r/mildlyinfuriating • u/BiteInfamous • 10h ago

I'm slightly vexed Taxi driver wearing noise cancelling headphones while driving in the city

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Look I’m PMSing so I’m admittedly in a very nit picky time of my life. But. Don’t love weaving in and out of traffic in a major city while the taxi driver has noice cancelling headphones on. The sound is loud enough I can hear whatever (moderately funny) comedy show he’s listening to in the backseat. This is ill advised, yes?

ETA thanks to everyone who taught me about transparent mode today :)

ETA2 : Okay, I’m the asshole, comments have shown me there’s lots that could be going on with the driver to make him need to use these and there’s way he could do so safely. Mea culpa. That’ll teach me to knee jerk react.

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711

u/JacobAndor 10h ago

Those are XM6s, $500 headphones with next level noise cancelling, OR a great transparency mode. Yes it looks crazy that he's wearing them while driving, but I know some people that wear them in transparency because it helps boost sounds they may not hear without them as they have critical hearing loss.

225

u/magoju 9h ago

OP is saying he could hear the podcast the driver was listening to from the back seat… I don't think that's very safe.

118

u/-P01135809- 9h ago

Maybe the podcast is a live description of their current surroundings read by a streamer that is following the taxi 

41

u/prank_mark 9h ago

Ambient mode also amplifies outside sounds so you can hear them

7

u/Athlete-Extreme 9h ago

Noise cancelling only goes 1 way that’s for sure
, some people still have no idea

6

u/m0viestar 7h ago

OP is also posting someone online without their consent and insulting them.  Safe to say they're not a good person either. 

-7

u/IonicGold 7h ago

I think OP can be excused a bit for posting a pic of the guy who is DRIVING A CAR listening to a podcast with over ear headphones

3

u/m0viestar 3h ago

So it's ok to post pics of strangers online without consent, as long as we can all make fun of them?   That's your argument? 

3

u/vWaffles 6h ago

I have Sony Inzone buds and the ambient / transparency mode is nuts and this is with them being directly in my ear.

I use it 24/7 just solely because it feels like the earbuds aren't even in my ear anymore.

19

u/cable54 9h ago

Seriously, headphones that have ambient sound mode have been a thing for years at this point. Why are most people here seemingly unaware of this?

This is so the driver can listen to his music without it being blasted to the customer.

13

u/SnootDoctor 9h ago

It’s illegal to drive with headphones, or anything that can impair your senses, in Illinois, at least.

1

u/cable54 7h ago

Ambient sound mode is literally the opposite of impairing senses.

-1

u/CptnMayo 7h ago

Reread the post above you

2

u/cable54 6h ago

I did, I'm not sure what you point is

-7

u/Bubblygrumpy 9h ago

Blocking out noise while driving is a big deal. You have to be aware of your surroundings and damping noise takes out one of your senses. 

8

u/JacobAndor 9h ago

The XM6s amplify sounds you should hear (sudden honking, braking, shouting, etc). It's not as linear as just blocking all sounds out. People with hearing damage have a hard time hearing those sudden sounds over ambient noise like engines, construction, and other things.

0

u/Tall-Mango4759 7h ago

But didn’t op say she could hear his comedy podcast? So is it blaring loudly and amplifying noise around at the same time? Wouldn’t that be disorienting?

4

u/cable54 7h ago

It's no different to having the radio on loudly

12

u/BiteInfamous 9h ago

The more you know! Now I feel bad for being judgmental sigh.

53

u/SkyEllipt 9h ago

stop taking pictures of people without consent

1

u/BlueHawk75 8h ago

I use these headphones for audiobooks. They are amazing. I wear them in the car to give my teen girl and her friends privacy, and so I'm entertained at the same time. For driving it's fine for me but I can see how it may indicate a lack of alertness. If I uber'd as a driver I would probably offer the customer the option of privacy and see what they say.

1

u/pix-o-dix 9h ago

Feeling badly may be inevitable given your current state. It will pass!

5

u/dnizblei 7h ago

just as ack: i just bought some cheap ANC headphones with good reviews and i always use them at night watching TV in bed, with activated ambient sound on. Last night, my neighbour drove with his electric car past our house and these headphones amplified the sound so that i had the feeling i was standing right on the street next to the passing car.

Dude might be using the headphones as filter and hearing aid

•

u/Mystic_Wunder 13m ago

Not if what he's listening to is so loud the passenger can hear it.

It's also illegal in a lot of places.

0

u/kid_friendly_van 7h ago

Also, I would like to add to anyone thinking about these headphones, that they have a godawfully build quality and are incredibly overpriced. (Though I do second that the noise cancelling is incredible, none of my headphones have ever come close to the noise cancelling)