Welcome to the home page of the ANR man. I found out about ANR for aviation headsets in 2000 and converted a couple of headsets for my own use.

I demonstrated these to a few selected friends and they were so impressed that I did some for them. Flyer Magazine did a ANR comparison in January 2008, and this conversion was found to be as good as the Bose X for 1/4 of the price ! For a copy of this report click here.

Cockpit noise in small and medium sized aeroplanes is bad. Hearing is an important sense and should be protected. Good gel earseals help in a passive way, but what is really needed is an active electronic solution.

The solution I recommend and use is the Headsets Inc kit, which replaces the speakers in each earcup with modules. They do not affect the noises that the radio and intercom make but cut down most of the external noise. The modules are out of sight once installed.

The speaker in each earcup is replaced by a module. Power is supplied by a PP3 (9v) battery in a box, or from the aircraft.

Each module used has two speakers and a microphone. One speaker plays the normal radio/intercom sounds. The microphone picks up what is happening in the earcup and the small circuit board on the back of the module

subtracts the radio sounds and then reverses the sound cycles and sends it out through the second speaker. It is very complex but the result is that as much as 90% of the bass tones are muted and much of the high tones.

The speakers are on the vertical centre line of the module. The microphone is placed ahead of the centre line. Thus the modules are handed right and left and so I normally fit the "left" module in the earcup with the boom attached (thus "left boom"). An instructor, or a P1 with headset sockets in the centre console needs the boom on the right and so gets the module marked "right" in the earcup with the boom attached ("right boom"). However it only makes a small difference if the modules are swapped over (or rather if you move the boom across !) The radio sounds are also enhanced a little.

I changed the installation quite a bit to make it tidier. Then I asked my friend Keef to design a "battery saver" circuit to "save batteries when not in use". This was well received so I offered it as an option. Several years later the US company that makes the modules started offering a similar function and I now use their circuit.

The ANR reduces bass tones and increases the treble a little, and also enhances the volume in the earpiece.

The norm is an "Auto Shut Off" battery box. If you want a simpler battery box which you have to turn off then order the "Turn-it-off-yourself" battery box for a reduced price. The battery boxes have a switch and an LED, and a clip. The battery is a PP3 - 9v.

It is failsafe with the radio audible and good passive noise reduction if the battery goes flat.

There are a number of options, some of which can be seen in the photo above right.

I embed the battery box in the downlead cable

close to the Y-piece - as in the right hand side of the photo below. This avoids the two cables tied together design of the original kit's instructions.

Alternatively I can use the "custom cable" which keeps the battery box separate and also allows the use of the cigar lighter adapter and/or the panel socket (see the left hand side of the photo above)

I can't convert DC H20-10, (but can do H10-20) nor the Peltor 800x series. I can do some David Clark clones, but not Sennheisers.

My aim is to return completed conversions within three days, it is often done more quickly.

I can also provide the whole module kit if you wish to assemble it yourself.

I am also having a clear-out of "previously enjoyed" David Clark H10-13.4 headsets.

Use the "Contact me" link below to request my current price list and/or raise any questions you have.

I should stress that I do these conversions solely as a hobby, and although this web site looks "commercial" I have actually just designed and written it myself - my first effort as a web designer.