David Clark H20-10

By Jay, on June 25th, 2009

About 6 years ago I bought myself a new headset for flying and I’ll never need another pair. I spent months looking at all the options, designs, cost etc on which headset would be the most comfortable, and the most practical.

Generally speaking, when flying small aircraft comfort is one of the biggest things to look at. There is nothing worse than taking a flight for a couple hours and getting out the plane with a sore jaw because the headset was too tight. You also want a headset that you don’t have to constantly re-adjust while flying. Weight is another big factor, the lighter the better!

So the most important things for me when looking for a new headset, was something that was comfortable, light weight and of course, good quality!

The next big question when purchasing a headset is, Do you need noise cancellation? This usually comes at a higher cost, but if you can afford it, it’s worth it. Noise cancellation is a technology that allow the microphone on the headset to determine what is background noise, and what is your speech. It is then capable of ‘removing’ the background noise and reducing the overall noise by around 90%. This is great, but if the headset does not fit snugly around your ears, the noise is still able to leak in.

The perfect balance for me was the David Clark H20-10 headset.

It is made from advanced composite materials which make it very light and according to David Clarks website, it has “Patented headpad suspension that touches your head like a soft pillow” and they are not wrong! This headset is without a doubt the most comfortable headset I’ve ever tried. It has gel seals around the ear pieces that literally mould themselves to the contours of your head and cancel a large amount of noise without even turning on the noise cancellation. There is a volume control on the side of the headset for quick adjustments in flight, and the microphone sits perfectly wherever you place it, without needing re-adjustments.

The headset is available with or without noise cancellation. As I’ve mentioned just the gel seals cancel a lot of the background noise, but if you are really looking for the peace and quiet, the ANR (Active noise Reduction) is worth investing in.

They also come with a David Clark 5-year guarantee, which I have not needed to use. David Clark is synonymous with flying and produce very high quality products. Next time you are watching a movie or TV program, and you see someone in an aircraft with a headset on, have a look to see if they are David Clark signature green, 99 times out of a 100 they will be. So that should say something about their reputation and quality.

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