Re: noise canceling... recently got a pair of IEMs (Etymotic ER2XR) with good foam tips and their isolation blows away any ANC I've ever tried. The only thing is noise from touching the cable but that was solved with some ear hooks to put the cables behind my ears.
Yeah, Etymotic headphones were my go-to for probably a decade. Passive noise suppression was wonderful for public transport.
The utility has dropped tremendously though, now that headphone jacks have disappeared.
Would love to have a pair of "direct-USB-C" Etymotics.