Directional Earphones?

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I just drove 4 hours for a meeting where I could not participate because there were several sub-groups all talking at once, and it was very rare that I could hear a full sentence in my own group. Does anyone know of a product for listening in one direction? I know that birdwatchers also listen, but they have big rigs. I'm thinking of taking some standard ear cans and adding a tube on each side open to the front, but if anyone knows of something handy and ready-made please let me know.

Don't you have the skills to adapt a directional microphone designed for an Iphone? This may be the most cost effective approach to getting exactly what you want.

These seem interesting Dear One https://www.orosound.com/

300 Euros is a lot of money unless your employer is paying for it. A fancy Iphone mic is less than 50 Euros.

My telephone is on a wire, and I have boycotted Apple since my third Apple Care call for help with my iMac. When it started breaking, my resolve hardened like carbide. I don't want stuff in my ears if I can avoid that, because they need air to keep the bacteria down. Nor do I want to fuss with batteries, etc if I don't have to.

Coincidentally enough, this week's New Scientist (a UK science magazine) had an interesting report about a "brain-reading" hearing aid which can work out which one of three voices you're trying to listen to, and enhances only that one, regardless of which directions the voices are coming from. At the moment, the brain activity can only be measured for folks with electrodes in their brains (the test subjects already had these implanted for controlling certain types of seizures), but they say they're working on measuring brain activity externally, maybe even with electrodes built into the earphones. The researchers also stated that removing what they called "babble noise" (the thrum of loads of indistinct background voices) is relatively much simpler - even just that would be great for me, as this is one of my most severe sensory overload triggers.

Sounds like you want an ear trumpet, a device used before hearing aids as we know know them were invented.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ear_trumpet

https://www.hearingaidmuseum.com/galler ... umpets.htm

I have a BA Degree in Sound Technology (sound engineering) from LIPA (world famous performing arts college started by Sir Paul McCartney).

I have also several pairs of noise cancelling headphones. I can give you my opinion if you like.

OK.

I have a pair of Bose QC35 noise cancellation headphones, which work to a level. These do not block or cancel out all sound however, and they do use a noise generator in combination with your own choice of music to mask and cancel out any environmental noise. They do work best when required to cancel out a consistent noise source, for example,
the sound of airplane engines from inside a plane.

I think they are fairly effective when using with music, however, i am aware that my ears start to hurt if i use them for any length of time over 10 mins. This, i do not think is a good sign. I also note the way people go death is by being exposed to constant sound for prolonged lengths of time. Taking this into consideration, i think that noise cancellation headphones could actually damage a persons hearing, which would result in that person then suffering not only from deafness or partial deafness but from equally annoying tinnitus.

What is the solution then?

Well considering your own requirements, i would have thought something like airplane pilot or drummer's noise blocking ear defender headphones that are used with an external sound source extremely directional microphone.

Microphones come in a variety of directional types, from microphones that pick up sound from all directions such as omni pattern microphones.
The more directional patterns being hypercardioid, supercardioid and unicardioid.

Please keep in mind however that many of these directional microphones will require a power source,
as the more directional microphones are generally capacitor microphones and need phantom power to work.

You may be able to find a back electret that includes its own power source, these aren't known to give the best quality recording but this may not be an issue if its just for conversation monitoring. they are often cheaper too.

Film makers usually use these types directional microphones for recording speech onsite.
https://documentarycameras.com/best-sho ... ilmmakers/

the pilots ear defender headphones may be a few DB more effective at blocking out sound.

Thanks, all. I do have a set of cans plugged into an MP3 player, and could presumably hack a shotgun mic on instead. First, I'll try the pure audio version, though. Any tips on how to build the tubes? Anechoic interiors? I'm still looking for my 3rd best set of cans to hack.

https://sciencedemonstrations.fas.harva ... ustic-horn

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horn_loudspeaker

I believe that some of the ear defenders on the market actually also work as headphones, which have a mini jack input.
You would then only need the correct lead to connect a shotgun microphone to the headphone, although, as previously mentioned,
be sure to not only use a self powered microphone such as a back electret and a mini mic preamp,
or if the mic is not self powered, a preamp or mini mixer with phantom power.

It is possible to buy some mini mixers that are powered by batteries and portable.

There are some aviation pilot headphones that come with a microphone built in, that are ear defenders as well with 30 - 40 db passive reduction. But not sure if the microphones are directional. Also, not sure if you want to pay the money for these. When you may be able to convert some cheap ear defenders?...

Just an idea.

top 10 Aviation Headsets
core blimey, are some of these expensive!...
think there may be better options out there.

Kat Drummers Isolation Headphones

rode videomic pro
powered by 9V battery and has a mini jack output
no need for preamp or mixer

Yeow! At those prices, I'll definitely risk my all-audio experiment first. Basically what I need is the same physical input path, but with my ear in place of the pickup element. I'm thinking of adding a green LED, shining forward through the tubes, and a sign to say that I can only hear people who can see the green light. That alone might discourage cross-talk.

Hey, Yere. I am not sure what you hope to achieve with the tubes?
Is it the same theory as using ear trumpets.

May i be brutally honest with you, i think the greed led and tube thing sounds very bizarre.
Kind of "hello, i am an alien" kind of bizarre.

Wearing headphones or ear defenders is fairly odd in itself. I would at the most probably go down the ear defender route. perhaps trying to adapt some basic ear defenders if you are handy with basic electronics.

like i say, there are a number of isolation headphone sets on the market, such as the fairly cheap drummers headphones. which you could adapt to use with a microphone. you probably get away with using a cheap back electret mic.

if you have cash, beyerdynamic make some headphones also designed for use in noisy environments that come with a mic built in. which comes attached, which you may be able to extend the wire. it is a hypercardiod, so fairly directional.
if you hand the mic around, and get people to speak into it. it may facilitate taking it in turns.

so that may be something to think about.
like i say, its that or buy some super cheap ear defenders for like £15 or $20 and adapt them.
Personally i would avoid flashing lights and day glow stripes, as this will just bring attention to you.
hope that helps. cheers
justin

Good point. Some people aren't going to be able to say what they want if you do something like that, so they will just talk to someone else.

If you decide to go down the Ear Defender / headphone + microphone combination.
you will also likely need a cheap mini mixer, as the headphones will not have a headphone amp built in
nor will the microphone's own power be sufficient or compatible with the headphones.

Also, with regards to impedance
you will have to be careful to match impedance of the headphones to the mixer's headphone out for best results.

small mixer Art

Using a bit of lateral thinking, i wonder if you could simply plug a pair of drummer's ear defender headphones into
a mobile phone, and use the mobile phone as the microphone? passing the microphone around. Perhaps you could make a case for your phone in order to make it more directional. You could then even put a green LED on it if you like them...
:0)

would perhaps be the cheapest solution if you already have a mobile phone.
Vic-Firth SIH2 Isolation Headphone Stereo
vic firth headphones website
stereo ones - 25 DB reduction = £70

Kat KTUI26 ultra isolation headphones