Wind is ANC's arch-nemesis. Not because your headphones are broken, but because physics is a cruel science. Let us explain why.
Why is wind to ANC what kryptonite is to Superman?
Active noise cancellation works by having external microphones on the headphones listen to your surroundings and create an anti-sound. Steady hums – airplane engines, office air conditioning, the rumble of a train ride – are easy pickings for ANC. They're predictable and consistent.
Wind, on the other hand, is chaotic. It slams into the microphones as random pressure waves, and the ANC algorithm desperately tries to create anti-sound for noise that changes every millisecond. The end result is often worse than having ANC off entirely: you hear weird pumping and pulsing on top of the wind.
This isn't a Valco problem. This is an every-ANC-headphone problem. Sony, Bose, Apple – they all suffer from the same physics. We just say it out loud.
How to make the best of it
- Update the firmware. Open the Valco app on your phone and check if there's a software update available for your headphones. Sometimes the ANC algorithm has been improved, and the update genuinely helps.
- Check the fit. With over-ear headphones, the ear cushions need to seal properly around your ears. If air leaks in, ANC loses its effectiveness. Adjust the headband and try different positions.
- With earbuds, swap the tips. On the NL25, try different sized silicone tips. The seal is everything. If the tip is too small, ANC won't work properly – and neither will passive isolation.
- Turn your back to the wind. Seriously. The ANC microphones are on the outer surface of the headphones, and if wind blows straight into them, no algorithm in the world will save the situation. Turn your head or find some shelter from the wind.
- Try different ANC levels. You can adjust ANC intensity in the Valco app. In heavy wind, a lower ANC level might actually work better than full blast, because the algorithm won't try to overcompensate.
- Consider turning off transparency mode. If transparency/ambient mode is on, it's literally amplifying external sounds – wind included. Make sure you're in ANC mode and not transparency mode.
What about the microphone during calls in the wind?
If the problem is that the other person hears wind during calls, that's a different story. Call microphones are sensitive to wind, and ANC doesn't help with that. On over-ear headphones the MFB button handles calls, but in windy conditions you're better off shielding the mic with your hand or heading indoors. You can't cheat physics.
If nothing helps
If ANC doesn't seem to work even indoors in a quiet environment, then you might have an actual fault on your hands. Here's what to do:
- Reset the headphones (for over-ear headphones, plug in the AUX cable and unplug it)
- Update the firmware via the Valco app
- If the problem persists, drop us a message at info@valco.fi – include your order number and describe the issue
Jasse and the service team in Kajaani will sort it out.
ANC is a brilliant invention, but it's not magic. It's at its best against steady noise and at its worst in the wind. But hey – even without ANC, these headphones sound better than the competition's flagships. And that's something we'll happily stand behind.
