To me it really seems more like the AirPods Max are like a $250 headphones, but an extra $100 cuz of the material, and extra $200 cuz of Apple Tax (Brand).
@@JuanJohn013 a 450/500 price tag would be great. But still they are one of the best you can find in that price range. However that case is horrible, don’t know what apple was thinking
@@JuanJohn013 if Apple know people are happy to pay that much then they are obliged to charge that much. Failure to charge a luxury price on a luxury product can be a big disaster as it makes the product less desirable and that image can spread to the rest of their line. If it was the same price as the Bose many people would not be interested in it. Many of the audiophile reviewers reckon that the Airpod Max delivers about $100 worth of sound. Not folding means a hard case would need to be huge if you want to travel with them, I don't foresee flights full of business travellers wearing a heavier clownish looking thing. I can see a lot of design elements from older Sony models in the Apple headphone but they should have noticed that few other headphones of this type that go out into uncontrolled environments have such large expanses of metal on the outside. That is going to cause problems and may be why they made that absurd case.
I wanted to get those. Till I heard the audio. It literally was horrible. Way too much bass. Bad treble. Pretty bad balanced sound. Muffled if you want. It's just not worth the money. So I bought actually real headphones for less money. The audio technica ATH-MSR7b. Headphones that actually let you listen to music how it supposed to sound. Bluetooth headphones are really overpriced for what you get. Even Sony it self makes way way better wired headphones then this MX4. For half the money
@@metalvideos1961 oh my god, audiophiles whining is the worst. Sony gives you an equalizer for a reason 🤦♂️... Just adjust it to your liking since you know everything and lower the bass on them. Everyone knows the sonys are bass heavy out the box but the EQ is where they shine to your liking.
@@mohamadsorya6718 you dont need an EQ if you actually produce good headphones. and sony are well known for producing good audio headphones that are being used in music Studios. An EQ is only needed to give your listening experience a personal touch. Bluetooth headphones come with an equalizer because the audio signal of Bluetooth is actually horrible. it cant send enough data through to have a good listening experience. sure for basic 320Kbps MP3 files its perfect. for anything higher then that its pointless. Listening to Lossless audio formats like FLAC WAV ALAC AIFF for example is not suitable for Bluetooth headphones. Its a personal taste. or me Bluetooth headphones are pointless.
The only channel that gave a true review You included everything 360 audio The massive functionality gap The real anc comparison Just everything that could be covered I was sooo disappointed with mkbhd and every other CZcamsr
Thanks so much for the kind words! Speaking as an avid viewer of tech reviews for many years (not speaking as someone who creates them myself) I always felt like most reviews were more of an overview of a product, rather than the deep-dive I was looking for. That's why I always loved Jim's Review Room the most (and why he inspired everything here on my channel) because I genuinely felt like I walked away from his video knowing whether I should or shouldn't buy something. Thanks again for taking the time to comment!
Confirmation bias is at work. MKBHD disappointed you because he's honest, and he doesn't confirm your toxic bias. Because you're an Apple hater and a troll, every other review - 99.99999% of reviews are wrong, and only the one that is pandering to Apple haters dishonestly is correct huh? The reality is, either the reviewer has weird ears, or he's just pandering to the haters. I have XM3s, and Airpods Max, (And I'm an audiophile as well.. I have Audeze LCD X, B&D DT1990Pro, Sennheiser HD6XX, and many more), there's NO WORLD where Sony sounds better than AP Max. I mean, I would say, if you LOVE Beats, and if you think that's the best sound ever, than Sony XMs would be sounding better to you than AP Max. It's literally impossible for anyone with any audio knowledge to listen to XM4s and AP Max back to back and pick Sony... There's a huge difference. Sony has bloated bass that bleads into mids, zero sound stage, distant vocals, no imaging whatsoever, and they are muddy and plasticky in terms of detail. Airpods Max sound EXPONENTIALLY better than Sonys: they are balanced, they have more detail everywhere, they have less bloaty but more punchy and detailed bass, they have WAY BETTER highs, WAY BETTER vocals, and they have Spatial Audio which no one else has other than Audeze Mobius. So, sorry to burst your bubble, but this reviewer is either a liar, or trying to make a quick buck pandering to haters.
@@Gokhanaj How can you compare the sound of headphones that you don't even own? You literally don't have the XM4's. You said so yourself, your opinion is invalid
@@Gokhanaj i have been in the apple ecosystem since 2015, i have used AirPods and i have used wf1000xm3’s - Sony takes the cake. I fell in love and bought the wh-1000xm3’s last October and they have been the best headphones that i ever owned. With xm4’s multi point connection they work far better than AirPods - the reason i loved @mrkwd-techguy ‘s review is because he genuinely compared the headphones to the bone and results don’t lie. It is the objective truth and not a subjective bias. I love mkbhd’s videos but like other CZcamsrs he did not objectively compare the headphones as he is supposed to - for being a tech review ‘expert’. All the videos were confusing - his is not. Thank you 🤣.
I went to best buy to test these out, xm4s were so comfortable and the sound quality really impressed me, more than the bose which was surprising bc ive used bose earbuds for the last 6 years. Unfortunately couldn’t try out any max’s cause they werent even on display but i knew i wasn’t actually interested in buying bc of the price. Can’t wait until my sony’s are delivered!
If your all out on apple ecosystem AirPods max is absolutely amazing compared to the xm4, in the max you can hear all the instruments individually and in the xm4 it sounds like a complete mess. The max might be heavier but the headbands are 10 times better, because it doesn’t make a dent on your head in prolonged use. The max also doesn’t feel flimsy when you handling it.
Just think about this: that music test was with the stock signature sound. I have the XM4s and once you put an equaliser on that you find amazing, the sound is even better which is astonishing. They truly are kings
@@Kekosro I don't know what you're on about bud, you've clearly never felt "cheap plastic". These don't creak and it is very well built, plus they are a hell of a lot lighter than the airpods which are basically a dumbell on your head
Everything was going fine in the video until 12:50 when you mentioned Audio Sharing instead of audio transition and obviously you are not on the latest MacOS to use the seamless transition of audio. The beneffit you get from Airpods Max is that you are not tied up to 2 devices audio connection only like in the XM4's but rather you can have N number of Apple devices (iPad, Mac, iPhone) and it works like a charm.
The Airpodmax's weight alone turn me off immediately ,most reviewer avoid to focus on it or downplay it . This is the most honest review so far which cover every aspect.
One really cool things on the XM4’s is they have active transparency, so if I say drop a pan in the kitchen the transparency super quickly cuts off to protect my hearing, meant for sirens etc I believe
I don't know you head of this company status audio, but they produce some really good headphones. And they have a new pair called the ANC Flagship, they are really good in my opinion. And give sony a run for their money, plus they cost $200, and you can get 10 percent off as well.
This just shows how subjective sound quality is. Most reviewers have been saying that the APM is a better sounding ‘phone than the XM4 and also better ANC. And the reason you cannot turn them off is due to Find My that helps you find your lost AirPods using an iOS device, which is a very handy feature to have.
That's refreshing. I think this is the first review that actually lets us listen to the output of the headphones instead of just saying "these are better, buy NOW".
Just picked up the 1000-XM4. The audio is fantastic, especially paired with LDAC. The build quality is great. The case is an excellent bonus. Appreciate the review.
Super good review of the top 3 headphones. No other reviews had all those detailed audio tests. We can all make our judgements based on that. Great comparisons. I’ll share this with my friends who have been waiting for this review and will help drive their purchasing decision. Many thanks.
That is the sad thing he did not really give you anything about how they sound, listen to sound from CZcams from a product does not say anything what so ever when it comes to how the real product sounds. All it gives is the sound that your headphone or speakers gives. And its hardly the top 3 headphones in the market there are a lot of headphones missing in that top list, it might be the 3 most well known about headphones but not the Top3. Anyone that says that you can hear the difference in audio from a pair of headphones on CZcams is very much misinformed. Audio is something that is very personal what you like or what you don't like as well. It also depends a lot on what you are listening on when its come to music types. I would give the win to the XM4 if you are a bass head and the thump is the most you want like in RNB and that kind of music. But if you listen to Rock, Pop, Country, Classical or mostly anything else that is just not about the thump the AirPods Pro Max sounds best. It's also a question what devices you have and use. If you use an android phone you can use LADC even if it does not make so much of a difference that I would buy headphones because of the codec it have more Kilobytes per second that it can send. But it's not without its problems since it also give a lot more audio skips and such and you need to be a more lot near to the source we are kind of talking no more than less than a meter from the source. Mac OS, iOS, Windows does not have support for LDAC at all, you can get support for it in Linux but not from any distro out of the box so you need to tinker to get it work. I would say if you are a Mac, iPhone, iPad or Apple TV user the AirPods Pro Max are unbeatable when it comes to wireless audio, on Android they don't have that clear victory but still sounds better in most kind of music than the XM4's I know this is probably a little to late now since its gone 7 months but just a heads up for the next time.
There a tonne of comparison videos using amazing equipment that confirm the airpods are the best however It all depends on budget, the airpods ar better than anything available up to £800 but £550 is a little harsh. The case isn't an issue when 3rd party hard cases are available for £20 which is nothing. The X4s look cheap, sound worse, and features are not as good, £300+ better? that's debatable.
@@davidlane9609 Apart from the fact I own the M4s and on android with no intention of owning the airpods😂 My comment states 'FACTS' , not being a fan boy, it's 'FACT'! Assumption makes you look stupid mate🤪
I agree. The xm4s suck. I have owned them for a year but stopped using them after 2 months or so of use. They look ridiculous, I was embarrassed to have them out in public. The sound is horrible, all I could hear was the mud. The app sucked aswell, not even properly translated to my language, neither did it work since the headphones changed the settings themselves, It was a constant pain to turn the noise cancelling on again since it randomly turned off every once in a while when I was traveling. The only thing I liked was the noise cancelling, but I have seen other reviews where they did more than one test and the AirPods Max were better.
XM4s for sound quality? I question your judgement on this one lol. Being an owner, the bass emphasis is overbearing and bloated with some distortion, and LDAC doesn't make up for it either
@@dariuszwojcik1601 I would not buy the AirPods anyways, I am just commenting what I think. Been using QC 35 for years, comfort is just amazing. Will keep them till they break.
That’s cuz they do. This guy clearly has broken ear drums or just has some beef with Apple. Pretty sure it’s also been proven that the ANC is superior as well. It’s blocks more frequencies than any other headphone on the market so not sure how it came to that conclusion.
@@dariuszwojcik1601 adding an eq won't get rid of the mud, there are more factors than just the sound frequency response, but this reviewer didn't include that
This is the longest video I've ever posted. When I realised the length, I thought 'no way in hell is anyone going to watch this.' Thank you for proving me wrong! I just started posting over on Instagram again and I'd love to build up a community over there. Hit follow if you want to be a part of it! 🔥 instagram.com/mrkwd
What are your personal thoughts on transparency mode for the three headphones? From other reviews, I hear that the Max is quite a bit better than the other two.
What about voice assistance, no value to having always on Siri? What about transparency mode, no mention of that, how did they all perform? Do the plastic headphones have those crappy click click click headbands rather than the smooth infinitely variable stainless steel adjustment? What are the colour options? What about computational audio, do they all have it? Adaptive EQ? Do they all have 1 tap setup?
Sony XM4 has DSEE EXTREME like Airpods max has computional audio. Sony XM4 has Google assistant and Alexa with one dedicated button. Transparency mode is amazing on Sony, You only need to start to talk and music will stop and ambient sound will turn on. Sony XM4 has a dedicated eq and an Smart ambient sound, this function memorize How do You use the headphones in places You visit. And no, the xm4 doesn't feel cheap or poorly made. The sonys are so comfotable, that sometimes, You don't notice them while using. If You are searching a really good sound, try Sennheiser Momentum 3, those sounds better than Airpods max.
I was sitting here waiting for someone to call me an Apple hater, so I could point out that I have an iMac in the background. Sadly, I haven't been able to do this yet.
For those of us who are new to active noise cancelling, it does take some getting used to on the Sony xm4’s. However I’m starting to get used to them now, having worked out how to set them up properly they’re brilliant. Just wish the Mike quality was a bit better, but that’s a bit of an obsession of mine. It’s ironic as the earbuds have the best mike quality of any that I’ve heard. I’m totally blind, so I use headphones a lot for dictating, including this message. Therefore the mike quality is crucial for me.
Excellent and honest review many thanks. I’ve been using the Bose 700’s for around 2 years and find them the most comfortable out of the 3. The poor call quality killed the XM4’s for me personally and found them uncomfortable
This is the only review that got me watching start to end as it actually tells us how to make the decision. Every other review either sounded like a broken record or part of an advertisement with things we already knew. Useful content and I will soon be on my way to get the xm4s ✌🏾 thank you.
Great review. Worth pointing out that the latest firmware updates have made a massive difference the the XM4 call quality. I'm now able to use them on company Teams calls, not something I was able to do previously.
I already have the Wh-1000xm4 so I'm not even looking at anything else. I do like the sound signature on the bose as well but apple needs to calm the F down with those prices. Headphones aren't supposed to be heavy so I don't know what apple was thinking making them that way. Also can't turn off the headphones when you're only offering around 20 hours of battery life? Your channel is the only one that mentions that I believe. It looks like the microphone quality are their only high point 😂 Also.... definitely miss Jim's Review Room. Glad I found your channel though!
People have never over analyzed the xm 4 to the point that just a bad headset compared to the airpods max and bose 700. Just for it having slightly worse ANC and the sound which honestly I can't hear what's wrong when them. I use them everyday to listen to hifi, mater, and 360 tracks in TIDAL. The eq for me is the game changer. Sure it's not audio file quality but for being the cheapest out of the 3 now and providing the similar features. As I average consumer they sound great. I use them everyday I forget there in my head sometimes with how light they are. Sure they make sounds in the joints bit when there in your head you don't touch them until you take them off. The listening experience is great as a whole food either music and movies.
The honest reviewer ever. I can only buy airpods max if I were entirely in Apple ecosystem. The only thing I dont like with my Sony xm4’s is the sound insulation. They gave so much noise to outside so I have to turn down to volume when I am in outside. I think u should add sound insulation to ur reviews. Love ur content, greetings from Turkey ✋🏻
The only thing that I have grown to notice with my Sony xm4 is the creaking has increased. I hear it when turning my head and running. Sound is amazing but thinking of returning for a new one.
I searched lots of CZcams video,either they are pro apple mindset or against it but done really good job you give practical views thanks a lot brother. Really enjoyed and appreciate your work..
Finally from the perspective of a real audiophile and not from a CZcamsr who has no clue about sound. Spatial audio is very limited I am in the apple ecosystem and it’s really hard to find a movie in appletv that supports it.
I got the AirPods Max yesterday and I’ve LOVED them more than anything else in terms of headphones that I’ve used. They sound really good, I actually like the case being it’s something unique and different, the Max’s are super comfortable for me and they look insanely good! I understand that some are quick to hate on it because of its price but for those who can afford it it really is a great set of headphones. However, personal opinion does matter.
I bought the max’s this year. Agree i was so scared because of the price. When i pulled the trigger. I have some bose 700. But the airpods sounds quality is just ridiculous. I am a sound engineer for some church events and the way the bass is so well rounded and punchy but clean! Not over boomy like the XM4 that are super bass heavy. Then doing some Headphone Accommodation changes and the vocal presence of the mids come back, and already with the sparkle of the highs, makes them the best sound for me!
Apple has a cleaning procedure on their support page which is very effective. The xm4’s and Bose headbands hurts the top of my head. The AirPods Max doesn’t. Although I agree with some of your criticism of the Max’s, you come off as being very biased against the AirPods Max. I don’t believe Apple is trying to compete with other headphone manufacturers. They were designed for the Apple eco system.
Because he’s wrong lmao!! This video is a complete waste of time. Missed so many point it’s not even funny. Apple fan or not. The bias is clear, and as good of a job as he did producing it he’s so off it’s almost laughable.
Yo when you just started trying to rip the airpods apart I swear I felt my heart stop. So thank you for not only helping assist in choosing a rather expensive choice, but for the fun little scare.
airpods max sound a world different from xm4! i own both. i just couldn’t go back to xm4. they sound too muddy and become too hot wearing too long. this review about sound quality is just untrue.
Most of my sound quality review is me describing their bass, mid and treble accuracy having read their graphs. It is a fact that the AirPods Max have flat mids, emphasised low bass and emphasised treble, not my opinion. And of course, not everyone will like the XM4 just because their sound signature is generally more impactful. But if you think they sound muddy, just lower their mid-bass in the EQ. That's the beauty of them - you can tune them however you like. For me, the mids on the AirPods Max are pushed back, but I can't do anything to change that unfortunately. Sweaty ears is an issue with the Bose 700 and XM4 because they create a full seal, though this is better for ANC, sound quality and reduced sound leakage. But it's also because their padding isn't absorbant - the sweat has no where to go. You can try this at home if you like - I just dropped a little water on the padding of each earcup. On the XM4 and 700, that drop of water is still sitting there as I type this. On the AirPods Max, it instantly soaked in. Personally, I would rather get sweaty ears, which I can wipe clean, instead of all my sweat be absorbed into the earcups - especially for hygiene purposes. Remember that the AirPods max earcups are like sponges and each earcup costs A LOT to replace. You can just wipe the XM4 and Bose padding with a damp cloth after all, but you can't with the AirPods Max, because they're fabric. Sweaty ears is a problem with all headphones like these, but I don't feel like the AirPods Max has solved it at all. Thanks for taking the time to comment of course - just want to clarify some things for you and anyone else who reads this. You gave me the idea to test the absorbancy of the ear padding, which I hadn't thought of before, so thank you. I might mention 'ear sweat' in my comparison reviews in future and test this too.
mrkwd - tech guy AirPod ear cups are replaceable though. I would rather have the breathable mesh over the faux leather any day. The faux leather is less comfortable over time and they will inevitably start flaking and fall apart. At least the AirPod cups can be replaced with brand new ones if they ever go to shit. Just sayin.
Good detailed review, however I find you’re extremely biased against Airpods Max... There’s a lot of features with Airpods Max that you didn’t point out. Including the 5 min turn off, and the existence of EQ settings in the iPhone settings for Airpods Max. I am able to tone the Airpods Max to sound brighter with the audio customization. As for the sound quality. I highly disagree with you with the soundstage aspect. Wtf bro, its clearly obvious the soundstage of Airpods Max is far superior. I’ve tried it myself in the store with the XM4 I owned and the Airpods Max on display. There’s no question, IT SOUNDS WIDER IN SOUNDSTAGE. That itself brings the MAX to a new level of listening experience, together with the custom tuning it offered in iPhone settings, I can hardly believe why u rated it last in sound quality. I get that sound is subjective, but you, as a reviewer, simply didn’t do the homework to figure out background information about these headphones before your review, makes me question this whole video’s purpose. It seems you’re trying to trash the MAX in whichever category you can possibly name. Also, I don’t get why u didn’t point out latency comparison (which MAX wins clearly) and the fact that whist LDAC theoretically sounds better, it’s gonna slash its latency values up by so much it makes using it a pain. As far as the weight goes, honestly it doesn’t bother me, it feels heavy on hand but you’ll get used to it in no time. I’ve watched so many reviews and tested XM4 with the MAX myself, you’re the only few that insisted MAX’s noise cancelling is inferior and its sound quality is inferior too. You do you, since these are subjective. However, I as a XM4 user clearly felt the XM4’s sound quality to be clearly inferior to MAX and MAX’s noise cancelling to be on par with XM4. I’ll be picking up the MAX when it goes on sale elsewhere in the future. I love my XM4, however I’ve definitely found a replacement. Btw, I gotta point out. The wide soundstage of MAX makes the separation between instruments clearer as compared to all these models. So yea...
You summed it up perfectly. Max does have best sound quality even with only AAC codec. XM4 are very good, but bass bleeds into mids a bit making certain tracks sound muffled. This reviewer is biased towards XM4 and doesn’t understand or hear or know all frequencies ranges and how they should sound.
That’s exactly what I was thinking. I’ve seen at least 10 reviews that said they lost around 3-5% of battery at night without the case and this guy comes along and 10%. He also said he got 20hrs of playback with anc when everyone else is getting ~25hrs. Also other videos say the anc on AirPods max is the best one.
@@cooljuniormartinez well airpods max is of course losing battery every second it doesn't power off there's no such thing for it and that's sad because the headphones have a limited life. It's better to have it power off than slow power mode just because to let it pair faster.
Great review, don't plan to buy any of these, but you review things in a analytic and realistic way. Mad respect! Gonna buy the liberty 3 Pro and would love a review from you.
Own both and no one who has listened to multiple audiophile quality and then wireless options would choose the XM4 on sound quality. The Sony's are more EQ heavy and the Airpods Max are more balanced, like a good pair of studio monitors. It's a whole different experience and when you tie in the spatial audio and the Dolby Atmos it's a game-changer. Anyone using Apple devices will appreciate the Max much more than the Sony's. Sony's are terrible at device switching too.
I wish I could see this unbiased review that you all speak of. There are plethoras of videos of tech professionals, including audio engineers who say the opposite when it comes to a lot of this. It seemed like he was pretty biased in his opinions. LDAC being an automatic winner? How? 70% of the world use phones with no LDAC support (including many Androids). So that being an objective win is great in theory, but in reality that simply isn’t the case. Also, the ANC seemed to be really good on the AirPods but he said it was the worst? Sure, the “case” is a joke, but he clearly loves the Sonys and no one blames him for that, but it was clear he had a favorite from the beginning.
Just because some people don't have access to LDAC on an Android device (as I mentioned in the video) that doesn't diminish the fact that the XM4 have a greater potential to provide great sound quality. That's like saying that having custom equaliser settings is pointless because some people won't use them. Or that ANC tests are irrelevant because we can't travel at the moment. How does any of that make sense in an objective review? That sounds more biased than anything I said in this review. What you're suggesting is a very convenient way to dismiss factors that are clearly superior in order to favour your own bias. If you ignore everything that's better about the XM4, then yes, I guess you're right, the AirPods Max must be the best - but that's a stupid statement to make, as I'm sure you'd agree. For example - do all of the holy professionals mention how AirPods Max perform far worse when it comes to sound quality on Android devices? AAC just cannot perform on Android devices due to inconsistent streaming quality. Or do they just blanket state that the AirPods Max are better, whilst failing to mention that part? Given that's true, if you own an Android device, the AirPods Max can never objectively be 'the best' for those people, so it's a fallacy to say so. The XM4 and 700 both work fine in both iOS and Android, which only adds to their versatility. Again - these are facts, not my opinion. I provide the sound levels during the ANC test so you can compare how much ANC reduces the background noise across all 3 pairs with your own eyes. It's a fact that the AirPods Max didn't reduce the background noise volume as much as the XM4, so you may want to watch that part again. If you can't see that, then I'm sorry, but you've clearly come into this review with a closed mind, having made up your mind already. How can you say that objective testing and providing raw results and facts is biased? The best part for me about being unbiased, is that I have no loyalty to any of these brands. If a competitor comes out and actually bests the XM4 in every way, my testing will reflect that and I'll tell you. I'm still waiting for that to happen. Thanks for taking the time to comment nevertheless. I'm sure there will be people out there with the same take as you and I just wanted to clarify my perspective for anyone else thinking the same thing.
@@M82RKY The problem is the price. No reason to cost $550 when the XM4s go for about $280 and yet they don't sound like they would justify the extra $270. It's called price to performance and I feel like people forget about that. They just have money to spend so they just buy the most expensive one and waste their money.
congratulations for the channell .. is very nice.. i would like to ask you if you think the earbuds sony wf are still the best and if some new version of them is coming ..grado gt 220 your thoughts?
For some, the AirPods Max will sound so good and have such effective noise-canceling and Spatial Audio features, that they could feasibly spend $549 on them and still be happy. These headphones are also competitive on design and specs, even if there are some odd omissions like the 3.5mm jack. Still, you shouldn't overlook the Sony WH-1000XM4. These can go toe-to-toe with the Bose 700 on sound quality, design and comfort while beating them handily on affordability and battery life. The AirPods Max might be a valid money-no-object choice, but the Sony WH-1000XM4 is undoubtedly better value.
For the noise cancelling, you didn’t have a very good test. Before turning on the cancellation for the XM4 there were lots of cars, but afterwards there was only 2 in total that went past. For both the Bose 700 and AirPods Max there where a lot more cars during the noise cancellation test. You haven’t proven anything about noise cancellation here.
This was a short edit of a longer test. Plus, this is the second time I've tested them in a video - see my XM4 vs Bose 700 comparison for the first test. It is a fact that the XM4 provide better ANC than the Bose 700. You can source other reviews of them for that information if you wish. If you'd prefer, feel free to to compare the AirPods Max to the 700 instead where a similar amount of cars passed. They didn't best the 700s, which are proven to be weaker than the XM4 when it comes to ANC.
i own both xm4 and the airpods max, and i can say that the airpods are slightly better then the xm4. sits perfectly on the head, sound quality is way better then the xm4. the only bad thing about it is that you cant turn off the headphones. yea, the price is way overvalued but it is better.
Awesome comparison, watched with my XM-4s on. This is by far the most thorough and well thought out reviews for these cans, and I’ve watched a lot including those from the big name players on CZcams.
The Bose have an incredible sound clarity that is noticeable in the video compared to the Airpods and Sony. Vocals and the separation of instruments is almost perfect, but they have their own sound tuning which is very pleasant but which limits the range of bass and treble to avoid fatigue for long periods of time listening. The same goes for their home cinema speakers. This tuning is pleasing to most people but audiophiles don't like it due to the purposeful cut in frequencies. I personally love Bose products.
Sorry, I respect your opinion but I wholeheartedly disagree with you on sound quality. I own the XM4s and while they sound great once mids and trebles are increased via the equaliser app, the audio quality just isn’t as good as the AirPods Max. I did some extensive back to back listening with the XM4s and AirPods Max in the Apple Store and the clarity, openness and tightness of the bass on the AirPods Max are on a whole different level. They just sound like more expensive headphones IMO. But the clamping force is noticeably stronger on the AirPods Max which could put some people off.
I love my AirPod Max’s! Coming from the MX3 I found them to sound real nice! :) the style and feel... love it. I was gonna use the 600 dollars I spent on them to just have in my Louie wallet, just to have some hundred dollar bills laying around, but my XM3s were so beat up I needed new cans. The AirPod Max Case though isn’t so bad... and ISNT needed. I left them out of the case on my work desk for 8 hours yesterday and battery only went down 2%.
Today I got my XM4s. Upgraded from the XM2s. Must say the ANC seems better on the XM2s with regards to fan noise. Tested with vertical fans. Stove rangehood extraction fan. The XM2s just seem to kill the noise more even to non existent. The XM4s still hear the whine, though quiet. Might be that the ear cups need to break in. Do love the upgraded feature set like dual connections and 10 min quick charge type C. 30 grams lighter. Awesome to just NFC connect to phone in 1 second like the XM2s. Great review too Mark 👍
Hey Mark, there are actually EQ settings(sort of) for headphones with H1 chips in iOS 14, under Accessibility→Audio/Visual→Headphones Accommodations. You do need iOS 14 thought.
There’s definitely something fishy about this review. So many negatives compared to others and xm4’s are not that great. I use them, sweaty, uncomfortable, switching in between devices is a pain when using ldac. ANC is so so, transparency mode is rubbish, phone quality is poor. Just as is fit and finish. If Apple wanted 400 for them I’d pay it. 550 is too steep especially for the 1st gen product.
It's clear to me that in this video you're not being honest about the AirPods Max and you cling to the Sony XM4s. Why make this comparison video if you're not even being honest?
@@DynamixTV apple and many other companies give reviewers free products. Nobody in their right mind would say those shit headphones look good. They are plain and look cheap. Trump a clown but better than the other clown.
@@Vandiekins they do, and the reviewers mention when they got them for free. Most of them payed and most of them like them. Im sorry if ud rather have black huge plastic sony headphones or green beats neon shit. Dont u find it a bit creepy i was able to read ur mindset from that one sentence regarding politics?😂 maybe should think about that a little. (Also: they sound better than the sonys. I have both as well as some higher end gear and i must say the airpods max are truely awesome. Not quite on the level of hifiman ananda or he6se soundwise, but considering they also have the apple ecosystem integration, industry leading noise cancelation and transparency mode, the buildquality that u usually only get when u pay thausands of dollars and so on they are not even that expensive) There is a reason they are 2x the price of the other ones, and this time its not because of the apple on them (they dont have one)
The airpods sound like they're trying to be flatter while also putting in bass, the sony were warmer and the bass was similar but it honestly sounded better overall. I know for bose people like to rag on them but I honestly liked them a little bit more over the sonys I feel like they struck the perfect balance of booming bass and clarity of vocals. I feel sony handles booming bass better with their xtra bass branded earbuds.
Damn I Miss JimsReviewRoom
Can everyone please thumbs up this comment because it's the actual law to do so.
@@mrkwd I miss him a lot 😭. Mark please carry forward his legacy
These don’t have enough bass for Jim I would have thought
I do too, but holy review batman this was amazing!
Mrkwd is jimsreviewroom British accent version
If Sony's next headphones come with a case that also looks like underpants, I'm going to scream
really underrated comment, maybe in a couple weeks it will have hundreds of likes
I hope not, Sony is a pretty stubborn company and their phone is definitely not going with the trends of the rest of the industry
Considering Sony even returned the headphone jack, they are least likely to follow the trend than other companies
@@7654321220 Sad thing is, the next headphones may cost as much thanks to dumb Apple logic
but what if they made them to look like denim daisy-dukes with dangly pockets? lol
DVD Hits corner at 4:28 and 14:02
HAHA i love u
thank you so much
To me it really seems more like the AirPods Max are like a $250 headphones, but an extra $100 cuz of the material, and extra $200 cuz of Apple Tax (Brand).
Yes they’re little bit of a overpriced but they are superior then Sony or Bose
@@JuanJohn013 a 450/500 price tag would be great. But still they are one of the best you can find in that price range. However that case is horrible, don’t know what apple was thinking
@@MasterKey2004 Yes I agree about the case it’s horrible
@@JuanJohn013 if Apple know people are happy to pay that much then they are obliged to charge that much. Failure to charge a luxury price on a luxury product can be a big disaster as it makes the product less desirable and that image can spread to the rest of their line. If it was the same price as the Bose many people would not be interested in it. Many of the audiophile reviewers reckon that the Airpod Max delivers about $100 worth of sound. Not folding means a hard case would need to be huge if you want to travel with them, I don't foresee flights full of business travellers wearing a heavier clownish looking thing. I can see a lot of design elements from older Sony models in the Apple headphone but they should have noticed that few other headphones of this type that go out into uncontrolled environments have such large expanses of metal on the outside. That is going to cause problems and may be why they made that absurd case.
And here I sit with $35 sennhiser hd4.4bt headphones thinking even $100 headphones are expensive.
Airpods Max: dong
Sony WH-1000 XM4: Noise Cancelling
Bose 700: ten
Listening on my xm4’s, really happy:)
Same, got em today
I wanted to get those. Till I heard the audio. It literally was horrible. Way too much bass. Bad treble. Pretty bad balanced sound. Muffled if you want. It's just not worth the money. So I bought actually real headphones for less money. The audio technica ATH-MSR7b. Headphones that actually let you listen to music how it supposed to sound. Bluetooth headphones are really overpriced for what you get. Even Sony it self makes way way better wired headphones then this MX4. For half the money
Listening on my xm3's.
Struggling to justify the xm4's after I bought the xm2's when they first came out.
@@metalvideos1961 oh my god, audiophiles whining is the worst.
Sony gives you an equalizer for a reason 🤦♂️... Just adjust it to your liking since you know everything and lower the bass on them.
Everyone knows the sonys are bass heavy out the box but the EQ is where they shine to your liking.
@@mohamadsorya6718 you dont need an EQ if you actually produce good headphones. and sony are well known for producing good audio headphones that are being used in music Studios. An EQ is only needed to give your listening experience a personal touch. Bluetooth headphones come with an equalizer because the audio signal of Bluetooth is actually horrible. it cant send enough data through to have a good listening experience. sure for basic 320Kbps MP3 files its perfect. for anything higher then that its pointless. Listening to Lossless audio formats like FLAC WAV ALAC AIFF for example is not suitable for Bluetooth headphones. Its a personal taste. or me Bluetooth headphones are pointless.
The only channel that gave a true review
You included everything
360 audio
The massive functionality gap
The real anc comparison
Just everything that could be covered
I was sooo disappointed with mkbhd and every other CZcamsr
Thanks so much for the kind words! Speaking as an avid viewer of tech reviews for many years (not speaking as someone who creates them myself) I always felt like most reviews were more of an overview of a product, rather than the deep-dive I was looking for.
That's why I always loved Jim's Review Room the most (and why he inspired everything here on my channel) because I genuinely felt like I walked away from his video knowing whether I should or shouldn't buy something. Thanks again for taking the time to comment!
Confirmation bias is at work. MKBHD disappointed you because he's honest, and he doesn't confirm your toxic bias. Because you're an Apple hater and a troll, every other review - 99.99999% of reviews are wrong, and only the one that is pandering to Apple haters dishonestly is correct huh? The reality is, either the reviewer has weird ears, or he's just pandering to the haters. I have XM3s, and Airpods Max, (And I'm an audiophile as well.. I have Audeze LCD X, B&D DT1990Pro, Sennheiser HD6XX, and many more), there's NO WORLD where Sony sounds better than AP Max. I mean, I would say, if you LOVE Beats, and if you think that's the best sound ever, than Sony XMs would be sounding better to you than AP Max. It's literally impossible for anyone with any audio knowledge to listen to XM4s and AP Max back to back and pick Sony... There's a huge difference. Sony has bloated bass that bleads into mids, zero sound stage, distant vocals, no imaging whatsoever, and they are muddy and plasticky in terms of detail. Airpods Max sound EXPONENTIALLY better than Sonys: they are balanced, they have more detail everywhere, they have less bloaty but more punchy and detailed bass, they have WAY BETTER highs, WAY BETTER vocals, and they have Spatial Audio which no one else has other than Audeze Mobius. So, sorry to burst your bubble, but this reviewer is either a liar, or trying to make a quick buck pandering to haters.
@@Gokhanaj How can you compare the sound of headphones that you don't even own? You literally don't have the XM4's. You said so yourself, your opinion is invalid
@@Gokhanaj i have been in the apple ecosystem since 2015, i have used AirPods and i have used wf1000xm3’s - Sony takes the cake. I fell in love and bought the wh-1000xm3’s last October and they have been the best headphones that i ever owned. With xm4’s multi point connection they work far better than AirPods - the reason i loved @mrkwd-techguy ‘s review is because he genuinely compared the headphones to the bone and results don’t lie. It is the objective truth and not a subjective bias. I love mkbhd’s videos but like other CZcamsrs he did not objectively compare the headphones as he is supposed to - for being a tech review ‘expert’. All the videos were confusing - his is not. Thank you 🤣.
@@mrkwd thank you sir. Keep up the good work - ✊. Respect. I am gonna go and buy my xm4’s now (they really should do something about this name).
Who else was watching the dvd thing the whole time 😂
Me
I went to best buy to test these out, xm4s were so comfortable and the sound quality really impressed me, more than the bose which was surprising bc ive used bose earbuds for the last 6 years. Unfortunately couldn’t try out any max’s cause they werent even on display but i knew i wasn’t actually interested in buying bc of the price. Can’t wait until my sony’s are delivered!
Bose QC lacks bass im not impressed for that much u pay for bose they should sound better lol
If your all out on apple ecosystem AirPods max is absolutely amazing compared to the xm4, in the max you can hear all the instruments individually and in the xm4 it sounds like a complete mess.
The max might be heavier but the headbands are 10 times better, because it doesn’t make a dent on your head in prolonged use.
The max also doesn’t feel flimsy when you handling it.
The Sony sound feels warmer I like them more
Just think about this: that music test was with the stock signature sound. I have the XM4s and once you put an equaliser on that you find amazing, the sound is even better which is astonishing. They truly are kings
Yeah i get fatigue when sounds arent warm. Like the bose
@@Kekosro I don't know what you're on about bud, you've clearly never felt "cheap plastic". These don't creak and it is very well built, plus they are a hell of a lot lighter than the airpods which are basically a dumbell on your head
@@jake8343 not true its heavy but not to the point of annoying heavy
this is so true, it's like snuggling under blanket of sounds, it is so relaxing
This is off-topic, but I wish I had your hair, man 😂 It's very full!
Everything was going fine in the video until 12:50 when you mentioned Audio Sharing instead of audio transition and obviously you are not on the latest MacOS to use the seamless transition of audio. The beneffit you get from Airpods Max is that you are not tied up to 2 devices audio connection only like in the XM4's but rather you can have N number of Apple devices (iPad, Mac, iPhone) and it works like a charm.
Excellent! After all the hype we get a real review.
Is it “real” only because it goes against the air pods max?
Yep.
@@SymbianBlack real to most people = confirming their negative belief about something
No it's not, the airpods is really good but its not $200 better than the xm4, except in transparency mode
@@marcdave9521 agreed Airpods max are better but I rather save LOTS of money for the Sony. I got my Sony wh-1000xm4 for 225 on offer up😁
The Airpodmax's weight alone turn me off immediately ,most reviewer avoid to focus on it or downplay it . This is the most honest review so far which cover every aspect.
@개울가에물망초 yes, because other headphones you wear weight -16 grams right 😂
for me it's the stupid case that doesn't even fully protect your headphone
It not heavy I can wear my AirPod max longer than my Sony’s because where the weight is distributed so the weight is in my back jaw not on my head
@@justsaying993 damn bro u got roasted
One really cool things on the XM4’s is they have active transparency, so if I say drop a pan in the kitchen the transparency super quickly cuts off to protect my hearing, meant for sirens etc I believe
Love the Jim's Review Room reference 👍
Thanks man, your comprehensive review helps me decide to get a XM4. Appreciate your effort.
Where's my 'DVD logo hits the corner timestamp' crew?
Love your videos. Will you be announcing the winners for the jbl speaker anytime soon?
14:04
4:31 it hit the corner
4:42
I don't know you head of this company status audio, but they produce some really good headphones. And they have a new pair called the ANC Flagship, they are really good in my opinion. And give sony a run for their money, plus they cost $200, and you can get 10 percent off as well.
Me listening on my XM4's i got them yesterday!!!!!!!!!! Soooo happy 😊
“Glorified underpants” ... that’s the best one I’ve heard so far!!
please, Apple! make the case in denim so they look like daisy-dukes! add some Bedazzle too!
4:30 the DVD sign perfectly hits the corner👌
Nice video! Xm4's on the way!!
4:30 That was absolutely perfect👌
This just shows how subjective sound quality is. Most reviewers have been saying that the APM is a better sounding ‘phone than the XM4 and also better ANC. And the reason you cannot turn them off is due to Find My that helps you find your lost AirPods using an iOS device, which is a very handy feature to have.
base sound is better in APM but if you use eq settings, you get an amazin sound with sonys.
That's refreshing.
I think this is the first review that actually lets us listen to the output of the headphones instead of just saying "these are better, buy NOW".
one way or another the dynaimcs of the headphones will still sound like your own headphones, because yknow, they're playing out of your headphones
Just picked up the 1000-XM4. The audio is fantastic, especially paired with LDAC. The build quality is great. The case is an excellent bonus. Appreciate the review.
I have the XM4 and it is the most amazing headphones I’ve ever had.
Is it worth it?
any issues with touch control when you're out in the cold?
@@twystedhumour so far no, I think it was the issue with Xm3 not 4
Super good review of the top 3 headphones. No other reviews had all those detailed audio tests. We can all make our judgements based on that. Great comparisons. I’ll share this with my friends who have been waiting for this review and will help drive their purchasing decision. Many thanks.
Bro, you need to watch Brian tong for comparison of this headphones. You will be amazed. This guys is a joke.
@@marlonmesias75 this right here.
That is the sad thing he did not really give you anything about how they sound, listen to sound from CZcams from a product does not say anything what so ever when it comes to how the real product sounds. All it gives is the sound that your headphone or speakers gives. And its hardly the top 3 headphones in the market there are a lot of headphones missing in that top list, it might be the 3 most well known about headphones but not the Top3.
Anyone that says that you can hear the difference in audio from a pair of headphones on CZcams is very much misinformed. Audio is something that is very personal what you like or what you don't like as well. It also depends a lot on what you are listening on when its come to music types. I would give the win to the XM4 if you are a bass head and the thump is the most you want like in RNB and that kind of music.
But if you listen to Rock, Pop, Country, Classical or mostly anything else that is just not about the thump the AirPods Pro Max sounds best. It's also a question what devices you have and use. If you use an android phone you can use LADC even if it does not make so much of a difference that I would buy headphones because of the codec it have more Kilobytes per second that it can send. But it's not without its problems since it also give a lot more audio skips and such and you need to be a more lot near to the source we are kind of talking no more than less than a meter from the source. Mac OS, iOS, Windows does not have support for LDAC at all, you can get support for it in Linux but not from any distro out of the box so you need to tinker to get it work.
I would say if you are a Mac, iPhone, iPad or Apple TV user the AirPods Pro Max are unbeatable when it comes to wireless audio, on Android they don't have that clear victory but still sounds better in most kind of music than the XM4's
I know this is probably a little to late now since its gone 7 months but just a heads up for the next time.
@@marlonmesias75 i agree this dude is a joke
What we need is for bose and sony to collab and build us the perfect set of headphones
There a tonne of comparison videos using amazing equipment that confirm the airpods are the best however It all depends on budget, the airpods ar better than anything available up to £800 but £550 is a little harsh.
The case isn't an issue when 3rd party hard cases are available for £20 which is nothing.
The X4s look cheap, sound worse, and features are not as good, £300+ better? that's debatable.
Typical apple fanboy. Apple will sell you a hard case for $199.99. Best case ever
@@davidlane9609 Apart from the fact I own the M4s and on android with no intention of owning the airpods😂
My comment states 'FACTS' , not being a fan boy, it's 'FACT'!
Assumption makes you look stupid mate🤪
I agree. The xm4s suck. I have owned them for a year but stopped using them after 2 months or so of use. They look ridiculous, I was embarrassed to have them out in public. The sound is horrible, all I could hear was the mud. The app sucked aswell, not even properly translated to my language, neither did it work since the headphones changed the settings themselves, It was a constant pain to turn the noise cancelling on again since it randomly turned off every once in a while when I was traveling. The only thing I liked was the noise cancelling, but I have seen other reviews where they did more than one test and the AirPods Max were better.
XM4s for sound quality? I question your judgement on this one lol. Being an owner, the bass emphasis is overbearing and bloated with some distortion, and LDAC doesn't make up for it either
XM4 sounds muddy, but difficult to tell without trying them out in person. I think the Max sounds much better.
Yes they might do but don’t forget you can adjust the sound to your liking but you can’t on airpods.
@@dariuszwojcik1601 I would not buy the AirPods anyways, I am just commenting what I think. Been using QC 35 for years, comfort is just amazing. Will keep them till they break.
I own both and I agree
That’s cuz they do. This guy clearly has broken ear drums or just has some beef with Apple. Pretty sure it’s also been proven that the ANC is superior as well. It’s blocks more frequencies than any other headphone on the market so not sure how it came to that conclusion.
@@dariuszwojcik1601 adding an eq won't get rid of the mud, there are more factors than just the sound frequency response, but this reviewer didn't include that
Early. ❤️
Cheers form India mate 😄
The quality of your videos is awesome!
Love them
Super early! Hope all is good in your part of the world and thanks for taking the time to comment 🔥
@@mrkwd moto squad mate 👍
Nope nothing is fine here, but I hope it gets better soon 💯
@@hmm2928 Same here! 😷
This is the longest video I've ever posted. When I realised the length, I thought 'no way in hell is anyone going to watch this.' Thank you for proving me wrong!
I just started posting over on Instagram again and I'd love to build up a community over there. Hit follow if you want to be a part of it! 🔥 instagram.com/mrkwd
What are your personal thoughts on transparency mode for the three headphones? From other reviews, I hear that the Max is quite a bit better than the other two.
he didn't mention it because the airpods are the best and he didn't want to give any credit to them
@@MrAnderson2744 True.
What about voice assistance, no value to having always on Siri?
What about transparency mode, no mention of that, how did they all perform?
Do the plastic headphones have those crappy click click click headbands rather than the smooth infinitely variable stainless steel adjustment?
What are the colour options?
What about computational audio, do they all have it?
Adaptive EQ?
Do they all have 1 tap setup?
Sony XM4 has DSEE EXTREME like Airpods max has computional audio. Sony XM4 has Google assistant and Alexa with one dedicated button. Transparency mode is amazing on Sony, You only need to start to talk and music will stop and ambient sound will turn on. Sony XM4 has a dedicated eq and an Smart ambient sound, this function memorize How do You use the headphones in places You visit. And no, the xm4 doesn't feel cheap or poorly made. The sonys are so comfotable, that sometimes, You don't notice them while using. If You are searching a really good sound, try Sennheiser Momentum 3, those sounds better than Airpods max.
Finally, a proper non-Apple-fanboy review of an overpriced Apple product. Nice work!
Amen i agree
Power to all Apple haters. Yourself included. You must be feeling better now.
@@shirleytwsw throw poison darts at Apple. Go android Go.
It's not overpriced mate have you seen the specs on it? And now compare that with the thx panda
I was sitting here waiting for someone to call me an Apple hater, so I could point out that I have an iMac in the background. Sadly, I haven't been able to do this yet.
For those of us who are new to active noise cancelling, it does take some getting used to on the Sony xm4’s. However I’m starting to get used to them now, having worked out how to set them up properly they’re brilliant. Just wish the Mike quality was a bit better, but that’s a bit of an obsession of mine. It’s ironic as the earbuds have the best mike quality of any that I’ve heard. I’m totally blind, so I use headphones a lot for dictating, including this message. Therefore the mike quality is crucial for me.
Excellent and honest review many thanks. I’ve been using the Bose 700’s for around 2 years and find them the most comfortable out of the 3. The poor call quality killed the XM4’s for me personally and found them uncomfortable
This is the only review that got me watching start to end as it actually tells us how to make the decision. Every other review either sounded like a broken record or part of an advertisement with things we already knew.
Useful content and I will soon be on my way to get the xm4s ✌🏾 thank you.
4:42 the dvd logo does the thing
also 14:03 :)
Great review. Worth pointing out that the latest firmware updates have made a massive difference the the XM4 call quality. I'm now able to use them on company Teams calls, not something I was able to do previously.
I already have the Wh-1000xm4 so I'm not even looking at anything else. I do like the sound signature on the bose as well but apple needs to calm the F down with those prices. Headphones aren't supposed to be heavy so I don't know what apple was thinking making them that way. Also can't turn off the headphones when you're only offering around 20 hours of battery life? Your channel is the only one that mentions that I believe. It looks like the microphone quality are their only high point 😂 Also.... definitely miss Jim's Review Room. Glad I found your channel though!
Totally agreed. Saw Jim hit 1 million the other day... still waiting for the CZcams comeback 😂🔥🔥
@@mrkwd he wasn't at a million before? Why he so underrated??? 😭😭😭😭
i have the bose, sonys and APM, and the APM are my favorite!
People have never over analyzed the xm 4 to the point that just a bad headset compared to the airpods max and bose 700. Just for it having slightly worse ANC and the sound which honestly I can't hear what's wrong when them. I use them everyday to listen to hifi, mater, and 360 tracks in TIDAL. The eq for me is the game changer. Sure it's not audio file quality but for being the cheapest out of the 3 now and providing the similar features. As I average consumer they sound great. I use them everyday I forget there in my head sometimes with how light they are. Sure they make sounds in the joints bit when there in your head you don't touch them until you take them off. The listening experience is great as a whole food either music and movies.
The honest reviewer ever. I can only buy airpods max if I were entirely in Apple ecosystem. The only thing I dont like with my Sony xm4’s is the sound insulation. They gave so much noise to outside so I have to turn down to volume when I am in outside. I think u should add sound insulation to ur reviews. Love ur content, greetings from Turkey ✋🏻
Thanks for the kind comments and for the great suggestion, I'll try and think of that in the future. Hope things are all safe and well in Turkey.
The only thing that I have grown to notice with my Sony xm4 is the creaking has increased. I hear it when turning my head and running. Sound is amazing but thinking of returning for a new one.
@@troesplain Do you pay extra money for returning it?
The Max sound better than the XM4 IMO.
Bose has hifi type of sound signature. Very beautiful and composed.
Hifi is not a sound signature Bose is more near to the Harman Curve than the others.
An honest review is all I wanted and You just did that. You earned a sub from me.
Thanks for subbing! So glad you found my video somehow!
@mba presents me too, great balanced review
Me too
You need to watch Brian tong.
I searched lots of CZcams video,either they are pro apple mindset or against it but done really good job you give practical views thanks a lot brother. Really enjoyed and appreciate your work..
14:04 the dvd hits the corner
Lol
Finally from the perspective of a real audiophile and not from a CZcamsr who has no clue about sound. Spatial audio is very limited I am in the apple ecosystem and it’s really hard to find a movie in appletv that supports it.
I got the AirPods Max yesterday and I’ve LOVED them more than anything else in terms of headphones that I’ve used. They sound really good, I actually like the case being it’s something unique and different, the Max’s are super comfortable for me and they look insanely good! I understand that some are quick to hate on it because of its price but for those who can afford it it really is a great set of headphones. However, personal opinion does matter.
They are the worst of the three for double the price. It isn’t about how much money you can spend it’s about making a smart decision.
I bought the max’s this year. Agree i was so scared because of the price. When i pulled the trigger. I have some bose 700. But the airpods sounds quality is just ridiculous. I am a sound engineer for some church events and the way the bass is so well rounded and punchy but clean! Not over boomy like the XM4 that are super bass heavy. Then doing some Headphone Accommodation changes and the vocal presence of the mids come back, and already with the sparkle of the highs, makes them the best sound for me!
Apple has a cleaning procedure on their support page which is very effective. The xm4’s and Bose headbands hurts the top of my head. The AirPods Max doesn’t. Although I agree with some of your criticism of the Max’s, you come off as being very biased against the AirPods Max. I don’t believe Apple is trying to compete with other headphone manufacturers. They were designed for the Apple eco system.
Also the headband is removable which he didn’t mention either
Very reliable and a no fuzz review, straight to the point as always. Greetings from brazil.
Why did 250 people dislike this video??
Because he’s wrong lmao!! This video is a complete waste of time. Missed so many point it’s not even funny. Apple fan or not. The bias is clear, and as good of a job as he did producing it he’s so off it’s almost laughable.
I have been watching the DVD thingy the whole time
NOW THIS IS A REVIEW!!!!! SUBSCRIBED AND LIKED
You can adjust the transparency level in accessibility settings audio accommodations with airpods max
Yo when you just started trying to rip the airpods apart I swear I felt my heart stop. So thank you for not only helping assist in choosing a rather expensive choice, but for the fun little scare.
airpods max sound a world different from xm4! i own both. i just couldn’t go back to xm4. they sound too muddy and become too hot wearing too long. this review about sound quality is just untrue.
Most of my sound quality review is me describing their bass, mid and treble accuracy having read their graphs. It is a fact that the AirPods Max have flat mids, emphasised low bass and emphasised treble, not my opinion.
And of course, not everyone will like the XM4 just because their sound signature is generally more impactful. But if you think they sound muddy, just lower their mid-bass in the EQ. That's the beauty of them - you can tune them however you like. For me, the mids on the AirPods Max are pushed back, but I can't do anything to change that unfortunately.
Sweaty ears is an issue with the Bose 700 and XM4 because they create a full seal, though this is better for ANC, sound quality and reduced sound leakage. But it's also because their padding isn't absorbant - the sweat has no where to go.
You can try this at home if you like - I just dropped a little water on the padding of each earcup. On the XM4 and 700, that drop of water is still sitting there as I type this. On the AirPods Max, it instantly soaked in. Personally, I would rather get sweaty ears, which I can wipe clean, instead of all my sweat be absorbed into the earcups - especially for hygiene purposes. Remember that the AirPods max earcups are like sponges and each earcup costs A LOT to replace. You can just wipe the XM4 and Bose padding with a damp cloth after all, but you can't with the AirPods Max, because they're fabric. Sweaty ears is a problem with all headphones like these, but I don't feel like the AirPods Max has solved it at all.
Thanks for taking the time to comment of course - just want to clarify some things for you and anyone else who reads this. You gave me the idea to test the absorbancy of the ear padding, which I hadn't thought of before, so thank you. I might mention 'ear sweat' in my comparison reviews in future and test this too.
@@mrkwd this has got to be the best, most in depth reply to a comment of 2020.... You came prepared.... Savage lol
@@mrkwd wow 🔥
mrkwd - tech guy AirPod ear cups are replaceable though. I would rather have the breathable mesh over the faux leather any day. The faux leather is less comfortable over time and they will inevitably start flaking and fall apart. At least the AirPod cups can be replaced with brand new ones if they ever go to shit. Just sayin.
I don't agry with U for sound quality ? Am I wrong ?
You sir, have earned a new subscriber. This video was so in depth and you didn't hold anything back. Great video!
thank you for your honesty and your amazing review. I absolutely loved your video. Keep up the great work.
Good detailed review, however I find you’re extremely biased against Airpods Max... There’s a lot of features with Airpods Max that you didn’t point out. Including the 5 min turn off, and the existence of EQ settings in the iPhone settings for Airpods Max. I am able to tone the Airpods Max to sound brighter with the audio customization.
As for the sound quality. I highly disagree with you with the soundstage aspect. Wtf bro, its clearly obvious the soundstage of Airpods Max is far superior. I’ve tried it myself in the store with the XM4 I owned and the Airpods Max on display. There’s no question, IT SOUNDS WIDER IN SOUNDSTAGE. That itself brings the MAX to a new level of listening experience, together with the custom tuning it offered in iPhone settings, I can hardly believe why u rated it last in sound quality. I get that sound is subjective, but you, as a reviewer, simply didn’t do the homework to figure out background information about these headphones before your review, makes me question this whole video’s purpose.
It seems you’re trying to trash the MAX in whichever category you can possibly name. Also, I don’t get why u didn’t point out latency comparison (which MAX wins clearly) and the fact that whist LDAC theoretically sounds better, it’s gonna slash its latency values up by so much it makes using it a pain. As far as the weight goes, honestly it doesn’t bother me, it feels heavy on hand but you’ll get used to it in no time.
I’ve watched so many reviews and tested XM4 with the MAX myself, you’re the only few that insisted MAX’s noise cancelling is inferior and its sound quality is inferior too. You do you, since these are subjective. However, I as a XM4 user clearly felt the XM4’s sound quality to be clearly inferior to MAX and MAX’s noise cancelling to be on par with XM4. I’ll be picking up the MAX when it goes on sale elsewhere in the future. I love my XM4, however I’ve definitely found a replacement.
Btw, I gotta point out. The wide soundstage of MAX makes the separation between instruments clearer as compared to all these models. So yea...
You summed it up perfectly. Max does have best sound quality even with only AAC codec. XM4 are very good, but bass bleeds into mids a bit making certain tracks sound muffled. This reviewer is biased towards XM4 and doesn’t understand or hear or know all frequencies ranges and how they should sound.
Out of curiosity, what music streaming app did you use to test the music audio for this test between the 3 headphones? Thanks great review!
Wow you have completely contradicted every other reviewer of the airpods and yet for some reason I believe you over them.
That’s exactly what I was thinking. I’ve seen at least 10 reviews that said they lost around 3-5% of battery at night without the case and this guy comes along and 10%. He also said he got 20hrs of playback with anc when everyone else is getting ~25hrs. Also other videos say the anc on AirPods max is the best one.
@@cooljuniormartinez well airpods max is of course losing battery every second it doesn't power off there's no such thing for it and that's sad because the headphones have a limited life. It's better to have it power off than slow power mode just because to let it pair faster.
@@alexsmith1207 i got some now it’s definitely 3-5% battery drainage a night.
Great review, don't plan to buy any of these, but you review things in a analytic and realistic way. Mad respect! Gonna buy the liberty 3 Pro and would love a review from you.
Listening to this on my brand-new XM4s I had delivered today! 😀
I ordered for the blue color. Can’t wait
Can i join the club ?i got the blue ones today !
@@shirleytwsw I’m yet to get mine. How does it look and feel ?
Ordered my Blues today, receive tomorrow... Cannot wait! Great review too!
Own both and no one who has listened to multiple audiophile quality and then wireless options would choose the XM4 on sound quality. The Sony's are more EQ heavy and the Airpods Max are more balanced, like a good pair of studio monitors. It's a whole different experience and when you tie in the spatial audio and the Dolby Atmos it's a game-changer. Anyone using Apple devices will appreciate the Max much more than the Sony's. Sony's are terrible at device switching too.
this guy didn't even talk about spatial audio - it's a smear piece and he's a troll.
I wish I could see this unbiased review that you all speak of. There are plethoras of videos of tech professionals, including audio engineers who say the opposite when it comes to a lot of this. It seemed like he was pretty biased in his opinions. LDAC being an automatic winner? How? 70% of the world use phones with no LDAC support (including many Androids). So that being an objective win is great in theory, but in reality that simply isn’t the case. Also, the ANC seemed to be really good on the AirPods but he said it was the worst? Sure, the “case” is a joke, but he clearly loves the Sonys and no one blames him for that, but it was clear he had a favorite from the beginning.
Just because some people don't have access to LDAC on an Android device (as I mentioned in the video) that doesn't diminish the fact that the XM4 have a greater potential to provide great sound quality. That's like saying that having custom equaliser settings is pointless because some people won't use them. Or that ANC tests are irrelevant because we can't travel at the moment. How does any of that make sense in an objective review? That sounds more biased than anything I said in this review.
What you're suggesting is a very convenient way to dismiss factors that are clearly superior in order to favour your own bias. If you ignore everything that's better about the XM4, then yes, I guess you're right, the AirPods Max must be the best - but that's a stupid statement to make, as I'm sure you'd agree.
For example - do all of the holy professionals mention how AirPods Max perform far worse when it comes to sound quality on Android devices? AAC just cannot perform on Android devices due to inconsistent streaming quality. Or do they just blanket state that the AirPods Max are better, whilst failing to mention that part? Given that's true, if you own an Android device, the AirPods Max can never objectively be 'the best' for those people, so it's a fallacy to say so. The XM4 and 700 both work fine in both iOS and Android, which only adds to their versatility. Again - these are facts, not my opinion.
I provide the sound levels during the ANC test so you can compare how much ANC reduces the background noise across all 3 pairs with your own eyes. It's a fact that the AirPods Max didn't reduce the background noise volume as much as the XM4, so you may want to watch that part again. If you can't see that, then I'm sorry, but you've clearly come into this review with a closed mind, having made up your mind already.
How can you say that objective testing and providing raw results and facts is biased? The best part for me about being unbiased, is that I have no loyalty to any of these brands. If a competitor comes out and actually bests the XM4 in every way, my testing will reflect that and I'll tell you. I'm still waiting for that to happen.
Thanks for taking the time to comment nevertheless. I'm sure there will be people out there with the same take as you and I just wanted to clarify my perspective for anyone else thinking the same thing.
16:38 you really do looks like Mario bro. Hahaha
no, i thought he looks more like Harry Potter's cousin: Barry Potter.
that was a very nice review❤
rest youtubers are just going mad for the Airpods
wow someone who reviews based on what matters when it comes to actually using the product. It's a revolution!
No matter what the world says, Apple fans will still pay $550 for these mediocre aluminium sound cans
Not all of them, I'm an Apple fan but am glad their expensive headset isn't that good, it will help me not hesitate and save money getting the XM4 !
I am an android user, the airpods are far from mediocre mate..... You obviously haven't done your homework
@@M82RKY lol.
@@M82RKY The problem is the price. No reason to cost $550 when the XM4s go for about $280 and yet they don't sound like they would justify the extra $270. It's called price to performance and I feel like people forget about that. They just have money to spend so they just buy the most expensive one and waste their money.
I bought the q30 soundcore. What would you say, is the q30 competive or not?
I wish I had the Sony XM4 features in the Bose 700 body
Me too. I like the design of the Bose 700 the best.
and the transparency of the airpods max
congratulations for the channell .. is very nice.. i would like to ask you if you think the earbuds sony wf are still the best and if some new version of them is coming ..grado gt 220 your thoughts?
For some, the AirPods Max will sound so good and have such effective noise-canceling and Spatial Audio features, that they could feasibly spend $549 on them and still be happy. These headphones are also competitive on design and specs, even if there are some odd omissions like the 3.5mm jack.
Still, you shouldn't overlook the Sony WH-1000XM4. These can go toe-to-toe with the Bose 700 on sound quality, design and comfort while beating them handily on affordability and battery life. The AirPods Max might be a valid money-no-object choice, but the Sony WH-1000XM4 is undoubtedly better value.
Personally think the xm4 sounds terrible compared to AirPods max
For the noise cancelling, you didn’t have a very good test. Before turning on the cancellation for the XM4 there were lots of cars, but afterwards there was only 2 in total that went past. For both the Bose 700 and AirPods Max there where a lot more cars during the noise cancellation test. You haven’t proven anything about noise cancellation here.
This was a short edit of a longer test. Plus, this is the second time I've tested them in a video - see my XM4 vs Bose 700 comparison for the first test. It is a fact that the XM4 provide better ANC than the Bose 700. You can source other reviews of them for that information if you wish.
If you'd prefer, feel free to to compare the AirPods Max to the 700 instead where a similar amount of cars passed. They didn't best the 700s, which are proven to be weaker than the XM4 when it comes to ANC.
i own both xm4 and the airpods max, and i can say that the airpods are slightly better then the xm4. sits perfectly on the head, sound quality is way better then the xm4. the only bad thing about it is that you cant turn off the headphones.
yea, the price is way overvalued but it is better.
The zero creaking is A VERY GOOD OBSERVATION. As i use my headphones while laying down and the creaking is awfully annoying.
The AirPods Max are one of the best premium headphones because of 3 things: Spatial Audio, Audio quality, and the build quality.
As always. Great honest review..Love it...How about comparing to the Sennheiser Momentum 3.0 Around Ear? Really like to hear your view on this...
Awesome comparison, watched with my XM-4s on. This is by far the most thorough and well thought out reviews for these cans, and I’ve watched a lot including those from the big name players on CZcams.
The Bose have an incredible sound clarity that is noticeable in the video compared to the Airpods and Sony. Vocals and the separation of instruments is almost perfect, but they have their own sound tuning which is very pleasant but which limits the range of bass and treble to avoid fatigue for long periods of time listening.
The same goes for their home cinema speakers.
This tuning is pleasing to most people but audiophiles don't like it due to the purposeful cut in frequencies.
I personally love Bose products.
Clarity you could get in the sonys when you equalize
Hype for the Airpods Max is getting over!! Very nice. People are now realizing!
Yeah but there are always I 🐑
Sorry, I respect your opinion but I wholeheartedly disagree with you on sound quality. I own the XM4s and while they sound great once mids and trebles are increased via the equaliser app, the audio quality just isn’t as good as the AirPods Max. I did some extensive back to back listening with the XM4s and AirPods Max in the Apple Store and the clarity, openness and tightness of the bass on the AirPods Max are on a whole different level. They just sound like more expensive headphones IMO. But the clamping force is noticeably stronger on the AirPods Max which could put some people off.
I love my AirPod Max’s! Coming from the MX3 I found them to sound real nice! :) the style and feel... love it. I was gonna use the 600 dollars I spent on them to just have in my Louie wallet, just to have some hundred dollar bills laying around, but my XM3s were so beat up I needed new cans. The AirPod Max Case though isn’t so bad... and ISNT needed. I left them out of the case on my work desk for 8 hours yesterday and battery only went down 2%.
yep dame here this guy just doesn't like these
Brilliant review. So well structured. Subbed and can’t wait to watch more videos! 👏🏼
"A real turn off." Ha! Well done.
Today I got my XM4s. Upgraded from the XM2s. Must say the ANC seems better on the XM2s with regards to fan noise. Tested with vertical fans. Stove rangehood extraction fan. The XM2s just seem to kill the noise more even to non existent. The XM4s still hear the whine, though quiet. Might be that the ear cups need to break in. Do love the upgraded feature set like dual connections and 10 min quick charge type C. 30 grams lighter. Awesome to just NFC connect to phone in 1 second like the XM2s. Great review too Mark 👍
Dude not possible for xm2 to have better anc than xm4. I think you are over analysing
What I think is that you didn't set up the anc for that specific thing which you could everytime a new sound comes up...
Hey Mark, there are actually EQ settings(sort of) for headphones with H1 chips in iOS 14, under Accessibility→Audio/Visual→Headphones Accommodations. You do need iOS 14 thought.
On the Beats Solo Pro there are some settings you can alter but its not much.
This is the kind of detailed review that should be done for headphones in this price range. Thank you.
There’s definitely something fishy about this review. So many negatives compared to others and xm4’s are not that great. I use them, sweaty, uncomfortable, switching in between devices is a pain when using ldac. ANC is so so, transparency mode is rubbish, phone quality is poor. Just as is fit and finish. If Apple wanted 400 for them I’d pay it. 550 is too steep especially for the 1st gen product.
Amazon selling them at 400s I got mine and it does have its quirks but the transparency mode is just the real deal. Works for me
It's clear to me that in this video you're not being honest about the AirPods Max and you cling to the Sony XM4s. Why make this comparison video if you're not even being honest?
Finally a review from someone not paid by apple.
Sure, because apple pays people and they all illegally dont mention it😂 let me guess, u also think corona is fake and donald trump is great?
@@DynamixTV apple and many other companies give reviewers free products. Nobody in their right mind would say those shit headphones look good. They are plain and look cheap. Trump a clown but better than the other clown.
@@Vandiekins they do, and the reviewers mention when they got them for free. Most of them payed and most of them like them. Im sorry if ud rather have black huge plastic sony headphones or green beats neon shit. Dont u find it a bit creepy i was able to read ur mindset from that one sentence regarding politics?😂 maybe should think about that a little.
(Also: they sound better than the sonys. I have both as well as some higher end gear and i must say the airpods max are truely awesome. Not quite on the level of hifiman ananda or he6se soundwise, but considering they also have the apple ecosystem integration, industry leading noise cancelation and transparency mode, the buildquality that u usually only get when u pay thausands of dollars and so on they are not even that expensive)
There is a reason they are 2x the price of the other ones, and this time its not because of the apple on them (they dont have one)
Did you get a chance to rest audio quality with noise cancelling on? My understanding, this makes a huge difference.
The airpods sound like they're trying to be flatter while also putting in bass, the sony were warmer and the bass was similar but it honestly sounded better overall.
I know for bose people like to rag on them but I honestly liked them a little bit more over the sonys I feel like they struck the perfect balance of booming bass and clarity of vocals. I feel sony handles booming bass better with their xtra bass branded earbuds.
Thanks for the review. Can you use EQ on Sony with wired connection?