Review Now we're in the season of the long winter break, with its long train, car and plane journeys, we thought a comparison of some noise-cancelling headphones from Denon and Sennheiser would be timely.

Sennheiser's PXC-350: NoiseGuard technology well established

Noise-cancelling technology has come a long way and despite a still considerable price premium, both these products deliver some real benefits to the regular traveler. Denon's new to the market, launching its AH-NC732 set just recently. Sennheiser's an old hand, so we put the new guy up against the well established PXC-350 set.

Accessory-wise both units are on a largely level playing field. Sennheiser's PXC-350 pair has a standard 3.5mm stereo jack and comes with adaptors for 6.3mm stereo and double-mono aircraft sockets. It also has an independent volume control.

The Denon AHNC732 pair also comes with said adaptors but has no independent volume control. However, it does have a choice of long or short cable connections - 0.7m and 1.5m.

Denon's AH-NC732: new kid on the noise-cancellation block

Which one of these equipment sets suits the most is going to come down to your personal needs and priorities. An extra bit of oomph in the volume stakes from Sennheiser, or more flexibility in cable choice from Denon? We give the Denon set the slight edge here as, if we're talking about true travel cans, the option not to have loads of spaghetti stuffed into you pocket, particular when the conditions are warm and cavernous jacket pockets are perhaps not handy, was a genuinely useful one.

And the need for any extra volume should be negated by the noise-canceling abilities of the product. Finding the volume controls on most players isn't enough of a bind to make the independent control that attractive.

Folding up no problem

Getting either unit up and running is easy. Both have the necessary cells provided in the packaging, with the PXC-350 taking two standard AAAs, one each in nicely made spring-loaded sockets on the left and right earpieces. Sennheiser's claimed 40-hour battery life is about right, we found.

The Denon set wins out here, though, as it manages the same duration of battery life from just one AAA power cell, also sitting in a neat and discreet earpiece-mounted bay.

An essential part of any really useful travel headphones set is how easy is it to carry around. In the end, this comes down to the case. Both sets' cases appear hard wearing, with the Denon the (slightly) smaller of the two. Both headsets fold easily and you won't need a degree in spacial mechanics to the get them into their respective storage spaces.

You get more accessories with the Denon

However, the AH-NC732s have the edge here as their case sports two zipped mesh pockets on the inside and one on the outside, so your player, headphone wires and any other small bits of equipment can be safely stowed away. The Sennheiser case has none of this.

Any headphones have to deliver in the comfort department, and both manufacturers score well here. The PXC-350s encase your lugholes with well-padded earpieces, and the headbands is nicely padded too. Some headphones of this type can feel a little loose and move around with even a small amount of head movement. We aren't saying you can go jogging in the PXC-350s, but they are robust enough to stand up to normal walking pace and are very comfortable whether at rest or on the move.

A case to answer

The Denon AH-NC732s are also an over-ear set, but weigh much less: 160g to 230g. They're also comfortable, but we found the much snugger fit of the earpieces, which are quite a bit smaller that their rivals', were less comfortable over long periods of wear.

Sennheiser loves to point to out how it's a pioneer of noise-cancelling technology, originally developing the system for airline pilots - BA and Lufthansa use Sennheiser 'phones. The PXC-350s include patented duofol diaphragms which are designed to prevent unwanted resonances and promote crisp, crystal-clear sound, the company says.

Sennheiser's NoiseGuard technology actively neutralises unwanted environmental noise buy using a tiny microphone mounted on the outside of the headphone to pick up ambient sound. A processor flips this sound upside down and them pumps it out through the 'phones. Incoming external noises and the reverse version of the same meet and cancel each other out.

Denon crams them in - and there's room for other items too

Denon’s noise-canceling phones neutralise unwanted sound in the same way and general playback quality is claimed to be improved by a specially designed "Acoustic Optimiser" which Denon says ensures dynamic sound and deep rich bass response by adjusting the sound pressure balance in front of and behind the diaphragm.

Both models make different claims about the amount of noise-elimination they can deliver. Denon claims a reduction in outside noise of up to 99 per cent, while Sennheiser says its cans remove a more modest 85 per cent of bass rumble and noise.

Passes the airport test

So much for the hi-fi magazine verbiage from the manufacturers - how do the two pairs of 'phones perform in the real world? With Motorhead’s No Class and Running up that Hill by Kate Bush playing on the office Walkman, both units performed well in various locations. We tried an overland train station - actually on the train - and an airport for good measure.

Now, the actual percentage of the outside noise you can still hear when the noise-cancelling circuitry is engaged is pretty impossible to measure in a test like this. But we can say that enough of the outside world was cut out so that enjoyment of the music was greatly enhanced on both pairs.

Eliminates almost all external noise?

We'd put the Denon set slightly ahead on pure noise-cancellation, but not as much as the different official percentages might have you believe. In more general performance terms, both headphones deliver clean and well layered sound with a decent level of depth. However, we did find the Sennheisers sound field to be a little deeper, delivering better bass with a really nice 3D feeling overall.

Verdict

Both these sets of headphones are strong performers, but in the end we'd have to say the Sennheiser PXC-350 has the egde over the Denon AH-NC732. The Denons out-perform their rival pair for portability, design and bundled add-ons, but the Sennheiser set delivers a more pleasing sound overall. For noise-cancellation, real ears won't pick up much difference between the two. More to the point, the older PXC-350s will set you back a lot less than the new AH-NC732s will. ®