Did you know that noise-cancelling headphones can cause severe ear pain, jaw pain, headaches, and disorientation? I’ve considered buying noise-cancelling headphones for a while now. I asked for feedback on Twitter, and I learned the Bose QuietComfort 35’s were the best model out there.
But I wasn’t really traveling much, so the $350 price tag seemed unjustified in my case. I suggested them to my sister, who was also in the market for headphones.
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A few days later my brother surprised us both with two pairs of Bose QuietComfort 35 headphones. At first the headphones were amazing: Clear sound, no noise. Then I started to experience some ear pain and other discomforts that kept getting worse.
How do noise-cancelling headphones work?
Noise-cancelling headphones work by counteracting sound waves to reduce ambient sounds. They process ambient noise through a microphone and generate an “anti-noise” signal, which significantly reduces noise.
Noise-cancelling headphones are most effective at eliminating low-frequency sounds. This is precisely why some people report ear pain from wearing noise-cancelling headphones.
Pain from noise-cancelling headphones
It all started the first time I used the Bose QuietComfort 35 noise-cancelling headphones. After wearing them for a couple of hours, I started to experience sinus pressure, ear discomfort, and pain between my right ear and jaw.
I figured it was a symptom of using them for too long and that I would get used to it. When I activated the noise-cancelling button, things got worse. The ear pain got more severe and so did the jaw pain. I kept wearing them, thinking this would pass after a few days. It did not.
Headaches from noise-cancelling headphones
Eventually, my sister, who initially raved about her headphones, told me she was also experiencing terrible headaches and dizziness. This was after I noticed her being unusually aggravated. She later told me her agitation was due to the headaches and disorientation from wearing her headphones.
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We both kept wearing them, thinking it would get better but it only seemed to get worse. In fact, wearing the BoseQuiet Comfort 35 headphones for a while started to make me feel disoriented as well. I later learned this was an expected reaction to cancelling out low-frequency sounds.
I decided to Google the problem to see whether this was normal and perhaps even temporary. It turns out that many people experience headaches, ear pain, dizziness, and disorientation from wearing noise-cancelling headphones.
What’s causing ear pain and headaches from noise-cancelling headphones?
There were tons of Reddit threads about noise-cancelling headphones causing pain. There was even a specific thread about how Bose QuietComfort 35 headphones were causing headaches. People on various forums were complaining about various issues resulting from long-term noise-cancelling headphone use.
Several people on this Amazon thread reported that things got so bad, they developed ear infections. But the complaints weren’t restricted to forum chatter. A 2008 TechRadar article titled “Do noise cancelling headphones make you sick?” provides insight into what may be causing the various issuers wearers have reported:
“The sound waves that cancel each other out may still transmit enough very low frequency vibrations to stimulate the balance receptors that are connected to the hearing hair cells in the inner ear… The disequilibrium that some people may feel from this is made worse because the vibrations falsely signal that the head is moving, but the eyes report that the head is stationary. Those mixed signals make the headphone wearer feel dizzy.”
Most of this discomfort doesn’t seem to wear off over time. The author of this 2016 Business Insider article titled “There’s a very good reason not to buy the best noise-cancelling headphones in the world” supports this theory:
“The active NC technology creates an odd ear-pressure sensation that feels weird and a bit uncomfortable after extended use, making the experience far less natural than that with a standard set…Don’t get me wrong: I love my QC25s, even if I have to take them off every couple hours to ward off pressure headaches.”
Active vs. passive noise-cancellation
There’s a difference between active and passive noise-cancelling technology. Active noise-cancelling headphones reduce low-frequency sounds, while passive noise isolation reduces mid- to high-frequency sounds.
In other words, passive technology is best for reducing most sounds, while active noise-cancelling headphones effectively eliminate most sounds. The best option depends on your needs.
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Personally, I prefer passive noise-isolating headphones since they don’t cause ear pain and headaches.
Alternatives to noise-cancelling headphones
If noise-cancelilng headphones are causing you headaches and dizziness, you should consider noise-isolating headphones instead. These block out far less sound, resulting in less discomfort.
I’ve since returned my Bose headphones and received a full refund from Amazon. Instead, I picked up a pair of Beats Solo 3‘s, which worked out much better. They don’t block out noise outright, but still quiet the noise on airplanes enough to make it possible for me to sleep.
Bottom line
Prior to my experience with the Bose QuietComfort 35’s, I’d never heard anything about noise-cancelling headphones causing pain. Every frequent traveler swears by them and I’ve read dozens of blog posts praising the miracle of these gadgetes. Which makes me wonder: Does everyone else just put up with the discomfort?
Noise exposure doesn’t seem as bad as the searing ear pain I experienced wearing noise-cancelling headphones. If there’s this much pressure while wearing them on the ground, how much worse will it get on a plane?
I also hope that anyone out there shopping for noise-cancelling headphones is aware of the ear pain, headaches, and dizziness reported by some users.
Have you experienced any discomfort from using noise-cancelling headphones? Did the problem persist or go away with long-term use?
Featured image by StockSnap from Pixabay
This story was originally published on May 10, 2017 and has been updated.
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