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Another CQ1 Pirep - now I understand. Ok, not really...

lndwarrior

Well Known Member
I have no idea how they work, so I don't really understand...

For about 12 years I have been flying with Zulu's. The first was the Zulu 2 and more recently the Zulu 3. I have had the 3's for about 2 years. I liked them. They were quiet and I could easily hear my book-on-tapes. I fly a lot of longer flights and the book on tapes have become a regular part of my flying.

After reading Paul Dye's recent post on the CQ1's, and in the process of planning an epic adventure, I made the decision to buy the CQ1's.

I had never tried them before I ordered them, so I had no idea how I would like them.

My issue with the Zulu's was the clamping force after a long flight. Also, every time I turned my head to scan the sky or gauges I would get the thrumming noise. I think this was due to my glasses and the slight gap created when turning my head. In any case the more I flew with this, the more it annoyed me. Lastly, with my comfortable seat cushion, I have very little clearance from my canopy. The extra inch or so of the Zulus was an issue.

So two weeks ago I sold the Zulus so I could afford to buy the CQ1s. Unfortunately I had to make a flight after I sold them and before the new CQ1s arrived. I ended up using my wife's DC10-30s.

Holy **** - the noise in those headsets almost drove me crazy for 3 hours! I was clearly spoiled by the noise-cancelling headsets.

I need to mention that I am older, and have some significant hearing loss. I also have a serious case of tinnitus.

After the flight with the DCs I started second guessing my choice to buy the CQ1s. Clearly I had been spoiled by the Zulus. And the CQ1s... well they just don't look like much. Here's the Zulus with the large ear muffs and the battery powered controller - and then there's this "thing" with a couple of wires and tiny foam earplugs.

I was also worried about what type of ear plugs to use. I called and spoke with Tanya. She spent a significant amount of time, on a Sunday!, discussing the various types. I bought the trial pack that has a number of different types. In the end, the tiny foam ones that came with the headset worked great.

When the CQ1s arrived they looked even less impressive than my worst case scenario. Looking at those little wires in the little case I was pretty sure I had made a big mistake. Maybe if I were younger and my hearing wasn't so screwed up but....

So yesterday I jump in my plane, stick the tiny foam inserts in my ear and fire her up.

The **** things work! As an engineer (mechanical, not acoustic) they make no sense to me, but they do work.

The noise level was different than the Zulus, but not worse. Maybe different frequencies? I don't know. I could hear very clearly.

Then I plugged in my cell phone cord into the tiny controller and started by book on tape. With full power I could hear the narrator easily and clearly.

I'm writing this long post because I had many of the above concerns before I bought these but could find no posts that specifically addressed them.

In the end I came to the same conclusion as many others - they just work!
 
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Gary, we very much appreciate your order and it is always great to hear about happy customers with happy ears.

We're shipping daily, often within hours of orders. I hope you're liking your Orange CQ1 headset as much as I like mine :).
 
CQ1

I gotta second the decision to try the CQ1 headsets. I don't drive an RV but I bought a Sonex from a pilot who switched to an RV9A. He observed that my Bose were banging the top of the canopy in the Sonex and suggested I look into CQ1's as many RV drivers really like them. This summer, I contacted CMW, ordered a set and really like them. (I like my Bose too!) They really solved the problem with the canopy issue and sound great. Used properly, they are about as quiet as my Bose and that is surprised me. At first, they seem expensive for what you get but they are worth it.
 
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