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mbrady t1_j6ixuy5 wrote

Reply to comment by [deleted] in eli5: Why do most airlines still use 2-pin audio jacks for the in-flight entertainment systems on their planes? by JJGLC92

And the headphones worked like stethoscopes. They were hollow tubes that channeled the sound from the jack (which was basically just a hole) and the sound came through into your ears.

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zulmirao t1_j6j571e wrote

Yeah, and you could mute the sound by squeezing the tubes.

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SelectTadpole t1_j6jdcfu wrote

Please send me an example this is so interesting but Google hasn't helped

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gordone1 t1_j6jhfbk wrote

See https://www.reddit.com/r/nostalgia/comments/auavkd/remember_when_airline_headphones_were_just/

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SelectTadpole t1_j6jhk88 wrote

Thank you!! How well did these work??

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KeetoNet t1_j6jk4up wrote

Terribly.

Of note, these are still used in MRI machines. Presumably because of the whole 'no metal in the giant magnetic field' thing.

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SelectTadpole t1_j6jkk1f wrote

Oh shit. I've used them before, then! How fun. I don't remember it sounding too bad but I wasn't really thinking about it, either. Nor did I have much of an ear for music quality at the time.

On the other hand I do remember thinking "so this is how they invented dubstep" when 80's pop was playing at the same time as the very loud machine making crazy noises.

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KeetoNet t1_j6jq40x wrote

Haha - yeah, my experience was similar. There was music, but I was in no position to assess the sound quality other than to think 'that sounds tinny' as they shoved my head into the loud clanking machine.

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chriswaco t1_j6jmgof wrote

They were fine. Not high fidelity or anything, but fine. The noise of the engines was the biggest drawback and the earplugs weren't always comfortable.

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AntarcticanJam t1_j6k79ry wrote

I remember when I first discovered that as a kid. I declined to buy their "headphones" for $5 and just stuck a couple of free straws together to reach from the holes to my ears.

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stephenph t1_j6jabk8 wrote

I actually have a set of commercial headphones that have that technology.

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mbrady t1_j6jxydv wrote

"technology" may be too strong of a word for those!

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faaizk t1_j6jjz2l wrote

that’s incredible! i find this kind of analog tech just so fascinating

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BizzyM t1_j6jqa8x wrote

I thought this was what OP was talking about.

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mbrady t1_j6jxrly wrote

No, they have electronic ones but are essentially a separate plug for left and right audio.

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BizzyM t1_j6jyfsi wrote

Yeah, i have a similar setup for my dispatch console except they are dual 1/8" plugs. 1 for incoming, 1 for outgoing.

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