Airpods Max vs Audiophile Headphones - How Do They Compare? [DT 1990 & More]
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 12 ก.ย. 2024
- Get the Airpods Max here: amzn.to/3fGs7oF
Sound BlasterX G6: amzn.to/3M9jPl9
Beyerdynamic DT 770: amzn.to/3e069fL
Beyerdynamic DT 1990: amzn.to/3UYHM2M
Sennheiser HD600: amzn.to/3LZTw0O (now only ~$300)
A lot of other excellent reviews have thoroughly discussed the noise cancelling and other tech found within the Airpods Max. For something different, I wanted to answer a question I'm sure others have asked about a $550 pair of headphones -- how do they compare against "audiophile" headphones of similar price points?
After using them almost exclusively for 3 weeks -- except for comparison sessions -- here is my honest take on them.
Headphones compared: Beyerdynamic DT 770 and 1990, Sennheiser HD600, Denon AH-D5000
See my written review here:
briancwatkins....
Music credit:
Modern Situations, by Unicorn Head
#airpodsmax #bluetoothheadphones #audiophile
Was initially sceptical about the APM's due to the price tag. As I already owned the Sony wh-1000xm3, I didn't feel this would offer me enough advantages to warrant the "upgrade". Upon trying these in store a few times, boy was I wrong... The first thing you notice is the build quality, which I believe can only truly be appreciated in person. The second is how punchy everything sounds (it's subtle, but ever present). The third is how comfortable these are... the mesh fabric is much more comfortable for long listening sessions than leather/pleather. With the sony's, my ears tend to overheat and sweat, and while they can still get warm and sweat in the APM's, the material just breathes better.
I find myself picking up the APM's much more often than the sony's these days... I prefer the sound profile, wider sound stage, instrument separation and overall audio experience.
yup, i have the xm4's and the airpods max are better in the ways you note. my ears overheating and sweating is my biggest complaint, i live in a humid warm environment and that makes these almost impossible to use outside most of the year.
I’ve had mine for 2 months now and I really love them!
Did u have any condensation problem?
@@pjroyalasmr is there condensation? Yes. Has it affected my AirPods Max in any way shape or form? No. Everything is just fine over a year later, and I’m still loving them!
@@sharksbean im really tempted, i dont know if i’ll wait for the second gen
I feel like out of everyone I have watched who reviewed these headphones you gave the most fair and representative view on how these stack up in terms of its price and to that sir I say good job and thank you for making my decision that much easier 👏
I really appreciate that! Thank you.
I love the separation of everything. The best features for these have nothing to do with music. It's the message reads, replies, tv, phone, movies, and then music that make these so good. If you're deep in the ecosystem when most will who these are for, will love how these integrate into your daily routines.
Something most reviewers overlook is the fact that Apple can add different features via iOS update. They will only get better as time goes on. Great review overall!
Great point and that definitely is a benefit for the Airpods Max versus other high end headphones! Thank you for the kind words.
or make them worse, my airpods pro had stellar ANC on launch only for them to nerf them after a couple of months.
@@adamek9750 Yeah, especially after 3E751. ANC is almost gone now.
@@oyvey566 my anc has been working great
@@MrEddyedr Yeah, mine works as well, but not nearly as well as it did in past firmware versions.
I watched tons of reviews, but I couldn't decide whether to buy them or not based on reviews. I finally decided to grab a pair and boy oh boy am I glad I did, they sound amazing to my expectations. I could not try them before buying them due to the fact that I live in a remote area.
Agree, the DT 1990 is crazy good
Your production quality is really good. Hope you get more subs soon.
That's very kind of you to say. Appreciate it.
@@Digimorphosis You're welcome mate. Hope to see you in the big leagues soon
This mirrors very much my impressions. I have HD-650s, Beyerdynamic + Massdrop 177x, and DT-990s. I scoffed at the price but after buying and returning several flagships (Sennheiser and Sony) I finally came around to the AirPods Max. They're by far the best noise canceling headphones I've heard. They're very pleasant and non-fatiguing, and work well for long periods. They're more than enough where I feel like I get "enough" to really enjoy my music.
Sure, wired headphones are better but on the go, I'm not able to break out a portable headphone preamp just so I can listen to music. There's a few Apple-y things, like not including a 3.5mm port on the headphones for low-latency, and I have a feeling Apple is going to offer up yet-another-proprietary-bluetooth-feature like U1/W1 for pairing, but for lossless audio.
You used open back headphones for noise canceling hahahahaha
@@djsreja1 You do realized that the Airpods Max are closed right? I mentioned I bought and returned other BT sets and went with the AirPod Maxes as they're sound noticeably better than say, the Momentums or 1000xm
@@dmug shilling for apple? even the he400se have a better sound quality and you can find them for 70
They sound amazing the build quality is second to none and if you're in the Apple ecosystem and you've got the money then they're worth every penny!
Sony needs to go back to premium metal design I hate how light and plastic the xm5 feel I have no Hope for xm6s so looks like ile be getting airpod max 2 and going wired with them I don't like Bluetooth due to the resolution music sounds tighter on wire and more locked together Bluetooth just sounds lossy as fuck
Fabulous review! Have you tried the Headphone Accommodations setting in Accessibility? If you switch the setting to Balanced Tone and the slider set to Slight, they produce an even brighter sound then out of the box.
Thanks for your kind words! I have played around a little with that setting. For some music I like it, but on others I prefer stock. It's interesting, because on my regular Airpods I definitely find the Balanced mode sounds better all the time, but then, they are very different headphones I suppose.
Great video I love mines really undervalued sounds like 2 HomePod’s strapped on your head, hope spacial audio takes it to the next level
Thanks! It’s great to hear from ‘you’ and your own opinion and experiences with these items. Thumb up!
Your video review is great !! I have the Beyer Dynamic DT 1990 Pro just like you, and i want to get a wireless Headphone for ease of use and NC for travels. the price is high for this.. but it seems worth it!. Great points. It made my decision easier!. Thumbs up for you!!
Awesome! I'm glad this was helpful and I hope you enjoy the APM when you get them! Like I said in the video, the mobility and ANC IMO is totally worth the minor tradeoff of sound quality vs. the 1990s, and the APM still sound pretty detailed.
I upgraded from B&W PX7's. I've been happy so far (after less than a week). In a quick comparison, the B&Ws almost sound clinical. The Max's are a bit more warm, especially in the mids. I wish the 3.5mm cable was braided. It would be nice if Audioquest is able to make a cable. I really like their cables. Been using their Cinnamon line for years. Great videos. New subscriber.
Thanks for the kind words and I agree with you about the cable being braided!
I agree, especially after I managed to pick a pair up for only $350 as they were not only an opened box item but supposedly an undesirable green color. Which is what was told to me at first until I pushed further about the suspicious pricing. Apparently they have been unable to sell any of this color, in fact the one I just purchased was the first and only one they've ever had in the shop, as well as a crazy story about the first people to buy them.
The sales guy told me that they had just been returned by a woman who was furious about getting them for Christmas. She apparently was not only unhappy about the color but the brand of headphones as well. She had wanted the B&O H95"s as all of the audio and visual equipment in the apartment she lives in was B&O. The reason why I'm telling this story is that she had apparently thrown the headphones I just purchased at her boyfriend and demanded that he he drive her to the store so she could immediately return them for what she really wanted.
The crazy part is that the boyfriend had purchased an iPad Pro for her birthday just a month prior to go along with her also just purchased Macbook. He thought buying her the Apple headphones not only made sense but he also ordered a pair in her favorite color, green, a color the store didn't carry because as previously stated, it was a color no one was buying, anyway they had to order them special. Hence me getting them for not only the incredible price of $350, I think they just wanted the headphones gone at that point.
On a side note and while discussing Bang and Olufsen. There are some insane deals to be had on older B&O components. I recently purchased a set of Beolab 8002's that also came with 2 brand new B&O Bluetooth connection kits for less than a grand. Just today I won my bid for a pair of Beoplay A9’s for only $800, that’s two huge Bluetooth speakers that originally cost $2500 each. This stuff might be a few generations old, but still worth looking into and they still sound. amazing. I use ricardo.ch, which is like the eBay of Switzerland but eBay itself has similar deals, check it out.
I have the B&O H95. I think these for half the price of the H95 is a better value. But the H95 does sound amazing. I wonder if the girl that made her boyfriend return these got what she wanted? Her loss is your gain.
I wanted to hate mine, but I can’t, they’re excellent headphones and the ANC is top notch.
i dont mean to be so off topic but does any of you know of a method to log back into an instagram account?
I stupidly lost the login password. I appreciate any tips you can give me.
@Turner Danny instablaster ;)
Great review! Found a lot of your observations similar to mine when I tried the Airpods Max vs. my 1990.
Reducing the 8kHz peak for the 1990 makes their tonal balance much better; and imo, even if the difference between the two may not seem much for your average consumer, it was significantly enough for me.
Firstly, and the most obvious thing, the 1990 sounded a lot more “open” and “natural” as opposed to digital or compressed (larger soundstage and good tonal balance [even though it is bright, it is to my liking]).
This meant much better imaging as well as greater instrument separation.
Also, the timbre was better compared to the Max. It all added up to a noticeable enough difference in listening experience.
Although, as you said, the Max, somewhat laid back sound signature is much better for longer listening sessions and if you have tons of apple devices, it’s insanely convenient. Plus, the noise cancelling is awesome.
I got a pair of AirPods Max today and I've had the DT 1990 as headphones for years. I thought the AirPods were broken because of how dark they sounded comprare to theBeyers but little by little I started to appreciate them. Thank you very very much for your video
Thanks for watching! Yeah in fairness a lot of headphones would sound a bit dark compared to the rather bright 1990s and I agree it can be a little jarring. APM definitely go for more of a neutral-ish sound compared to the 1990.
nice chill review dude good job
short, informative, knoledgeable. big thmubs up for the video
Thank you for sharing this, helped with my decision-making. :)
Great video! Finally someone who's not just an apple fanboy who compares these to audiophile headphones. With that being said should I upgrade to the AirPods max from the Sennheiser hd599? Are the AirPods max going to blow them out of the water? Or do even the 599s still sound better?
I've not used the HD599 specifically to comment, and opinions I've read from others vary. Some have said they prefer the sound of the HD599. My assumption would be they may not blow them out of the water per se, as you said. The reason to upgrade would probably be that you're an Apple user and you're looking for the extra tech the APM has, like noise cancelling, transparency mode, ability to use them for calls etc. As purely a pair of headphones for music, maybe not if you're already happy with the HD599's sound.
Great review and you have a new subscriber. I thought your comments were very balanced and fair, I have a set on order, should be here in 2 weeks. Bought them from Amazon who had quite a good discount so made the pain of the purchase price bearable.
I live in a RV so these should be good for the way I want to use them.
I looked at the Sonys and soon as I felt the plastic was immediately put off, so sick of things being made cheaply to maximise profits, every review I read on Apples product commented on the quality of build, I am 74 and come from an era when things were built to last and that is so important to me.
Looking forward to using these and will post my impressions when I have used them for a while.
read all the comments. you are truly a pacient and helpful person. thanks a lot for the inspiration. your take on these was awesome to hear. learned a bit more from your responses to comments. keep up and always beware of all the agression for nothing! cheers
Thank you for the kind words! It's always awesome to read these kinds of comments and know that stuff I've put out there helped someone.
Thx! Been using them for a month now and I must say I enjoy them more than HD 660S… Apple really made a great product here.
WOW, the max sound better than 660s .. that's really great but how the headphones with you after 2 years is it work like new and everything is okay? cuz i've dt 990 pro and wanting to buy the max
Did you notice a significant enough difference in sound quality listening to them wired with a DAC vs straight Bluetooth? I’ve got a pair and have been wondering if it’s worth investing the extra money in a DAC/cord for listening at my desk. Thanks for the great review!
I don't know if I personally would have invested in a DAC just for the Airpods Max. I already had a DAC/headphone amp for my other high end headphones, so for me it was an easy thing to plug the Airpods in and yes, it makes an appreciable difference for when you don't need the portability of bluetooth. Depending on the cost of the DAC you're looking at, though, I can't speak to whether it would be worth that investment only to improve the APM if those are the only headphones you'd be using. (And because the APM don't need a headphone amp since they do that internally, but do benefit from a good DAC.)
well I think there is a DAC (or much a ADC in this case) in the cable.. (apple says it works both ways by the way)… so keep in mind you are limited by the conversion made by the cable… going with the cable you are doing two more conversion D to A then A to D… don’t know if it’s ideal..
Beautiful review, thanks for your thoughts about this
Excellent, thoughtful review. I went from a very hi-fi setup (Schiit Bifrost 2, Jotunheim 2 / Burson Soloist 3X Performance, and Ananda/Arya/HD800S) to this because i felt like, for the money, I'd rather just use the APM and save not only money but also desk space. Plus, not having a hot Class A amplifier right next to me makes for a more comfortable listening experience. Plus, I have the option of using them wired or wireless, and can enjoy the privacy of closed-back headphones while tuning out ambient noise like fans and HVAC. Plus, the APM earpads don't make weird-looking indentations to my hair the way the HiFiMans did (due to their massive egg-shaped earcups).
Of course, the APM doesn't sound as good. But it's good enough. I can't notice any difference in detail - just vertical soundstaging.
Thank you so much for this video. Question: Does the Active Noise Cancellation work in combination with using the APM via cable/audio interface?
Yes the noise cancelling still works when using the cable. Thanks for watching!
@@Digimorphosis Thanks for the response! How does the volume work when you want to use it in combination with an audio interface? Is there a gain drop of some sort?
What a great review! I just got mine. I love my wired headphones with amplifier and DAC. But the AirPod Max offers great sound quality, ANC, BT range, transparency sound for hearing your outside sounds. Does the hard wire cable with the APM offer any sound upgrade with DAC and amp.?
It does - I find the sound stage is a little bigger and there's a bit more fine detail, but it's not a night and day difference. As another commenter put it and I agree, the cord should be thought of as a thing you'd use occasionally, but first and foremost these are bluetooth headphones and they sound good that way also.
I just tried the AirPod max with a AudioQuest Colbalt and i must say they really sound good especially with Tidal. My Sennheiser 660s has a bit more balance and smoothness. Also the with another DAC with a 4mm option brought the Senn 660s to another level. Great Review.
I love my AirPods max and the ANC/Transparency modes are transcendent but this is the first headphones I’ve had that I would call “buggy”. I get weird disconnects and audio hiccups sometimes, and then sometimes after that it will literally restart. The concept of headphones having to reset/restart is so weird.
Thank you for the video.
Awesome review
Fair and balanced review. Not a great fan of my Airpods Max; some things I like, such as the ANC and transparency modes, the spatial effects with Apple's Atmos music and Apple TV, some things I just don't, which unfortunately includes the basic sound quality. I have found the iOS Headphone Accommodations effective for Airpods Pro but not Max. If you want to keep your expensive jewel-like headphones pristine on your travels then you need a hard case, all of which are very bulky. The provided case is good for a laugh but not much else. Let's hope they find a way of giving us a higher bandwidth wireless link so more of the music gets through to the 'phones.
for overall music listening and the convenience of Bluetooth these are good... but when I record music (I play bass)... I use the DT1990's for pure clarity and high resolution sound along with a very high end Rupert Neve headphone amplifier... each has it's strength and weakness.
Absolutely. The 1990 has amazing detail and better bass and for serious listening at the desk those are what I reach for as well. You nailed it with the "convenience of bluetooth" part for the APM. They sound good enough for the tradeoff of portability the rest of the time.
Nice well paced review.
How would you evaluate the difference between Bluetooth & Cable usage concerning the sound and not the latency?
Good question. I would say it's an improvement, but not as great of one as I might have expected. Perhaps that says more about AAC as a bluetooth codec or APM's DSP doing a really good job of correcting for lossy formats. Fine details in string instruments are definitely clearer and to me the sound stage sounds a little wider via cord, but it's not night and day. For me, other than latency, the other bigger benefit to using the cable is the ability to run off a device with EQ - the APM's tonality doesn't need a lot of EQ in my opinion, but a few dB in choice areas can be nice.
Great, informative review. thanks
Nice one Man I enjoy ur Video
Thank you! Tried a different approach with this one and am glad it came across well.
Nice job. Thanks for sharing.
Very helpful video thank you
Very relevant analysis 🙏thanks
How do the AirPods Max compare to the Arya Stealth?
The best thing about these: They're the best wireless Dolby Atmos headphones for watching movies on your Apple TV.
3:06 - Isnt this the thing that makes people tilt? As in, connecting powered headphones into an amplifier?
@@kvernesdotten You certainly don't need an amplifier for these, but you can keep the input volume moderate on the amp and then adjust via APM from there. In this case, the advantage of the G6 was the high end DAC it also has that sounds much better than basically anything else I plugged these into via cord.
I guess I say that to say, if some people want to get upset over some theoretical issue they think that causes, that's their prerogative. But in terms of actual practical usage, it cases no issues and because of the DAC does provide a sound improvement over bluetooth. For me, I take actual experience over hypotheticals any day FWIW.
@@Digimorphosis Haha I have done this myself tbh, but ive seen a couple of streamers doing this same thing because BT is way too laggy to play games with, and are being told that it will overload the circuits, pump power the wrong way through the integrated amps and probably explode, set your goldfish on fire and start WW3.
Personally I stopped doing this, but thats just because all the wireless headphones ive tried either sounds alot worse through it, or needs to be powered on to function with an aux connection to begin with so all the processing and amplification will be done by the headphone regardless. I do recall seeing a warning on some headphones, I cant remember which one but might have been the Audeze Maxwells? Anyway it said to only use it wireless or through a USB cable, but didnt spesify why.
Iunno it still has not broken anything so at this point its just funny to me. I do like the perspective of this video though ^^
@@kvernesdotten Gotcha. Yeah I suppose I could see where maybe the power mismatch between devices would be wonky. In my case at the moment I don't have any other dedicated DACs, so in order to get the great DAC of my G6 there was no avoiding also using its amp. The 2-in-1 is really handy most of the time, but maybe not ideal here. Luckily, I rarely use my APM with cord and if I do need a corded headphone, I have better sounding headphones than the APM that I use with the G6 instead -- and ones that want the amplification. 🙂
Appreciate your comments and for watching!
do you have recommendation for 3rd party lightning to 3.5 mm for APM? in my country there was currently no stock
The noise cancelling on the Airpods Max is on another level in my opinion. I have the Bose QC45, which is widely viewed as comparable to the Sony ones. I got the Airpods Max today and did a side by side comparison. Airpods blocks out so much more non-ambient noise (people talking, birds chirping etc). For a couple decades now, noise-cancelling headphones have been great at blocking ambient noises but Apple is the first to really make headway in blocking the stuff that we REALLY want to block.
For pure sound quality, I feel like wired headphones will always win. But to shut out noise I think Apple has set a new standard.
For sure. I have a couple pair of wired headphones I go to when I want super detail, but the APM are what I would call good enough, or close enough, for casual listening while on the go and not stuck at a desk. A good balance of sound quality and noise cancelling features.
Tbh as an Android user, the software Support for the max kinda sucks. Many stuff just isn't available
And i just can't wear them for an extended period of time (might be because of the shape if my head, but when i'm taking them, the feel is like "hm, weird" for a few minutes, "yeah ok" roughly up to an hour and after that "Oh -#€;;# i take my Beyerdynamics"😅
But they sound pretty nice
Well done Brother, i really liked the way you explained!!!
my AirPods max is showing technical issue ..feeling sad..ahving pairing issues
So, im on iOS 13.3 rn and can say that the APM sounds very nice. However I know that 14.6 or higher (or better yet 15) will make them sound better. What I also heard is that the best quality delivered is only thru iOS Apple Music or a Mac. Now I’m wondering wether the AirPod Max would sound different than what is being experienced in the video by doing the following setup: iPhone with latest iOS using Apple Music lossless (and no special mode activated on APM) connected to a DAC (ex. Ultrasone Naos) connected to the APM with that 40 dollar cable by Apple. If someone could replicate that setup, please reply to me. I’m highly interested.
Will a dac and amplifiers make a difference to the sound quality and soundstage??
Yes. A dedicated headphone amp mainly helps if you have high impedance headphones or aren't getting enough volume. Sometimes I've noticed it helps with bass, but most of the sound improvement will come from a good quality DAC. Bass, clarity, sound stage, etc. will all be improved moving from a basic sound output to a good DAC. Something like the Sound Blaster G6 or Schiit Hel offer both a great DAC and amp in one device.
If you are using the AirPods Max you won't need an amp because those headphones use their own amp internally, but will still benefit from a good DAC feeding them an awesome signal.
When you used them at your desk with a cord did you also use a headphone amp? If so, did the amp boost the sound and/or effect the sound quality?
I did plug them into a Sound BlasterX G6, which has a headphone amp in it. For the APM that's mostly for the high end DAC output. The headphone amp in the G6 is not important since the way the APM are set up they will always use their internal amp even when plugged into 3.5mm. (It's using really only the signal from the 3.5mm and not the power, per se.) The advantage of this is that you can plug them into a weak source and still get proper volume, but it's also a shame that the APM cannot be passively driven to save battery.
Regarding sound quality, yes plugging them into a good DAC source does give you better sound, but more because the signal is excellent and not because of the extra power, if that makes sense.
FYI the apple cord is an analog to digital converter so plugging them in to a DAC is useless and may even degrade the sound.
For analog audio to exist in the first place to plug a 3.5mm jack into, there must have been a digital-to-audio conversion. That's how sound works. Whether it's a cheap DAC from an onboard sound card or cheap iPad jack or a high end DAC, it's doing the same thing. With respect, to say that using a high end DAC could degrade the sound makes no sense. A higher quality signal being passed to the APM means higher quality information reaching the endpoint, whether the cable is doing an extra conversion either way or not.
The APM endpoint DSP can only work with the signal its given, and I can definitely confirm passing a higher quality signal into the APM through the cable, say from lossless audio and a Sound BlasterX G6, sounds better than plugging straight into an iPad.
I don't mean this nasty, but your even suggesting using a DAC hurts things displays a lack of understanding of how 3.5mm jacks work -- since ALL 3.5mm jacks that could possibly output to this cable must, by design, have done a digital to analog conversion. There is no avoiding that. To warn people away from doing something that must happen is not a good piece of advice.
yeah I've always preferred to use 3.5mm jacks with no DAC behind them so the signal is unusable. that enhances the sound significantly...
@@Digimorphosis I think you missed my whole point, that is to say that the AirPods Max (specifically) don’t support analog. Period. The cable that is a 3.5mm cable that comes in the box plugs in to the headphones via lightning therefore it converts an analog signal to a digital one via the included cable, opposite of a DAC. So what you’re doing when you plug AirPods Max in to a DAC is converting digital > analog > back to digital (lossy) format, which is where the compression happens. So yes your DAC can deliver lossless to headphones that support lossless, but not with the AirPod Max because when that signal gets converted back to digital it’s converted to bits for signal processing which requires some compression due to sampling rate. Ipso facto, a DAC will not deliver lossless audio quality to AirPods Max ever because they physically cannot support analog signals and therefore you get degraded sound. In the event that you’re pairing the DAC with an Amp or manual EQ (which many DACs come with nowadays), at best you get the same signal you would from plugging in to your apple supported lighting to 3.5mm converter from your device (which is a DAC) and at worst you use a non-apple supported DAC/Amp that can have a wide range of negative effects on the audio quality.
A great example of this is what happens in video. Shoot a movie on film, it contains tons of dynamic information. Then convert it to 4K UHD, it’s still high quality but not to the same degree as the film stock. Then take that 4K digital footage and record it back on to film, you permanently lose some of that definition you got on the original film stock, then import that film back in to a digital format and you yet again generate more pixelation due to another compression process. Arguably you’ve turned your perfect film stock to 2.5k resolution because you can’t enhance resolution once it’s been compressed.
@@Questionthis1 I didn’t miss anything and I got your whole point. (I’ve got a whole other video covering what you just said.) That’s just in my experience not really an audible thing that happens. No doubt all of those things are indeed happening connecting the cable and yet to me and several others I’ve heard from it doesn’t make a audible degradation in sound. There’s still a nice sound from plugging them in and it can certainly sound better than Bluetooth, even if not drastically. I suppose you could say there’s theory about what it seems like might degrade and then there’s what one actually experiences listening to them.
You called connecting them to a DAC pointless and it’s simply not. It may not be as objectively great as you think it should be but there’s still a far cry from pointless, and since connecting them via 3.5 mm involves connecting them to a DAC in literally any case I didn’t want to mislead people away from something that many people who actually use them have confirmed is a good experience is all.
I appreciate your explanation in the camera example, though. That’s great for people stopping by here who haven’t seen the other video.
@@Questionthis1 it’s also worth noting that saying they don’t support analog period isn’t entirely true since they indeed have speaker cones in them. Speakers literally only work with analog so obviously at some point within the AirPods housing there is a final conversion process from digital back to analog which is what we are hearing from the speakers. I get that that doesn’t change the overall point that you were making but technically it’s not true to say about any speaker equipment that it doesn’t support analog period. It must.
Have you tried it with the new music app update? Lossless dolby and other formats activated.
Haven't tried that particular source yet, but thanks for the heads up. I mainly listen to music through Amazon Music HD in lossless and generally avoid anything Dolby, but I can check that out.
@@Digimorphosis why do you avoid anything Dolby?
@@flameforge Well first off I’ll say that I respect that a lot of people love it. For me though, on any device I’ve tried it on over a number of years it always makes things sound whooshy. The highs sound lower fidelity, the mids overblown, and the bass reduced by like 50%. One time Windows did an update to my sound drivers and I could not figure out why everything sounded so bad suddenly. Went into my settings, saw Dolby was on, turned it off, immediate improvement. Same for Harman Kardon receivers I’ve had that had Dolby. I’ve often wondered if it was just me since others rave about Dolby effects, but personally I’ve always thought it sounds notably worse than the original signal.
@@Digimorphosis I know what you mean. I didn’t like the Dolby experience in the past but have since tried the Dolby Atmos experience in the new Apple Music. Seems pretty good. If you have a chance, give it a try.
I saw you plugged a wire from the AirPod Max to an external DAC. Did it make any difference in regards to sound, quality,, etc?
Not a night and day difference, but in a nutshell the bass was fuller and there was a slightly wider sound stage with a bit more audible detail. It’s nice when you’re at a desk and don’t need to be wireless.
@@Digimorphosis appreciate you!
The only drag is the headphones will not “crank” music. But watching movies is awesome.
I ordered the iFi Hip-dac v2 yesterday, but will this make a difference ? Or will the apple 3.5mm to lightning cable undo all the external processing the hip-doc did ? or limit it in some way ? Thank yo for the review!
Some people claim that there are technically non-ideal aspects of an external DAC and the way the cable converts back to digital, and then back to analog internally. Still, my experience has been that using an external DAC via cable still sounds better than bluetooth in any case. Better sound stage, better details, and MUCH better bass.
You should buy the Drop Panda instead.
In My humble opinion. I had my AirPods MAX and I gotta tell you guys that the sound is incredible. With either the Bluetooth or the Cable hooked to a DAC. I have multiple sennheiser HD-650 and other models. And by far Apple AirPods Max are the truth.
So for a huge price tag(3 times bigger than dt990pro) you have a piece of hardware you cannot update/tune/control on any common device, right?
Only on Apple devices(which are well known for enormous price tags while having extremely limited functionality), right?
Also constantly enabled processing in the headphones will just change the sound in unpredictable way(so cannot be used for editing/mastering).
I see a cool thing there tho, easily removable/replacable pieces. But i guess Apple will not sell those so you will be forced to buy new headphones anyway, did i guess it well?
you don't compare the price of wireless to wired.
Would you say wired mode is pointless without a reputable third party amp or dac
Good question. Honestly, I think that's a fair assessment because they sound pretty decent via Bluetooth and mediocre headphone outputs don't really seem to make a noticeable improvement via cable. In fact, if it's a low-end enough 3.5mm jack bluetooth might sound better.
Nicely done
when using the 3.5mm cable, i assume the headphones still need to be powered on? and do they bypass the bluetooth pairing when using the cable or will i need to unpair them from my phone?
Yes, the headphones still use their own internal amp to drive the headphones even when using the 3.5mm cable. (So there will still be some battery drain while using, albeit less than on bluetooth.) To your other question, yeah the headphones detect when plugged into the 3.5mm cable and disable bluetooth, which in my experience has the same battery-saving effect as putting them in their sheath/case. You don't need to unpair them from your phone. Hope that helps.
@@Digimorphosis thanks for the quick reply I appreciate it
Do the AirPods Pro Max profit from a external Amplifier like traditional headphones do, when plugged into the amp??
they really don't. the internal equalizer gets in the way.
👋 can anyone confirm if it works with 6.3 mm adapter plugged into an audio interface ? Thanks
Here in the Philippines it priced at USD649. As an avid fan of Apple I bought it.
Hope you enjoy!
So if I buy Apples cable to plug into my AirPods max and plug that cable into my audio quest dragonfly red dac/amp would that make the sound quality even better? Sorry if my comment is stupid, I’m definitely not a audiophile.
It should, though I think it sounds pretty good off of bluetooth also, so don't think that the only way to gave a good audio experience is via cable is why I say that.
not shure of that, because the APM cable has a DAC on it, and the APM a preamp in it… so instead of adding higher quality components.. in fact you are adding unnecessary components in the signal chain.. but maybe the gain using lossless audio is superior to the degradation of this added double DAAD conversion.. don’t tried it yet.
The only thing I hate about them is that bra for a cover. They should have installed a power button
e.g. using the existing button as a power button, pressing it for two or three seconds .
The Audeze mobius is significantly significantly better sounding LDAC990 Bluetooth headphones
Yeah that's a name I've heard a few times and haven't yet had the pleasure of hearing. Thanks for mentioning it -- I'll put my sights on those.
How is the volume on the air pod max? I have the Sony xm4 and they don't get up to concert volume like my wired hd600 or jh audio iems.
I generally find about 65% volume pretty good for most modern music. Sometimes a little higher for older recordings with greater dynamic range. Even when I've wanted it really head banging loud I don't think I've gone above 75-80%. Some people have reported going to 100% and finding it still not loud enough, so I'm not sure if my ears are more sensitive or those people just like to listen at crazy levels.
John, you wanna be very careful with sustained higher volumes, a particular risk with either loudspeakers or headphones that are capable of playing cleanly at “concert levels”, say above 90dB SPL continuously. Hearing damage is no joke and is as of yet irreversible.
I’ve owned dozens of brands and models of mostly closed back cans over the past 50yrs, and even though I definitely didn’t take that lesson to heart early enough, comfort / SQ is far more important than loudness alone. Were I to be in the market for a $700 (CDN) pair of cans, these would definitely be on my short list. Of course, being Apple, I’d bet there will be variants to come - particularly in reaction to some of the press regarding condensation and the lack of direct streaming of their new Lossless Audio format.
What’d be really interesting would be to allow for custom personalized EQ settings based on correction curves that some of old farts need on our hearing aids. I have a pair of Oticon Minirite digital hearing aids that cost over $5,000, so honestly even the rather stiff price for the AP Max just isn’t that outrageous.
great vid
I consider myself a middle of the road. Not an audiophile (snob), nor general listener (noob?).
This headphone was the hardest one to buy, because each side provided totally different impressions. Not to mention of all the drama toward price tag and silly case design. I just wanted to know how they sound and perform. I was so confused until this amazing review. Just bought the green color along with Questyle Audio's M12 USB-C DAC and Lightning-3.5 dongle. Thank you so much.
Awesome! Sounds like you're ready to rock! Thank you for the kind words.
Tried them today, I think their OK, not brilliant and max volume is average, sadly bluetooth headphones are limited by the music source which is often our mobile phones and they are often limited.
This is why I still prefer wired headphones that the drivers can be powered by a portable amp, my v-moda m100 sound amazing and the volume can go far louder.
I think the pricing for the apples is over priced, not because their bad but literally because no headphone is worth that sort of money regardless of brand.
To each their own, for sure. Personally I greatly prefer the sound of the Airpods Max to the M100, amp or not, having tried both. To me the M100 sound muddy and lack detail comparatively even with a good DAC, particularly against other headphones I own. But I did use the M100 frequently for a few years. To the thought about no headphones being worth $500+, I guess that's down to preference and hearing. The Beyerdynamic DT 1990 I use regularly is, IMO, a significantly better headphone than the M100 in every way, including comfort, and you can definitely hear where the extra money went doing an A/B test. But that's just me. YMMV.
@@Digimorphosis just tested the Apple max pro army brother has foolishly purchased a pair. The m100 wipes the floor with them in all areas, sound quality, volume, base etc. There not bad for wireless but the sony wh1000xm4 are better in my opinion.
M100s muddy? You must be first reviewer ever to say that?
@@seanhomar5945 t's fine if you love the M100s, man. You don't need to defend your viewpoint. When I said muddy I meant comparatively to other headphones that have a much clearer midrange. Look at reviews anywhere and almost everyone describes the M100 s having recessed mids. I am hardly the first or even the 20th to say so. Some people don't mind that or even prefer it, and that's fine, but for me it creates the sensation of a lot less detail.
Also, most reviewers that compare the Sony to the APM also call the Sony muddy by comparison (and I read A LOT of those reviews prior to trying), so it's possible that's just your preference for listening and that's fine. But those are opinions that are pretty widely held, for what that's worth. Did you get your APM from Apple itself? I ask because a bunch of people have complained about getting knock offs. It's fine if you don't prefer the APM's sound, but parts of what you are describing don't sound like the APM. Figured it was worth asking. Otherwise, again, to each their own.
@@Digimorphosis most definitely real as they where purchased from Apple Store.
I just think they are over priced for what they are.
For me as I originally said volume is main factor for me, none of the wireless headphones can go loud enough.
Now I'm aware loud music isn't good for your hearing, but I've always liked my music loud.
That's why I'll stick with good wired headphones for now because I require the volume.
@@seanhomar5945 Gotcha. Yeah that is perhaps a real limitation of wireless headphones. I've noticed that with portable battery-driven headphone amps vs. wired ones as well, that the battery ones never really pump out nearly as much power. 👍
Most Definitely Not Worth $550.00 - I Fully Expected To Just Be Blown Away But . . . . After A Very Long Testing Period I returned them - they have great anc and sound great with music - however much to my disappointment and surprise when compared to my WH 1000X M3s With Movies Going Back And Forth from my z fold 3 & iPhone We had to admit that the airpods max were Sorely Lacking With Movies - the wh 1000X M3s sound Was Fuller more present and more impactful even when we played the XM3s At a lower volume than airpods max - The Spacial Audio Did Improve The Movie Watching impact where the sound is concerned but still sounds muffled And Subdued compared to the SONY 1000X M3s which Alive With Movie Audio Which Was My # 1 Reason For Buying The Max - I WAS OONVINCED THAT ID BE SHELVING MY WH 1000X M3s FOR THE AIRPODS MAX BUT I DID NOT FEEL THAT WAY AFTER TESTING THEM - JUST MAJORLY DISAPPOINTED
Well, since you admit they have great ANC and sound great for music which is likely the main reason most people buy them, claiming there’s no way they’re worth the money just because you didn’t like them with movies may not be entirely fair. Apart from that, everybody has different tastes and plenty of people think they sound great. Sorry to hear you didn’t get what you wanted from them. That’s always a letdown to not connect with a pair of headphones that seemed to have a lot of promise for your uses.
So if uses lightning to jack... That means you cant use dacs or amps
You don't need an amp because it has its own internally. You can still use a DAC with 3.5mm output and the increased quality of the output will make a difference in the end presentation on the APM. But yeah, if you're looking to use a DAC with all digital output you can't. In fairness, that kind of thing is not what the APM are meant for. These are meant as bluetooth headphones first.
@@Digimorphosis I see... Interesting product! Thanks
They aren’t overprice ??!! Whattt ? I bought them two weeks ago and they doesn’t support lossless audio and I had to bought a wire separately for a big total (with the apple care) of 1000 $ for a Bluetooth headphones. Sorry but terrible experience for their price
Plenty of people have felt they sounded superior to other bluetooth headphones, whether they technically support lossless or not. I wouldn't get caught up on that technicality because IMO the actual sound seems great regardless. Regarding your spending $1000, not sure what to say there. They don't have to cost that much so I'm not sure your claim is fair - it seems you made other choices and spent more than others and are now upset about your optional choices. The cable isn't that expensive and I certainly didn't spend that much, so... I can't speak to what caused that for you. Sorry to hear you've had a bad experience, but I personally stand by my assertions.
@@Digimorphosis Lossless experience is way better than Bluetooth. Yes, of course, they’re good, but 1000 $ a paire of headphones that can’t support lossless when you can have 279 $ that compete them
But yeah they’re really good ! It was a pain to repay them
@@vincentpaquette5059 If you're referring to headphones like the Sony XM4, a lot of people have said they sound muddy and lack detail compared to the APM. In that case, the Sonys technically supporting lossless is irrelevant if their sheer sound quality is still lacking, versus APM that technically don't support lossless but still sound more detailed. Literally supporting a standard or not is not in itself indicative of sound quality. End of the day, to each their own. If you prefer the sound of whatever $279 pair you're referring to, you do you.
No I didn’t like these but with a wired It was soooo better
Huh duh six hungos by ol mate senn
In my experience it sounds like a sub 200$ headphones, its redeeming features is the noice canceling and things that have nothing to do with music. They dont sound bad at all but even my mese 99 classics sound better and they dont compare to any audiophile headphones at its price range. If you arent an audiophile then it is good but if you are buying these headphones just for music just get a hifiman Sundara or a meze 99 classics if you want a premium quiality experience.
I agree to an extent. Like I said in the video it does seem that a bit of what you were paying for is all the technology and the headphones and that doesn't translate directly to the sound, but if you want a good sounding headphone that has all these things this is a good option. I certainly prefer my Beyerdynamic DT 1990 or Denon AH-D5000 for serious at the desk listening otherwise, but they aren't portable.
Please bro which have more imaging and details earbuds max or dt 1990 ?
🙏 thanks
Overall I would say the DT 1990 have more detail and better imaging, both because of the Tesla drivers and being open back headphones. As a pure audiophile headphone listening experience the DT 1990 is better. Not a ton better, but it is noticeable. The music sounds more natural and like it's really in the room with you on the DT 1990, and there's a little more of that super fine detail. But I think the APM are worthy alongside them because of all the other stuff they can also do, and they still sound good while doing it. I guess in the end you're choosing between a stellar sounding pair of cans that you're chained to the desk with, or a not quite as detailed but still solid pair of wireless headphones that also have noise cancelling. If the portability is important, the trade off in detail is worth it. If you're at the desk most of the day, definitely go DT 1990. I hope that's helpful perspective.
This seems amateurish when you use different eq for each headphone
Sorry if it came across that way. I tried each of them with the eq I normally use only after also listening to them head to head with no eq. Tried to comment about it each way, so you can take any direct comparisons I make between them as a comment about them in a non eq setting. Comments I make about them with eq is an afterthought. (I believe I even say, “with similar eq settings” comparing across.)
The only reason I mentioned eq at all is because some headphones respond better to it, or are improved by it, more than others. And comparing how much it seemed to help between uses seemed useful to some. Hope that clarifies.
I wanted to love them, but they were way too uncomfortable
Darn. That's always a bummer when that's what ruins an otherwise good headphone experience.
The aluminum why they have such good bass, it gives it a very natural sound rather than cranked.
I think it is more due to the mic inside the earcup that calibrates the sounds so the bass response is really what it is supposed to be.
airpods max headband looks so fragile, dont think it will last that long, i have the dt 1770 that is build like a tank, and i really like the sound
Yeah it would be prone to snagging potentially. The steel bars on either side are very strong so they'd last as long as you're not catching the fabric on anything. I had good luck with the very similarly shaped Sony SA5000 back in the day and it was extremely comfortable. But if you already have the DT 1770 and are happy with them absolutely there's no big reason to switch.
Yes i found almost no comparisons with high end
I returned mine
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You just cost me 500 eur lol
Glad the review was helpful. Enjoy the APM!
Try Drop+Pandas, sound wise destroy Airpods Maxi, I love mine.
The vast majority of reviews don't support your view. The headphones seem to be failry even.
@@mickeytollison Sound is subjective.
Too bad you didn't test the phones on adult music.
I listed a couple easily recognizable artists so people would be able to follow. A more thoughtful person might have simply asked what else I listened to and what I thought of that rather than whatever this is. If you're the kind of person that has nothing else in your life than to dump on people a week before Christmas, my choices in music are the least of your worries. You're better than this.
Imagine calling yourself and audiophile but in your assessment you left out soundstage.
Gtfoh
Uh... yeah. The only time he referred to audiophiles was commenting about how a lot of them turned their noses up at these headphones being considered high end. Which is clearly tools like yourself that get so attached to one word that not using it somehow invalidates a whole video. MigRacing must refer to one braincell chasing the other.
The only time I used the term audiophile was to refer to groups of people who were turning their nose up at these headphones without giving them a chance, but never referred to myself as one. I talked a bit about spacial presentation in a way that many others seem fine with; if I didn't actually use the term sound stage and it makes you that butthurt, all I can say is thanks for proving my point.
Stick to racing because listening comprehension isn't your thing.
“The sound isn’t perfect” then tf I’m spending $500 on these? How much is Apple paying these reviewers?
My mentioning they weren’t perfect was meant to reassure people that I’m not just being a fan boy trying to front like they are flawless, which is a tack some reviews have taken with these headphones. If your opinion is that if you’re going to spend $500 they ought to be perfect prepare to be disappointed - because there exists nothing on the market that would suit you. Something can be well worth the money without being perfect, and for you to insinuate people are shills just because of your weird expectation is just being nasty for no reason.
@@Digimorphosis Tell this man about audiophile openback headphones which can cost over 2000 dollars with all the extra equipment you need to buy. If he wants perfection he might find it there, but the fact is that even those fall short sometimes.
@@df0rdeath58 or even better tell him about he-1's... . ;)
If these are perfect then you would agree there is no reason for a headphone to ever cost over $500? I mean this headphone is now the ultimate? We can now throw out all the headphones...even those costing several thousand and above. Your comment is cringe-worthy.