Resurgere

Anyone have experience with the noise-cancelling phones? I'm taking a plane/train trip soon and wondered if they're what they're cracked up to be. I've used regular earbuds on planes and do find that it's hard to hear over the background noise at reasonable volumes. How do the noise cancelling type compare with just a regular pair of "cup" type older style headphones, which would at least provide a little more insulation from background noise? In short, are they worth the $? :wink: