Havit, like Anker and Mopower is a Chinese brand of headphones and personal electronics that is now available in the US. I wasn’t aware of them until they reached out to me and offered a set of their new HB655BT headphones to test out. These are hybrid noise canceling headphones with Bluetooth connectivity.
Hybrid headphones have microphones inside and outside of the ear cups to create a inverse soundwaves to cancel up to 35db of ambient noise; Active Noise Cancelation (ANC). Its battery powers it up to 76hrs and connects via bluetooth. In addition, it has a 3.5mm auxiliary audio port to provide direct wired connection to your devices.
The headphones have 3 sound modes: ANC on, ANC off, and Ambient. Ambient amplifies ambient sounds and projects them into your ears to simulate what you would hear without the headphones on. Moreover, there is a Game Mode setting which reduces Bluetooth lag by sacrificing sound fidelity (but I didn’t notice much degradation in music quality). Without Game Mode, there is a noticeable lag when watching videos with the headphones where sounds and voices do not match up with the picture.
Overall I found the headphones to be very bass heavy to a fault. While this may not be to my or an audiophile’s tastes it tdoes make the HB655BT perfect for gaming or for the majority of the pop-music listening public. Where these headphones also excel is in price, roughly a hundred dollars less than equivalent BEATS headphones.
Get 12% off until 6/8/24 at www.prohavit.com Discount Code MOONDOG12
Warbird made their reputation creating soft body armor. Now they’ve expanded their protective gear offerings with what are among the best sounding earmuffs on the market. Perhaps its not that surprising. Warbird’s founders have decades of experience in the personal protection market; they know what gear works.
The Intrepid has a built in rechargeable battery with approximately an 8hr run time; recharged via a micro-USB port. It features an energy saving auto shut off (though it’s not clear how many hours or minutes it will run before this occurs). It has a 3.5mm audio input port to connect to devices though wired connections are becoming increasingly rare. They also launched with Bluetooth compatible BT version of the Intrepid which looks identical to the ivory colored RC but in a dark grey color scheme.
The Interpid has padded faux leather suede headband, and comes with a velvet lined hard storage case. Like more premium headphones, it comes with gel earpads providing both comfort and a tight audio seal. Its has 4 control buttons; 2 for volume and its power button is thoughtfully recessed so you can identify it by touch and avoid accidentally pressing it. Its 4th button allows you to manually disable ambient amplification on the right or left earphones or both; helpful when the shooter in the lane next to you has an annoyingly loud or ported firearm.
The Intrepid has a NRR rating of 23db and in my testing was able to deliver slightly better than that. The noise cut off and reset is fast at .001 seconds. It’s built in microphones are labeled as omini-directional though this term is often misused in earpro. The Intrepid has realistic quad stereo sound allowing you to discern the direction of the sound source: left, right, front, or behind.
It’s audio performance is where this mid-priced headphone shines. The ambient sounds it amplifies were very clear and realistic. It’s internal speakers sound higher quality with better bass response than any earpro earmuffs I’ve ever tested. When plugged into a device listening to music, they sound as good as the Sony MDR-ZX110. While these are not audiophile quality headsets by any stretch they sound much better than the thin, cheap audio quality of even the boojeest earpro.
Audio quality may not seem important for firearms hearing protection. But realistic sound gives you better situational awareness as well is the ability to discern subtle but important audible details that can be missing on most shooting earmuffs. Soft sounds like safety lever being disengaged, or the direction an ejected shell casing when it lands on gravel. For hunters, this means you can not just identify the direction of moving prey but be able to tell if the rustling came is from a game in the bushes or up a small critter in the canopy.
These headphones come in at a mid-tier price point of $99 for the RC ($149 for the Bluetooth enabled BT). While not as cheap as new budget brands entering the market, the Warbirds sound as good or better than premium headphones two or three times more.
The only negatives I found was a pinching around my ears after 30-40 of wearing them due to my ears pressing up against the inside of the earcup; a problem I’ve found with all low profile earmuffs I’ve ever worn. And whats with the micro-USB port, why not USB-C? I would also like a visible indicator light that stays one while the unit is powered. The power down tone which is a low warble sound is too quiet and a missed opportunity. With the name like “War Bird” they should have used the screech of a hawk.
These headphones are available directly from Warbird using my affiliate link. Get 10% off using discount code Moondog10
NRR: 23dB 2x Omnidirectional Microphones Full Dynamic Range HD Speakers 40mm, 20 ohm Battery Life: Up to 8hrs Sound Active Reaction time: 0.01 Audio Input Jack: 3.5mm TPU Covered Gel Ear Pad Comfort Headband with Metal Frame USB-micro charging
The 2016 Macbook Pro had a fatal flaw in its hinge design. Over time and with use, the monitor wiring passing through the hinge would frey and cause the monitor to turn off when the monitor face is raised into normal operating position. Recently my wife’s 2016 began experiencing the “Dead Screen” problem which progressed to the point that she could only open the hinge about 4 inches before it would deactivate.
Fixing her screen would required replacing the entire LCD screen and display wiring which costs over a hundred dollars; almost as much as buying a used Macbook. As a hack, I purchased an inexpensive MNN portable LCD monitor from Amazon. The package includes a 1080p color screen, USB-C and HDMI cables, and a magnetic cover that can be folded into a monitor stand.
Plugging the MNN screen into the Macbook USB-C port, the LCD screen automatically synced to Mac and functioned as an extended monitor. Changing the System Prefs I was able to change the MNN to a mirrored monitor. This allowed me to functionally replace the Macbook screen with the MNN monitor.
I also tested the MNN monitor connecting it to my phone and it effortlessly sync and mirrored my phone screen. Color rendition was fair though not as intense or sharp as my Samsung OLED display. It also has built in speakers but these provide disappointingly thin sound.
At SHOT Show 2024, I was invited by Arken Optics to interview Jade Struck, competitive shooter, firearms instructor for Keanu Reeves on John Wick, the face is Call of Duty’s “Iskra”, and proud Arken LPVO shooter. Jade has a remarkable resume and is an equally remarkable individual. She is one of the most physically fit firearms instructor I’ve ever met and she owes that inspiration her husband, former marine, Rudy Reyes.
In a feature rich half-hour conversation that ranged from working with celebrities, her competition background, the importance of fitness, Christian faith, and our favorite Batman actor. Thanks to Arken Optics for sponsoring this video and the opportunity to meet and be inspired by Jade.
Palmetto State Armory are the Mad Scientists of gun makers, coming out with new designs and recreations of guns. This year they brought out over a dozen prototypes including their first bolt action rifle. The Emerge is patterned after the Remington 700 and is designed to be compatible with 700 after market parts and accessories.
The PSA Emerge will come standard with Magpul furnature and an adjustable trigger that you’d usually find with more premium builds. Not surprising as PSA is known for giving us Poors more gun for the money. The first calibers to be developed will be 308 and 6.5 Creedmor.
PSA has too many ideas and but too little engineering time so they’re asking fans to vote for their favorite prototype guns that PSA should focus on. This means the 3 guns with the highest votes will be most likely to see testing and production later this year. Cast your vote at https://palmettostatearmory.com/
Kahles is known in the PRS world for having some of the sharpest, clearest scope when going after targets at 1000yrds or more. After 5 years of development Kahles was eager to show off their newest long range precision scope at SHOT Show. This features not a 36mm tube (good luck finding a many choices for mounts) for an extended range of adjustment and a 40% wider field of view.
Win an Athlon Talos 20-60×80 spotting scope with OSS lens cap, provided by OSS. Entries must be received no later than 12pm EST on June 22, 2024. Buy your own OSS lens cap on Etsy.
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Kahles is known for making high-performance long range optics so they’re not top of mind for MilSpec tactical scopes like LPVOs. But for competition 3gun shooters who are looking eek out every last fraction of a second in their run times, having clear sharp glass is a necessity.
Kahles showed off their K181 LPVO at Shot Show 2024 which offers red dot bright illumination. It comes in either a traditional BDC crosshair style retile or a simple two-dot aiming reticle; the ultimate in simplicity for a speed shooter interested in hiting either point-blank or mid-range targets.
“5.11” comes from the a rock climbing difficulty rating in Yosemite national park. 5.11 got its start specializing in making rock climbing pants. These were discovered by and purchased Special Forces operators who prized them for their durability, ergonomic pockets, and flexible design allowing for a wide range of dynamic motion.
DC Predator is an Instagram and YouTube channel of Scott Morris, his brother Ken, and son Kamron; a family of hunters from Arizona who have posted some of the most cinematic hunting footage this side National Geographic. Cam Morris is the primary cameraman for the channel and he brings his photo and videography experience to his family’s coyote hunts. And in case you’re wondering, I asked. DC is not a reference to our nation’s capitol. DC stands for “Death Clap”, the sound of a varmint going down.
