Bose A30 | Are they worth it ?

[@lukee3754]

Just subscribed. Excellent quality and informative videos!

[@FreedomFlight1]

Thanks for watching Luke!

[@100M2B]

I love this husband+wife duo flight video. This is so fun to watch. Please keep new videos coming!

[@FreedomFlight1]

Thanks for watching!

[@CeeJayC3903]

I'm in pilot school, and will be buying these. Buy once cry once...

[@FreedomFlight1]

Thx for watching!

[@davetatum846]

Totally enjoyed your demonstration of the new Bose A30 headsets 👍

[@charliejordan971]

Hi, i am enjoying your videos - professionally produced and good content. I just have an observation on this video in particular, and i hope you take this as feedback rather than criticism. There were uncomfortably long periods of little / no looking outside the cockpit - mostly talking directly to each other or to the camera. Having lost friends to mid air collisions, ive become acutely aware of the importance of good lookout. Its just something i picked up on, and hope it may be a topic you can address for a future video. Cheers

[@FreedomFlight1]

Hi Charlie, thank you for the candid feedback, I truly appreciate it. First off, I'm sorry for the loss of your friends. You are correct, it can certainly appear that I may not be make a concerted effort for traffic avoidance and I could do a better job of articulating what I am doing so it does not come across this way. What users do not see (my fault for not pointing it out better) is that I try to film things like this in the least congested airspace I can in my area. Although we certainly cannot rely on ADS-b to alert us of all traffic, fortunately it is required by (most) aircraft where I operate and I have foreflight in front of me as well as ADS-b in displayed on a Garmin 750 with audio alerts on both. In addition, and most importantly, while I am indeed having a conversation while recording, my eyes are scanning the area although not obvious hidden behind my glasses. Again, I appreciate your feedback and commit to doing a better job in this area with future videos! David

[@rocqitmon]

One thing I haven't seen discussed is if the microphone can be left off (as in, not mounted). One example as to why is if I have guest in the rear who want to talk with someone else for the flight duration. Another example is if I bring them aboard in passenger cabin and don't want the mic visible. Thanks in advance!!

[@FreedomFlight1]

Hey great question. If you pull the microphone off (which it detaches super easy, much easier than the A20) then you lose all the ANR capabilities. So yes, you can remove it, but it would defeat much of the purpose of the headset. As far as back seat passengers, many intercoms have the ability to isolate the back seats which is super helpful.

[@rocqitmon]

@@FreedomFlight1 Thanks for that quick reply. I was hoping the ANR wouldn't be affected. I thought different mics (maybe on the earcups) did the ANR listening and the boom was separate. Good information provided in your video and here! Thx!

[@darryltait5406]

I’m a wheelchair user working on getting my PPL, I’m curious about your RC tow bar your using? That would work incredibly for my independence and wondering where you got yours? Thanks so much

[@FreedomFlight1]

My tug is from AC Air Technology and I LOVE it. It is my second one (different model) and it is a game changer for moving an airplane with absolute ease.

[@darryltait5406]

@@FreedomFlight1 amazing thanks! I’ll look them up! 🙏🏼🤘🏼

[@MooneyM20J]

I have few pair of A20’s And one A10. Sound quality and ANR is almost identical. The A30 is awful as far as sound and ANR in GA. The reviews all over Amazon. I think A20’s is the sweet spot!

[@FreedomFlight1]

Awful? What audio panel do you have? I'm curious? I've had these for quite a while now and they are pretty impressive, at least in my C172. I do still use the A20's in our Super Cub as they are a little better in the louder environment. Thanks for watching.

[@christopherharness9856]

You forgot to mention about the mini USB port on the controller is for backup power incase your batteries dies.

[@FreedomFlight1]

Hey thx for watching. There were so many nice little improvements like that I wish had mentioned. Now that I’ve flown with them a few times I’ve learned that there’s even more to like about them!

[@jasonthompson7083]

My dream has always been to become a pilot and I love watching your videos, please continue doing what you're doing. I've learned a lot from your channel, I went for my first discovery flight today and I'm hooked lol, I wish I could have you as an instructor, sadly I'm from Canada so that wont be the case haha

[@FreedomFlight1]

Congrats on your discovery flight, that is awesome man! You wont regret going down this journey, there is so much opportunity here. Keep me posted on your progress!

[@helodriver20]

Lol. Can you hear me? Um no. Deaf from decades of helicopters. I still have a set of Bose X that work fine. Sure they don’t have Bluetooth. Sure the wool is getting worn. Ear cups and mic cover replaced many times. Been flying professionally for decades with them. I’d love a new set, but I’d also love a new Baron so… Great video and the hangar….beautiful. ❤️⚔️🇺🇸

[@FreedomFlight1]

Hey John, I still have my X’s too, ha. I’m just a sucker for the ‘next’ thing sometimes I guess. It’s a testament to how well they designed many of these things that they can last that long. I haven’t flown helicopters but flew our Stearman for 20 years, so I’m right behind ya with the hearing loss! Thx for watching.

[@danhoven]

I am currently extremely disappointed with my A30's. I am not a pilot, but will soon be beginning my PPL training so decided to treat myself. I have no experience with the A20's but I am very experienced with audio (just look at my videos). The volume is much lower than my other headphones. I won't hold them up to being able to contend with my 990 Pro beyerdynamic's, even though they are merely $200 headphones, because they blow away the bose in audio quality. I won't compare them to my bose earbuds either since they're in ear. I will however compare them with my QC35's. The design of the A30's looks very much like the 35's. Cans of the A30's are nearly identical, but slightly larger than the 35's. For my tests I have the controller powered and max noise cancelling (which is almost on par with the 35's for the noise cancelling at least) and connected via blue tooth, the songs are so much better on the 35's. The volume is one notch behind that of the 35's. So on my phone (source of the bluetooth), my volume at 80 percent for the 35's is 100 for the A30's. In other words, I have to max my phone with the A30's to hear the same volume I hear at 80 percent with the 35's and the quality then at 100 is not near the quality of the 35's. The QC35's are $350. I understand that an aviation headset has a mic (wow) and a controller, but again, we're talking about a $1000 difference. I've had them a couple of weeks now and have done all of the troubleshooting steps I can find but it blows my mind that people only compare these with other aviation headsets. Not one single audiophile to rate the actual audio quality or specs (guts of the cans). I am going to try to talk to someone at Bose tomorrow. Unfortunately, there aren't any Bose stores anymore within 1000 miles of me because I'd love to compare them with the same model and then ask bose why they rip off aviators. Not finding a single mention of comparisons on a single A30 video tells me the pilots that do these videos really don't use headphones outside of the cockpit. Would love to hear opinions from someone that actually owns a normal pair of cans and not just overpriced aviator headsets. I would have paid triple IF they could at least match their own much cheaper product, so I really did want them be ok.

[@FreedomFlight1]

Sorry to hear you dont like them. Unfortunately, I dont have experience with other audio headphones like you mention, only aviation ones. I have been flying for about 36 years and have worn a lot of different models. From my experience, the Bose have been very good. I love the A30's in the C172, but still use the A20's in the Super Cub. I wear the Bose Pro Flight in the B787 and they are outstanding. I'd just recommmend trying all you can and hopefully you can find something that works best for you!

[@jeromehugues]

Hello, Not sure to understand if one of those has different ANR/isolation performance. Your opinion ?

[@FreedomFlight1]

Hey good question Jerome, sorry if I may not have answered that very clearly in the video. According to Bose, the new A30 has 'digital' ANR technology where the A20 has 'analog'. Can I tell a difference? Yes but...only when I swap them back and forth inflight trying to see what I notice. The A30 digital is clearer and crisper audio but, the A20 is pretty dang good too. It really comes down to comfort. The A30 is more comfortable but now that I have a few more months of experience flying with these I would say the A20 may perform better in a windy or really loud environment like open cockpit or where you move your head around a lot, like aerobatics. Either way, both of them are pretty awesome. Hope that helps!

[@jeromehugues]

@@FreedomFlight1 Thank you

[@aboredvi3t]

Good and honest review!

[@FreedomFlight1]

Thanks for watching!

[@sethhartman4436]

Any idea how these compare to the Lightspeed Zulu 3 or the Delta Zulu?

[@FreedomFlight1]

Hi Seth, no I do not. I tried the Zulu's before buying A20's (long ago) and just preferred the look, feel, and sound of the Bose. I know those headsets are popular though and have a strong following. I hope one day to do a more comprehensive headset review. Thanks for watching.

[@christopherharness9856]

When are you going to post more content.

[@FreedomFlight1]

Hey thanks for asking! I'm waaaay behind I realize but catching up on some things in life and hope to be producing more in the near future. Thanks for watching!

[@a.leonid3150]

What do you think is it worth to buy a20 with a discount which is 1180 eur or new a30 which is 1380 eur ?

[@FreedomFlight1]

Hi, tough call. The A20s will always be an excellent headset. You cannot go wrong with it. Now, after flying a month with the A30s my perspective is a little different. They are indeed more comfortable and the audio quality is a tad better. However, ice also found that the less clamping force does allow for the noise cancelling to break a little if your moving your head around a lot or in a windy cockpit. They are both great headsets, you can’t go wrong either way. I bet you will find even better used deals soon on A20s.

[@Dave5500]

Great review and video, I’m tempted to get a set to replace my Lightspeeds (which I love and work wonderfully) 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@FreedomFlight1]

I think you’ll be very pleased! Thx for watching.

[@coralheads]

The mic sounds better in the a30

[@FreedomFlight1]

It’s an all around improvement to…something that was already pretty dang good. Thx for watching.

[@milesaharrison]

Frankly, I don't trust any of these 'reviews'. All five or so that I've watched heap *nothing* but praise on the A30 without any reflection on what isn't great about them. Seems kinda suss on a review made by people that have received a pre-release and presumably freebie headset. What didn't you like, what wasn't up to your expectations?! Every single review I've seen simply fawns over the A30. Perfection isn't reality.

[@FreedomFlight1]

Hi Miles, thanks for watching. I'm not sponsored by Bose and did NOT receive a pre-release. I purchased these headsets the first morning they came out, they certainly were not free, ha. I have been wearing (and buying) Bose aviation headsets for nearly 30 years when they came out with the very first ones. If there was something I did not like about them, I would not be shy to let you know. I believe the reason you are not seeing anything negative in the reviews is because Bose continues to be a leader in the industry and has created some of the best products for us out there. All my videos are simply my personal and honest opinion. The purpose is exclusively to try and help people out. It is possible, you could buy these just like I did and in your personal opinion they may not live up to your expectations. But they certainly do for me, I'll be wearing Bose headsets in both GA aircraft and airliners for years to come. Thanks for watching and thanks for your comments. Take care.

[@julienroberts128]

They had sunglasses on the whole flight while testing it. It would break the seal for the noise canceling. It wouldn’t even be working correctly and they still praise it

[@FreedomFlight1]

Hi Julien, I switched to Flying Eyes Optics a while back because they have super thin and flexible temples. These glasses do not break the seal at all, they are pretty amazing. They are not the only glasses that are thin like this, but I have personally found them to be exceptional and I have been flying for 35 years so I have worn a lot of sunglasses and headsets. If you are wearing a sunglass that breaks the seal of your noise cancelling headset they you are defeating the purpose of even wearing one. Check out Flying Eyes if interested, I'm a big fan and made a video about them as well. Thanks for watching, appreciate you.

[@MarcFootageAviation]

@@FreedomFlight1do they break the seal with the A30? Less clamping force might be easier to break than A20..

[@FreedomFlight1]

@@MarcFootageAviation Hey sorry for the slow reply, I missed this one. I have both A20's and A30's. The A30's certainly do not clamp as much. Depending on what your environment is that may be a good (or bad) thing. They are no denying more comfortable amongst other benefits. The more and more I fly with them the more I like them however... I do see that the 'less' clamping force comes at a price, if you move your head a lot in extreme directions like if doing aerobatics, open cockpit, etc the A20 might still be a better choice (for those environments). If you are in a closed cockpit and normal head movement I dont think you'd miss the 'clamp' of the A20 days. If you are referring to the sunglasses breaking the seal because of less clamp, for the Flying Eyes brand with ultra-thin temples, absolutely not. They are actually even better as the temples slide in and out of the headset with ease. I have a video on the Flying Eyes glasses review I did when I put them up against my trusty Ray Bans, check that out and hope this answer helped a little, sorry it was belated!