AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2015 - 35

PILOT PRODUCTS
overbearing and dictatorial," Hill
said. "She became an instructor
because she knew there was a better way to teach. She was patient
and kind and very relaxed, and
that was just perfect for me."
Hill was a Navy diver at the
time and had long been interested
in flying. As a boy growing up in
Southern California, his stepfather had taken him flying in a
Piper J-3 Cub in 1948. They flew
from Los Angeles up the coastline
over Malibu and landed at Santa
Paula.
Hill was making steady progress toward a license in 1967 when
"life intervened." He married a kindergarten teacher named Donna,
enrolled in graduate school, moved
with his family to a job assignment
in Europe, and then adopted children. Hill's schedule wasn't just
full, it was overflowing.
"I never lost my desire to fly,"
he said. "But I knew that I wanted
to fly a lot and get really good at
it, or not do it at all. And circumstances were such that it was
clear that I wouldn't be able to fly
enough to really master it and stay
proficient at it."
Now in retirement, Hill said
the time may be right to get back
into flying in a purposeful way.
"Donna is very encouraging," he
said. "I'm not sure I'll ever to get
her to fly with me, but throughout our 47 years of marriage she's
always been totally supportive and
encouraging."
Hill said he's also impressed
with AOPA's Rusty Pilots program.
"There are lots of people like me
who really love flying and are looking for a way to reconnect with it,"
he said. "I so appreciate AOPA
showing me how to get back into
the air. It's a whole new world."
EMAIL dave.hirschman@aopa.org

|

Quiet on the flight deck
Sennheiser S1 Digital adaptive headset
BY BRUCE LANDSBERG

HEADSETS ARE PERSONAL. You can easily
start an argument on which are the best,
and reading online reviews only fans the
flames. Active noise reduction (ANR) headsets are worth the money if you are flying
more than a few hours a year, especially in
high-density traffic or IFR.
Most ANR sets cost about three to
four times more than a passive headset-
in the $800 to $1,000 range. But when
the noise-cancelling feature is demonstrated to the uninitiated, there's usually
a smile and quiet appreciation. The com
never sounded so good. Bose, David Clark,
Lightspeed, Sennheiser, and Telex are significant ANR players. The technical audio
aspects appeal to engineers, but the bottom
line is how well does it work for you-and
is it comfortable after several hours?
Audiophiles know Sennheiser-
founded in Germany in 1945-for
high-quality audio products. Its first step
into aviation began in 1980, providing
headsets for Lufthansa. About 14 years ago
it ventured into the GA market. I tested an
early model and liked it so well that my
wife bought it for me. That's love!
The latest iteration is the S1 Digital
and, as you'd expect, it's the best yet.
What could possibly be different? Most of
us wear glasses of some type, sun or otherwise, and the earpieces typically are
squeezed under the earcups. Sennheiser
figured out how to reduce that pressure
point and created adjustable clamping
pressure to let the pilot customize. I had
no discomfort after several three-hour legs.
The big change is the adaptive noise
canceling function. Pilots operate in a
dynamic frequency environment: the noise
attributes at takeoff are different than at
cruise or landing. By just touching a button on the left ear cup, the system measures
the ambient noise level and adjusts to the
current racket. It's immediately noticeable

and, according to the company, saves battery power. There's also an optional
adapter to plug into ship's power.
Those of us who hang around airports
often lose some of our high-frequency
hearing. Sennheiser lets pilots customize
high frequency response for either ear.
Finally, there's a Bluetooth connection.
At airports without a remote communication outlet (RCO), getting an IFR clearance
by phone can be a hassle.
With the Bluetooth feature, start the
engine, load the GPS with whatever you
think the clearance might be, and perhaps
do the run-up before merely pushing a
button on the S1 to use your mobile phone
to call ATC or flight service. Best of all is
clearly hearing the clearance
Music also can be streamed into the
system, but I generally concentrate on flying, so I have not tested that feature. As
always, pilots should try multiple headsets
before buying. It is very competitive but if
you're in the market, the S1 Digital may be
just the ticket.
Price: $995
Contact: www.sennheiser-aviation.com
www.aopa.org/pilot AOPA PILOT | 35
http://www.sennheiser-aviation.com http://www.aopa.org/pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2015
