[TenTec] TDE Headphones...

[Tony Martin W4FOA]

Good point Pete.  The TDE headphones in our CVS were not on display with the 
other headphones/players.  They were on a corner display elsewhere in the 
store.  Go figure.
There were quite a few of the TDEs on the shelves.
73
Tony, W4FOA



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Pete Ferrand" <petef at sprynet.com>
To: <tentec at contesting.com>
Sent: Thursday, December 29, 2005 12:41 PM
Subject: Re: [TenTec] TDE Headphones...


>
> There aren't any CVS stores in Wisconsin I could find, so feeling a bit 
> silly about spending that much time going to the drugstore last night I 
> drove to the Waukegan IL CVS store - 20 miles from here. Was very 
> disappointed that there were none of the TDE 'phones at the headphone 
> rack. But since someone mentioned they were found elsewhere, I looked 
> around the store...and there they were right on the front counter by 
> checkout!
>
> As others noted, they were labelled $14.99 and rang up at $9.99. Strangely 
> I didn't have to sign my name for the credit card purchase, which I was 
> told was a new policy stores were adopting for purchases below a certain 
> amount. New to me.
>
> Gas in Illinois is ten cents/gallon cheaper than here which made up for 
> part of the trip I guess.
>
> Headphones work great so far, I'm very pleased. Now I spent about $150 at 
> Sharper Image 10 years ago to buy the NCT Noisebuster phones, same general 
> idea. Except the NCT phones, which still work but are really beat up, will 
> lock up into antiphase a fraction of a second quicker, something of 
> absolutely no importance. Also the NCT phones are of the on-ear open 
> style, whereas the TDE are closed, and that's strictly a matter of 
> preference. The closed cups do little to restrict sound transfer from 
> without but do affect fidelity in a way that will depend on the shape and 
> density of your outer ear.
>
> These phones primarily attenuate low frequency continuous noise, and I 
> haven't found them particularly useful for ham radio. There are on 
> occasion some types of band noise that they will attenuate to some degree, 
> but DSP and antenna phasing units are far better. An enterprising 
> individual may figure out how to electrically reverse them and make noise 
> cancelling microphones, which certainly would be useful.
>
> Now they are useful for ham and other applications if you're in a noisy 
> environment, while in a train or plane, mowing the lawn, vacuuming the 
> floor and that sort of thing. They will also attenuate the motor noises 
> coming out the typical computer, and that noise has been shown to produce 
> fatigue all by itself, so that can justify the $10 for you. I've used the 
> NCT's many times on flights and in the shop without listening to any 
> audio, just to attenuate as they're lighter and less sweaty than ear 
> protectors.
>
> The TDE packaging indicates questions should be referred to a cvs email 
> address or a phone number, so that tells me they are sold under some sort 
> of CVS affiliated company and that makes it unlikely you'll find them 
> under the same name elsewhere. I couldn't find anything comparable at 
> Walgreen's or Osco/Sav-on. They do have the Maxell's for about $35 which I 
> believe are similar.
>
> If you've bought any Chinese electronics lately, just about all of it has 
> the silly lead warning. Don't nibble on the cords - who knows what else 
> they might have in it that dissolves. They do not have enough lead to make 
> spare weights for the bug, unfortunately.
>
> Headphones do not cause hearing loss, loud volume causes hearing loss and 
> unfortunately people tend to turn up the volume higher when they are 
> wearing 'phones. Perhaps it feels good, perhaps they do it because no one 
> else gets annoyed. I am also thinking that hams have hearing loss not 
> because they do that, but they listen to normal levels of signals, with 
> static crashes and other pulse noise much much higher and we aren't 
> listening for them and thus don't take notice of them. This hasn't been 
> studied at all as far as I know but could be important. Can also be easily 
> fixed with an audio limiter but hasn't been done.
>
> Speaking of vacuuming....gotta get to it :)
>
> -Pete
> WB2QLL/9
> Somers, WI
>
>
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