by Lionel Lavenue
You don’t have to be old to remember when we flew without headsets. A cabin speaker cranked up to max volume in a 95-decibel cockpit was business as usual.
How did we ever stand it? And now that we all fly with headsets, the more appropriate question is how do we stand them?
If youve ever wondered why there’s no alternative to the standard over-the-head, dual-cup aviation headset, you may be a candidate for one of the new in-the-ear aviation headset devices that recently hit the market.
These in-the-ear devices may or may not require a band over your head but even if they do, they don’t create any of that vise-like pressure on your noggin. Instead, the devices simply fit snugly in your ear with a weight best described as feather light.
We recently tested three of these devices, the Panther CAT System by Panther Electronics and the AuriComm and UltraFlite by Quiet Technologies.
Panther CAT
We first learned of the Panther last year and we immediately sought a demonstration model. Surprisingly, the Panther folks told us wed need to buy a $495 unit but agreed to provide a refund after testing. During the conversation, we also learned about two options. You can buy either a universal earpiece for about 31 dB noise reduction or a custom earpiece for about 46 dB noise reduction. We opted for the custom unit. For a custom fit, an ear mold is necessary to obtain the best seal of the molded earpieces to the ear canal, so we arranged to meet the Panther techs at Sun n Fun in Lakeland for a personal molding.
When we stopped by the Panther booth, however, it was mobbed with customers so after the show, we submitted the order form and within a few weeks a fitting kit arrived. The box contained a videotape, an envelope of sponge-like pieces connected to string, several containers of clay putty of various colors, a large syringe and a set of instructions.
Frankly, we were a little intimidated. The instructions explained that the medical-looking devices were needed to take ear molds needed for the creation of the in-the-ear device. The instructions clearly explained how to mix the two colors of putty, insert it into the syringe and then ooze the stuff into the ear canal. To keep the putty from being pushed too far into your ear and to allow the putty to be removed after it hardens, you must carefully insert the sponge far enough into the ear canal. The string is kept accessible so the sponge can be removed, along with the putty mold.
After reading the instructions, I knew that this process wasnt for me, frankly. My dad, a pharmacist, had always told patients that you shouldnt stick anything in your ear any smaller than your thumb and Ive followed that advice. Besides, I like conventional headsets just fine. But my wife Teresa hates wearing over-the-head headsets and she was immediately ready for the challenge. We watched the instructional video, which was helpful because the written instructions, while good, werent necessarily intuitive. After the material has been injected, you must wait several minutes before removing the mold using the string, which is attached to the sponge inside the ear. This was comical but all seemed to work we’ll enough.
Once you pop the hardened molds out, you send them to Panther for the creation of your personal in-the-ear device. You can pick virtually any color, but Panther recommends different colors for each ear. This is necessary because one earpiece serves as the speaker, while the other earpiece serves as the microphone, sort of like World War II carbon mics that strapped to the pilots throat. Teresa picked pink for the mic earpiece and purple for the speaker earpiece.
We then packed the molds into the provided return box and shipped everything back. About six weeks later-an unusually long wait due to the heavy ordering at Sun n Fun-we received our Panther.
The 1-ounce unit was cute and Teresa loved how it looked, especially her custom colors. But to her disappointment, there was no case for the small device. For $500, we at least expected a small container. Although no case is provided, ear lube is. This ear lubricant-a clear lotion-is applied to the earpieces to obtain the best seal, making for a better earpiece-to-ear connection.
Although I thought this lube was somewhat gross, Teresa had no such qualms, readily using it and popping the devices into her ears. And the lube does seem to make a difference in the way the earpieces fit and seal.
Flight Test
During our testing with the Panther unit, we flew about 30 to 40 hours. Teresa was ecstatic. No more vise-like headset for her-she was sold on the Panther. The comfort was unbeatable compared to any regular headset, in her opinion. She rated the sound attenuation as excellent, despite the fact that the Panther is passive and has no ANR. But it compared we’ll with my Bose X headset, even though Teresa thought the Panthers sound damping could stand improvement.
Because the Panther is made specifically for each persons ear canal, it can only be used by that person, thus I wasnt able to grease up and pop the device into my ear for a second opinion. Strangely, no instructions were provided with our unit. Good thing its use was intuitive.
The unit is connected to a small blue box-the control unit-with a volume control. This is useful for passengers who hate listening in busy ATC sectors. It has a single button which we eventually discovered was a mute control. The little box was simple and functional but, in our opinion, the wire from the earpieces to the box should be lengthened.
At first, we couldnt decipher the purpose of the mute button, but we quickly found out why its needed. Because one earpiece is a mic, it picks up all sounds, including eating. So if you eat chips, the crunch-crunch sound blasts through the intercom, including lip smacking and even swallowing.
To avoid this nuisance, you must press the mute button when you eat. Unfortunately, on our version, mute button was a momentary switch that had to be pressed constantly-not an on/off switch. Since we bought our test unit, Panther has added the option of an on/off mute and we recommend that you pick that.
There were a few other nuisances. If you insert and remove the device during flight, it periodically creates feedback in the intercom system, similar to that nasty feedback screech at a concert. Also, wearing sunglasses can deform the ear, breaking the seal and causing distortion. Most distressing, during our testing, the unit stopped working twice and then started working again. We never discovered the cause.
The largest drawback is the sound quality. I sometimes found it hard to hear my wife through the earpiece microphone. Some days it was worse than others and we never determined the cause, although we suspect it had something to do with the ear-to-earpiece seal. Also, other Panther users have reported complaints by ATC, which prompted them to quickly return their units for an upgrade offered by Panther.
Nonetheless, despite the occasional problems, my wife loved the unit and swore shed found her new best friend in a headset. She said it was weird hearing in only one ear after years of hearing in both, but comfort won the day. She even found that she could sleep in the airplane with the Panther in her ears and she had never been able to do this with any other headset.
AuriComm and UltraFlite
Soon after we had completed testing the Panther, we received two demo units from Quiet Technologies, the AuriComm and UltraFlite. Because these are also in-the-ear configurations, we figured that the Quiet devices would make for a good comparison. They did.
The AuriComm and UltraFlite are similar, in that both units are lightweight in-the-ear headset devices. The UltraFlite weighs 1.5 ounces and the AuriComm is an astonishing 0.4 ounces in weight. Both products form the seal with your ear using small, malleable-foam earplug cushions surrounding a small sound channel, a design that promises 25 to 35 dB noise reduction. Each product comes with a package containing various sizes of ear cushions for various sized ears.
The primary difference between the products is that the UltraFlite has a small headband, whereas the AuriComm doesnt. Both products include two earpieces, plus a microphone on a boom extending from an earclip on one of the earpieces.
Before Teresa had even seen these products, she liked the concept. Both products come in cute little purses, as my wife described them. (Theyre black, so don’t worry, guys; theyre plenty butch.) Admittedly, with either of these products, you wont notice them in your flight bag; the cases are small and don’t get in the way.
The Quiet devices simply slip into your ear; no ear molds or ear lotion, unless you want them. (Custom ear molds are available as an option.) You simply compress the malleable foam-specifically, patented Comply foam ear inserts-and place the earpieces into your ear, exactly like foam earplugs. The foam then slowly expands and seals each earpiece to your ear.