Are We Paying Too Much for Active Noise Cancellation?

Sometimes, yes. Active noise cancellation (ANC) is worth paying for when the wearer sits in steady noise for hours, such as an open-plan floor, a busy home or a daily commute. It is often wasted on people who work in quiet rooms or mainly need others to hear them clearly. The most common buying mistake is confusing ANC, which helps you hear, with microphone noise reduction, which helps other people hear you.

This post explains the main types of ANC, what each is good and bad at, what the premium costs in SourceIT's current range, and how to decide who on your team needs it. If you are weighing business headsets against consumer noise-cancelling headphones, our Best Office Headsets for Business in Singapore (2026 Guide) is a good companion read.

What is ANC actually doing?

ANC uses small microphones to listen to the noise around you, then plays an inverted copy of that sound through the speakers so the two cancel out. Jabra describes the processor "flipping its phase 180 degrees" and repeating the loop hundreds of times per second.

Jabra's own explainer is candid about the limits. ANC works best on low, steady sounds such as air-conditioning hum, a train or a coffee machine. Sudden, high-pitched sounds and voices are better handled by passive isolation, meaning well-sealed ear cushions. Jabra also concedes that passive isolation cannot block every sound, and the same is true of ANC.

So ANC is very good at turning a droning office into a calmer one. It is much less good at silencing the colleague beside you who is talking loudly on a call.

Which kinds of ANC are there, and does the type matter?

Vendors use four main terms. Jabra explains them on its noise-cancelling page, and they apply across brands.

Prices as listed on 25 Oct 2026.

The type matters less than the fit. Jabra points out that feedback ANC depends on how well the earcup seals, and that on-ear headsets shift as you speak and move. An over-ear headset with good cushions, a decent hybrid system and a proper fit will usually beat a "more advanced" system that sits loosely.

Is ANC the same as a noise-cancelling microphone?

No, and this is where a lot of money is wasted. They solve opposite problems:

• ANC reduces the noise you hear. It protects your focus and lets you listen at a lower volume.
• Microphone noise reduction reduces the noise others hear from your side. It uses microphone arrays, boom design and processing, such as Jabra's ClearVoice, HP Poly's Acoustic Fence or Yealink's Acoustic Shield.

A headset can be strong on one and modest on the other. The Jabra Evolve2 65 MS Stereo is a good example. Jabra's specification lists active noise cancellation as "No" and relies on passive isolation from foam cushions, yet the same page says it meets Microsoft Teams open-office requirements for its microphone. If your callers complain about background noise, ANC will not fix it. A better microphone, or better placement, will. We cover placement in Why Your Colleague's Voice Sounds Better on a S$100 Headset Than Your S$500 One.

How much does ANC add to the price?

Comparing headsets within one family gives a rough idea, though the dearer model usually adds more than ANC alone.

• Jabra Evolve2 65 to Evolve2 75. The Evolve2 65 MS Stereo is S$330.00 and has no ANC. The Evolve2 75 MS Stereo is S$480.00 and adds what Jabra calls "feedforward and feedback dual hybrid ANC", with eleven settings between full ANC and full HearThrough. That S$150 step also buys eight microphones instead of three.
• Yealink BH70 to BH74. The Yealink BH70 MS Stereo is S$166.05. Its product page focuses on three-microphone noise cancellation for calls and does not list ANC for the earcups. The Yealink BH74 MS Dual is S$186.30, and Yealink describes hybrid ANC with four microphones. Here the step is about S$20.
• Jabra Evolve2 85. At S$635.00, the Jabra Evolve2 85 MS Stereo uses what Jabra calls digital hybrid ANC with four of its ten microphones.

The lesson is that ANC itself is no longer an exotic feature. Hybrid ANC appears at under S$200. What the premium tiers mostly add is stronger or adaptive cancellation, more comfortable ear cups for long wear, more microphones for calls, and longer battery life.

What are the hidden costs of ANC?

• Battery. Jabra quotes up to 25 hours of talk time on the Evolve2 75 with ANC and busylight off, falling to 18 hours with both on. On the Evolve3 75, Jabra lists 22 hours falling to 18 hours. Plan charging around the realistic figure, not the headline one.
• Weight and size. Hybrid ANC needs extra microphones and works best with well-sealed ear cups. Compare weights if people will wear the headset for an eight-hour day: Jabra lists the Evolve2 75 at 197 g and the Evolve2 85 at 286 g.
• Awareness. Strong cancellation can make it harder to hear colleagues or a doorbell. Most business headsets offer a hear-through mode, which is worth showing users on day one.
• Wind. Jabra notes wind over outside microphones can create low-frequency rumble on regular headsets, which matters for people who take calls while walking.

Who genuinely benefits from paying for ANC?

ANC usually earns its cost for:

• Staff on open-plan floors with constant air-conditioning, printer and chatter noise.
• People who commute or travel and want one headset for the MRT, the airport and the desk.
• Focus-heavy roles, such as developers, analysts and finance teams, who use the headset to concentrate even when not on calls.
• Home workers living with renovation noise, traffic or a busy household. Our post Can AI Noise Cancellation Really Silence a Crying Baby? covers the other half of that problem: what your callers hear.

ANC is often unnecessary for:

• People in private offices or quiet home rooms.
• Roles where callers' clarity matters more than the wearer's focus, such as reception or contact-centre desks. Here, budget towards the microphone and the boom.
• Staff who wear a headset only for a few short calls a day.

How should you decide who gets ANC?

1. Separate the two problems. Ask: is the issue what the user hears, or what callers hear? Buy ANC for the first and a better microphone for the second.
2. Map noise by location. Note which teams sit in loud zones, which work from home most days and who travels.
3. Tier the fleet. Give non-ANC or entry ANC models to quiet-room and light users, and stronger hybrid or adaptive ANC to heavy users in noise.
4. Check fit before features. A loose on-ear headset limits any ANC. Let heavy users try over-ear options.
5. Budget for battery reality. Use the ANC-on talk time when planning a full day of calls.
6. Check certification separately. ANC says nothing about microphone performance. Look for Teams or Zoom certification and any open-office designation on the exact SKU.

For the design side of the decision, see Are Boomless Headsets Sacrificing Call Quality for Good Looks?

Frequently asked questions

Does ANC make me sound better on calls? Not directly. ANC reduces the noise you hear. How clearly others hear you depends on the microphone, its placement and its noise-reduction processing.

What is hybrid ANC? Hybrid ANC combines microphones outside the earcups, which catch noise early, with microphones inside, which check what reaches your ear. It generally handles a wider range of noise than either approach alone.

Can ANC block out colleagues talking nearby? Only partly. ANC works best on low, steady sounds such as air-conditioning hum. Voices and sudden sounds are better reduced by well-sealed ear cushions, and some will still get through.

Does ANC reduce battery life? Yes. Jabra, for example, lists up to 25 hours of talk time on the Evolve2 75 with ANC and busylight off and up to 18 hours with both on.

Is a headset without ANC still suitable for an open office? It can be. Some headsets without ANC, such as the Jabra Evolve2 65, rely on passive isolation and are listed by the vendor as meeting Microsoft Teams open-office microphone requirements.