There has been some confusion in regards to noise-canceling headphones. Mostly, people wonder whether the noise-canceling capabilities of these kinds of products can still work without them being connected to an audio source like a phone or a computer. Well, that’s exactly the question we’re here to answer. So, do noise-canceling headphones work without music?
In order to get to the bottom of this issue, we need to break it down. To make a long answer short, some noise-canceling headphones can indeed work without music. Today, we’re going to discover which products can work without a source, and which can’t. But first, let’s set the scene by talking about the different kinds of noise-canceling headphones.
What Are Noise-Canceling Headphones?
Noise-canceling headphones are audio devices that can block out the sound of the wearer’s environment. There are two ways in which these kinds of products can achieve this, the first one being passive noise isolation.
Basically, passive noise isolation means that the product you’re using doesn’t use any power to tune out the noise. Instead, this method involves physically shutting it out.
Most earbuds can do that by plugging your ears. However, they’re not the safest option if you want to protect your hearing. So, earbuds can directly affect the sensory hair cells in your ears. Furthermore, they can actually damage the nerves that take the audio information to the brain.
Still, in the article I’ve linked above, I did emphasize that hearing damage results from a high volume. Therefore, my conclusion was that noise-canceling headphones really are safer than regular ones. After all, if you can’t hear the sounds of the world around you, you’d be less likely to turn your music up.
In addition to noise-canceling earbuds, some over-the-ear headphones use the same method to get rid of the ambient sounds. However, rather than plugging your ears, these headphones use padding and pressure to create an airtight seal around your ears. That effectively blocks external sounds from reaching your ears, letting you enjoy your own music.
Ultimately, headphones with passive isolation can’t really work without music, though. While they could muffle outside noises somewhat while the music isn’t playing, the audio is really what helps them work.
However, some headphones also utilize the second method I’ve mentioned: active noise cancelation. Can those headphones still work without music? That’s the real question. So let’s dive into it!
Active Noise Canceling Technology
The other kind of noise-canceling technology is quite a bit more sophisticated than passive isolation. So how does it work?
As I have mentioned, passive isolation uses the physical properties of the headphones to prevent outside noises from getting in. Conversely, active noise cancelation is electronically canceling out the noises before they get to your ears.
Originally, this technology was developed for aircraft pilots, who couldn’t hear each other or their passengers without them. Just remember any helicopter scene from a movie. Everyone is wearing headphones with microphones so that they’d be able to talk. After all, you can’t really hear anything past the whirring of the motors and the spinning blades.
From pilots, these products made their way into the open market pretty swiftly. However, they do have one major flaw in their design. Even if they do manage to block off most of the surrounding noise, they often have quite a limited range. Moreover, they usually work best if the noise you’re surrounded with is repetitive and long-lasting.
Why do they have such strange flaws? We’ll have to know exactly how they work in order to understand that part.
How Do They Work?
As I have mentioned, active noise canceling technology tunes out the world electronically. Every product that uses this method actually has a separate power source that only fuels that part of its system. In fact, I’ve already mentioned as much when I reviewed active noise-canceling headphones for my article on noise-canceling headphones and earbuds that are comfortable enough to sleep with.
Usually, these kinds of headphones have a microphone either on the cord or on the earphones themselves. The process of canceling out the noise is simple. First, that microphone picks up the frequencies of the sounds from the environment. Then, the speakers play the opposite frequencies back to you.
The results are pretty great: the headphones effectively cancel out the surrounding noise. And they do it while also being able to play music, which further helps to muffle any sounds you don’t want to hear.
To answer the original question, though: active noise cancelation can, in fact, work without music as well. Because the system has its own power source, you’ll just need to charge it before you go out. Then, even if your phone runs out of charge and can’t play music anymore, you’ll still be shrouded in silence.
The Limitations of Active Noise Canceling Technology
However, as I’ve already mentioned, the design also has certain flaws. Firstly, you have to understand that the system that picks up the surrounding frequencies and flips them can’t work instantaneously. The sounds the microphone picks up have to travel through the noise canceling circuitry before the speakers play them back. That means that there will always be a slight lag between the sound in nature and the moment it gets inside your ears.
You can see why these kinds of products work best on continuously playing sounds, like the rumble of an engine. Because of that fact, noise-canceling headphones don’t do as well on sounds that are sudden and not as constant. Additionally, most of them also work best for lower frequencies, up to 1,000 Hz.
Human speech often slips through the cracks. After all, our voices are often higher in frequency and more inconsistent than plane engines.
Can Noise-Canceling Headphones Work Without Music?
As we have seen, some noise-canceling headphones can indeed work without music. So let’s briefly go over the conclusions we’ve reached today:
- Headphones with passive isolation technology can still muffle external sounds, but they can’t really block them.
- Headphones with active noise cancelation use a separate device with its own power source. So if you charge the power source regularly, you should be good to go even if you don’t want to listen to any music. However, it should also be said that some noise-canceling headphones can’t do much about higher frequencies, such as human speech.
Ultimately, though, if you want to protect your hearing and your sanity with something that will work no matter the circumstances, you may want to opt for earmuffs. Some of the products I mentioned in my article about earmuffs for sleeping would be ideal.
Specifically, you could get the earmuffs they wear at construction sites. For example, these Pro For Sho headphones would be suitable for all your day-to-day needs. Alternately, you can always keep some earplugs on hand.
So there we have it. Some noise-canceling headphones can work without music. However, you may also want to invest in some more effective ways of blocking out sounds, just in case.
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A lawyer never retires. So I would just say that I am not as active as I used to be. Now I simply dedicate myself to fishing, my hobby, and my grandchildren. For Business Finance News I write about legal aspects of mortgage policies, mostly regarding the rights of policyholders. I also have articles about personal injuries.
