Wolfson Microelectronics is demonstrating its latest active noise cancellation (ANC) technology at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next week, courtesy of new in-ear headphones from Audio-Technica.

The QuietPoint ATH-ANC3 headphones are the first consumer products to use Wolfson's ANC technology, and the company states they also represent the first bearing of fruit of its acquisition of Sonaptic back in July 2007.

According to the Edinburgh-headquartered Wolfson, its ANC technology uses a special feed-forward technique for managing sound. With traditional approaches, it says, a microphone is fitted within the ear-piece and sound (both audio and ambient noise) is fed back to remove the noise from the original audio. Wolfson, however, fits the microphone on the outside of the ear-piece and the ambient noise is inverted and then mixed with the original audio.

Wolfson boasts that this approach delivers better overall performance by cancelling more decibels of noise over a wider frequency range than existing feedback solutions. This should mean it is easier to listen to audio in noisy environments without resorting to excessive volumes.

"Many existing feedback based ANC products rely on forming a physical block between the external noise and the users ears, such as bulky foam casings or deep in-ear plugs, to help improve performance," said Wolfson's CTO, Peter Frith.  "Thanks to our unique feed forward technology Wolfson's ANC products effectively lower the ambient noise around a user allowing them a safer and more enjoyable audio experience. Removing the need for bulky sound insulation also empowers designers to use Wolfson's ANC to improve the user experience of the latest compact products created for today's mobile lifestyle."