I was once setting in peace when my brother came and sat about three feet from me and proceeded talking about my future. I had my ANC on (AirPods Pro2). I heard about a quarter of the whole thing, I'm thankful for this technology.
I've always wanted to see a real, properly done comparison! I'm surprised the XM5 actually beat the Airpods Max, but that makes me happy as an XM5 owner!
@@christopherventura4975 True, but it's wayy cheaper than Airpods Max (was at launch too). Sony drops their prices over time, but Apple keeps them high
I got involved in ANC 30 years ago when it was just a cool idea. I became fascinated by it because I was a Noise/Vibration/Harshness engineer for a heavy truck manufacturer. We attempted a system using the stereo and speakers in the vehicle with some research help from Panasonic. We ultimately scrubbed the project because of high cost and limited (non-existent) improvement back then. Nice to see manufacturers are still trying. We also got involved with active suspension systems using impulse sensors to vary the damping fluid orifice. That one worked and resulted in a stack of patents for the team.
I've had the Bose 700s now for 3ish years, I'm a construction worker and I put mine through hell all day every day, fantastic headphones. Built like a tank, sound great, damn good anc. Bit more would maybe be nice, but I do push them with metal grinders and the like!
I have the Airpod PRo 1. And they saved literally my hearing. I was wearing them at the TRU Athlete Festival in London. For 3 days I was surrounded with 80-100 DB for 8-10 hrs a day. After the first 3 hrs of dramatic noises and already startet to feel my ears I plugged the drops in and it was amazing! I could hear normally, sure the Music where still there but it did not hurt me anymore, and the best! I could hear the people talking clearly and not always asking what?. It is incredible! Without drops, loud noises, music and acoustics and you do not understand a word of the other person. With the drops, no loud noises, music and acoustics are really silent and you hear every single word!! As well I tested them now in a really small and loud Latino Underground Bar, and I had so much more fun :D
@@johncleese4739 The sound is the waves moving throughout the air. They make inverse waves that cancel out that sound. So they do actually protect you from noise, however they cannot protect from super loud impact noises from firearms or explosives.
This is an awesome video, thanks so much for informing! Hope you can keep doing this kind of lab tests. Is there a way for you to show us how Apple's transparency mode sounds compared to other headphones? That would be very interesting for all non-Apple owners out there, because everyone keeps saying it's miles ahead of competition. Thanks!!
Just imagine having no earphones/headphones at all, but ever so slightly slightly muffled. It literally just sounds like that. Like there's nothing on your ear. It's really quite good.
@@steveloco1170 agreed; one other benefit is, that it will filter out very loud noises. I wore them at a live music event recently, becuase it was too loud for me, so I got to hear everything in perfectly high volume, apart from the massive screeching bits. this is a new feature on the pro 2s, vs the 1s. you can tell the sound is artificial, but not easily. and especially not if you're not listening for it
Xm5s are amazing. I have the Xm4 and bought the Airpods max at the same time. Returned the Airpods max simply because of comfort. Anc was on par with the Xm4. Now my partner has the Xm5 and I'm constantly thinking of buying them. Great pair of headphones
I've tested Apple's headphones, Bose's QC45 and 700. I ended up purchasing the QC45 and note that I've tested all of them inside of a crowded mall on Saturday afternoon (it was as loud as a public in-door space could get) and the QC45 crushed it (with or without music).
Not *entirely* a fair fight for the QC1's; The quality of the seal against your head plays a big part in active noise cancellation, and clearly those earpads had seen better days. Plus, the better the seal, the stronger the passive attenuation, especially for higher frequencies. That said, they were also a purely analog implementation and only had a feedback mic on the inside of the ear cup (good for eliminating low frequencies) and no feedforward mic from the outside (good for eliminating high frequencies). Great video nonetheless! Love seeing how far tech has come.
Agreed with the quality of the seal part. I've had a pair of Sony MDR-7506 since more than a decade, and before I knew any better, I was using them with an all worn out earpads because I didn't know I could swap them. I thought the drivers were damaged until I bought a new pair of earpads and swapped them, it was night and day. That day I learned how important are the pads; even for non-ANC headphones.
I absolutely love AC for things like public transport. I also love having the transparancy option. For me it makes it possible to listen to a podcast, some music or a TH-cam video without having to deafen myself with extreme loudness. Whilst flipping on transparency when needing to actually hear those people walking to close behind you in that dark allyway at night is pretty nice too. At least now I could hear them coming before they stole my headphones.
Daaamn man you have done an enormous job by comparing all of these with real equipment. This is first video that I have seen with objective judgement and with real numbers! Bro you really helped out with choosing the headphones!
The thing that I find most important to me with anc headphones, is the feeling of pressure when anc was on. I don’t have a very wide experience, but I’ve tested xm4s and airpods maxes, and generally the feeling of pressure was way more uncomfortable for me with xm4s, this is something I wish there was more available statistics on since the extreme feeling of pressure is a deal breaker as someone with chronic migraines
Yup. I returned my XM4s because I don’t even get headaches, and I constantly felt like I was about to get one whenever I used the noise cancelling on them. Looking at the QC45s now.
Great well-made and explained quality content! Congrats! I am in the headphone business for more than 15 years. You should have included any of the Sennheiser headphones. Few people know, but Sennheiser was actually the company that "invented" and developed the active noise cancellation and in the beginnings, it even licensed the technology...
I have the momentum 4s; I have to say, whilst I like the headphones, for ANC specifically, it's about on par with the WH1000-XM4s I had. Which is to say great, but not quite with the best of today. But that 60-hour battery life is incredibly convenient.
Great testing, although would have loved to see the XM4s tested too. Interested to see Apple's upcoming adaptive ANC, but I won't even consider the AirPods Max until the weight+size are reduced and the condensation design flaw is fixed
Just as an fyi, I think the condensation issue might only be a problem in humid area’s? I’ve never had any condensation issues and have used them extensively for 1.5 years. I don’t workout in them though, because they are indeed heavy. Still very comfy headphones though.
I appreciate that you included the pilot headset. The first time I tried that, I was blown away. Good to see it in a comparison with the latest and greatest.
Note concerning WH1000XM5 high score : those headphones ANC works well if there is a lot of noise coming in, but due to their "adaptive" ANC, the noise cancellation with lower noises is pretty bad and you'll hear them easily. Just run some test with speakers at differents levels.
Thanks for this! I'm struggling with neighbour's loud music especially the low frequencies from kick & bass and was considering ANC headphones including the WH. But if they are ineffective with this sort of noise then I'm glad I haven't wasted hundreds of pounds.
In General nc headphones work great with low frequency sounds and gets worse the higher the frequency gets Just order a pair and send them back if you don’t like them
@@BsktImpa bit late, but you can turn off the adaptive part. Alongside you can control how much you want to hear on a scale of 1-10, you just have to use their app.
Loved the video! Awesome getting some professionals to test the headphones. Loved the star wars posters in the back. I missed a bit not having Becca review them
Love this test! It would be interesting to compare how in-ear ANC earbuds like AirPods Pro 2, WF-1000XM5, Galaxy Buds Pro 2, etc. do with that special microphone. I feel like the in-ear earbuds would have greater passive noise canceling just by the nature of going into the ear itself, but there's much more space in over-ear headphones for more sophisticated ANC tech.
I've listened to all of them, in terms of sound quality and anc sony>apple>samsung, because xm5 are new so not a fair comparison also for ambient mode apple>>sony>>samsung
@@anmolsharma4049 i own both the samsung buds pro 2 and airpods pro 2, samsung is better at filtering out the lower freq noises and apple at medium freq noises, so the two are close. Sony is sort of in between, maybe the best all around, but they're also uncomfortable to use for long cause they're a lot bigger/heavier
The real-world test is significantly different than the lab results. In the real world test the QC45 is better than the others. Several of the other pairs also have a significant hiss sound to them - almost like white noise. Owning multiple Bose QC's and the Sony XM5, NC is fairly close but overall better on the QC. Comfort is vastly superior on the QC compared to every single headphone in this test. The Sony is fatiguing after a couple of hours where I experience no issue with the QC even after 5+ hours.
Could that be specific to your hearing though? Seems odd that the QC45 doesn't lead in any of the tests (referring to the actual report on the site) but that you think they are best
@@User57655 I guess anything is possible, but it's also quite clear form the video that the real-world recording is quieter on the QC45 compared to several of the others. Which is also why it's quite interesting that the lab-results contradict the recording from the first half of the video.
I wouldn't buy the XM5s, already when they said "passive attenuation was much better than the rest" I could tell how uncomfortable they would be, because you can only really achieve that with clamping force.
I realise that it’s not a primary use case for ANC headphones but the other area that could still improve significantly is the intelligence of their mic’s and maybe that’s why you would pay the very steep price of the Bose aviation headphones. A very real scenario for many people now is being back in an office, but still on video calls and having to mute and unmute repeatedly because the microphones still pick up the voices of everyone around you. Maybe these aren’t the headphones for that scenario but I don’t want to carry multiple headsets around with me!
See, the thing is I suspect A LOT of us DO WANT everything to be gone in regards to noise, specially when working. Hopefully the new tech will take that into account when smarter noise cancellation comes to earphones.
I currently use the Sennheiser Momentum 3 and their Adaptive Noise cancellation earbuds are incredible in detecting noises that specifically around people talking to me.
I am still using a set of Bose QuietComfort 15 - I have replaced the foam pads once, and replaced the cable slot thing with a wireless plug-in bluetooth module. Still work pretty great, but they are ten years old at this point and I am mightily tempted to upgrade!
Huh, my subjective ears had a different choice than the professional tests. To me the QC45s sounded like the best at noise cancelling when you had them out on the park and subway. The Sony sounded very close and nice as well, and the Airpods Max just made the environment sound tinny.
The B-roll for this is brilliant and fun! Your conclusion makes me think a service that rents a set of headphones to a consumer to use for a week or two in their own environment would be really valuable. The consumer sends back the rental set which gets properly cleaned and shipped out to the next person. Along with the return of the rentals the consumer orders their own brand new headphones based on real world experience with them. This would reduce the amount of returns retailers must deal with and greatly help consumers find their own special peace.
I have sonys ANC. They do have adaptive ANC. BUT you have to turn them on in the app as they require location access so the headphones can learn how you use it. And what environment you're in. They also do ambiant mixing. Whete they mix the ambiant sounds with the music.
This was an amazing video, thank you very much for spending the time and effort on this! This is the kind of thing I was already wanting to look into for a purchase soon, and you have made that decision much easier
Excellent! Concise, packed with detail, an explanation of the topic and including a professional third-party analysis of the selected headphones - which would be on anyone's list of the best over ear wireless headphones on the market today. The best video on this topic I've seen. Thank you!
As an ANC user since last few years (Sony XM5 user now for), something that this video doesnt cover is when you turn ON the ANC without any music, your head feels like the atmospheric pressure squeezing on your head like when youre inside an airplane! I know it sounds weird but you guys gotta feel it to understand lol
Entertaining and informative to me as someone in the market for over the ear headphones. Thanks, Verge for testing! I know earbuds will be more challenging because of the in-ear fit with a manikin head but, if possible, it would be cool to see in a similar format.
That new adaptive mode in the AirPods Pro is awesome. While at night, in my apartment, I always go for full attenuation, I find myself using the adaptive mode 95% of the time when outside !
The Sony xm5 have speech to chat where if you speak or someone speaks to you the anc turns into transparency mode. I wouldn’t say it’s very polished but I think that’s a big point that was missed. Making them far superior in my opinion.
I hate it on the xm4! It turns on by itself even though I turn the option on every time. When trying to sleep on the plane a baby was crying and the headphones took it as speak to chat and would turn off. It was a 10 hour flight. I would turn the feature off just for it to turn on by itself. I hateddd it
Would've loved to have seen a comparison between lower-range anc's as well, since a *lot* of people nowadays use cheaper anc headphones instead of the very best. Also, the video didn't mention at all in ear anc headphones, which could perform differently from on ears.
In ear headphones are finicky to test because they have more stringent requirements for placement and seal. Using on-ear or over-ear was the right move to do in the wild.
I want to live in a vacuum for a couple of hours every day. If i dont want vacuum i just remove them. For example the past 1 and a half years i suffer from a dog barking nonstop all the day and me trying to study and sleep. I would love to live in a vacuum for a couple of hours for situations like these.
I would like to see this test done on the same device but between firmware updates. A lot of times we hear complaints after a brand updates their product, always saying ANC is worse with the update.
I've have my XM3's for a few years now. Great battery life, ANC performance, and audio quality. The leatherette cups are starting to show some wear so I'll be snagging XM5's when the time calls for it.
I have both the XM3s and the XM5s, and honestly, after a lot of comparative usage, the audio from the XM3s is better by at least 10%. It's incredible how good those headphones are. I constantly get jealous of my girlfriend, who has bequeathed the XM3s from me, as I use the XM5s
After listening to music/using headphones for around 40 years, I first used Noise Cancelling about a week ago. I was a bit resistant because I feel I might be too sensitive for it. But wow, it blew me away (Pixel Buds Pro 2). I like the reduction. However I feel like it is a bit dangerous. People tend to want to shut off the outside world. However for me, I'm careful to when I use it. There is something to be said for shutting off sound of an environment and what that can do socially. I actually use Transparency mode more then noise cancelling believe it or not. It helps a ton with plugged ear feeling which is a huge issue with ear buds. Overall, ANC is cool. But be careful with it's use.
What are the downsides of mixing ANC products? Here in Seattle, I often use Airpods Pro along with the WH-1000XM5's for extra noise cancellation and I cannot hear a thing, even when it is very loud. My chest will shake at very loud noises but I won't hear much at all. It's been something I'd do with various noise cancelling products over the years for extra silence but is anything about that bad for my health?
Those QC1's saved my life two decades ago back when I lived in a tiny studio with a noisy neighbor who liked to party at 3 AM right in the middle of exams and could not be reasoned with. They cost me what little savings I had, but they were worth every penny. Eventually the soft hiss of their ANC became the only way I could get to sleep. Ever since then I've always had ANC headphones, using airpods pro 2 now. I'm looking forward to the fall update of the airpods because I feel they drown out a little too much, and transparency mode is way too transparent.
To be honest, I don't want a software to automatically control what noise to let in and noise to drown out. I'd rather just be able to control it myself.
If you don’t want everything to be gone and live in a vacuum don’t spend $500 on ANC. Thats a bit counterintuitive. That’s for the people who DO want to stop hearing other stuff.
In the end, this video looked like an Apple commercial. I mean, the Sony mx's clearly came out on top, but they edited the video showing airpods all the time. Commenting that "hey, holistically this is a great product" and whatnot. Disgraceful.
The ANC on the Airpods Pro 2 is advertised as 2x as powerful as the first gens so it would’ve been great to see how those fared against everything else
I used to have the Sony wh-1000xm3's. They were great at the time, nice and light, and pretty compact in their case. But I moved on to the Apple Airpods Max. They are heavy, their case absolutely sucks, but their sound is amazing, and the "transparency mode" is mind blowing. It sounds exactly like when you dont wear headphones (contrary to the Sony ones, that sound very artificial)
i also had the XM3s for years. loved them! but I dropped them on concrete and damaged some component inside and now they're basically bricked (I've taken them apart and wiggled the ribbon cables and that makes them work for a little while... but only for a little while)
I feel like this adaptability is overrated. If I want to talk to someone I can just take out an earbud of off an ear cup. Sirens, horns and co are so loud, that I can easily hear them with ANC. I mean they are meant to be heard by people who are hard of hearing or who are in cars with loud music. What I want from ANC headphones is being better at blocking speech. You know people in office or on public transit who talk to each other or on the phone. It's particularly hard to tune out both for our brains and for headphones.
Every autistic person I know uses either the Sonys or the Bose (including myself), I cannot imagine why someone would want to ever have less noise cancelling at any time
Same here! And if I can't have ANC (like in restaurants etc), I use MusicSafe earplugs. Same noise reduction but no headphones on my head ...And sometimes I wear earplugs under my XM5's haha
i have the bose 700’s and definitely use the lower noise canceling modes when i don’t want to hear much, but could still realize my name is being called, or any bigger noises around me! but most of the time it’s all the way up
As a normal person, i only use ANC when it is noisy or studying , during day to day life I couldn’t careless about my environment. Also when im in a restaurant,cafe, im there to enjoy the vibe so i dont really put on my airpod much
I bought the Sony WF1000XM5’s for $150 and they’re mind blowing in terms of noise cancelling. Noise pass through still goes to my AirPods Pro Gen 1 which shows how phenomenal they are and how spoiled I am in terms of cool gadgets but I’m always thankful
Regardless of the tech, what noise do you wish you could block out?
lame engagement-baiting questions in YT comments, amiright folks?
thumping bass driven music-techno, afro pop-its awful
I was once setting in peace when my brother came and sat about three feet from me and proceeded talking about my future. I had my ANC on (AirPods Pro2). I heard about a quarter of the whole thing, I'm thankful for this technology.
The wind noise on a plain and the jet engine. easier said than done but if that sound can completely be gone I'm glad.
The constant nagging and craving attention talk of the Gen-Z generation.
I've always wanted to see a real, properly done comparison! I'm surprised the XM5 actually beat the Airpods Max, but that makes me happy as an XM5 owner!
I'm not surprised at all. Sony is usually higher quality than apple. Apple capitalizes in great marketing and their os
The maxes were more curated to human speech
Considering the xm5 came out 2years after the maxes, it makes sense
@@christopherventura4975 True, but it's wayy cheaper than Airpods Max (was at launch too). Sony drops their prices over time, but Apple keeps them high
@@christopherventura4975 I keep forgetting how old the Maxes are! Would actually consider a mk2 version if they can fix the issues with gen 1
I got involved in ANC 30 years ago when it was just a cool idea. I became fascinated by it because I was a Noise/Vibration/Harshness engineer for a heavy truck manufacturer. We attempted a system using the stereo and speakers in the vehicle with some research help from Panasonic. We ultimately scrubbed the project because of high cost and limited (non-existent) improvement back then. Nice to see manufacturers are still trying. We also got involved with active suspension systems using impulse sensors to vary the damping fluid orifice. That one worked and resulted in a stack of patents for the team.
Sounds fascinating
30 years ago? Wow, the technology goes way back. That's fascinating.
Nice that's a really cool fact
What a cool fun fact. 😮😮😮😮
Sounds neat. Given the patent is only 13 years old.
These focused topic videos are fantastic! With earbuds being so popular, it would be interesting to see a part two with in-ear headphones.
I was thinking the same
I am lovin my Huawey Freebuds 5i
APP and APP2 definitely have better passive attenuation than the other over ear stuff which in my estimation makes them "quieter"
Those are much harder to test, because the head isn't realistic enough to properly simulate the fit of in-ears
The mic said "🗿"
Fr lol
Chama
This was fun, more of this please!
that bose a30 aviation headset is impressive, understandable for the price but still incredibly quiet
I've had the Bose 700s now for 3ish years, I'm a construction worker and I put mine through hell all day every day, fantastic headphones. Built like a tank, sound great, damn good anc. Bit more would maybe be nice, but I do push them with metal grinders and the like!
I have the Airpod PRo 1. And they saved literally my hearing.
I was wearing them at the TRU Athlete Festival in London. For 3 days I was surrounded with 80-100 DB for 8-10 hrs a day.
After the first 3 hrs of dramatic noises and already startet to feel my ears I plugged the drops in and it was amazing!
I could hear normally, sure the Music where still there but it did not hurt me anymore, and the best! I could hear the people talking clearly and not always asking what?.
It is incredible!
Without drops, loud noises, music and acoustics and you do not understand a word of the other person.
With the drops, no loud noises, music and acoustics are really silent and you hear every single word!!
As well I tested them now in a really small and loud Latino Underground Bar, and I had so much more fun :D
They just cancel the noise but your ears still “hear” the loud noise? Correct me if I’m wrong they won’t save you from damaging your ears
@@johncleese4739 The sound is the waves moving throughout the air. They make inverse waves that cancel out that sound. So they do actually protect you from noise, however they cannot protect from super loud impact noises from firearms or explosives.
@@g.4279you are unfortunately incorrect. If you go to a loud concert wearing this airpods, it will still damage your ears. look it up
This is by far the best video on The Verge!! I hope they keep putting out high quality content like this.
This is an awesome video, thanks so much for informing! Hope you can keep doing this kind of lab tests. Is there a way for you to show us how Apple's transparency mode sounds compared to other headphones? That would be very interesting for all non-Apple owners out there, because everyone keeps saying it's miles ahead of competition. Thanks!!
Just imagine having no earphones/headphones at all, but ever so slightly slightly muffled. It literally just sounds like that. Like there's nothing on your ear. It's really quite good.
Imagine what you hear right now, but slightly muffled
Pretty much what you get
I think it's the best
with the airpods pro 2 its like not having anything on your ears, you feel the headphones but everything else sounds the same
@@steveloco1170 agreed; one other benefit is, that it will filter out very loud noises. I wore them at a live music event recently, becuase it was too loud for me, so I got to hear everything in perfectly high volume, apart from the massive screeching bits. this is a new feature on the pro 2s, vs the 1s. you can tell the sound is artificial, but not easily. and especially not if you're not listening for it
This is by far the most helpful comparison I have come across. Understanding how ANC works really is a helpful tool. Thank you for all your insight!!
As someone who is intrigued by Noise Cancelling Headphones, I love this video already!
dude from tiss to verge you are everywhere. 😂
@@KasamSe-e7r I’m EEAAO, haven’t you heard? 😂
Xm5s are amazing. I have the Xm4 and bought the Airpods max at the same time. Returned the Airpods max simply because of comfort. Anc was on par with the Xm4.
Now my partner has the Xm5 and I'm constantly thinking of buying them. Great pair of headphones
I've tested Apple's headphones, Bose's QC45 and 700. I ended up purchasing the QC45 and note that I've tested all of them inside of a crowded mall on Saturday afternoon (it was as loud as a public in-door space could get) and the QC45 crushed it (with or without music).
By apples head phones do you mean Air Pods Max?
@@thedjruiner yep
Not *entirely* a fair fight for the QC1's; The quality of the seal against your head plays a big part in active noise cancellation, and clearly those earpads had seen better days. Plus, the better the seal, the stronger the passive attenuation, especially for higher frequencies. That said, they were also a purely analog implementation and only had a feedback mic on the inside of the ear cup (good for eliminating low frequencies) and no feedforward mic from the outside (good for eliminating high frequencies). Great video nonetheless! Love seeing how far tech has come.
Agreed with the quality of the seal part. I've had a pair of Sony MDR-7506 since more than a decade, and before I knew any better, I was using them with an all worn out earpads because I didn't know I could swap them.
I thought the drivers were damaged until I bought a new pair of earpads and swapped them, it was night and day. That day I learned how important are the pads; even for non-ANC headphones.
cope
womp womp cry a river
I absolutely love AC for things like public transport. I also love having the transparancy option. For me it makes it possible to listen to a podcast, some music or a TH-cam video without having to deafen myself with extreme loudness. Whilst flipping on transparency when needing to actually hear those people walking to close behind you in that dark allyway at night is pretty nice too. At least now I could hear them coming before they stole my headphones.
Daaamn man you have done an enormous job by comparing all of these with real equipment. This is first video that I have seen with objective judgement and with real numbers! Bro you really helped out with choosing the headphones!
Fantastic video. It’s great to see lab data for these headphones, especially interesting to have the QC1 in there!
I think this is the best comparison video that i’ve ever seen, and i’ve seen a lot.
Congrats to the Verge team for this high quality content!
The thing that I find most important to me with anc headphones, is the feeling of pressure when anc was on. I don’t have a very wide experience, but I’ve tested xm4s and airpods maxes, and generally the feeling of pressure was way more uncomfortable for me with xm4s, this is something I wish there was more available statistics on since the extreme feeling of pressure is a deal breaker as someone with chronic migraines
Yup. I returned my XM4s because I don’t even get headaches, and I constantly felt like I was about to get one whenever I used the noise cancelling on them. Looking at the QC45s now.
bravo mate. this might be the best verge video i’ve ever seen. well thought out, insightful and fun! well done!
Great well-made and explained quality content! Congrats! I am in the headphone business for more than 15 years. You should have included any of the Sennheiser headphones. Few people know, but Sennheiser was actually the company that "invented" and developed the active noise cancellation and in the beginnings, it even licensed the technology...
I have the momentum 4s; I have to say, whilst I like the headphones, for ANC specifically, it's about on par with the WH1000-XM4s I had. Which is to say great, but not quite with the best of today. But that 60-hour battery life is incredibly convenient.
This feels like a peak tech TH-cam (~2015) video. Great job, Verge crew!
Great testing, although would have loved to see the XM4s tested too. Interested to see Apple's upcoming adaptive ANC, but I won't even consider the AirPods Max until the weight+size are reduced and the condensation design flaw is fixed
Just as an fyi, I think the condensation issue might only be a problem in humid area’s? I’ve never had any condensation issues and have used them extensively for 1.5 years. I don’t workout in them though, because they are indeed heavy. Still very comfy headphones though.
Condensation ?
XM4 and XM5 have the same ANC
@@Maryet40 Then why do reviews say the noise cancellation on the XM5 is better?
@@Maryet40 no they do not lol
I appreciate that you included the pilot headset. The first time I tried that, I was blown away. Good to see it in a comparison with the latest and greatest.
Note concerning WH1000XM5 high score : those headphones ANC works well if there is a lot of noise coming in, but due to their "adaptive" ANC, the noise cancellation with lower noises is pretty bad and you'll hear them easily. Just run some test with speakers at differents levels.
Thanks for this! I'm struggling with neighbour's loud music especially the low frequencies from kick & bass and was considering ANC headphones including the WH. But if they are ineffective with this sort of noise then I'm glad I haven't wasted hundreds of pounds.
@@BsktImp ha
In General nc headphones work great with low frequency sounds and gets worse the higher the frequency gets
Just order a pair and send them back if you don’t like them
You can turn off the adaptive part
@@BsktImpa bit late, but you can turn off the adaptive part. Alongside you can control how much you want to hear on a scale of 1-10, you just have to use their app.
Loved the video! Awesome getting some professionals to test the headphones. Loved the star wars posters in the back.
I missed a bit not having Becca review them
Love this test! It would be interesting to compare how in-ear ANC earbuds like AirPods Pro 2, WF-1000XM5, Galaxy Buds Pro 2, etc. do with that special microphone. I feel like the in-ear earbuds would have greater passive noise canceling just by the nature of going into the ear itself, but there's much more space in over-ear headphones for more sophisticated ANC tech.
I've listened to all of them, in terms of sound quality and anc sony>apple>samsung, because xm5 are new so not a fair comparison also for ambient mode apple>>sony>>samsung
@@anmolsharma4049 i own both the samsung buds pro 2 and airpods pro 2, samsung is better at filtering out the lower freq noises and apple at medium freq noises, so the two are close. Sony is sort of in between, maybe the best all around, but they're also uncomfortable to use for long cause they're a lot bigger/heavier
@@anfernyjackson9013 yes Sony's xm4 are bulky and painful specially for smaller ears. Airpods are best if you're in apple ecosystem
No the seal is a lot worse with earbuds than with over ear headphones. If you d make custom fit earbuds it could be better
The real-world test is significantly different than the lab results. In the real world test the QC45 is better than the others. Several of the other pairs also have a significant hiss sound to them - almost like white noise.
Owning multiple Bose QC's and the Sony XM5, NC is fairly close but overall better on the QC. Comfort is vastly superior on the QC compared to every single headphone in this test. The Sony is fatiguing after a couple of hours where I experience no issue with the QC even after 5+ hours.
Could that be specific to your hearing though? Seems odd that the QC45 doesn't lead in any of the tests (referring to the actual report on the site) but that you think they are best
@@User57655 I guess anything is possible, but it's also quite clear form the video that the real-world recording is quieter on the QC45 compared to several of the others. Which is also why it's quite interesting that the lab-results contradict the recording from the first half of the video.
I wouldn't buy the XM5s, already when they said "passive attenuation was much better than the rest" I could tell how uncomfortable they would be, because you can only really achieve that with clamping force.
@@Hankbluethey really don't have much clamping force tbh
exactly.. I can hear the same.. QC45 the best in the real world test
Absolutely mind blown by how good the Airpod maxes are. I use my Sony Xm4s everyday and absolutely love them!
As an acoustics researcher, this scratched an itch I’ve had for years. Thank you!
I realise that it’s not a primary use case for ANC headphones but the other area that could still improve significantly is the intelligence of their mic’s and maybe that’s why you would pay the very steep price of the Bose aviation headphones. A very real scenario for many people now is being back in an office, but still on video calls and having to mute and unmute repeatedly because the microphones still pick up the voices of everyone around you. Maybe these aren’t the headphones for that scenario but I don’t want to carry multiple headsets around with me!
Awesome video. I think no one has tested the ANCs like you did. This will really help people for choosing the right headphones✌🏼
See, the thing is I suspect A LOT of us DO WANT everything to be gone in regards to noise, specially when working. Hopefully the new tech will take that into account when smarter noise cancellation comes to earphones.
I currently use the Sennheiser Momentum 3 and their Adaptive Noise cancellation earbuds are incredible in detecting noises that specifically around people talking to me.
This was a lot of fun to watch. What a great way to demonstrate noise cancelation.
Sony XM5 is the best purchase in my life as an introvert!
Moreover, my little nephew picked up a violin couple weeks ago...
I am still using a set of Bose QuietComfort 15 - I have replaced the foam pads once, and replaced the cable slot thing with a wireless plug-in bluetooth module. Still work pretty great, but they are ten years old at this point and I am mightily tempted to upgrade!
Huh, my subjective ears had a different choice than the professional tests. To me the QC45s sounded like the best at noise cancelling when you had them out on the park and subway. The Sony sounded very close and nice as well, and the Airpods Max just made the environment sound tinny.
The B-roll for this is brilliant and fun! Your conclusion makes me think a service that rents a set of headphones to a consumer to use for a week or two in their own environment would be really valuable. The consumer sends back the rental set which gets properly cleaned and shipped out to the next person. Along with the return of the rentals the consumer orders their own brand new headphones based on real world experience with them. This would reduce the amount of returns retailers must deal with and greatly help consumers find their own special peace.
I have sonys ANC. They do have adaptive ANC. BUT you have to turn them on in the app as they require location access so the headphones can learn how you use it. And what environment you're in. They also do ambiant mixing. Whete they mix the ambiant sounds with the music.
This was an amazing video, thank you very much for spending the time and effort on this! This is the kind of thing I was already wanting to look into for a purchase soon, and you have made that decision much easier
Excellent! Concise, packed with detail, an explanation of the topic and including a professional third-party analysis of the selected headphones - which would be on anyone's list of the best over ear wireless headphones on the market today. The best video on this topic I've seen. Thank you!
"Sondergaard" is guardian of sound.
Please make the same tests but with in ear ANC earbuds, e.g. Bose QC2, Apple airpods pro 2, etc.
As an ANC user since last few years (Sony XM5 user now for), something that this video doesnt cover is when you turn ON the ANC without any music, your head feels like the atmospheric pressure squeezing on your head like when youre inside an airplane! I know it sounds weird but you guys gotta feel it to understand lol
I would love to see the Sennheiser Momentum 4's tested.
Where is Sennheiser?
Entertaining and informative to me as someone in the market for over the ear headphones. Thanks, Verge for testing! I know earbuds will be more challenging because of the in-ear fit with a manikin head but, if possible, it would be cool to see in a similar format.
We would like to see the new Bose QC Ultra!!
Love the scientific approach here. That $9500 mic head is insane!
That new adaptive mode in the AirPods Pro is awesome.
While at night, in my apartment, I always go for full attenuation, I find myself using the adaptive mode 95% of the time when outside !
Needed a video like this for ages
QC45 ftw!!!
it was the most silent to my ears in the field test
Great video, but I would like to see XM4 too.
Watching this on my XM5, I'm glad I pick the right device! 👍🏼
why choosing so many bose headphones and none of the momentum 4, PX8 , or b&o h95 ?
I am piqued by the tabular presentation of each headphones. Kudos!
The Sony xm5 have speech to chat where if you speak or someone speaks to you the anc turns into transparency mode. I wouldn’t say it’s very polished but I think that’s a big point that was missed. Making them far superior in my opinion.
When I'm getting coffee I tend to take an ear off anyway, so they know I'm listening. But it's a great option to have.
I hate it on the xm4! It turns on by itself even though I turn the option on every time. When trying to sleep on the plane a baby was crying and the headphones took it as speak to chat and would turn off. It was a 10 hour flight. I would turn the feature off just for it to turn on by itself. I hateddd it
I was looking for some empirical objective data about how these headphones would fair in head to head ANC, great video
I actually live and work in the middle of a field and felt offended.
Already knew that xm5’s were gonna be the winner but really wanted to see the Sennheiser Momentum 4 in this test as well
Would've loved to have seen a comparison between lower-range anc's as well, since a *lot* of people nowadays use cheaper anc headphones instead of the very best.
Also, the video didn't mention at all in ear anc headphones, which could perform differently from on ears.
In ear headphones are finicky to test because they have more stringent requirements for placement and seal. Using on-ear or over-ear was the right move to do in the wild.
Very high quality production, enjoyed every minute !
Bose Aviation headsets (A20 and A30) are definitely not for anything other than flight. Great headsets and the standard in aviation
This was a GREAT vid! I'd love to see this done with a few earbuds if you guys have the time!
I want to live in a vacuum for a couple of hours every day. If i dont want vacuum i just remove them. For example the past 1 and a half years i suffer from a dog barking nonstop all the day and me trying to study and sleep. I would love to live in a vacuum for a couple of hours for situations like these.
As an XM5 owner, this video put a wide smile on my face lol
I would like to see this test done on the same device but between firmware updates. A lot of times we hear complaints after a brand updates their product, always saying ANC is worse with the update.
This is one of those very very good videos for which I follow The Verge. Please bring us more of this quality information.
And Thank You!
I've have my XM3's for a few years now. Great battery life, ANC performance, and audio quality. The leatherette cups are starting to show some wear so I'll be snagging XM5's when the time calls for it.
cups are easyly changable ;-)
Same here enjoying my XM3's from some years now and still getting great battery life. My cups are kinda ok, the head rest is a bit creased
Wicked Cushions, my man. If you like your XM3s, don't add e waste
I have both the XM3s and the XM5s, and honestly, after a lot of comparative usage, the audio from the XM3s is better by at least 10%. It's incredible how good those headphones are. I constantly get jealous of my girlfriend, who has bequeathed the XM3s from me, as I use the XM5s
This video is just incredible ! I have never watched any headphone comparision video as good as this ! Keep up the good work ❤
Hahaha you had me at “That ain’t no microphone.”
After listening to music/using headphones for around 40 years, I first used Noise Cancelling about a week ago. I was a bit resistant because I feel I might be too sensitive for it. But wow, it blew me away (Pixel Buds Pro 2). I like the reduction. However I feel like it is a bit dangerous. People tend to want to shut off the outside world. However for me, I'm careful to when I use it. There is something to be said for shutting off sound of an environment and what that can do socially. I actually use Transparency mode more then noise cancelling believe it or not. It helps a ton with plugged ear feeling which is a huge issue with ear buds. Overall, ANC is cool. But be careful with it's use.
What are the downsides of mixing ANC products? Here in Seattle, I often use Airpods Pro along with the WH-1000XM5's for extra noise cancellation and I cannot hear a thing, even when it is very loud. My chest will shake at very loud noises but I won't hear much at all. It's been something I'd do with various noise cancelling products over the years for extra silence but is anything about that bad for my health?
Those QC1's saved my life two decades ago back when I lived in a tiny studio with a noisy neighbor who liked to party at 3 AM right in the middle of exams and could not be reasoned with. They cost me what little savings I had, but they were worth every penny. Eventually the soft hiss of their ANC became the only way I could get to sleep. Ever since then I've always had ANC headphones, using airpods pro 2 now. I'm looking forward to the fall update of the airpods because I feel they drown out a little too much, and transparency mode is way too transparent.
Ummm so why is no one at Verge ok with renting a helicopter? We want that video lol
This is why I subscribe to The Verge! 👏
To be honest, I don't want a software to automatically control what noise to let in and noise to drown out. I'd rather just be able to control it myself.
Dang linus tech tips has some competition. Great video!
strange. to me it sounded like the qc45 had the strongest ANC
sad it was not done with bose quietcomfort ultra :(
If you don’t want everything to be gone and live in a vacuum don’t spend $500 on ANC. Thats a bit counterintuitive. That’s for the people who DO want to stop hearing other stuff.
bro is spitting out national facts 🗣️🗣️🗣️
I have the QC45s and wear them 8 hours every day. They are champs. Comfy, and quiet.
And once again The Verge one of the best with its content, such a pleasure to consume a high quality content. Stay selective🧠
bro this is so well made!!!
In the end, this video looked like an Apple commercial. I mean, the Sony mx's clearly came out on top, but they edited the video showing airpods all the time. Commenting that "hey, holistically this is a great product" and whatnot. Disgraceful.
Also, why not have the A30 tested, as well?
And while we're at it, maybe pick a monospace font where the lower-case "L" doesn't look like a "1"?
its the matrix
I own a pair of XM4s, they are really good. Would have loved to see them in this test.
Bro... They got the 🗿microphone...
Great video guys . I'd love to see anc test of other budget headphones .
The ANC on the Airpods Pro 2 is advertised as 2x as powerful as the first gens so it would’ve been great to see how those fared against everything else
4:58 that cellular tower noise be loud af 😂
I used to have the Sony wh-1000xm3's. They were great at the time, nice and light, and pretty compact in their case. But I moved on to the Apple Airpods Max. They are heavy, their case absolutely sucks, but their sound is amazing, and the "transparency mode" is mind blowing. It sounds exactly like when you dont wear headphones (contrary to the Sony ones, that sound very artificial)
i also had the XM3s for years. loved them! but I dropped them on concrete and damaged some component inside and now they're basically bricked (I've taken them apart and wiggled the ribbon cables and that makes them work for a little while... but only for a little while)
Great job with the editing of this 👍🏻
I feel like this adaptability is overrated. If I want to talk to someone I can just take out an earbud of off an ear cup.
Sirens, horns and co are so loud, that I can easily hear them with ANC. I mean they are meant to be heard by people who are hard of hearing or who are in cars with loud music.
What I want from ANC headphones is being better at blocking speech. You know people in office or on public transit who talk to each other or on the phone. It's particularly hard to tune out both for our brains and for headphones.
Can you please test out the JBL ones (JBL 660NC and JBL 760NC)
Every autistic person I know uses either the Sonys or the Bose (including myself), I cannot imagine why someone would want to ever have less noise cancelling at any time
Same here! And if I can't have ANC (like in restaurants etc), I use MusicSafe earplugs. Same noise reduction but no headphones on my head
...And sometimes I wear earplugs under my XM5's haha
i have the bose 700’s and definitely use the lower noise canceling modes when i don’t want to hear much, but could still realize my name is being called, or any bigger noises around me! but most of the time it’s all the way up
As a normal person, i only use ANC when it is noisy or studying , during day to day life I couldn’t careless about my environment. Also when im in a restaurant,cafe, im there to enjoy the vibe so i dont really put on my airpod much
@@woooshbait9696y r u normal
@@woooshbait9696y r u normal
This was an excellently made video including of both real world and lab tested numerics.
I bought the Sony WF1000XM5’s for $150 and they’re mind blowing in terms of noise cancelling. Noise pass through still goes to my AirPods Pro Gen 1 which shows how phenomenal they are and how spoiled I am in terms of cool gadgets but I’m always thankful