If I compare the features of the Sony WH-1000XM4C to the Bose QC Headphones Gen 2, what I like more about the Bose is that it’s got USB-C audio, so when I listen wired, it’s a shorter, cleaner signal path because it goes straight from source to the DAC stage. And I can get mic input with USB audio too, which is great because when I’m gaming or watching videos, I can do voice chat on discord at the same time without killing the audio quality.
The Sony with its 3.5mm jack is different, because it doesn’t support mic input. And in Bluetooth mode, it reverts into handsfree protocol when the mic is active, which destroys sound quality.
The Bose also has spatial audio with head tracking that works with any device, whereas the WH-1000XM4C doesn’t. As for comfort, I also prefer the Bose because the earcups are more spacious, which is awesome for big ears.
That being said, the Sony, being a re-launch of the flagship WH-1000XM4 headphones, does have flagship audiophile-friendly features like Hi-Res codec support via LDAC. The Sony has a 10-band graphic EQ instead of just bass, mids and treble controls, which makes its sound more customizable, and it has wear detection which auto-pauses your music when you take the headphones off, the Bose doesn’t have that.
Performance-wise, I’ve got to say that in most ways, the Bose QuietComfort Gen 2 is better, but the Sony is no slouch either. We’re going to dive in deeper about that, so buckle up!
Microphone Quality
In terms of microphone pickup, the Bose is better because in noisy, windy conditions, even if my voice comes through softer, it’s able to reduce background noise quite effectively, whereas the Sony struggles in that area. A workaround for the Sony is to turn on noise suppression in the app you use for calling, but with the Bose, you don’t even have to do that.
👉🏻 Listen to the mic quality samples
And if you’re wondering whether the Bose’s mic quality is better over USB-C, it’s not, it’s the same quality as over Bluetooth.
Active Noise Cancelling
As for active noise canceling, the Bose is a little better. The Sonys are a tiny bit quieter against bass frequency noises according to my measurements, but the Bose does cut more noise in the mid-range frequencies, so traffic noises, the sounds of keyboards when you’re typing, background human chatter, these are canceled a little more on the Bose compared to the Sony. The Sonys are still very effective noise cancelers, but the Bose delivers deeper silence overall.
👉🏻 Listen to the ANC quality samples
Transparency Mode
As for transparency mode, the Bose is also better because it’s a cleaner, less hissy transparency, and it passes through more of the ambient sounds in the midrange frequencies, so transparency sounds clearer, less occluded than the Sonys. It also does a better job at passing through voices, so it’s easier to have face to face conversations wearing the Bose compared to the Sonys.
The Sonys do pass through more in the upper mids and highs, but because the mids are amplified that well, it still sounds occluded. This is actually how the OG WH-1000XM4’s transparency used to be, but obviously, things have progressed a lot in the past 6 years.
Sound Quality
In terms of sound quality on their default settings, they are similar in the sense that their soundstaging sounds about as spacious and relaxed, so even fast intensive tracks sound smoother. According to these frequency sweeps, the Bose does seem to have a more V-shaped signature so it’s heavier in the sub-bass, while having more emphasis in the upper midrange.
What’s interesting is that, though the Sony seems to have a flatter tuning from my measurements, in actual A-B testing I found that the Sony does sound crisper in the upper mids and highs, so vocals sound clearer, as well as transient details in the soundstage. (Might be that it’s got cleaner track separation in the mids.) Also, their upper bass feels more tactile and punchy. In short, the Sony sounds more exciting to me, while the Bose sounds smoother, more mellow.
The Sony is also louder. At various volume levels you can see that the Sony is at least a few dBs louder than the Bose. The Bose actually sounds loud enough to me at 50% volume but if you need that extra power, the Sonys are louder.
Conclusion
So as we saw, the Sonys are better in some ways, but the Bose performs better and feels more current features-wise, albeit being a little more expensive than the Sonys. If you want to know the latest price on Amazon, check the links in the below.
But what do you think? Is there any way the Sonys are better that I haven’t covered in this article? Let me know in the comments. I will be releasing an update to this article about which are the best sounding headphones this year.
Check latest price:
Bose QuietComfort Headphones (2nd Gen) - https://link.amazon/B0f99DDlV
Sony WH-1000XM4C - https://link.amazon/B055rFyVV
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