Sony WH-1000XM4 vs Bose ANC 700 | Which headphone reigns supreme? 

Jeffry De Leon I was a new subscriber to his channel a few months before he stopped doing reviews :(

I was thinking the same thing.

You can see his opinions on these on his Instagram

I think he will do a xm4 review in YT. He actually reviewing stuffs in his twitch channel.

Why did he stop? I watched his xm3 review to buy the m4's

Dsdxzz

? P we have a lie few1 can Zambia sssaaaaa

@@jackfoo3336 💀

@@jackfoo3336 Did you have a stroke

OMG man I just tried, yes I can turn on and off speak to chat by doing what you said, amazing!!!

@@lushikatakanbaru2508 how effective is the NC on the sonys?

Well I pretty much need a 1/4 of volume to listen only to my music at the noisy car workshop. Hope that helps.

@@lushikatakanbaru2508 thanks for the info, I was wondering how affective the NC is without anything playing :)

Man, I didn't know that we can turn speak to chat on/off with that gesture. No reviews I watched mentioned it. Thank you!!!

Thanks for your comment I’m struggling with which ones should I get, I’ve always been a bose guy and my older brother a song guy, does the EQ feature is also available for IPhone bose app?

100% agreed. I Sony and Bose to decide which one I like more. I stayed with Bose as the sound quality and a few mentioned features in the video are superior. I don't understand why people like Sony's sound signature. To me, everything sounded very muffled and base heavy when Bose's sound is clear and can be fine-tuned in the app. Tried to do the same with Sony and wasn't able to adjust it to my liking.

What are your settings at im struggling to get it right

@@richardrodriguez4269 Depending on the song (and mood) my settings are: BASS +4 to +6, MID 0 to +2, TREBLE+3 to +5. Hope that helps

Did you try Quietcomfort 45, XM3 and Bose 700 for comparison?

@@dhruvpatel6604 did you try sony at all?

Which ones out of the bose A20, bose 700 and the Sony have the best noise cancelling?

@@helenalovelock1030 Bose A20 by far is the best, But it's an aviation headset, so it's not for everyday listening etc.. I'm just comparing it here for the purpose of comparisons about ANC only, and it's heavy and bulky and very expensive too, in Australia I purchased it for $1500 AU dollars about 5 years ago, now it's about $1750 AU dollars or something like that But between Sony and Bose 700, Sony win by far

@@astronaut77 Ahh Thankyou so much. I need really good ANC to cut out snoring 😩😩. I have to wear every night all night otherwise I don’t sleep. I have bose QC 35 but was wondering if there were any better ones. I’ll try the Sonys ? XM4 or XM5 ????

Still doesn’t mean they do what they say Bose is King for calling and instrumental if you want base Sony 🤷🏻‍♂️

@@Red5_ I do disagree. Bose has slightly better call quality - but to be honest, in business use you are not calling from noisy environments. If you are, you are doing it wrong. As headphones, Sony sound better, have better customization and the ANC is better. For me the Sonys even fit better.

@@konkeli I’m having the same debate right now Bose 700 Soapstone for $400 aud or Sony XM4 in silent white for $550 and my Bose quiet comfort 35 II are great should I upgrade or not in your opinion. Are the Sony’s $150 aud better colour is important to me.

@@Red5_ I'd personally go and try them out. If you want white headphones and have the $$$, I don't think there is too much competition. However I'd check how I'm using them, travelling/only phone calls/music (depends also on the type of music)/how many hours a day etc. I've had in use QC35's, went to XM3's, tried B&O A8/9, and now I'm with XM4s. I actually bought them when my 3's died after 2½ years of heavy work use (almost daily flights, Teams/Slack, calls) and have been super happy, as the 4's are slightly (and I mean slightly) larger from cups, and they fit my head better. But yeah, don't buy just for a guy ranting in youtube comments section, go and try them out, it's your money :D

@@konkeli Not all business is conducted in conference rooms like you see in the movies. Many business calls are made from the field onsite at factories, or even in loud places such as airports etc. I rarely get a chance at a quiet environment, and I guarantee you, I'm doing it right.

What about confort?

I don’t disagree but why do you think the M4 wins? I think if the Bose had an EQ (which it does but in broken firmware updates that aren’t available) then it could still compete with the XM4. A couple of features I would like to see on the Bose that the Sony has is the voice detection and auto pause when you take them off. All the smart location stuff I just find puts you in the wrong mode most of the time but you can turn that off.

I had 2 pair of the XM3s and they were, to put it mildly, garbage, compared to the 700s. There was a noticeable white noise in the Sony's that I've never experienced in a Bose product, including the 700s, and a jarring clicking sound in the XM3s while riding the train every day, that I've never experienced in the Bose. I looked on forums and a lot of other people complained about this, so I returned mine and went with the 700s. I hope Sony fixed these problems with the XM4s, but the Bose also always felt more "premium", I think mainly due to the metal band and the way the finish on the outside of the ear cups doesn't feel as "plasticy" as the XM3s. What is your feeling when comparing the 700s material feel to the XM4s? That being said, I can see the XM4s being really nice if they fixed the ANC problems the XM3s were having.

@@AndrewHosford I haven't experienced any deal breaker issues yet with the XM4s like what you have mentioned with the XM3. The XM4s have that rubber coating that tends to turn into a sticky mess after a few years. The XM4s do have a more plastic feel but it's a good quality plastic feel, the cup swivels are so smooth it feels like they have bearings, presumably this will stop any clicks that result from static friction being overcome. The Bose mostly look as new as the day I got them except for the headband where it directly rests on my bald head. It has a slight wave to it now. The cup padding on the Bose is amazingly uniform with no waves. The Sony has a couple of small waves, mainly at the top and bottom of the cups. I have identified an issue with the headband ratchet on the Sony. It's lighter for extending than contracting and in my opinion too light. The headband is ever so slightly too big for my not super small head so I always have the headband on the smallest setting and on multiple occasions the headband has slipped a notch or two. I would say the build quality is by no means bad, it's very good, but there is a bit of room for improvement. Lastly, I never had the XM3s but I haven't identified any specific issues with the ANC on the XM4. It still has the brown noise and passthrough is nowhere near as good as the virtually completely natural experience with the Bose where they sound like you're not wearing them. That said, the XM4 does have a "focus on voice" feature which should make voices more prominent against background noise but I haven't specifically tested that yet.

@@oliverpolden Awesome rundown! A couple complaints I do have about the Bose: the ear cups slide down the band a little more easily than I would like. When I'm being active and the headphones are jiggling around on my head, sometimes they loosen up a bit too much, and I have to adjust them to get them to ride higher up on my ears. And sometimes they don't stop whatever music or podcast or whatever I'm listening to on my phone when I turn them off, so the phone starts playing that music/podcast/etc really loudly in my pocket. It's been a bit embarrassing a few times that's happened at work.

Xm3 do that as well

Sorry but his review had so much misinformation.. Glad he at least said the wh1000xm4's are better

Yeah that's what I did, maybe an update? I just kept holding it then it said it was powering off, kept holding and then it said pairing.

You are right when you say anc produced by both headphones are nearly identical but the thing is even though Sony offers more noise cancellation the Bose just offers it with more quality as if you’re really feeling yourself being isolated from the world whereas with the Sony’s I just feel like I’m putting my hands over my ears

I find my QC35s have better canceling than my XM4s. And by noise-canceling I mean silence. The XM4 has a constant low volume hiss that simply should not be there.

When I tested each at Best Buy, the Sony's seemed to do a better job at drowning out the low-end humming and echos from all the people talking. Then again, you never know how poorly a floor unit has been treated.

Thank you Oliver for you in depth review. This is the kind of review that I am looking for. It is very detailed. I actually put on the Bose headphones and for me the comfort level was the wow factor that I have been looking for.

@@josephchadwell2786 firmware 1.7.0 which includes the EQ on the Bose NC700 is now out for everyone since the 14th September. Bose are back in the game. Guys, if you're on the fence with the Bose vs Sony and you want to save some money then go with the Bose. Just one caveat, they really messed up with their firmware in the last few months. It _should_ be stable now as they're doing a full rollout but given their recent history I would be a bit wary. That said, you can always just return the headphones if you have issues yourself. I'll be sure to comment if I have any updates but if you're reading this then feel free to double check in case I've missed this thread. I've posted in a couple of places.

Yass bomb review, boots the house down momma

How is your call experience? When I'm on the phone, any noise around me is heard very loudly by the person that I'm talking to. They keep complaining, is very annoying.

@@pablofernandez-portillo2400 Actually I usualy use them during exercise and I so far did not received any complains but maybe it may be different in a louder environment.

@@tolgademirtola9029 Thanks for your answer. In my case is just walking on the street or in a car if there is someone else talking. No that loud really. Also if I change to the phone, the other person hears me much better. So sad!

🤣

Its Trueeee hahahaa

🤣

That would be great for a meme lol

LOL

❤️

I agree. Bought the xm4’s but sent them back because the exerted too much pressure both around my ears and on my crown. It was uncomfortable from 5 minutes on. Now I got the nc700’s. Of course this is personal but to me they’re much more comfortable. And of course, by now the price dropped. I know someone who bought them for €250 a month ago but the price recently went up again. I paid €300.-

I had Beats initially... the sound quality is much different (better) in Bose and it did take me a while for my ears to get adapted to the Bose NC700.. but now I totally love it!

the stem look on the Bose just hella ugly design... Bose lacks on bass... but nice clear sound ...

Yes! I agree with this. I can hear the voice of the singers much better with Bose!

Hi Frederick, How much they are being sold for?

Did you ever have the Bose QC35. I have them and wondering if the noise cancelling might be better on the Boss 700

@@helenalovelock1030 you can feel easily that the noise cancelling is better, BUT qc35s one is still pretty good

I actually prefer having a smaller charging cable. Saves so much space. It's more of a last resort kind of thing IMO, anyway.

So will you charge them on the floor/carpet? Not a good idea. Long cable is always better.

@@jesusk1358 yes I do it all the time, I don't see the problem. In my house. If I was travelling I could just put a battery pack in the carrier whilst it charges.

and hold it down for a second to temporarily turn it off for a quick conversation, same again to return to the same level as before

Helpful bass comparison comparison!

@Twisted Soul lol stay salty. The sonys being too bass heavy is the first flaw every review mentioned. Noob.

Tried both, and the Bose 's sound is superior to Sony's

@@kuba27kuba27 funny enough it is objectively better as bose has better sound imaging than sonys.

are you from the future?

Then you should probably turn off the touch sensors using sony's app

@@ctyx96 I can do that???

@@susane7221 Yes! It's called Touch Sensor Control Panel in the app. I for one have it disabled too as I rarely use the touch controls. You may do some googling for picture aids.

@@ctyx96 awesome! Thank you! I rarely use them myself. I guess it would have been useful to read the instructions. Lol

The Sony controls are still more advanced though. Sony for life!

NC is better on Bose but I agree that there are pairing/connection issues that they haven’t resolved. Also agree that Sony is probably more comfortable for most people but the headband will be too big if you have a small head.

Could you elaborate a bit on the difference in ANC between the two pairs from ur experience?

@@jadbhamdouni7jb Same question. I have heard many people say the xm3 even had better ANC than the bose and the xm4 are supposed to be even better but on this channel I suddenly see averyone saying the 700s ANC is better? I have heard an ANC sound test comparing xm3 with the bose700 but the xm3s clearly won in the test. But that may not reflect real world use.

​@@jadbhamdouni7jb Sure. So to be clear it is very close between the XM4 and the NC700 and I don't think it should really influence purchase decision. I most certainly would say it's not clear which is better. Starting with passthrough, I find it to be unbelievable on the NC700, it's like you're not even wearing them. On the XM4 you get a lot of what I can only explain as environmental/atmospheric noise/hiss. It's not hiss like the older noise cancelling headphones, it's more like brown noise so it's not unpleasant. Some frequencies are amplified too much, some less so, e.g. you can really hear your clothes rustling as you walk. The passthrough on the XM4 doesn't sound natural. With the Bose NC700, when you turn NC on, they for all intents and purposes become silent (assuming there's no background noise or a very predictable not too loud noise, e.g. my projector fan becomes inaudible even if I'm only a couple of feet away). When you activate NC on the XM4 you get brown noise, it's not that loud but you can definitely hear it. The XM4 seems like it has more adaptive NC, so depending on the noise it thinks it hears it will change how it cancels it out. You can hear these changes (if you're not listening to music). You can sometimes hear these changes say if you're listening to RU-vid videos or just speech, especially if the video is quieter or nothing at all. I personally find it a bit distracting. The NC700 remains consistent. For about 97% of sounds I'm sure they're as good as each other but I haven't had the XM4 long enough to figure out in what scenarios it's supposedly better. The XM4 might be better with more random noises at higher frequencies but I haven't used them enough yet to work out if that is correct. The reason I believe the Bose NC is better is because you don't get the brown (or whatever colour) noise and it seems consistent and therefore less distracting. I should probably start saying that I prefer the NC on the Bose, not that it is necessarily better. The brown/pink/white noise will also mask outside noise which may or may not be a good thing. Your ears will eventually get used to the brown noise to the point that you don't really hear it any more unless you specifically listen for it. Anyway, most people will probably be happier with the XM4, they sound much more enjoyable even if they may not sound as natural or technically as good (which is debatable). The XM4 does punch up the bass a bit but at least it has an EQ unlike the Bose which doesn't. When I originally reviewed the Bose I mentioned that despite how good they sounded, I felt that there was something lacking that I couldn't put my finger on. When I say lacking, I just didn't get as much of a "wow" as I thought I would for that price. One last thing that occurred to me was that perhaps because the passthrough mode on the XM4 is that much worse than the NC700, it possibly sounds louder or more chaotic. When you then put it into NC mode, that clatter is gone and you get an "ahhh" moment. You don't get such an "ahhh" moment with the Bose because the passthrough is so natural and doesn't sound noisy, clattery... Hope that helps. I'd say if you listen to a lot of spoken word then the Bose NC may be better for that, otherwise they're pretty equal.

Just an fyi on Bose 700.. They now have an equalizer (launched in early July), you just need to upate your headphones.. well... if you still had them..

Could you elaborate on the difference in ANC performance between the XM4 and the 700's??

I tried the Sony XM4 in the shop recently and found a considerable delay when watching videos on my iPhone. Have you experienced that? Grateful for your feedback

Bose 700 have a neutral soundstage and the bass isn't there for me while Sony XM3 and XM4 has deeper and better bass. When it comes to ANC they are similar.

How is the mic functionality which one is the best?

@@jadbhamdouni7jb The ANC is about the same if you disregard the hissing noise from the Sony. I am returning mine because of that noise. Bose QC35 and NC700 both have much less background hiss with ANC on.

Thanks for that. I’ll have to try. The Bose volume control is better allowing multiple steps in a single swipe. But good to know about the Sony, better than multiple swipes but whenever you have to hold for volume control you inevitably don’t end up quite where you want.

I actually don't get why it is such a big deal. Anyone care to explain? I currently use Sennheiser Momentum and they work even when charging so there I get why it would be silly to have a short cable. However the sonys don't work while charging anyway so a short cable to a laptop port seems ideal. And if I needed a long cable I could borrow my samsung phone charger/cable. What am I missing? My sennheiser are getting 4-5 years old and battery life is diminishing, ear muffs are looking poor so I'm seriously considering the xm4. What I've read about the new momentum3 doesn't sound like enough of a step forward to be a contender.

i think they want everthing to fit in the box

imagine having enough money to be able to do this, CANNOT relate💀😂

The Bose has an equalizer in the boss music application.

@@tinibeaniee don't be deceived, I don't spend much money on anything else....In the end I recently sold the Bose, just not exciting as the Sony's. If Sony had a similar design and comfort as the Bose, they would be hands down the winner

@@23dunmc Last I heard, it was not as comprehensive as the Sony's?

Hey Abdul. I would stick with the Bose. The Sony does have some good stuff but not enough to upgrade. NC is worse but not by much on the Sony. The Sony has a lot of atmospheric noise when music isn’t playing where as you know the Bose is pretty much completely silent.

Also call quality is Bose's strength

@@vxdr3698 he meant like the microphone, etc.

@@vxdr3698 :)

Yep .. mic is more natural in Bose.

@@vxdr3698 ru sure about sonys sound quality? I think in terms of quality bose is still the king

Sony comfo than Bose No way

In case someone still reads this in 2022: for me personally the pressure the xm4’s exerted on my head (both around the ears and crown) was way too much to be comfortable. The nc700’s are much better for me if you want to wear them for a longer time.

Exactly. And also, they DO have a tansparancy mode. You just press one button and boom, you can hear everyone.

I tried a zoom call on Friday along with the Neat Bumblebee microphone. The other party said it sounded amazing.

@@mallorydurrick yes this is what I've been wondering... These days chasing the best sound for your voice on Zoom and Webex and settings for the webcam seem to be a valuable knowledge and skill to have...

@@Brad901 Hi Brad. This is precisely why I chose the Sony model. I will never get on an airplane or be on a train or in a crowd so for me at home, I needed a good headset for music/netflix enjoyment. Also, to be used easily between two different devices and most of all, for zoom/web conference calls. Although I'm contemplating the new 5K iMac which has a great web cam/microphone, I also looked into top of the line web cams. The headset and microphone combo is a really good one. I can say if you have a Yeti or something better than what I have, you'll be very pleased with the result. My sister on the iPhone said my headset sounded like I was in stereo. She loved it. Hope that helps you make the right decision.

I don't understand why Bose didn't tune them for a better bass response. The portable speaker they sell.. I don't know the model name.. is very bass heavy for it's size. The wave radios of the past had a crap ton of bass. I don't get it..

@@kevina2052 I know, right?

100% agreed Bose always sounds better over the Sony to me

Well, to be fair, they both do an excellent job, and the differences are so subtle that you have a hard time telling which one is better. So, it's normal that ones can say that one is better and others the other

Ben Abrams agree!

I disagree but then it could depend on what the environmental noise is.

I ran to the store to get them. But i came out of the store with the Bose nc700..While trying them out, i came to the conclusion that the bose fit me better in terms of comfort. So please for the very least try them on.

I can't wait till mine are returned to the retailer! It's uncomfortable, has a lot more background hiss compared my old QC35 and has gimmicky features that I'd rather just turn off.

@@xink64 Hvilken nogle var det - Bose?

@@vanefreja86 Det var Sony XM4, som jeg returnerede. Har også prøvet Bose NC700, men mine gamle Bose QC35 er klart mest behagelige!

@@xink64 tak for svar - er selv meget i tvivl om hvilken en af disse to jeg gerne vil købe. Det er førse gang jeg køber over-ear trådløse høre-telfoner, men jeg vil have kvalitet for pengene :) Det kommer vel lidt an på hvordan ens hoved er ;)