The OP talks about the QC20 - which are "Acoustic" noise cancelling in-ears. That is, there is no active noise cancelling, it's just "plugging" the holes around the earcups.
What he really needed was the QC25, which is an in-ear with active noise cancelling much like the QC35 has.
EDIT: The author said QC20 but then he talks about ear-muffs - so seems he misquoted the model number I guess.
Sorry, but you're wrong about the QC20s. They do, in fact, have "active" noise cancelling. I have been using a pair for at least a year, and they are great.
I actually prefer the QC20 noise cancelling to that of the over-ear versions I tried (which were either QC25 or QC35, I don't remember).
What he really needed was the QC25, which is an in-ear with active noise cancelling much like the QC35 has.
EDIT: The author said QC20 but then he talks about ear-muffs - so seems he misquoted the model number I guess.