Hi there,
I have been suffering from ear problems (tinnitus and hyperacusis) for a while and the noise in the aircraft has now become a major issue for me.
From my past experiences, I have learnt that to get the quietest seat possible in the aircraft :
- get a seat to the front of the aircraft when it is a jet
- get a seat to the rear of the aircraft when it is a turboprop
- In both cases, take an aisle seat which is a bit more quiet than a window seat
- Avoid emergency issue seats
Regarding the aircraft, A380 is the quietest so far and Airbus aircrafts seems to be a bit more quiet than Boeing aircrafts of the same range.
However, I know that type of engines also plays a role (B777-300 less noisy than a B777-200)
How would you rank the aircrafts from the quietest to the noisiest in the cabine ?
A380
A350 ?
A340
A330/A320
B787
B777-300
B777-200
B767
B747
ATR
I do not know where to put Embraer 170/190 since I haven't flown on it for a long time.
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- oldannyboy
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Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
As far as I am concerned, what bothers me most when flying in terms of comfort is cabin noise... followed by legroom.
For current jets I think one the quietest rides is offered by the A330, especially the newer ones. A340s are also very quiet. I have not tried the A350/787/A380, so I cannot comment personally, But I am told they are all equally super-quiet.
The 777s I find universally noisy, especially at the back (yes, all aircrafts are noisier at the back..), although I love the sound of a big GE90 spooling up at take off...
Narrow-body wise, the A32s are certainly quieter that the 737s, especially those with V2500s. Not sure about the neo...surely it is even quieter.
The E-jets are also quiet, and offer a very smooth and vibration-free ride. The AVRO is noisy at the back, but very quiet up front.
Not to your interest I am sure, but you would have been surprised at how quiet some old generation jets were inside....the Trident and the VC10 immediately come to mind.. and the BAC-111 offered a super-smooth, vibration free ride too... no rattling panels a-la Boeing!!
For current jets I think one the quietest rides is offered by the A330, especially the newer ones. A340s are also very quiet. I have not tried the A350/787/A380, so I cannot comment personally, But I am told they are all equally super-quiet.
The 777s I find universally noisy, especially at the back (yes, all aircrafts are noisier at the back..), although I love the sound of a big GE90 spooling up at take off...
Narrow-body wise, the A32s are certainly quieter that the 737s, especially those with V2500s. Not sure about the neo...surely it is even quieter.
The E-jets are also quiet, and offer a very smooth and vibration-free ride. The AVRO is noisy at the back, but very quiet up front.
Not to your interest I am sure, but you would have been surprised at how quiet some old generation jets were inside....the Trident and the VC10 immediately come to mind.. and the BAC-111 offered a super-smooth, vibration free ride too... no rattling panels a-la Boeing!!
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
I would say:
Jets, starting with quietest first:
A340
A330
E Jets
777
32S
Some of the worst:
732
MD80
Props,
ATR
ATP
F50
S2000
Dash 8 400 - the worst out there, even though it's the newest!
Can't comment on some types I've not been on.
Jets, starting with quietest first:
A340
A330
E Jets
777
32S
Some of the worst:
732
MD80
Props,
ATR
ATP
F50
S2000
Dash 8 400 - the worst out there, even though it's the newest!
Can't comment on some types I've not been on.
StarWorld Team - The ultimate airline alliance
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
The A350 is pretty similar in terms of noise as a 787, but better cabin fittings. I find Airbus as a brand is quieter inside - the 777 has a vibration and growl that never gets removed from your conscious mind, ATR72-600 is by far the best prop I have been on . if you're at the front end of a 717/MD90 in F it is bloody quiet ride too. To be honest it isn't really an issue for me because I always travel with my Bose headset which takes the worst out of any aircrafr.
Flown to 147 Airports in 62 Countries on 83 Operators and counting. Wanderlust is like Syphilis, once you have the itch it's too late for treatment.
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
The A380 is the quietest aircraft I've ever been on. It's so quiet even on takeoff, it's almost freaky.
Flown: 2L 7C 9E 9L AA AB AC AF AY AZ BA BR BX B6 CA CO CP CX DL EK EY JL KE KL LA LH LX MQ NW OZ PD RW SQ TG TP TR TS US WG WN WS XE XJ
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- Viscount724
- Posts: 19316
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Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
Reports I've read say the Bombardier C Series is also quieter than average.
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
CRJs are generally very quiet if you sit in front of the wings far enough away from the engines. Even by the engines though they are fine. For jets, one of the noisiest built today is the 737. They make a racket taking off inside and out and are rather noisy in the air if you sit behind the engines. I expect the max will be much quieter.
Been on: 732 733 734 73G 738 752 763 A319 A320 A321 CRJ CR7 CRA/CR9 E145 E175 E190 F28 MD-82 MD-83 C172R C172S P2006T PA-28-180
2 ears for spatial hearing, 2 eyes for depth perception, 2 ears for balance... How did Boeing think 1 sensor was good enough?!
2 ears for spatial hearing, 2 eyes for depth perception, 2 ears for balance... How did Boeing think 1 sensor was good enough?!
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
Firstly I would recommend a good pair of Bose noise-cancelling headphones. I have flown all but the A350 and the winner BY FAR is the A380 which as another member states is "freakishly quiet". The next is certainly the 787. Aside from that the rest are a wash but I would say that the 777-200 for some reason is noisier than the 777-300. Good luck
A319 320 321 330 340 380 B707 727 737 747 757 767 777 787 BAe1-11 Trident 1, 2, 3B Viscount Lancaster VC10 HS748, ATP DHC-1, 3 Dash-8 Dash-400 Shorts 330 360 Embraer Banderiante Brasileria 175 190 BAe146 Saab 200 DC-3 -8 -9 -10 MD-11 ATR42-72
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- spacecadet
- Posts: 3582
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Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
The 747-400 is quite loud by modern standards inside the cabin. I used to fly them JFK-NRT quite often and would always land with a splitting headache. That stopped when every airline switched to 773's. (Now I have a set of Sony noise cancelling headphones, which helps even more.)
The DC-9-30 was *ridiculously* loud back in the day. MD-80's are still loud but I think they made some engine changes at some point that made them quieter than they were originally (hushkits or whatever). I flew on a Hughes Airwest flying banana once, right next to the engine, and you could not even hear the person next to you if you were shouting at full volume. I'm convinced that they were dangerously loud. I feel like if I could deal with that, I can deal with any airplane cabin noise.
The DC-9-30 was *ridiculously* loud back in the day. MD-80's are still loud but I think they made some engine changes at some point that made them quieter than they were originally (hushkits or whatever). I flew on a Hughes Airwest flying banana once, right next to the engine, and you could not even hear the person next to you if you were shouting at full volume. I'm convinced that they were dangerously loud. I feel like if I could deal with that, I can deal with any airplane cabin noise.
I'm tired of being a wanna-be league bowler. I wanna be a league bowler!
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
The A380 is almost certainly the most quiet. I've sat in the front, in the back, right next to the engines, upstairs and downstairs - it doesn't really matter.
The A350 is, to my ears, the next in line. It's difficult to tell the rest apart. I fully expected the 787 to be a good deal quieter than the A330/A340s I flew on a lot (frequent VS flyer), but I was disappointed. I'd say it's on par with the A340-600. The A340-300 is noisier, and the A330s and 777s seem to have a fair bit of variance, depending on the age and/or engine.
On the loud end, 747-400 and earlier, 737, and MD-80.
Disclaimer: I've never flown on a 767 or 747-8
The A350 is, to my ears, the next in line. It's difficult to tell the rest apart. I fully expected the 787 to be a good deal quieter than the A330/A340s I flew on a lot (frequent VS flyer), but I was disappointed. I'd say it's on par with the A340-600. The A340-300 is noisier, and the A330s and 777s seem to have a fair bit of variance, depending on the age and/or engine.
On the loud end, 747-400 and earlier, 737, and MD-80.
Disclaimer: I've never flown on a 767 or 747-8
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- JulietteBravo
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Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
Viscount724 wrote:Reports I've read say the Bombardier CS is also quieter than average.
I only confirm - she is veery quiet. On the forward jumpseat during climb after take off you can in fact whisper - while it goes like a rocket. As S/C i had my 1st 4 days on HB-JBB (second Bombardier CS). The BCS is a total pleasure and i confess i m a fan. pax experience was obviously great.
The windows are huge - a completely new balloon basket view for an airliner
- Middle section is less quiet - mainly because of aircon (but i never had this high quality of fresh air)
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
Well , I've flown several airliners in the past years and only last month had my 1st 787 experience and i have to admit there's absolut no noise inside the cabin. However i was seating 1A so cannot tell you about noise levels in the back but still, quite impressed with the quietest experience i had.
Talking about the past, always enjoyed flying the MD-11, no matter the row.
Talking about the past, always enjoyed flying the MD-11, no matter the row.
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
Am I the only one that thinks the E175 is just a giant speaker system? That thing is LOUD!!! I couldn't hear the lady next to me when we were talking.
When wasn't America great?
The thoughts and opinions shared under this username are mine and are not influenced by my employer.
The thoughts and opinions shared under this username are mine and are not influenced by my employer.
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
Just judging from videos shot from in front of the engines I've seen on Youtube, in general the newer engines are incredibly quiet. 787s, A380, A350, A320 neo, etc, make way less noise on takeoff- these A/C's seem to just have a more whirring sound as opposed to the old buzzsawing from older birds. Admittedly I haven't been in the cabins of all that many types in cruise, but the 747-400 is fairly loud. I seem to remember A32x (ceo) to be quieter in cruise than a 738. 757s and 767s I've been in are also fairly noisy, but not unbearable. Of course those equipped with RB211s in particular are quite loud during TO/GA, but I find the engine noises similar to the exhaust note of a sporty car, some people enjoy that others don't.
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
I haven't been on a whole lot of different types yet but the most quiet one of them would definitely be the 788.
We took off in darkness so it was hard to tell that the engines were actually spooling up.
For the loudest one the answer would in my case be the DHC8-400 which struck me as really surprising with the plane being so new (a "Q"-series in fact) but those props made one hell of a noise.
We took off in darkness so it was hard to tell that the engines were actually spooling up.
For the loudest one the answer would in my case be the DHC8-400 which struck me as really surprising with the plane being so new (a "Q"-series in fact) but those props made one hell of a noise.
Q400 E175 E190 CRJ7 CRJ9 CRJX MD88 A319 A320 A321 A332 A333 A359 B733 B73G B738 B739 B748 B764 B772 B77W B788 B789
FRA STR HAM TXL MUC ZRH ACE BRU BLL DUB MAN ARN MAD OPO LIS FNC AMS PHL RDU LGA CLT EWR ORD ATL SFO MDW IAD YYZ SJO PTY
FRA STR HAM TXL MUC ZRH ACE BRU BLL DUB MAN ARN MAD OPO LIS FNC AMS PHL RDU LGA CLT EWR ORD ATL SFO MDW IAD YYZ SJO PTY
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
The 767 is generally a noisy plane for today's standards, but I've found that the CF6 seems louder to me than the PW4000. Has anyone else noticed this?
Been on: 732 733 734 73G 738 752 763 A319 A320 A321 CRJ CR7 CRA/CR9 E145 E175 E190 F28 MD-82 MD-83 C172R C172S P2006T PA-28-180
2 ears for spatial hearing, 2 eyes for depth perception, 2 ears for balance... How did Boeing think 1 sensor was good enough?!
2 ears for spatial hearing, 2 eyes for depth perception, 2 ears for balance... How did Boeing think 1 sensor was good enough?!
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
A380 Emirates GE and RR models and A350 Cathay Pacific RR XWB are the quietest jets I have flown. B788 Ana was definitely the quietest Boeing. The A321 BA is also quieter than the B738 of FlyDubai . If you really want noisy try the TU134 of Balkan or for a turbo prop the Il-18 many years ago. I The quietest four engined Turbo prop for me was the Bristol Britannia of the RAF. Smoothest flight RAF VC10 from Brize Norton to Mariah a long time ago.
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
Masirah.... Sorry
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- aerolimani
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Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
Cabin noise is a strange thing to quantify. I find it makes a huge difference where you sit. In some seats on certain aircraft, there is a horrible hissing coming from A/C ducting through the wall. Then, there's sitting in front of or behind the engines. I've sat at the back of the A330, and it was loud! Other A330 flights, I've been ahead of the wing, and it seemed quite peaceful. Similarly, I've sat both up front and in the back of the Q400 as well as the non-Q DHC8A, B, and C. The older ones without the noise suppression are overall louder, but in both instances, sitting at the back is much quieter.
As to noisy, I remember the 732 as being quite loud. These days, the loudest thing I sometimes find myself on is the B1900D. But, what a little rocket that thing is! I just put in my earplugs, and enjoy that takeoff.
BTW, if you think noise-cancelling headphones are just not worth it to you, I highly recommend some cheap-ish musician earplugs. Etymotic makes some nice ones like the ER20XS. They reduce the overall noise level, but only -20 db. They also reduce sound fairly evenly across the frequency spectrum. Unlike regular earplugs, you still get some high frequencies, so speech is still quite intelligible.
As to noisy, I remember the 732 as being quite loud. These days, the loudest thing I sometimes find myself on is the B1900D. But, what a little rocket that thing is! I just put in my earplugs, and enjoy that takeoff.
BTW, if you think noise-cancelling headphones are just not worth it to you, I highly recommend some cheap-ish musician earplugs. Etymotic makes some nice ones like the ER20XS. They reduce the overall noise level, but only -20 db. They also reduce sound fairly evenly across the frequency spectrum. Unlike regular earplugs, you still get some high frequencies, so speech is still quite intelligible.
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- afterburner33
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Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
In my experience - A380 is the quietest, 777 is the loudest.
The A380 is helped by most configurations allowing economy seating in the nose, which is usually quieter.
Have not yet tried the latest generation - ie the 787 or the A350.
The A380 is helped by most configurations allowing economy seating in the nose, which is usually quieter.
Have not yet tried the latest generation - ie the 787 or the A350.
Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
hoons90 wrote:The A380 is the quietest aircraft I've ever been on. It's so quiet even on takeoff, it's almost freaky.
Yes, absolutely, A380 is my final answer without a doubt. It is almost freaky, hurtling down a runway for seemingly 20 minutes before lifting in to the air with barely a peep.
Gotta love the A380.
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- AirbusA343
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Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
From personal experience, some of the older 737-800s make an awful noise at high speeds.
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- fbgdavidson
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Re: Ranking from quietest to noisiest aircraft cabins.
aerolimani wrote:Cabin noise is a strange thing to quantify. I find it makes a huge difference where you sit
Definitely....lots of gripes about the MD80s et. al. whereas I find them rather quiet, because I've always been sat towards the front on those aircraft.
As I'm one of the noise cancelling headphone wearers most aircraft all seem about the same to me. Would have to say Concorde was the loudest for me, just based on sitting in the window seat and trying to speak to someone in the aisle.
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