We already have multiple Zulu 3’s (as well as some other) headsets, but I decided to add a Lightspeed Delta Zulu.
Lightspeed has introduced a completely new app, connected via Bluetooth, for this headset. The existing one was called “FlightLink,” and the one for the Lightspeed Delta Zulu is simply called “Lightspeed.” Unfortunately, the app is iOS only, which would tick me off enough to use the 60-day money-back guarantee if I didn’t have an iPhone or iPad, since the HearingEQity is the feature that prompted me to buy a Lightspeed Delta Zulu. The app is required to set up the HearingEQity feature to create your individual audio profile (I have almost no high-freq hearing, I learned) and configure various alerts. During setup, it plays 12 tones for each ear and prompts you to adjust for each one. It took about 4 or 5 minutes. It will play music at the end, so you can hear the difference with and without the custom HearingEQity feature engaged. It was noticeable but not huge for me. The user’s profile is stored on his or her iPhone or iPad and activated when the headset and iOS device are paired. As with the previous app and headsets, you can record and playback your communication (and also your measured CO history) with the app. You can set the CO alert threshold in the app. I already have a dedicated CO monitor in our plane, but this one has the advantage of a warning I can’t ignore and is useful in planes we don’t own as well as a CO report after (or during) every flight. If I was a renter or CFI that frequently flew in other people’s airplanes, this portable monitor would be invaluable.
The Lightspeed Delta Zulu comes with both a rechargeable battery and an AA pack. My plan on long flights is to start with the rechargeable battery, then switch to the AA pack and replace the AAs as needed. Switching packs is very simple and quick, as is replacing AAs.
At the moment, the only use I can find for the USB-A-to-UAC cable (included) is to charge the rechargeable battery pack (while it’s installed in the headset), but Lightspeed may have plans for it. You can play music or other audio through it with automatic muting if you’d prefer that to Bluetooth using a battery and can find a way to connect to your music player, if USB-A won’t work.
They still expect you to use the mike exclusively on the left. The cords are the same tough braided Kevlar cords as the Zulu 3, so it may be able to withstand my pilot partner’s jihad against headsets (so far, only Zulu 3’s have survived that). I very much like that both cords emerge from the same end of the LDZ’s control module, which makes sticking the module (which is a bit bulkier than previous Zulu modules) in the side pocket more convenient. It retains the auto-shutoff feature of previous Lightspeeds, but I don’t have any idea of battery life yet.
I think the two-tone bronze-silver finish of the Lightspeed Delta Zulu is kind of gaudy. I’d prefer a single color.
It comes with a carrying case that appears to be unique to the Lightspeed Delta Zulu, rechargeable and AA snap-on battery packs, a battery charger for the rechargeable battery, a shirt clip for the cord, basic instructions, and four bronze-colored “icon chips.” The half-round “chips” can be interchanged with the blank one on the bottom front of the control module (easily done with the battery pack removed). They are intended to identify which LDZ is which when there is more than one in the same place. The icons you can choose from include a wind sock, a basic star/sunburst, a helicopter, and a jet. No high-wing, low-wing, or basic GA airplane, however. Maybe in the future? I have dibs on the wind sock. If someone needs an extra helo icon though, let me know. If five choices (including the standard blank one) are not enough, you could paint them or color them with a Sharpie.
What it does not include that I would have appreciated are a few spare mike muffs. Lightspeed sells them for $5 each, but you can get 10 for that price at Amazon.
Buying directly from Lightspeed means that your 7-year warranty is automatically registered and you are enrolled in their Wingman Club for five years. (Lightspeed used to charge a membership fee for the Wingman’s Club, but now you are automatically enrolled for 5 years when you buy a $50 Refresher Kit (ear pads, head pad, mike muff) for your headset at full price as well as buy a Lightspeed Delta Zulu — and maybe other headsets, IDK.) Membership gives you 30% off their (mostly overpriced, IMO) parts and accessories — things like mike muffs, ear seals, etc. Buying direct from Lightspeed also gives you free shipping and — in my part of California anyway — no sales tax — which amounts to about a $100 savings compared to buying it locally. Since there is a money-back guarantee, there is little risk in doing so.
People always want to compare the Lightspeed Zulus to Bose A20s. I have owned an A20 and traded it for another Zulu 3. I think the Boss is deliberately priced to be the most expensive to attract buyers who believe that if you pay more, you will get the best — or at least status. In the case of aviation headsets, that has proved to be expensive BS as far as I’m concerned. All the Zulus are substantially more comfortable on my biggish head (helmet size large) than the Bose, which gets uncomfortable after an hour or so. The Lightspeed Delta Zulu fits like other Zulus, which is to say it’s quite comfortable. It weighs just 0.3 oz. more than a Zulu 3, which weighs about 2 oz. more than a Bose (though if you asked me which weighs more after wearing them, I’d have guessed the Bose). The only headset that was ever more comfortable for me was those very first Lightspeeds with ultra-thick and cushy ear pads. I think this LDZ also delivers slightly better audio quality than the Bose, but I’m no audiophile. Noise reduction seemed pretty equal when I alternated between a Zulu 3 and an A20, and this Lightspeed Delta Zulu seems quite equal in noise reduction to the Zulu 3.
To me, the choice wouldn’t be between LIghtspeed and Bose, but between Zulu 3 and Lightspeed Delta Zulu. If you fly multiple airplanes, then the CO detector would be valuable and probably worth the Bose-like cost of the Lightspeed Delta Zulu, especially if you have hearing issues. Or maybe you are a closet Bose buyer who likes to pay more. For owners with decent hearing and a budget, the Zulu 3 is still the better choice.