Review on 🎧 Bose A20 Aviation Headset with 6-Pin Plug Cable, Standard Black by Mike Wieneke

It was time to replace my 20 year old David Clark headset and I was torn between DC ONE X or Bose A20. I've been a loyal DC customer for a long time and their products have never let me down, plus DC is about 25% cheaper. But I've also flown with Bose and they've always impressed me with the amazing Bose noise cancellation. As I ended up needing a couple of headsets I bought one of each - and so far I have not regretted any purchases. If you are in this position too, I thought I would offer a comparison of these two amazing products. For me there is no clear winner here - each headset is good at different things. In fact, both are amazing on their own, and the good news is you can't go wrong with either, especially if you're like me and upgrading from older technology. As far as overall build quality goes, I give DC a slight edge. Both are very good and should last a long time, but Bose seems to be high-end consumer products and DC is "professional". While the Bose is a bit lighter, the DC is a bit more compact with a smaller control box. The Bose case is bigger but also more protective. Both products pair easily with Bluetooth phones/tablets and I had no trouble connecting to my iPhone or iPad. I don't like that both products make it difficult to access additional features like auto-off and stereo/mono. Of course, these are usually "set and forget" options, but both products require you to open the battery compartment and remove the batteries to change these settings. Speaking of batteries, I use lithium batteries in my headsets and both batteries seem to offer more battery life than you might think - at least 50 hours. In terms of comfort, there is no clear winner. To me, the DCs seem smaller, but less secure for my head - in turbulence and with thicker sunglasses, they sometimes slip over my head no matter how I adjust them. Bose has large ear cushions, which are generally more secure, although they also make me sweat a bit in warm weather. I'm more comfortable with the DCs in flat air, but I don't like the feeling that they can shift on my head if I'm moving too fast. In terms of overall sound quality, both are good, but the DC is a bit clearer with voice in my opinion. I think the Bose's better noise cancellation does hamper audio intelligibility a bit, and I sometimes have trouble with the ATC comms appearing clearer on DC. I consider mics to be undecided - I've never had anything other than a "loud and clear" response to a ping, and they work equally well with my phone or with an airplane. Of course, the reason you spend a lot of money on a headset like this is for noise cancellation, and this is where Bose headsets excel. While DCs are pretty good, Bose is simply better. Sometimes I switch from one to the other on the fly and the difference is immediately visible. On the other hand, if you didn't have them around you'd probably find each of them more than good enough, but if you're flying in a very noisy environment and want the best possible noise cancellation, then Bose is a winner in this regard. I'm happy to report that both are made in the USA and both companies have good customer service. DC has particularly impressed me over the years. I once had a ten year old headset repaired (I dented the cable) and they came back with new ear seals, headband pads and so on - all at no cost to me. In that respect I'm happy with the Bose A20, and if you're looking for the best aviation headset that offers maximum noise cancellation in a noisy cockpit, you can't go wrong with the Bose - although they're not the only game, in my opinion in the city.