The New Bose A20 Aviation Headset
Have you been considering a new headset? The new Bose A20 Aviation Headset is top-notch quality with several excellent features. Based on the previous Bose Aviation X, Bose took a great headset and made it even better. I just picked mine up at Oshkosh last weekend and have flown with it every day for the past week.
For the past 6 years, I have been flying with my Sennheiser HMEC 400 electronic noise-cancelling headset. The active noise-cancelling technology is well worth it, especially if you fly often. I was pleased with the quality of the HMEC 400, and the 10 yr warranty from Sennheiser at the time I purchased it. I’ve flown with several different headsets, including David Clark, Lightspeed, Bose, and others, but nothing seemed to compare with the overall quality of the Bose products. The Bose Aviation X headset was lightweight, low-profile, and high-quality.
Lightspeed was notorious for having good noise cancelling qualities in the past, but some of their headsets had earcups large enough you might knock out your passenger if you turned your head too quickly. With the introduction of the Lightspeed Zulu, they finally had a product to compete with Bose, featuring Bluetooth technology and a slimmer, lighter design than on previous headsets. For the past year, I have been considering the Bose Aviation X or the Lightspeed Zulu as the best options for my next headset purchase. I wanted the quality of the Bose, but the features of the Zulu.
Last week, my decision was made easy when Bose introduced the new A20 Aviation Headset. New features include built-in Bluetooth (optional) for cell phone connectivity, auxiliary audio input, and improved noise-cancelling technology. Although it is still at a higher price point than the Zulu ($1095 vs. $850 for the Zulu), the Bose A20 headset has all the features I was hoping for from a top-name brand. My old headset required 4 AA batteries, and only lasted for about 15 hours of flight time. The new Bose A20 uses just 2 AA batteries but lasts for 40 hours. Impressive!
After flying with my A20 for a week now, I am confident that I made the right decision. I typically fly for several hours each day, so it is important to have a headset that won’t leave me feeling fatigued. So far, the A20 has proven itself to be extremely comfortable. In a side-by-side comparison in flight, it is obvious that the Bose headset offers lower noise levels than my previous Sennheiser, with better sound quality and clarity.
Here are some of the improvements for the A20 over the previous Bose Aviation X:
- Bluetooth connectivity (for cell phone use… not audio)
- Aux. audio input (cable included)
- Intercom/aux priority switching
- Volume knobs are more protected from accidental adjustment
- Additional noise sensing mic inside the earcup to improve active noise cancelling
- Less clamping force
- Headset band features a different “clamping angle” to prevent headset from compressing the ear seals… Earlier models would compress the ear seals, reducing the effectiveness and sometimes causing the speakers in the earcups to press against the user’s ears.
- Deeper earcups to allow more space for the user’s ears
- Improved materials in the earcup for better noise canceling
Recommendations for connector type:
The Bose A20 features several different connection options… A 6-pin panel-powered model, and a standard GA 2-plug “bayonet” style adapter. You can purchase separate cables for the headset, but for $295.95 it’s not very cost effective. Here are my suggestions based on what type of aircraft you fly…
If you always fly an aircraft with the 6-pin panel-powered adapter (Columbia, Cirrus, Corvalis), go ahead and get the 6-pin headset.
If you never fly an aircraft with the 6-pin panel-powered adapter, get the headset with the standard GA 2-pin connector.
If you fly multiple aircraft with different types of connectors, I would suggest getting the 6-pin panel-powered headset, and get the Bose 2-pin adapter for $59.95. This way you can connect to either type. This is what I opted for since I frequently fly Columbia, Corvalis, and Cirrus products with the panel-power, but also fly traditional aircraft with the 2-pin connectors.
Even the panel-powered unit will require 2 AA batteries. These batteries serve as a backup for the panel power and also will power the Bluetooth until the panel power becomes active.
You can check out this link for more details about the A20 aviation headset. The A20 sells for $1095 with Bluetooth or $995 without.
Legacy Comments
Bose directed me to this article you wrote. I recently had my two Zulu headsets stolen. Like you, I like the feature set of these two headsets. Since zulu had them and Bose did not, that is what I bought. Now, there is a choice. I understand the allure of Bose. They have been excellent, however, after flying with the ZULU, I was pretty impressed. My question is this. Did you ever fly with the ZULU? You fly much more than I do, and I would like your comments compairing the two. I have to make this decision soon. I am not married to either, just want the best one. If they are really about the same except for the name, I would save the $400 and buy the ZULU. If there is really a compelling reason to spend the extra $$, I would like to hear it. Thanks!
Hi Mark,
Yes, I have flown with the Lightspeed Zulu, and it is also a very nice headset. I haven’t had a chance to fly with both headsets in the same aircraft, so I cannot give a fair comparison yet. I will try to borrow a Zulu this week to give it an in-flight comparison. I’ll follow up to let you know the results.
As a side note, I have made a few phone calls to Bose in the past couple weeks (with questions, not problems), and I have been pleasantly surprised to reach a live person quickly after I place the call. So far, I’ve had a great experience with the customer service from Bose.
Brandon
Bose A20 Aviation Headset vs. Lightspeed Zulu
I tried out the Lightspeed Zulu today side-by-side with the Bose A20. Here are some of my thoughts after an informal, and completely unscientific comparison:
Bose:
• Lighter weight (12 oz.)
• Less clamping force = more comfortable for long flights
• Slightly lower noise levels and better sound quality (debatable and subjective)
• Seemed to have better bass when listening to music
• Audio Prioritization switch lets you know exactly which setting it is in.
Lightspeed Zulu:
• More robust construction (but heavier as a result 13 oz.)
• Larger earcups
• Nice carrying case which seemed to provide more sturdy construction than the Bose soft case
• “Front Row Center” for surround-sound like music
• Auto Music Mute (but no visual indicator to display current setting)
• Custom audio adjustment switches in battery compartment to adjust bass, treble, etc.
The end result is that I liked them both… The Bose A20 and the Lightspeed Zulu are both great headsets, and they both feature excellent noise cancelling characteristics. Both headsets have bluetooth technology (which I paired with my iPhone on the A20) as well as an aux. audio input. I tried each headset for at least 30 minutes during flight, and overall I would still choose the Bose for the added comfort. But if you’re looking to save money and still get a good ANR (Active Noise Reduction) headset, the Zulu is a nice alternative for an attractive price ($850)
Brandon
Brandon,
Thanks so much for your excellent review of both the A20 and Zulu. After reading your review, I just placed my order for the A20 and can’t wait for it to arrive.
The A20 is replacing my original headset that I bought right after I got my private license as a 17 yr old…I dipped into what little savings I had left and coughed up $220 for the purchase! That headset carried me through years of additional flight ratings, and thankfully, I don’t feel attached to them at all. I won’t miss getting my head imploded.
The bottom line with ANR for me is protecting me hearing over the years of flying. All other features aside (though they are all nice…especially BT for getting IFR clearances on the ground), ANR is all about being able to still hear after 30 years of flying.
I can’t wait to show off (humbly of course) my new A20!
Jeremy
Jeremy,
I couldn’t agree more… The noise reduction is more important than any of the “extras” this headset has. I look forward to many years of good flying with this headset and hopefully many years of good hearing as well.
Brandon
I have two sets of Zulu’s and one set of the older model Bose. The reason I switched to the Zulu was because of the Bluetooth option. After I started using the Zulu, I also noticed that the music quality was much better. I am not sure if the new A20′s have improved in this area, but I certainly noticed a big difference in the original Bose and the Zulus.
Based on the comments above, I have a question. Does the A20 automatically mute the music when a radio call comes in?
Yes… The Bose A20 features an audio prioritization switch that let’s you choose which audio source get prioritized.
I had an issue with my Bose X which my wife had purchased a few months earlier for me. When I called Bose and talked to them about it, they offered to swap my X for the A20. I couldn’t believe it! As a matter of fact, they told me that I could hold on to my Bose X until they ship the A20 in the next 3 to 4 weeks. To me that was a WOW in customer service. I still don’t believe what happened!
Thank you all for a brief review and comparison of A20 with Zulu, but has anyone compared the Bose A20 with any of the David Clark ENC headsets? Let’s say X11, H10-13XL or H20-10XL.
I’m a novice pilot and I have to buy myself a good headset. I’m still figuring out which one of these three I should choose.
Test flew A20-vs- DC H10-13XL in my Grumman Tiger.
which has a fairly high noise level at cruise altitude.
Have been generally happy with the DC’s ENC over the last 10 years and the headset has performed flawlessly!
Test flew a Zulu prototype 2 yrs ago before all the kinks were resolved so I held off.
Results:
1. A20 has awesome ANR! Very quiet, VERY noticably more so than DC ENC. Quite impressively better.
2. A20 passive is horrible. Nearly useless in my cockpit. Could barely discern ATIS or ATC in this mode and could be a safety issue if batteries fail at the wrong time. This would be unlikely tho as 2 x AA > 40 hrs. DC passive is noticably better and communications is never in jeapardy.
To scale the difference: 1 to 10:
A20: 2 passive >> 10 active
DC: 5 passive >> 7 active
Advice: for A20, always carry spare batteries and a good passive headset backup.
3. A20 Audio sounds “tight” & crisp, mic too. Kind of a proprietary trademark. DC sounds fuller to my ear, mic too.
4. Cell Bluetooth feature is a plus in the A20. called home in-flight to give ETA. (must be close to high cell tower density). Side tone present so you hear your own voice too (unlike Zulu). Worked fine.
5. Music input can mix with comm -or- muted with comm priority…you’re choice (always the latter as PIC! and former for passengers only).
My conclusion is that I’ll be using my DC as backup and opt for the newer ANR technology,…but will test fly the ZULU first as it reportedly has nearly equivalent ANR active as the A20, but notably better passive… Only 1 oz heavier (13-vs-12) and $250 bucks cheaper! (the passive quality is the possible deal breaker for my cockpit senario.
Follow up as promised.
Test flew A20 -vs- Zulu.
Both have excellent ANR, but I’d rate the A20 a slight bit better. It’s audio suppression was rock solid. Zulu had a very soft electronic flutter at times. Seemed it was workin’ hard to do the job. Did it very well in my noise cockpit, tho.
Passively, on first take the A20 is poor. But wait a minute! When I crank the volume on the radio I was able to copy ATC just fine. Previous test raised my concern re: safety, but I did not changevradio setting.
Seems there is a slight impedance (speaker efficiency) difference between the A20 and Zulu/DC 10-60 headsets. When normalized, the passive playing field is fairly equivalent altho I would still rate the latter 2 a bit better.
Conclusion: (scale 1-10)
A20: 4 passive >>> 10 active
Zulu: 5 passive >>> 9.5 active
DC-enc: 5 passive >>> 8 active
This info, of course, is subjective on my part and represents test flights in my aircraft. Conclusions are relative. All three units are top notch with excellent customer support.
Correction: DC- enc was H10-13XL
Thanks for your review, Brandon, and for answering questions that came up. Thanks also to JPL for those follow-up comparisons, those are quite helpful too.
Any thoughts on whether the A20 or Zulu would be significantly more comfortable in hot weather (we get too much of that in central TX), or about the same?
Jack
I suspect that the difference would be negligible. I’ve worn both on a hot summer day in Texas, but not on the same flight, so it wouldn’t be a fair comparison. I would be more concerned about headsets with gel-filled ear cushions getting too hot… But I haven’t personally owned any headsets with the gel cushions, so I could be wrong.
Update on Delivery for Bose A20 is now available on http://www.bose.com/A20update
Their seems to be a problem with the down cable as such delivery date has been pushed back to 13 weeks. Lucky for lightspeed Zulu they can discount their Zulu and grab all the sales they can get, but than I will still wait for my Bose A20.
I have no doubt that A20 is the best Headset to have now, i heard my husband talk about it all the time. Until I decided to get him one as a christmas gift. But please Brandon I need you to tell me which type to get. My Husband flies a cesna as a hobby. Thank you so much
O.K finally got mine November 26th after 10 weeks of being ordered Certainly quieter than Zulu or Bose X great head headset for listening home theater (Aux input is stereo )as well as the blue tooth for the Iphone. But I would say debatable as far is comfort is concerned Bose X may be slightly more comfortable now that is just my own personal opinion others may differ
I have an old (1988) hardwired Bose system in my Husky. It bit the dust but still have the wiring up above on wingroot. Should I go with two wire A-20 or get panel mount? Thought panel-mount would be minus the battery pack, but guess not. With panel mount would need to pay to have the wiring redone etc etc. What do you all think?
Has anyone done a side by side comparison on the Bose X and Bose A/20. My X works fine, but am looking to add headsets for passengers. Thought I would buy the new A/20;s for up front and ut the old X’s in the back, but you can get such a great deal on the old X’s on Ebay so I am wondering is it really worth the difference. Is the unit that much better than the X’s? Does anyone have any hard data on the level of noise reduction over earlier models?
I bought my A20 set and absolutely love them. I agree with all the reviews above that they are noticeably clearer and have better ANR than the ZULU’s do.
I opted to purchase mine from Amazon as they could get them to me next day, have a great return policy and overall I just have great luck with them.
I just bought a Bose A20 for myself and a Lightspeed Zulu for my girlfreind. Tried the bose out this evening in a PA-32 and the ANR is amazing. My only disappointment is that the Zulu bluetooth connected to her phone and the music on her phone but the A20 only seems to connect to my phone not my music on my phone :( . I do notice a differance in the clampong pressure, much less in the A20 and they feel much more comfortable. The music connection may make me switch with her.
Hi all,
I’ve just started my pilot career and am currently using a David Clark model headset, I’m looking to buy the new Bose A20. I do have a question about it and hopefully someone could answer it. I wear glasses – Does the A20 press in on your head much?. Will it sit comfortably on my head?
Liam
Hi Liam,
I wear sunglasses with my A20 often, and have no problems. The A20 seems to have the least clamping force of any of the headsets I’ve worn.
If you have thick-framed glasses, you may feel more discomfort than with thin frames. Also, you’ll want to make sure your glasses are positioned so that the frame doesn’t push the headset away from your ears too much and interrupt the noise-cancelling.
If you don’t like the idea of having a full headset over your glasses, you could check out the Clarity Aloft headset as well (http://www.clarityaloft.com/). I haven’t tried one myself, but I’ve heard a lot of good things about them.
Hi Brandon,
Thank you and thank all for the wonderful information provided in this article.
I am a student pilot and I am considering the Bose A20. I am currently practicing on a Cessna 172 – G1000.
Question: With the ANR headsets (i.e. A20), would you still be able to hear “Stall warnings” and/or any other warnings inside the cabin ?
Thanks,
Eddie
Hi Eddie,
I have had no trouble hearing the stall warning with the ANR headsets I have used. Can’t say for sure for every headset and airplane combination. The ANR primarily takes out the lower range of noise (the rumbling sound of the engine), so most of the higher frequencies like warning horns can cut through the noise canceling.
Hope this helps.
Brandon