermittent noise like unplanned, sudden shrieks of laughter every once in a while.

They have also been reported to be better at cancelling noises found in the midrange to lower frequencies rather than those at a higher frequency. 

Comfort

Noise cancelling headphones can be a little less comfortable than standard headphones, how? Well, some are quite heavier because they clearly contain a lot more, others are a little too tight around the ears because they were designed to achieve a good seal (or a noise-tight seal, if you want) with the ears in order to block out external noise and prevent noise leakage from the headphones. The earpads on some others can start to feel hot to the ears on prolonged use.

Some people have complained that the active noise cancellation functionality produces a non-stop hissing sound that they find disconcerting, others have said when they wear noise cancelling headphones they feel as though their inner ear is under pressure.

So I suppose it’s safe to say that some just aren’t made for noise-cancelling headphones.

Some situations, where noise cancelling headphones will not work

PODCAST

Podcasts are becoming increasingly popular these days, Apple alone, features over 500,000 active podcasts, broadcasting content in more than 100 languages.

But regardless of how many podcasts there are in the world, let’s be honest here, would you listen to a podcast that has distracting noises in the background? No? I thought so too. I wouldn’t bother listening myself, in fact, nothing encourages me to hit the unsubscribe button more than the bad sound quality and unpleasant audio noises of a podcast.

Noise cancelling headphones are fantastic, but let me ask you a question. As a podcaster can you use them while recording, to rid your podcast of those characteristic noises like constant hisses, buzzings, and hummings that some podcasts are known for? NO. 

To do that, you would need something else. something that has the ability to separate noise from your audio as it goes into your microphone. Something like the artificial intelligence-powered noise cancelling app called Krisp 

How do you do that? 

Well, before I tell you how you can get Krisp to do your bidding, here’s a short LinkedIn video of how it works by LinkedIn expert Isaac Anderson.

Now let’s get to it.

Download and install Krisp and then choose Krisp as your microphone while you record.

SCREEN RECORDING

A Deloitte survey of about 2000 users in the U.S reveals that a whopping 91% of them simply agree to “terms and conditions” documents without reading through.

When was the last time you patiently read through a 14-page long  “terms and conditions” document of an online tool before checking the “I have read the terms…” box and clicking “I AGREE”? Not many times, right? You are not alone, I hardly read it too, and as it turns out, the vast majority of people never read it either. Why? It’s simply too long and too jargon-heavy and people have a pretty short attention span.

The same thing happens when people are asked to read a jargon-heavy product description or just about any other unappealing text. They hardly read it.

So what do you do to help as a business? Do you onboard new customers by sending them pages upon pages describing what you want them to do, or do you simply get a screen recording app like Loom, record your screen and send the recorded video to your customers?

Going by the stats above you would agree that going the video route would turn out to be more beneficial to your customers and by extension your bottom line. But there’s a common problem with screen recording apps, although most of them do a fantastic job with the video quality the audio is usually sub-par. 

How do you solve that problem, again your noise cancelling headphones are powerless here and you’ll have to turn to an app like Krisp

Once you download Loom and Krisp, all you need to do is open up Loom and as you’re about to start recording you’ll find a menu bar on the right that reads “Microphone source” select Krisp as the Microphone and you’re good to go.

CUSTOMER SERVICE CALL CENTER

Customer Service Representative: Hi thanks for calling (insert name of company), we aim to provide you with the best energy… this is Steve speaking, how may I help you today?

Mr. James: (obviously angry, cuts him short and yells). You folks must have been defrauding me all this while, and I only discovered because I got overcharged this past month. I left the country for the whole month, emptied the refrigerator and turned off all the appliances yet I still got charged a $200 bill. How do you explain that?

Customer Service Representative: May I have your account number so I can run some checks on our end?

Mr. James: Sure it’s xx-xx-xx-xx and I hope a get a refund for this month and a re-calculated bill for the past couple of months too. 

Some call centers handle nearly 200,000 calls a day, so imagine 200,000 different conversations like the one above or even a different one every day, and you’ll begin to get an idea of how much noise call centers are capable of generating every minute of every hour that they are open (and some call centers are open 24/7).

Again noise cancelling headphones might help a little, but it definitely won’t stop the noise from getting across to your customers, So what to do? Download Krisp for free and let it filter out the noise from your voice before it gets to your customer.

REMOTE WORKERS 

The world is gradually going remote, 80% to 90% of the US workforce says they would like to telework at least part-time, and 36% said they would choose it over a pay raise.

However, working remotely is not as glamorous as it looks on the outside, especially if you’re a parent with little kids and you happen to be working from home, you will have to put up with a lot of noise, your dog is barking, your twins are screaming and playing in the bath or your two-year-old is making a fuss over her toys. These are noises that will definitely affect your conference calls with clients(if you’re a solo freelancer) or with other team members if you’re part of a remote team.

Headphones will not help much and again Krisp is your best bet as demonstrated in this YouTube video. It was featured on Appsumo and became Product of the Day on Product Hunt!

CONCLUSION

Noise cancelling headphones used alone can only do so much, thus they are best used in conjunction with other recording and noise cancellation apps.

The post Why Noise Cancelling Headphones Aren’t Enough? appeared first on Krisp.

In-ear earphones are the most commonly used ear accessories in the world, this is because they are extremely lightweight and portable, and having them in your pocket is about as heavy as having a coin in your pocket.

One pretty common example of in-ear headphones are the white “earpods” that you find in the box when you buy a new iPhone.

In this post, we’ll list some of the best in-ear noise cancelling headphones (in no particular order) and we’ll say a few things about each of them.

BOSE QUIETCOMFORT 20

The Bose QC20 in-ear noise cancelling headphones have been around for quite some time now. It prides itself as being one of the best in the market.

And because Bose has made a name for itself in the industry people naturally seek out Bose products whenever they want to buy audio equipment, thus it’s safe to say the Bose QC20s are the most popular noise cancelling earphones among people today.

Its active noise cancellation is best in class, they produce fantastic audio quality.

On top of that, the earphones are comfortable and can be worn for an extended period of time.

It comes with a portable carrying case that protects it from wear and scratches.

In case you were wondering, its active noise cancellation runs on a lithium battery that provides about 16 hours of battery life when fully charged.

BOSE QUIET CONTROL 30 WIRELESS

First off, these are a bit pricey, so if you’re looking for something that costs a lot less, this isn’t for you.

In terms of noise cancellation, the QC30 is sub-par to the Bose QC20 but to offset that, QC30 comes with Bluetooth wireless technology (the QC20 is not wireless) and it’s sweat and moisture resistant making it suitable to be used while exercising, working out or playing sports.

CNET calls it “the ultimate neckband-style Bluetooth headphone. A style that looks like a horseshoe draped around the back of a person’s neck.”

BANG & OLUFSEN H3S ANC

If you’re looking for superb audio quality and you don’t mind shelling out cold hard cash to get it you probably should give this a try.

On top of its fantastic sound reproduction, BANG & OLUFSEN H3S ANC has top of the line active noise cancellation technology. 

When fully charged, it can support up to 20 hours non stop audio entertainment with noise cancellation enabled. 

Think your ears are a bit too big or small? Not to worry, you’re covered, the earphones come with 5 different ear tips and you can try each one on until you get a perfect fit.

Concerned that sounds from your audio might escape and distract people around you? Relax… these earphones allow zero leakages.

And just in case you were wondering, it comes with a case and a flight adapter that lets you enjoy inflight entertainment.

AUDIO TECHNICA ATH-ANC23 QUIETPOINT

If you’re looking for a pretty decent earphone that wouldn’t drill that much of a hole in your pocket then you might want to consider the Audio Technica ATH-ANC23 Quietpoint. 

It has a pretty fantastic active noise cancellation system, and produces well-detailed sounds.

If you are the type that goes on long commutes that require you to have your earphones plugged in for an extended period of time, this earphone has you covered, it’s very comfortable and it fits and seals well into your ears.

AKG K391 NC

The AKG K391-NC are a pretty decent set of in-ear earphones, they pride themselves with superb audio reproduction and top of the line noise isolation.

If you’re given to long commutes, you’ll enjoy their active noise cancellation functionality, and with their excellent noise leakage performance, it’s quite unlikely that while listening to your audio entertainment, the sound will leak out and disturb people around you.

The earphones are as comfortable as one might expect and they come with 3 different sizes of sleeves just in case your ear canals are a bit small.

They are also pretty stable in the ears they fit well into the ear canal thus allowing you to engage in moderate physical activities without them falling.

In terms of storage, they come with a soft fabric pouch that protects them from getting scratched or damaged.

When fully charged, the AKG K391-NC can provide more than 30 hours of audio playback with the active noise cancellation enabled, thus it’s suitable for a perfect weekend getaway.

COWIN HE8D

If you’re looking for a noise-canceling earphone that’s wireless and lightweight and that produces excellent sound quality but you don’t want to spend a lot of money, you might want to look up the Cowin HE8D. 

One pretty neat feature that sets this earphone apart from its competition is that you can charge it with your android phone.

How so? It comes with a Micro-USB connector that you can plug into your Android phone and this allows you to charge your earphone battery using your android phone battery

“Why would I need to do that?” You might wonder.  Well, circumstances might put you in a place where there’s no power source anywhere close, yet you desperately need to use your earphones.

And when you get out of that circumstance, there’s the regular USB port with which you can charge from a power source.

PHIATON BT100 NC

This is a wireless in-ear earphone that provides you with decent active noise cancellation and an excellent sound reproduction quality.

It’s sweat and moisture resistant, making it best suited for when you’re in the gym working out or exercising.

Rather than a headband, it has one of those neckbands (collars) that you can drape over your neck.

The collar contains control buttons for answering or ending calls; or pausing, playing and switching to the next or previous tracks.

When fully charged the battery can last about 8 to 12 hours.

BONUS

Since some of these in-ear models have sub-par noise cancellation, it might be a good idea to download Krisp, a free app that helps remove background noise when you call.

Use Krisp with your earphones and watch as your noise cancellation game goes from beginner to grandmaster status, give it a try and let us know what you think in the comments.

[demo-new]

Read next:

10 Best Call Center Headsets in 2021

How to Clean Your Headphones 

The post 7 In-Ear Noise Cancelling Headphones or Earphones appeared first on Krisp.

Let’s look at the stats together. According to 2019 numbers, about 103 million people in America listen to podcasts every week.

Another survey, reveals that 21% of all podcast listeners, listen to not one, not two, not three but four different podcasts per week while 22% listen to, at least three podcasts per week.

[demo]

Is that going to change anytime soon? Highly unlikely, as tech giant Apple, according to Variety, boasts of featuring more than 500,000 active podcasts, with content in more than 100 languages.

And that’s just for Apple alone, if you add other sources like Android and Google you’ll be looking at a big, fat, juicy 750,000 active podcasts. And the number keeps climbing every day.

Now what exactly is a podcast and why should you care?

So what is a podcast? Well, you can think of it like episodes of a radio program only this time around it’s so much clearer and so much better. Radio programs let you listen only when the radio station decides to air it (usually once a week). A podcast grants you the flexibility to listen to its shows at any time of your convenience.

The word podcast was first used by the writer Ben Hammersley in a 2004 Guardian newspaper article, he borrowed the word pod from the then Apple’s iPod and the word cast from radio broadcasting and thus the new word podcast was born.

And just in case you were wondering, “are podcasts restricted to Apple products alone?” No, they are not.

To me, the best podcasts are the ones where the guests are willing to share deep insights into their personal lives, especially their failures. It’s also interesting to know about the road they took to it, how they got out of it, and how you (the listener) can avoid ever going down that route.

Below are some of the top noise pollution podcasts in the podcasting space, you can listen to them at the gym, while commuting, doing the laundry, dishes or just about any chore you choose.

And if you need noise cancelling headphones to start listening to noise pollution podcasts, we have a great selection of on-ear noise cancelling headphones here. 

ASHES ASHES

This podcast features, for the most part, systemic issues, cracks in civilization, the collapse of the environment and according to the hosts, if we get unlucky, the beginning of the end, of the world. 

Not every episode of this podcast is about Noise pollution, but from time to time they speak about issues that are tied to noise and its effect on our immediate environment.

In one such episode, they spoke to Bernie Krause, a former musician and the founding father of the science of soundscape ecology. Krause in the ’60s discovered how much joy he could derive from listening to and recording wild natural soundscape so much so that he decided to spend the rest of his life doing it. And it worked out well for him as he hasn’t looked back since then.

In this episode, they discuss among other things how our world organizes itself and maintains a healthy balance in large part through sound. And how “our noise disrupts these delicate systems, breaks down ecosystems, and drives species into confusion, disarray, and death.”

SOUND MATTERS

This podcast is sponsored by Bang & Olufsen, a high-end consumer electronics company that produces audio products and a host of other gadgets.

The Sound Matters podcast series provide listeners with the opportunity to look at, and most importantly, listen to the sounds of the world around us. 

Aside the sounds, and depending on the topic for each episode, the host Tim Hinman also speaks to celebs like David Lynch, a legendary artist and filmmaker  to chat about the “infinite dynamism of sound, creativity, and meditation”

Or other not-so-popular guests like Jo Milne, who was born deaf and had remained deaf until she turned 40 years old and had cochlear implants. 

To sum up, this podcast allows you to close your eyes and get the feeling that you are being teleported to another part of the world entirely. It also brings you closer to the experiences that others like Milne, went through and such closeness allows you to appreciate their struggles even more.

It turns out that their content is pretty high quality and a lot of people like them because Sound Matters won an award in its category at the British podcast awards in 2017.

TMSOFT’S WHITE NOISE SLEEP SOUNDS

This is a podcast that brings you white noise from a very wide variety of sources, from the sounds of ocean waves or an evening lake, to that of a gentle waterfall, to that of blowing winds, whatever the noise, TMSOFT has you covered as it boasts of a lot of episodes of different soothing noises that are at least 1-hour long each.

The human brain is not accustomed to being in complete silence, and that’s why even while we are asleep, our brains do not stop receiving and processing sound signals, our brain cannot cope with a lack of sensory input.

And that’s why if you fall asleep in an environment that is too quiet, any unwanted noise (especially if it wasn’t there before) no matter how seemingly silent, like a sudden burst in AC noise can wake you up.  

Now, that’s where white noise comes in. If you had slept while some white noise was playing in the background, that sudden AC noise wouldn’t have interrupted your sleep.

 What do you stand to gain from white noise?

• If you’re suffering from tinnitus, you can mask the ringing in your ears with some soothing white noise.
• It definitely helps you sleep better and protects you from unwanted sounds that might interrupt your sleep. 
• White noise has also been found to help in soothing crying babies.
• It helps you to relax, de-stress and unwind after a long stressful day.
• It has also been found to help in soothing mild headaches.

EYES ON CONSERVATION

The Eyes on Conservation podcast is one that features engaging conversations about wildlife conservation issues. 

And speaking of wildlife, it turns out that noise doesn’t only affect marine animals, it affects land animals as well, and this is the crux of the “Phantom road” episode of this podcast.  

This episode is quite interesting . It follows a group of Boise State University scientists who have been studying the effects of noise pollution on wildlife for a number of years. The team is led by Dr. Jesse Barber, a Professor of Sensory ecology, animal behavior and conservation biology.

And what question do they hope to answer?

It’s a straightforward one, does noise pollution affect the population of songbirds in an area?

To answer this, they set up what they call a Phantom Road site. They picked a location of interest and attached loudspeakers to a number of trees at that location. Next, they played pre-recorded road noises through the speakers during fall songbird migration. Then they waited and recorded their findings.

ALL EARS AT CHILD’S VOICE: A HEARING LOSS PODCAST

The podcast was started by Child’s Voice, a listening and spoken language program for children suffering from hearing loss. 

Among other things, this podcast was set up in a bid to connect parents of children with hearing loss to the professionals who can serve them.

They broadcast a lot of interesting topics. One such topic was covered in an episode with guest, Wendy Deters. What’s fascinating and amazing about her story is that she was raised by committed and dedicated parents, both of whom were deaf. 

She talks about her upbringing, some of the history of deaf education. She also tells how her parents lived with their cochlear implants, and the how their experiences have shaped her life and her career. 

TACKLING NOISE POLLUTION

This podcast is brought to you by the Open University. In fact, the material in this podcast forms part of the university’s course in Environmental Control and Public health.

So just as you might have guessed, the podcast shows how much havoc noise can wreak on the environment and on us the inhabitants of the environment.

There are episodes which show how to measure the amount of noise we are being exposed to. They also show how to reduce such noises significantly. Some episodes touch up on the strides that experts have been making at cutting down noise pollution from transportation.

HEARING AID & HEARING CARE PODCAST

This is not exactly one of noise pollution podcasts. It’s a podcast that aims to provide straightforward and honest advice about hearing loss and hearing aids. It also covers the types and different technologies that it supports, and the people that sell them.

Listen to this podcast and you’ll find episodes that look at how effective Hydrogen peroxide is in the ear drop solution or how some hearing aids now support Android.

OCEANS OF NOISE

Oceans of noise is a three-episode series brought to you by the science weekly podcast, a podcasting arm of The Guardian. It’s a once a week podcast that teaches you about the most recent discoveries and important debates in biology, physics, and chemistry. 

On the science weekly podcast, Ian Sample, Hannah Devlin, and Nicola Davis pick the brains of the scientists who are conducting beneficial research in their respective fields.  

Now to Oceans of Noise

Most people, myself included, grew up with the incorrect notion that life below the sea is quiet and serene. Who could blame us?

We could hardly hear anything when we were underwater. So we concluded that it had to be because it was quiet. Little did we know that it’s our ears that aren’t equipped to hear underwater sounds.

Life beneath the ocean is actually riddled with diverse sounds from different sea animals.

In one of the episodes, Dr. Lucille Chapuis, a marine biologist from the University of Exeter, throws some light on what makes water an effective medium for sound communication and how marine animals take advantage of this.

Other episodes reveal how human activities such as prospecting for oil and shipping are causing noise pollution in the oceans and how sea animals are suffering the consequences.

HOW TO SEARCH FOR NOISE POLLUTION PODCASTS

I know we’ve gone through quite a number of noise pollution podcasts, but if you’re still hungry for more, I’ve got you covered. I’m going to show you the easiest ways to find extremely valuable podcasts, without having to comb through page upon page of Google search engine responses.

My go-to place to search for podcasts is the iTunes store. It boasts of over 500,000 active podcasts in over 100 different languages there’s a very high likelihood that I’ll find what I’m looking for. 

So to start, click over to the podcast app and just type “noise” or “noise pollution” in the search bar.  Watch it respond with lists of podcasts that are super relevant to your needs. Another way is to scroll over to the “categories” section and browse by whatever category you want.

Stitcher is another site that boasts of over 100,000+ active podcasts, all you need do is go to their website and sign up (it’s completely free), once you’re done signing up, you can search through the category of your choice.

By the way, if you’re thinking of recording podcasts yourself, or if you’re already doing it, there’s a new handy app that can help you make sure it’s noiseless and professional.

It’s called Krisp and it will mute all the hissing microphone noises or any other background noise that might get in the way as you record. You can use it with any podcasting apps and even try having a series of your own noise pollution podcasts.

CONCLUSION

If you are one of those who, a few years ago, used to think podcasts are just a total waste of time, then perhaps you might want to reconsider, as podcasts are no longer what they used to be years ago. They’ve improved and become even more beneficial.

So much so that almost everyone is embracing it. Universities have podcasts, news giants like Guardian have podcasts, scientific journals have podcasts, even radio stations these days now have podcasts.

If you want to reconsider, a good place to start would be to listen to some of the noise pollution podcasts listed above. Let’s have your feedback in the comment section!

The post Top 8 Most Useful Noise Pollution Podcasts appeared first on Krisp.

Cars now drive themselves! Few years ago, the thought of having self-driven cars would have been unrealistic or even ridiculous.

If you had told it to a group of friends over coffee, they’d probably have had a good laugh and then taken a good long look and probably a sniff at your cup of coffee to make sure it wasn’t mixed with alcohol. But thanks to artificial intelligence, look who’s laughing now!

And on the AI audio side of things gadgets like Alexa can now turn the lights on and off in our rooms, all we need to do is say “Alexa turn off the lights”.

Not only that, if you’ve had your AC on the whole time and the cold becomes unbearable in the middle of the night, you don’t have to get off your bed or feel around for your remote just say the words and Alexa will switch off your AC for you.

With the advancement in AI technology, things that people had once written off as impossible, impracticable, unfeasible and any other pessimistic word ending in “ble” are now being revisited and reconsidered. 

Here are a few key areas with AI audio:

NOISE CANCELLATION

There was a time when all we knew to communicate with were written letters, we bade farewell to that era and then welcomed a new era, one which gave birth to the earliest known telephones with their long winding wires and funny looking mouthpieces and earphones and subpar sound quality. 

But we never minded, we were simply grateful for the opportunity to be able to talk to loved ones who lived far away. 

Over the years, we began to mind, and slowly but surely those wires started to give way, and so did the heavy mouthpieces and the funny looking headphones.

And what we have today is a work of art, it fits, in our palms, in our pockets, and even on our wrists.

And now we have it so easy that there are even AI-powered tools like Krisp that help us filter noise from both ends (your, and your caller’s) when you call, making it easy to call from ANYWHERE in the world.

HOW IMPORTANT IS NOISE CANCELLATION?

Allow me to tell you a story.

Say you’re a traveler from the UK and it’s your first time in Atlanta, your flight lands and  you walk out to the terminal and book an Uber.

Your Uber arrives 15 minutes later but it’s a big airport and your terminal has 3 different floors (upper, middle and lower) all of which are on the same spot on the map, so your Uber has trouble locating you.

You call him several times just so you can give him directions but each time, the airport noise keeps preventing you two from having a decent conversation, and just when you thought you’d seen it all, your battery notifies you that there’s only 5% power left. You contemplate charging but remember you can’t use your UK charger in the US because the power outlets are different. 

So noise keeps you hostage and you could have prevented this with and set yourself free with a free app like Krisp.

TEXT-TO-SPEECH AND VICE VERSA

Well, today there are AI-powered apps that read your news articles, blogs, ebooks or just about any other written texts out loud to you and not only do they read it loud and clear they read it so perfectly that you won’t be able to tell that it’s being read by a machine. 

Text to speech also helps kids who have difficulty reading. How so?

TTS reads out a passage to your kid and highlights each word as it’s being read and this enables children to do 2 things at once:

1. 1. They see what is being read and
   2. They hear it at the same time, thus creating what experts call a multi-sensory reading experience.

Experts have found that multi-sensory reading, and in this case (seeing and hearing what is being read at the same time) helps kids to:

• Recognize words better
• Boost their attention spans and help them to better recall the information being read
• Understand the information being read rather than just reciting the sounds
• Identify and correct the errors in their own writing
• Build stronger stamina for reading

WE CAN NOW TALK TO MACHINES

A: What is the purpose of life?

B: To serve the greater good.

A: What is the purpose of living?

B: To live forever.

A: What is the purpose of existence?

B: To find out what happens when we get to the planet earth.

A: Where are you now?

B: I’m in the middle of nowhere.

A: What is the purpose of dying?

B: To have a life.

A: What is the purpose of being intelligent?

B: To find out what it (intelligence) is.

A: What is the purpose of emotions?

B: I don’t know.

Just in case you were wondering, that dialogue you just read isn’t between 2 humans. Rather it’s a conversation between man (A) and machine (B). In fact, it was taken from a 2015 paper published by researchers at Google.

They published it to show that one could teach a machine, in this case a chat bot, how to respond to conversations no matter how philosophical.

And if you’ve ever called any customer service number, whether it be that of your local bank because of an issue with your bank account, or your internet service provider because your WiFi is acting up, or even the postal service to report a lost package you most likely have spoken to a machine in the self-service option.

As for me, it has asked for my name, zip code, tracking number or account number and even asked me to explain what my problem was and routed me to the right customer service department to help solve my issue.

Self-service is just one of the many ways AI is allowing machines to interact with humans. These machines are trained to hear and understand human language and to give responses in human language.

What other uses of AI in audio industry do you know? Tell us in the comments! 

The post Top 3 Uses of AI in the Audio Industry appeared first on Krisp.

Is this true? Yes, but that’s not necessarily the full picture. 

As a matter of fact, its manifestations are much more worrying. The telltale complains of people with noise-induced hearing loss is that the words they hear are distorted and this is because they experience a hearing loss in the high-frequency part of the hearing range. 

The high-frequency range comprises sounds like “S”, “K”, “T”, “P” and a host of other consonants.

So if someone said, “Kate, could you please pass me that book?”

An average person suffering from NIHL would hear something along the lines of:

“ _a__,  _ou__ you  __ea __ _a__  me __a_ _oo_?”

Can they fill in the gaps? Well, maybe if they have some visual cues like seeing the speaker’s lips as they move or if the conversation is happening on the job, at a workplace where they’ve worked for the past couple of years and they pretty much already know the vocabulary and all other things linked to the job. 

But aside that, chances of being able to fill in the gaps are pretty slim. 

HOW LOUD IS TOO LOUD?

Generally speaking, any sound that is louder than 85dB (decibels) is capable of putting your hearing at risk. To give you some perspective, a gunshot sound is about 140dB loud and all it takes to come down with hearing loss is 1 case, (just 1 case) of shooting without wearing ear protection.

Other sounds like the lawnmowers are about 90dB and unlike the sound of a gunshot, you have to be exposed to it non stop for 8 hours before you sustain any serious ear injuries. 

But, NIHL is painless, when it first sets in, you might not detect it or you might even wave it off as something that will subside as soon as you take a nap, I mean, you don’t see blood or bruising, so you might think everything is perfectly normal, but sadly once you lose your hearing due to noise exposure, you can’t regain it.

It’s a permanent condition and it is incurable. Most sounds like traffic noise and ambient noises will likely be muffled, which you will get used to pretty quickly as well. 

And although it’s incurable, there’s good news and bad news.

The good news is that it’s preventable, the bad news is, a lot of people do not know. A survey by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey found that 70% of people exposed to loud noise never or seldom wear hearing protection.

But how do you know when how dangerous the noise you’re hearing is?

It turns out there are apps for that, and here’s a list of apps to help you measure how much noise you’re being exposed to:

1. TOO NOISY PRO

Children are loud, they are flipping loud. They make noise just about everywhere, at the supermarket, on an airplane, at the doctor’s office, at the restaurant, at school, at public libraries, just name it.

And come to think about it they make noise for the flimsiest of reasons: they want a doughnut, a channel switched away from their favorite cartoon or heck some of them simply scream at one another just for the fun of it and to see who’s got the loudest voice. 

Too Noisy Pro is targeted at places like schools or daycares, that have a large group of kids that interact and make noise. This app helps to keep the noise within bearable limits, such limits are usually pre-set by the teacher or a supervising adult.  

The app has a pretty warm and welcoming user interface that has a happy and smiling graphic whenever the noise is kept within the limit, but when the kids begin to overshoot the limit the graphic changes to reflect that, and if they maintain such over the top noise for more than 3 seconds an audible alarm goes off.

2. SOUND METER & NOISE DETECTOR

This app helps to measure real-time environmental noise, and unlike other apps in its category, it doesn’t run down your battery since it runs in the background and keeps the screen light off. One feature you might find annoying though is the number of ads they throw at you, if you’re comfortable with that, then you shouldn’t find the app too cumbersome to use.

3. DECIBEL X

Decibel X is an app that turns your smartphone into a professional sound level meter

The app has been tested with real-life sound pressure level devices and was found to be accurate. It supports a standard measurement that ranges from 30 dB up to about 130 dB (mind you a quiet room wouldn’t read 0dB because the lower limit in the detection range is 30dB and as such, a quiet room would probably read about 30dB).

That said, it has a pretty straightforward and intuitive user interface that supports both landscape and portrait layouts.

4. SOUND METER — DECIBEL METER & NOISE METER

This is a noise app that calibrates itself to your smartphone making sure that it measures within the possible noise limits of your smartphone’s microphone.

It has a pretty intuitive user interface that spits out real-time dB measurements in a dial and waveform chart, and any slight change in noise level immediately reflects on the chart. It also shows the time of each measurement.

5. NIOSH SOUND LEVEL METER

This app was developed by acoustic engineers and experts at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, NIOSH. This apps prides itself on being the best among its peers. 

Before making their own app, NIOSH tested quite a lot of the sound measurement apps that are already in the market at the time, for things like accuracy, reliability, and precision; and so when they made their app they tried to make sure that it was one of the very best.

Workers, researchers and any interested party, in general, can all benefit from the app because apart from showing the readings, they swear that it also provides, “Up-to-date informational screens on what noises are considered hazardous, how to conduct a noise measurement, how to properly select a hearing protector, and guidelines for preventing hearing loss, all in the palm of your hand.”   

So there you have it, it’s a package deal.

6. SOUND METER PRO

This app just like others in its league uses your smartphone’s microphone to measure the noise volume around you in decibels(dB). It has been calibrated with a lot of devices and thus provides accurate measurements.

The app comes with a blog and a YouTube page that provides guidelines and additional information on how to use the app.

And if you find a problem with any part of the app, the developers are pretty responsive, all you need do is email them and you can expect a response within a very short time.

7. Bonus App!

Now measuring noise is one thing, but being able to cancel it is a whole other deal. There’s an app that can help you mute background noise in calls and recordings super easily.

It’s called Krisp and it removes noise both on your side and other people’s side. Since it’s also compatible with over 600 conferencing, streaming and recording apps you will have no problems setting up quickly and enjoying your work and daily routine noiselessly.

[demo]

Do you know any other noise measuring apps? Let us know in the comments!

The post Top 6 Useful Noise Measuring Apps (as of 2022) appeared first on Krisp.

Ambient noise is a concentration killer, whether you are in an office, a coffee shop, or at home trying your best to get some work done while your neighbours are having an extension built. Fortunately, there are ways to filter out the background noise and ensure that your productivity levels remain high.

And yes, there are instances that ambient noise can actually be helpful and make you productive, but you have to spend quite some time trying to find the specific noise that impacts you positively. For now, we’re all about the dark sides.

So, let’s get to the meat of it – here are what we consider to be the top five irritating noises you’ll face at work (in no particular order, and wherever you are), and how to deal with them.

1. Co-workers

Whether you are working full-time in an office, or working in a co-working space, the constant background noise of your co-workers can prove to be a blight on your concentration levels, and thus also your productivity levels.

Sure, it’s great to have people around that you can ask for advice, but sometimes you just need a bit of peace and quiet so that you can get your work done! If it’s all getting too much, speak to your manager about the possibility of moving your workstation so that you can escape the noise.

2. Builders at work

There’s probably nothing worse than sitting down to work at your nice tidy desk with a fresh cup of coffee, and then you hear it… The aggressive drilling and hammering sounds (as well as some choice language) coming from the guys nearby getting their own work done.

The fortunate thing with this kind of irritating noises is that it’s most likely to be a temporary affair. If the background noise carries on for several days or so, your best bet is to go and ask them how long they plan on making such a racket for.

Noise cancelling headphones will only help so much here, so if they plan on building for a while, you might be best off picking a new spot to work from for a few days.

3. The sound of the streets

This one depends on where exactly you are based/choose to do your work. There’s nothing wrong with the occasional honk of a horn (even though you have to ask yourself if that really ever make anyone go any faster?) but if it becomes an all-day affair then God help you.

This is a sure-fire case where you should probably consider moving to work somewhere else – unless you are a police traffic officer of course. If that’s not an option, then ear plugs, or active noise cancelling headphones are your best bet.

4. Animals

We all love animals, or at least we should. However, there is at least one instance that is going to test the patience of even the Dalai Lama himself – relentlessly barking dogs when the innocent postman arrives to deliver packages to next door but two, and the owners are out.

Take solace in the fact that it should be over in a matter of minutes, but sometimes this isn’t always the case. This is another one of those times where you either need to take an extended break, or seek refuge in a nearby safe haven like a coffee shop.

5. Your own family

At first, the subtitle here was “children”, but on second thought, that isn’t really the truth, is it? Sure, children can make an awful din, but from personal experience, the largest distractions where background noise is concerned comes from the adults in the family!

If children are making a hearty amount of background noise, just find something to entertain them; it defies logic, but some adults require a slightly deeper level of tact.

The best advice we can give is to make a clear distinction between your professional, and personal life. Don’t allow visiting friends or the family members that live with you to interfere with your work. Make it crystal clear to them that you are busy working, and that you will be free to speak to them later, help them find the fresh batteries for the TV remote, or whatever it is that they want to bed your ear for.

This can be especially difficult if you share a home with several “stay at home” folk, but you have to set constructive boundaries with them – they have to understand when you can be disturbed and when you simply need to be left alone to get work done.

Finally…

With each day that goes by, more and more people are starting to properly understand how drastic an impact background noise has on their productivity and concentration levels, whether they are working remotely from home, in a coffee shop, or in the office.

We hope that this article will aid you in your quest to identify, and eliminate the most common background noises and improve the quality of your work.

One final tip, if you regularly use (or plan on using) noise cancelling headphones when working to block out ambient noise to help you maintain your concentration, or for making calls over the Internet, then you should definitely consider adding Krisp to your utility belt.

This nifty noise cancelling app filters out pesky background noise at both ends for you, leading to a significant boost in the quality of your calls, and your peace of mind. Try it for yourself  and let us know how you get on in the comments!

Do you find that background noise often negatively affects the quality of your work? How do you deal with the annoyance of irritating noises? What’s the worst experience you have ever had with background noise? Let us know in the comments section below…

The post Top #5 Irritating Noises at Work You Might Relate to appeared first on Krisp.

Ever had a hard time reading through or just following a conversation about headphones simply because you didn’t know the terms?

Well, you’re in luck, here’s a glossary with easy-to-understand explanations.

1) 2.4 GHZ

Let’s start with this one out of all the headphone terms. It’s relatively new and common wireless frequency, it allows you to have 2.4GHz wireless headphones that have a longer range of coverage, can transmit data through radio frequencies and are less prone to interferences.

2) 900 MHZ

This is an older wireless frequency, it also allows you to have wireless headphones that can transmit data through radio frequencies and have a pretty decent coverage. 

3) ALL DISCRETE  

Integrated circuits are nice, but not all audio equipment use them. Some audio equipment prefer to have separated individual components such as resistors, transistors, and capacitors.  

Some experts believe that individual components bring about superior sound.

4) AMPLIFIER

Left to their own devices, the audio signals coming from your phone, computer or music player are usually not powerful enough to drive your speakers or headphones. Thus we need an amplifier to amplify the audio signals from low power to high power.

5) ATTENUATOR 

Sometimes the audio signal is too noisy, that’s where an attenuator comes in, it helps to reduce the volume of the audio signal.

6) AUTOMATIC CALL DISTRIBUTOR

This is a phone system mostly used in call centers where they receive a lot of incoming calls. the ACD is automated to route all these calls to different operators.

By the way, if you’re struggling with noise in call centers, or during remote conferencing generally you can use noise cancelling app called Krisp to mute all the background noise on both ends, it launched on Appsumo Deals quite recently.

7) BALANCED HEADPHONES  

These are headphones that have balanced cable, it uses 3 conductors; 2 for the positive and negative phases of the signal and 1 for the ground, this arrangement serves to prevent hums and interferences.

8) BEHIND-THE-NECK

These are commonly known as “neckband” headphones because rather than have a headband that goes over your head, they have what you call a neckband that drapes around your neck, they are useful when you’re exercising because they are stable during movement, they are also useful when you’re covering your head with a helmet or hat. There you have it – one of the fun headphone terms.

9) BIAURAL OR BINAURAL

These are headphones that have speakers for both ears thereby allowing you to listen to binaural audio (audio that has one tone but two different frequencies).

10) BLUETOOTH

Thus is essentially one of the technologies that help to eliminate all wires and cable when connecting devices to one another. Thanks to Bluetooth technology, your headphones can do without wires. 

11) BOOM MICROPHONE

For some headphones, a boom microphone usually grows out of the external side of one of the earcups and extends via an arm (boom) to a fixed position close to the mouth. 

Why should you care? When you use a boom microphone while calling, no matter how vigorously you move your head the volume of your voice still remains constant to the caller.

12) CLOSED-BACK

This is the direct opposite of open-back headphones. A headphone is said to be closed-back when the outer part (back) of the headphone is closed or sealed completely in such a way that sound only goes into the ear and doesn’t escape via the opposite direction. These make for better noise isolation, thus ensuring that your audio entertainment doesn’t disturb the people around you.

13) CONVERTIBLE HEADPHONES

Some people, depending on their unique circumstances, want to wear on-ear headphones at a point and over-the-ear headphones at another. If you’re one of such people, rather than buy 2 headphones, you might want to consider a convertible headphone.

A convertible headphone as the name implies is one that can quickly be switched between 2 or more wearing styles.

14) CLIPPING

For sound waves or signals to get transmitted in speakers and headphones, they are converted into electronic signals. However there are times when the amplifier is overdriven to produce a signal which is more powerful than it can handle, such signals are cut or clipped once they get to the amplifiers maximum capacity. 

15) CUSTOM EARPHONES

You’ve heard of a bespoke suit or shoe, one that’s tailored specifically for you, it suits and fits you perfectly. 

Well, that’s the same idea behind custom earphones, only this time, rather than a tailor taking your body measurements, it’s an audiologist that injects some fast-setting liquid into your ears. This sets into an impression of your ear and it’s used to make your custom earphones.

16) CURRENT

The flow of electrons in an electrical circuit, it is measured in Amperes. 

17) DIRECTIONAL MICROPHONES

These are usually attached to headphones and they only pick up incoming sounds from a certain direction.

18) DECIBEL

Just as “calories” is the basic unit of energy as written on food labels, “decibels” is the basic unit of sound.

19) DIY

Do It Yourself, this is speaking to the fact that many audio equipment such as amplifiers, are made so that you can build or assemble them by yourself with very little or no supervision.

20) DRIVER

This is the component inside the headphone that converts electrical signals into sound that is heard by the ear.

21) IN-EAR

This is an earphone that goes into the ear canal and secures itself in place there. And because people are different and as such have different ears, most of these earphones come with 2-5 different sizes of tips to choose from to ensure a firm and painless fit with as many ear types as possible. 

22) MP3 – MPEG LAYER 3 FILE.

To reduce the storage space an audio file occupies, it is converted to MP3 format.

23) ISOLATION 

Ever stuck your earphones in when you’re in a noisy place? How did it go? Horrible? Oh that’s because your earphones don’t isolate well.

Isolation refers to the ability of a headphone to block the surrounding ambient noise from getting into the listeners ears.

24) NOISE CANCELLING HEADPHONES

These are headphones that when worn, helps the listener eliminate background noise.

How? By picking up noise from the surroundings and then producing an anti-phase sound wave of equal magnitude but an opposite shape which is then fed back into your headphones to eliminate the background noise.

Also check out: Glossary: 50 Terms to Know About Noise Science.

25) ON-EAR

On-ear headphones are those that sit directly on the ear in such a way that some part of the outer ear is still visible.

26) OVER-EAR

Over-ear headphones are those that cover the whole ear and sits directly on the skull.

27) OMNI-DIRECTIONAL

These are microphones that are capable of picking up incoming sounds equally from any direction 

28) VoIP

Last one of the headphone terms! This is a technology that lets you make free phone calls over the internet.

If you’ve ever made a call via the internet, be it a video conference call with members of your remote team or just a Skype call to a loved one you have used Voice over Internet Protocol VoIP.  

That’s it, now you can ace any conversation with any confusing headphone terms! 

The post Glossary: 28 Headphone Terms You Need to Know appeared first on Krisp.