Harman Kardon NC noise-canceling headphones review: An NC model that doesn't sound like one

Last year I reviewed the Harman Kardon Classic (CL), an on-ear headphone model that has a very distinct design, with a modern take on an old-school double headband and square earcups that harken back a little to the Bowers & Wilkins P3 and P5 headphones. I liked the CL, so I was eager to get my hands on Harman's other new over-the-ear models, the $249.95 Bluetooth Wireless Over-Ear Headphones and the $299.95 NC, which stands for noise canceling.

8.2

Harman Kardon NC noise-canceling headphones

The Good

Unique design; excellent fit and finish; impressive sound quality for a noise-canceling headphones; built-in rechargeable battery to power the noise cancellation; fold flat (a nice carrying case is included); work without the noise cancellation on (when the battery dies, they keep playing); include Apple-friendly inline remote and microphone.

The Bad

Fairly pricey; the inline remote and microphone won't work with many non-Apple smartphones and tablets; the battery charging cable is not a standard Micro-USB cable.

The Bottom Line

While they may not be quite as comfortable as Bose's ultrapopular QC 15 headphones, the Harman Kardon NCs offer slightly better sound and have a built-in rechargeable battery to power the active noise-cancellation circuitry.

While I'm still waiting to check out the Bluetooth model -- it's generally received very positive reviews from consumers -- the noise-canceling NC showed up the other week. The timing was good because Monoprice's $112 Noise Cancelling Headphone turned up around the same time, and I also had a special-edition blue version of Bose's QuietComfort 15s on hand along with the Audio-Technica QuietPoint ATH-ANC9 and noise-canceling version of the Monster Inspiration.

In terms of comfort, the Bose came out the winner, but the Harman NC wasn't far behind and arguably was the best-sounding of the bunch. I can't say that makes it a great bargain at $300 (none of these $300 headphones can be considered a bargain). However, it is a surprisingly worthy competitor to the Bose and includes a cord that has an Apple-friendly inline remote/microphone for making cell phone calls. It also features a built-in rechargeable battery and can play even if you don't have the noise-canceling circuitry engaged (or if the battery dies).

Design and features
As I said, this is an over-the-ear model that has a very distinct look; it's a modern take on an old-school design and won't appeal to everyone. The build quality seems robust, with the top portion of the headband made of metal. Here's what's interesting: Harman includes two sizes of that metal piece, and you can easily swap one band in for the other, depending on the size of your head.

I personally don't have a very big head (at least I didn't think so), but like with the company's CL headphones, which feature the same headband design, the default small band didn't feel great, especially over longer listening sessions, so I swapped in the XL band. It made a significant difference.

I prefer over-the-ear headphones to on-ear models, so it's not surprising that I preferred the overall comfort level of this model to that of the CL. Like its Bose and Audio-Technica competitors, the Harman features memory-foam earpads that conform well to your head and offer a tight seal. The only issue I had was that I though the headphone was a tad weighty (and, yes, that heft helps contribute to the impression that the NC is solidly built). The NC weighs 0.70 pound compared with the Bose at 0.44 pound -- a significant difference.

As far as extra features go, you get an Apple-friendly inline remote and microphone. With Apple iOS devices (iPhone, iPad, iPod), you can use the NC as a headset for making calls. Call quality was good in my test calls. Using the inline remote, you can raise and lower volume, skip tracks forward and back, and pause/play your music. Those features will be more miss than hit for non-Apple smartphones, so take that into consideration if you're an Android user (the microphone and some of the remote features may work with certain Android models, but they aren't supported and don't usually work).

The headphones don't fold up, but they do fold flat -- not as flat as the smaller CLs, but fairly flat. While the included carrying case is fairly large in terms of height and width, since the headphones fold flat there isn't a lot of depth to the package. It stows away nicely in a laptop bag or backpack, or potentially your suitcase.

The headphones have a detachable cable, which is nice, though you do have to detach that cable to get the headphones to fit properly in the case. Luckily, the headphones' designers were thoughtful enough to include an interior pocket in the case for storing that cable.

A couple of other things worth mentioning: as noted, the headphones have a built-in rechargeable battery for the noise canceling. You engage the noise canceling with a small slider switch on the left earpiece.

Bose's $350 QC 3 on-ear noise-canceling headphones feature a rechargeable battery. But with that model -- and all Bose NC models -- if the battery dies, you can't use the headphones. By contrast, with the Harman NC, the headphones produce sound with or without the NC turned on.

One thing I didn't love: you charge the headphones via the headphone jack using a non-standard USB cable (you get up to 40 hours of battery life from a single charge). It works well, but the problem is that if you lose the cable, you won't be able to charge the headphones (you can't just use the Micro-USB that comes with a lot of phones and other devices). I therefore suggest keeping the cable stowed in the inner pocket of the carrying case for safekeeping.

Performance
Probably the biggest compliment I can pay the NC is that it doesn't sound like an active noise-canceling headphone. What I mean by that is that you usually give up some sound quality whenever you move to a model that runs your sound through noise-canceling circuitry. You tend to lose a bit of clarity, which is evident with headphoned like the Monster Inspiration, which come in "passive" and active noise-canceling versions (the passive version sounds cleaner).

In fact, when I handed the headphones to CNET contributor Steve Guttenberg, who does many of our reviews of the higher-end headphones, he at first wasn't sure the noise canceling was on. When I told him it was, he was impressed. Steve's not a big fan of noise-canceling headphones, but he thought the Harmans sounded good.

To put it another way, for an NC model, the Harman sounds comparatively natural and accurate. It has a sound profile similar to that of the CL, which is considered a balanced, more neutral set of headphones that doesn't overaccentuate the bass or treble. Still, like that model, the bass here is plump and pleasant (it seems to be a touch more plump than the CL's) but not overreaching. Like with the CL, there's a bit of restraint in the treble, so you're not going to get that edgier detail of "faster," more aggressive headphones that push the treble harder. I wouldn't call these laid-back, but they're fairly warm and I tried them out with a variety of music and came away feeling that they were quite versatile. That said, if you're someone who wants faster headphones that can deliver a more thumping bass, the Monster Inspiration would probably be a better choice.

I liked the sound of the Harman NC slightly better than that of the Bose QC 15 and Audio-Technica ATH-ANC9, both of which are very good for noise-canceling models. The QC 15 has a touch creamier, smoother sound. The Harman seems a tad more dynamic (compared with the Audio-Technica as well). That said, the Sennheiser Momentum, which retails for $350, delivers clearer, more detailed sound than any of those models, though it isn't as comfortable. And Audio-Technica's $160 ATH-M50 also offers more detailed, dynamic sound for about half the price. But both the Momentum and ATH-M50 leave off the active noise cancellation.

So what happens when you turn off the noise-canceling on the Harman Kardon NC? What do the headphones sound like?

Well, they sound more subdued. Like with a lot of these noise-canceling headphones, when you turn on the NC, the bass gets a boost and everything plays louder. But I was perfectly happy listening to the headphones without the NC on (Harman calls it "passive playback") and simply raising the volume a notch. What's nice is that you have the choice between the two modes.

In the case of the NCs, Harman engineers have done a good job with both the noise cancellation itself (there's only a very minimal hiss when you sit in silence) and the digital processing. I didn't take these on an airplane, but I wore them on the streets of New York and on the subway, where there's a lot of ambient noise. The NCs didn't shut it all out, but they did a decent job muffling the sound. Comparing it with the Bose or the Audio-Technica, which has different noise-reduction settings for different environments, I thought the Bose QC 15 was the best, with the Audio-Technica a close second, followed by the Harman.

If you're wondering how the $112 Monoprice compares, I'd say it's close to the Harman in terms of how effective the noise canceling is. But in terms of sound quality, while the Monoprice doesn't sound bad at all, it's a step down from all these more expensive models -- particularly as far as clarity goes. It also doesn't have the build quality or quite the comfort level. Of course, it costs nearly one third of the price, which makes it a relative bargain.

Conclusion
The Harman Kardon NC offers excellent sound quality for a pair of noise-canceling headphones, with an impressive fit and finish. This model arguably sounds slightly better than the Bose QC 15 and Audio-Technica ATH-ANC9, two other $300 noise-canceling models.

It also offers the advantage of having a built-in rechargeable battery and includes an inline Apple-friendly three-button remote/microphone for making cell phone calls (Bose doesn't include such a cable with its QC 15s).

My only reservations about them concerns their design. While it's distinct and eye-catching, it won't appeal to everyone, and the headphones are heavier than the QC 15 and Audio-Technica ATH-ANC9. The Harman NC is quite comfortable, but Bose remains the clear winner in the comfort department.

In an ideal world, of course, you'd get a chance to try these before you buy them and compare them with competing products. The alternative is to try them and return if you don't like them (stores like Crutchfield have a 60-day money-back return policy). I think most folks will like them a lot, but each person's ears and head are different, so there are no guarantees. Still, as far as noise-canceling headphones go in this price range, the Harman Kardon NCs are definitely worth strong consideration.