Customer Reviews
My first pair of headphones, okay I guess... 
2005-03-16
These are my first pairs of noice-canceling headphones. They were great for the first month I used them. I mean ULTIMATE PERFECT! Great for exercising and walking outside.
HOWEVER, with the noise-canceling feature on there is a slight buzzing noise, but if your music is on loud enough it will block out the buzzing. For those who don't like listening to your music too loud, these headphones are not for you.
Anyways, after only a MONTH of owning these headphones, the left side of the headphones began developing a crackling noise. Whenever the bass would kick in from a song it would start crackling like CRAZY. Or if I wore them on a windy day and the wind was blowing against the left side of the headphones the crackling would be unavoidable.
Fortunately my speakerphones came with a 90 day warranty, so I will be sending them back to the factory. However, even with the warranty there are no guarantees of "free" repairs.
Overall these speakerphones are VERY VERY comfortable, but you might start sweating around the ear after wearing them for a long time.
The sound quality is better than any other speakerphones I've ever owned, but still it has its flaws.
Headphones do not hold up 
2005-02-18
I have had these for almost two years and I have found that they do not hold up well. The padding in the ears has flattened totally making them very uncomfortable. The headphone cord has become stiff so that I have to bend it away from my face. The biggest problem that has developed is creakyness. The headphones creak anytime you move. The creaking is loud and unpleasant and resonates inside the headphones. If you are trying to wear them while sleeping on a plane the creaking sound is very disturbing.
The noise cancelling is good on a plane and the sound is good considering the price. However I would not buy them again because they have aged poorly.
Best Noise Cancelling Headphones 
2005-01-25
I will admit that I recently gave up my Sony Headphones for the Bang and Olufsen A8's ----- however, that was more for portabilities sake, than sound
with regards to sound, this is the BEST pair of headphones that I have used
The noise cancelling features are excellent! -- putting these things on, along with the noise cancellers, allows you to hear sounds that you never knew existed within many of your favorite songs
I compared these headphones, head to head, on an airplane, against the Bose Quiet Comfort 2, and there was no difference in sound - both performed excellently, and equally, within the airplane environment ---- however, the Sony ones were more comfortable and MUCH cheaper
Don't even waster your time with the Bose Quite Comfort ---- grab a pair of these and you'll fall in love quick!
Uncomfortable But Works A Little.... 2005-01-07
I wore these for about an hour while riding the bus and couldn't wait to take them off. Maybe if I could find a way to replace the minimal amount of padding around the ears they would be better, but I doubt if I can. The headband felt fine.
They did reduce the background noise to some extent, but it was still noticeable on the bus. Actually, my ipod headphones were louder than the Sonys with the ipod set at the same volume, but the sonys seem to be a little easier on my eardrums due to the fact that their not jammed in my ear canal.
I'm considering returning these and getting the Bose QuietComfort 2. Although $300 for a pair of headphones is obscene, I need something good for long flights and I'm not sure that these will do the trick.
These headphones suck without the noise reduction turned on. With it on the sound is better, although somewhat muddy compared to the headphones that came with my ipod. I suppose I would rather wear these on a plane, bus, or train than my ipod headphones because they are easier on my eardrums, while still allowing me to hear the words of the music I'm listening to.
As you can see they look great and they fold up nicely too. I wish they would just make them more comfortable.
Good sound, Good Noise Cancelling, Good for airplanes. 
2005-01-05
I've been using these for over a year now. Basically, in a quiet environment these sound pretty good. They aren't as good as similarly-priced studio-class headsets, but you're paying for the noise cancelling. The raw capability is pretty decent, and has acceptable detail in treble, vocal, and bass ranges.
The noise cancelling works pretty well. I've taken these on several intercontinental flights and they do a decent job of blocking out engine rumble and screaming kids. They also do a decent job of blocking out adult human voices, which is nice in the office.
However, I must have pretty big ears, and I've found that the foam cups aren't quite thick enough to adequately push the driver away from my outer ear. After 2 or 3 hours of use my ears start to ache a bit.
The cord is plenty long, and can be disconnected in the middle to link to an optional Sony wired remote control. An adapter to convert the standard 1/8th inch stereo jack to the dual 1/8th inch jacks in many airplane seats is included.
The thing that I don't like about this is that I find these uncomfortable when I try to lean my head against the window in an airplane and sleep. I think that the MDR-NC11's might have been a better choice in that regard.
They're also kind of bulky unless you have a large carry-on to keep them in. I'm paranoid about putting these in the seat pocket in front of me, since the MDR-NC20's come with a soft bag instead of a rigid clamshell like the Bose headsets. I haven't had any spills yet, but active travellers may wish to find a case that's more rigid.
All in all, I'm pretty happy with these. The natural audio sound and the noise cancelling are plenty sufficient for the price... I couldn't justify the $300 for Bose unless I needed the protective clamshell and had ears that fit perfectly into their earcups.
(two stars!) Mechanical creaking and pressure on ear lobes, not so cool. 2006-06-14
After having used this headphone for a little over a year it has become virtually unusable. The plastic parts started creaking very soon. What seemed to be tolerable in the beginning has become ridiculous now. It is triggered by the slightest movement of the head, the jaw or even by taking a deep breath and sounds like an old ski-boot right on your ear.
The shells do not encompass the ears but rather sit on the outer rim of the earlobes. And no, I don't have extremely big ears. That's simply how this headset was designed. Watching an entire film on a plane leaves you with hurting ears. The noise reduction is very good but I'd rather go nuts from the engine noise than wear the Sony MDR-NC20 for the duration of a transatlantic flight.
The sound quality with noise canceling switched off is feeble and thin. However with the noise canceling on very satisfactory.
Update: Now the cable has come apart and one side of the headphones has gone mute. After careful usage for a little over one year the MDR-NC20 is officially broken. I really wanted to love this thing and I treated it with more careful respect than anyone who actually takes their headphones on the road all the time. I will check out the Bose noise cancelers next...
(2 STARS) Sound good - Noise Canceling Poor 2006-01-04
Sound quality of the headset (noise canceling off) is good. I'm not an expert, but I'm satisfied with the way music sounds.
As for the noise canceling, I'm not satisfied. If you've never owned the Bose Quiet Comfort then you may (I repeat may) think this is what noise canceling is all about. Unfortunately I was once blessed with the opportunity to use a set of the Bose Quiet Comfort Headphones (First Generation) and the noise canceling feature on the MDR-NC20 is weak.
With or without music, there is a lot of static. This may sound odd (to have a headset on with no music) but one of the great features of noise canceling headsets is to completely block out all the noise around you and allow you to feel isolated from a loud or crowded area. This is great for working, studying or just relaxing. However, my MDR-NC20's have annoying static that completely prevents me from having this ability. You can improve that by unplugging the main portion of the headset from the extended portion of the cord, that plugs into the headphone jack, but it's only an improvement. This doesn't help, if you want to cancel out background noise and listen to music, which to me would be the whole point of wanting noise canceling headphones.
For the price, Sony has allowed the average bear to see what noice canceling is like, to some that may be enough. I personally wish I had taken the money for the MDR-NC20 and put it towards a set of the Bose.
PS: I wanted to give it two stars. I accidentally had 3 stars selected and when I went back to edit it, I could not change the rating.
Good sound, but problems and too expensive 2005-11-09
When I first ordered the headphones, I recieved them in the mail and they did not work, the wires or connections were messed up, I could only hear music out of one of the earphones. So I returned in in the mail. They sent me a new pair and the new one worked, it sounded really good. The only complaint, it put a lot of pressure on my ears and it bothered me if I listened to music for longer than an hour. Then after having the headphones for a year, I had the same problem that I had with the first pair. I could only hear music out of one earphone. I take care of my headphones and don't see how this could happen again unless these are not made very well. These are expensive headphones, you expect them to last a long time, but they didn't. Right now I'm trying to find out if I can replace part of the Headphone and see if it works.
MDR-NC20's are great. MDR-NC50's are LOUSY 
2005-10-03
The SONY-NC20 Noise cancelling headphones are great. Unfortunately, they have been discontinued.
I was able to find them listed on Amazon.com, and ordered them. However, the vendor sent MDR-NC50's, evidently the replacement model, and far inferior from an audio standpoint.
The vendor agreed to return them, but I was responsible for shipping them back.
Wearing the MDR-NC50 headphones yeilds an unpleasant "negative pressure" sensation on the eardrums. The sound, when using NC feature, also suffers, and is very "canned".
Great product 2005-06-05
I have used the headphones for 2 years -- they offer a material reduction in the "droning" noise on airplanes.
Even when I am ready to sleep and I turn my music off, I leave the headphones on and it reduces the ambient noise.
I think you arrive much less fatigued.
