Recommendation for ANC headphones?

I really like.the sound of my H7’s: balanced, a musical bass, ‘open’ or ‘airy’ if that isn’t too subjective.  I can listen for hours without fatigue.

I might be traveling soon - long air flights.  Looking for headset with similar sound signature as the H7, but with active noise cancellation. 

Thoughts? H9i?  H8i?  Or non-B&O?

Sony -  no comparison in terms of performance. 

Depends whether you're more bothered about what they look like rather than how they perform.

You asked on a B&O forum to get opinions of B&O headphone owners, but just in case you're doing more general research, see:

https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-noise-cancelling-headphones/

Summary: They used to like the Bose QuietComfort 35 Series II, but are switching to the Sony WH-H900N.  Bose really did lots of R&D into noise cancellation and QuietComfort's reduce the most outside sound possible, but the Sony's just play music better.  They did really like the B&O H8's, they just weren't the very best in any respect, save one: if you wear glasses!  A good seal from the ear pads makes a huge difference when doing Active Noise Cancellation.

I would've said wh1000xm(2or3) are better than bose at both ANC and sound quality but conclusion remains same

BeoFrederic:

I really like.the sound of my H7’s: balanced, a musical bass, ‘open’ or ‘airy’ if that isn’t too subjective. I can listen for hours without fatigue. I might be traveling soon - long air flights. Looking for headset with similar sound signature as the H7, but with active noise cancellation.

Thoughts? H9i? H8i? Or non-B&O?

Having owned the H7 and I use my H9s daily now for a couple years, traveled long distances with both, my personal preference for long flights is a set of H3 anc or E4s with purchased separately comply comfort tips.

The H9s (yes, I know you asked about the H9i) have a different sound than the H7s and are not as open airy sounding as the H7s. I think the H9s put more emphasis on music quality than the ANC, but that is a balance I like. But in long flights they get hot and heavy and are hard to sleep with on. I think both versions of the earbuds do better with many noises of planes than the H9s and work better with eyeglasses for noise blocking. I’ll even put my E4s on without music just for the mega quiet earplug effect.

I still get frequent compliments about the style of my H9s from strangers. They are beautiful.

I have the h8s, but prefer the e4s or h3 anc. I think the h8s sound better, but prefer the earbuds for portability and long trip comfort. I found the h8s uncomfortably hot on my ears after a couple hours. They do work pretty good with glasses (although earbuds work better).

I also recommend comply tips because the rubber ones tend to fall out over time as the wires are slightly heavier than the non-anc h3s.

I only use them on planes.

I haven’t tried Sony or Bose.

Thanks, everyone, for the feedback.  Some of the alternatives mentioned:

•Bose: my wife has ancient pair of QC over-the-ears.  Hot, and I don't care for the sound.

•Sony: the 1000's are on a crazy Black Friday sale today.  But reviews on (U.S.) Amazon reveal persistent build issue (cracking head band)

•E4: I hadn't considered in-ear, so thanks St. Beogrowler and Stan.  Is there sufficient bass (a problem I had with an old pair of Etymotics)?  Are you ok with ergonomics over multi-hours in flight - i.e. does the cable/ANC box assembly get in the way?

Have you used the H7’s on a plane?

They are the H-model able to play at high volume by far.

I would change my H9i’s for H7 in a heartbeat.

H9 and H9i are too low on volume.

trackbeo: thanks for the heads-up/reminder on the Wirecutter reviews. 

Leogonewild - yes, I use the H7s on plane flights now.  And agree!  you can turn them up a fair bit (I didn't know about relative volume issues with the 9i's, thanks).  However -- and this is just personal preference, and probably not applicable for most tastes -- I find

high-volume of ambient plane noise + high-volume of music = stress.  Which is the opposite of what I want. 

I'd prefer

low-volume of ambient noise and moderate volume of music = calm/restful.  Hence the desire for ANC.

Everyone: thanks for all of these thoughts.  I'm learning a lot before I buy!

I bought a pair of H9i to replace my ageing BOSE QC15 which have started to hurt my ears (ear lobes to be precise). So far I’m not impressed. The ANC on my 9 year old headphones is clearly better, and the sound profile (slightly bumped bass and rolled off treble) work much better in an environment where there’s a lot of background noise, such as in a plane cabin or on the road. I expect the H9i to be far more fatiguing to wear too. In short, I wish I’d got the QC35 instead. Don’t let your love of B&O cloud your decision.

The e4s have reasonable bass - especially with the rubber tips. The foam tips give better isolation and don't fall out as easy, but, to my ears, limit the bass slightly. All in all, I think the tradeoff is worthwhile, but I mostly use h3s (non-anc) with rubber tips for the times I listen in low noise environments.  They're small enough that it is easy to carry both. Then again, the rubber tips might fit your ears better and you'll have no need for the foam tips.

I don't have a problem with the control box. I'm just sitting on a plane so it's not a big deal.

I definitely concur that anc is the way to go vs louder headphones.

 

Try Sennheiser

OldJack:

Try Sennheiser

No question Sennheiser HD600 for normal, wired non-ANC headphones, almost legendary. 

I also read reports of Sony WN1000-XM2 headband issues, can only say been using mine for a year coming up, including a trip to China and 3 trips to Europe and no probs to report as yet - still loving them.