Silent disco

Do wireless headphones work on a boat?

We received an interesting email from Hakan. He's thinking of getting one of our wireless headphone systems to use on his boat, but got in touch to make sure they would work.

Hakan had heard that the sea can affect wireless radio signals, and wanted to check whether this is true and whether wireless headphones will work on a boat.

The short answer to both questions is yes. Yes the sea can affect wireless signals, but yes our wireless headphone systems will work on boats.

The longer explanation is that water can have a massive impact on radio waves, but this tends to be for transmissions covering greater distances. For people designing and operating large scale international wireless communication systems, obtaining good coverage across water is a serious concern. Water can both reflect and absorb radio signals, and also create unpredictable or undesirable results. For military communication with submarines, there are very low frequency systems in use that can allow penetration through water.

The Over Ear wireless headphone systems available here cover smaller areas, with pretty much a line of sight connection between the transmitter and headphone, so the sea rarely has any bearing. We have systems in use on ferries and yachts; wireless cinema systems on cruise ships, and numerous seaside and lakeside resorts that are using our products without encountering any problems caused by water.

Good news for you and your neighbours in the marina - you can party till late without waking everybody up.