On Feb 15, 6:13*pm, RustyCrampon wrote:
I currently work in a noisy office (shouting, explosive sneezing, etc.).
I find this very distracting when I'm trying to do work that requires
concentration, which is most of the time. Raising the issue with
management is unlikely to help. I currently wear Sennheiser HD 202
closed back headphones, which have good sound quality, but don't block
external noise much, and are uncomfortable to wear all day.

Can anyone recommend a better noise-blocking solution? I don't mind
spending a few hundred pounds if necessary.

The reviews for Sennheiser HD-25 headphones suggest they are good at
blocking out noise but squeeze the head very hard?

Would active noise-cancelling headphones help? The reviews I've read
suggest that they are more effective with fairly constant noises, rather
than the sudden unpredictable noise in an office. I would prefer a model
that I could adapt to be powered from a USB port.

Ideally the headphones should not be too garish either.

I have used the Sony noise cancelling head phones. They actively take
out 10 dB of low frequency noise below about 1kHz which is very
noticeable. Higher frequencies are passsively reduced just like
ordinary headphones.

rusty