I grew up in NYC and when I moved to Portland, OR, to attend school I had a difficult time sleeping. I realized that it was because it was too quiet. I needed the sounds of the city. If you are not from the city it is hard to describe to you the symphony the city makes. It is a combination of chaos that becomes a harmonious sound.
But as I have gotten older, and with 4 kids (2 under the age of 3) I have realized I need quiet. Where I used to find solace in the noise of cnbc, the “you’ve got mail” sound of my inbox, the hum of my night stand as my blackberry vibrates, the sound of ringing iphone, the sound of my mac opening up to the first chord of Sinead O’Connor’s song, “Nothing Compare 2 You”, the cacophony of multiple phones in our house, crying infants, moody teenagers and meowing cats. I am now looking for quiet.
Albert Einstein once wrote,
“The monotony and solitude of a quiet life stimulates the creative mind.”
Last week I reviewed the Bose Quiet Comfort 2. As I said, they are a great pair of headphones, but I no longer travel with them because they are just too big. One of Chico’s laws of flying is, “Thou shall never check a bag.” These take up too much space in my carry-on.
I currently travel with the tiny Shure EC2, which do a great job of sound isolation. This is a different technology than the Bose. The Bose has a processor that cancels ambient sound. With Shures, even without music you are totally isolated from ALL noise. The only noise that you can hear is your own breathing. Professional musicians use them for in-ear monitors onstage. Once you connect them to an iPod, the reproduction of music is unbelievable too. I recommend these for discreet use when you need some quiet time during a car ride or at the airport or at a coffee shop or simply at home.
They come with a great case and a couple of different in-ear inserts that can be used to make it more comfortable. Although I don’t have first hand experience, Shure is known to have great customer service. My friends who have had issues with their Shure earpieces have told me that the company was over the top in taking care of warranty issues.
These are on sale for $69 at Amazon, and in my opinion are as good as the Shure 5 series which retail for over $500.
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