Sony WF-1000XM6 Review Roundup: Best Earbuds of 2026? (ft. Flossy Carter, SoundGuys)

Transcript

0:00 Speaker A: The noise cancellation is unbelievable. Speaker B: The XM6 actually enters new territory. Speaker C: It is not one that I am completely in love with. Speaker D: These are Sony's best sounding earbuds to date. Speaker E: Welcome back to re review where we watch all the reviews so you don't have to Today we're looking at the Sony's WF 1000X Mark VI earbuds. Speaker E: Let's start with that brand new design. Speaker D: Gone are the glossy egg shaped earbuds from the XM5. Speaker D: The WF1000XM6 now sports a larger pill shaped profile that's way easier to grip thanks to the new matte fin.

0:32 Speaker D: And thank goodness that glossy coating is gone because those things were slippery as hell and I hated fiddling with them in my ears. Speaker F: The design has really changed over the years in a lot of ways, but I've got to say this year, and it's not because it's the most recent design, this is the most streamlined design that we have seen from them in years. Speaker A: Now when I first seen the new pill shaped design, I was a little concerned that it wasn't going to be as comfortable as the XM5s, because if you got these, you know, these are super comfortable.

0:59 Speaker A: Ladies and gentlemen, I'm here to let you know the pill shape fits even better. Speaker A: Even better. Speaker E: Not everyone was sold on the new shape though. Speaker C: The design is definitely an interesting one and if I'm being honest, it is not one that I am completely in love with. Speaker C: I mean, for starters, this looks pretty bulky. Speaker C: It honestly kind of looks like a giant pebble is sitting in my ear. Speaker G: The only real miss in terms of design, the charging case.

1:26 Speaker G: Not sure what Sony was thinking here. Speaker G: The chunky angular shape feels awkward in my pocket and it doesn't sit right on some wireless chargers. Speaker H: These ones are definitely slim and light and one of the most comfortable pair of earbuds I've placed in my ears. Speaker H: They're just very, very snug and comfy. Speaker H: They use this kind of memory foam stuff for the tips, which means it kind of forms around the ear inner ear canal when you put it in.

1:53 Speaker I: And I was a little bit skeptical that I could actually get a stable, comfortable fit because of the size of these things. Speaker I: But I've got to say I found myself pleasantly impressed by these things. Speaker I: They never came loose, not once. Speaker I: Despite some severe mastication. Speaker I: I tried a wee bit of jogging and that did absolutely nothing to stir them. Speaker D: There's a curved indentation on the earbud body that tucks into the cavity of your concha. Speaker D: That's the little bowl shaped part of your outer ear.

2:18 Speaker D: So it's using your ear's natural anatomy as an anchor point instead of relying pur purely on the ear tip seal. Speaker E: But the comfort story isn't universal and. Speaker C: They don't just look bulky, like you can feel the weight while you're wearing it too. Speaker C: They for sure feel heavier than my AirPods and that's why I think the noise cancellation is just a tad bit weaker. Speaker C: Like despite trying out the different ear tip sizes, the weight of the actual earbud makes it feel like it's preventing me from having a snug seal.

2:44 Speaker C: The Sony unfortunately is at the end just because of that foam tip pressing up against your ear canal a little bit. Speaker C: So it's more present, let's say not super uncomfortable by any means. Speaker C: But yeah, if we had to rank it, this is what it would be. Speaker F: I'm just going to say it right now. Speaker F: These are the best selling wireless earbuds at this price point that I've heard. Speaker B: My first impression of the XM6 is actually very strong. Speaker B: And what I find very interesting is that to me, the XM6 actually enters new territory for one of these popular manufacturers.

3:14 Speaker B: Something like the AirPods Pro 3, the Bose QC Ultra 2nd gen, even something like the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4. Speaker B: I find that the XM6 is a cut above those popular manufacturers and is actually in the high end audiophile range of sound quality. Speaker H: These sound fantastic. Speaker H: They sound so good straight out of the box. Speaker H: And the fact that you have that 10 band EQ means you can tweak them pretty much to any degree.

3:39 Speaker H: You can get these sounding just as you want, but out of the box they sound bright, they sound nice and deep. Speaker H: You know the bass goes low without being flabby and distorted. Speaker G: The sound quality of the Sony WF1000XM6 is outstanding. Speaker G: It's incredibly well balanced with clear separation between vocals and instruments. Speaker G: Punchy but controlled bass and zero distortion.

4:04 Speaker G: Even on bass heavy tracks. Speaker E: The tuning wasn't universally praised. Speaker E: Out of the box though. Speaker B: What is a little bit surprising is that these are more balanced, neutral and honestly more reference like than I was expecting. Speaker J: Needs EQ for sure. Speaker J: As someone who prefers a little bit more of a vocal forward sound, I definitely felt the need to boost the mids. Speaker H: These really come alive though with ldac. Speaker H: So LDAC is Sony's high res audio codec.

4:31 Speaker H: It's not lossless. Speaker F: I'm gonna tell you right now. Speaker F: These have fuller mids so that just kind of beefs up the sound. Speaker F: The bass and the lows are a lot deeper but very detailed, and you still have a lot of detail in those highs. Speaker A: These sound great. Speaker A: First of all, when it started, you can hear the highs and the mids immediately, but the clarity, wow. Speaker A: Sony has definitely improved the sound quality. Speaker A: And I haven't Even touched the EQ yet.

4:56 Speaker I: Sony's fresh, new faster QN3E processor handles all of that, helped along by a grand total of eight mics. Speaker I: You've got four microphones stuffed into each of these admittedly rather chonky buds, whereas the previous generation had just three per bud, for a grand total of six. Speaker I: It's adaptive noise cancellation, so it will actually adapt to your environment depending on how noisy or how quiet it is. Speaker I: And I gotta say, Sony always knocks it out the park when it comes to the noise cancellation.

5:23 Speaker I: And they've done it again here for the Mark 6s. Speaker I: Easily the best noise cancellation I've heard on any pair of earbuds I've had stuffed inside of my greasy head. Speaker G: Simply put, this is the best auto noise cancelling I've ever used in earbuds, flights, gyms, city noises. Speaker G: The XM6 creates a genuinely silent bubble. Speaker G: Ambient sound mode is also excellent with granular control, so you can stay aware of your surroundings without feeling like you've turned auto noise canceling completely off.

5:53 Speaker D: Based on our lab data, the WF1000XM6 delivers excellent active noise cancellation with an 88% average reduction in loudness across all frequencies, which is an improvement over the XM5's 87%, though not that statistically significant of an improvement overall. Speaker D: It also still trails behind the AirPod Pro 3's 90% average, which is the highest we've ever measured active noise cancellation.

6:21 Speaker A: Y' all know we got three tiers. Speaker A: Trash tier, okay tier and top tier. Speaker A: And of course for Sony and Bose, God tier, these right here. Speaker A: God tier noise cancellation. Speaker A: If you're looking for earbuds that just have the best noise cancellation on the market, you work in a noisy truck, you work in a factory, you need the best noise cancellation. Speaker A: You travel a lot, bro. Speaker A: Do yourself a favor, get the Sony XM6.

6:48 Speaker A: The noise cancellation is unbelievable. Speaker H: It's the big one because I think Sony makes the best noise canceling headphones on the market. Speaker H: Cards on the table. Speaker H: They're not as good as the AirPods Pro 2 or 3. Speaker H: They're just not quite there. Speaker B: It's pretty early and I need to spend more time with the XM6, but I'm already Going to put them near the top of the list. Speaker B: On par with the AirPods Pro 3 and the Bose QC Ultra 2nd gen earbuds say they're slightly better than the AirPods Pro 3 and on par with the best in the class Bose earbuds.

7:20 Speaker F: With these XM6s. Speaker F: They sound really good, but you know, I do this snap test and to hear how crisp and clear that snap is, when you have these on in transparency mode, it just feels like there might be like the thinnest like layer of plastic that just dulls this a tiny bit. Speaker H: Transparency mode when you let the outside world in is pretty good. Speaker H: It's not as good as the AirPods Pro 2 or 3 again, but then nothing is.

7:46 Speaker H: They're just amazing. Speaker H: With that. Speaker A: The ambient sound mode sounds terrific. Speaker A: My voice sounds crystal clear. Speaker A: It doesn't sound robotic at all. Speaker A: I can hear my slightest nail on the table. Speaker A: I hear everything. Speaker G: Sony improved its microphone game. Speaker G: The WF1000XM6 have additional mics and better processing resulting in clean call quality, natural sounding voices and filtered background noises.

8:11 Speaker G: They're not studio microphones, like I wouldn't record voiceover on them, but they're very solid for calls. Speaker I: And these are the best Sony buds yet for phone calls as well, thanks to the AI beamform and mics and a bit of bone conduction sensor action which helps to isolate your voice from any background bollockry. Speaker I: And it's this tech assisted by AI background and noise reduction which ensures that you come through loud and clear even when you're wandering by a bit of roadworks.

8:37 Speaker G: Hello? Speaker G: Wait, are you on the phone or are you on earbuds? Speaker G: Because this sounds pretty good. Speaker J: I'm on the earbuds. Speaker A: Wow, not bad. Speaker J: Hold on, there's no traffic noises in the background yet though. Speaker F: Hold on. Speaker J: Oh, but now there is. Speaker J: Can you hear the traffic behind me? Speaker A: You sound a little bit more warbly,. Speaker G: But I don't hear any traffic. Speaker J: Really? Speaker J: Yeah. Speaker A: Like not at all. Speaker J: Okay. Speaker J: How about now? Speaker G: Barely. Speaker G: Really? Speaker J: Yeah. Speaker J: Huh.

9:02 Speaker J: Okay, that's pretty sick because I even tried to mess with you and I put it like right where my mouth was. Speaker J: Subjectively to me the most exciting thing about these is just how configurable they are. Speaker J: Whether you're on iOS or Android, there is so much you can do to fine tune these to exactly your preference. Speaker I: And then in there you'll find the. Speaker I: Find my equalizer. Speaker I: And how this works is pretty simple. Speaker I: Just play some of your favorite music through the earbuds.

9:27 Speaker I: Now you see you've got the numbers 1 through 5, just give each of those a tap in turn and it'll just slightly tweak the audio playback, either boosting the bass or the treble or whatnot. Speaker I: So decide which one is your favorite and then tap next and it'll just perform a wee bit more fine tuning. Speaker I: So again, just decide which one sounds best to your ears and then you're done. Speaker C: The app just gives you way more customization for your earbuds, even beyond eq, like listening modes, ambient sound levels, adaptive sound control, just more options than what you would get if you were using AirPods.

9:57 Speaker F: The interesting thing about this is you can't just freely say oh next song or next track or you know, skip ahead. Speaker F: You actually have to use exact wording. Speaker F: So I would have to say play music to play it. Speaker F: I would have to say pause music to pause it. Speaker F: That's a little unnatural. Speaker D: Sony has also added optional head gesture controls so you can do things like accept calls with a nod or reject them with a head shake. Speaker D: These works reliably well, but I typically disabled them because I kept accidentally triggering actions by just, you know, moving my head like a normal person does.

10:29 Speaker D: Sony claims 8 hours on a single charge with up to 24 hours total with the case. Speaker D: Now these are the exact same specs again as with the previous XM5 as well as the previous XM4 earbuds before it. Speaker D: So yes, Sony has not improved battery life across three generations of earbuds now. Speaker D: But honestly, eight hours is still the ballpark for all the top competitors nowadays. Speaker I: 7 Hours of playback with noise cancellation action is certainly one of the better efforts out there.

10:56 Speaker I: And then when you are all done with the buds or they do need a bit of a top up, just chuck them. Speaker I: Back in the German we carry case,. Speaker G: I wasn't sure whether to label the price as a pro or a con because on one hand the Sony WF1000XM6 are $100 more than AirPods Pro 3 when you factor in the sale price you can usually fetch. Speaker G: Given how Sony has been creeping their prices up across their entire lineup lately, I was fully expecting a new model tax.

11:22 Speaker G: Seeing them stick to the same MSRP as the previous generation is a win for us, especially with all the improvements you're getting. Speaker F: Sony, you still really got to do something about that name. Speaker F: They retail for $329.99 here in the US but really what stands out to me is the audio quality of these. Speaker F: They are Chef Kiss and they have elevated to another level. Speaker E: So what about xm5 owners is it worth the upgrade?

11:47 Speaker G: If you already have the XM5, you might be wondering if it's worth the upgrade. Speaker G: Here's the short answer. Speaker G: Yes, if comfort and auto noise canceling matter to you, the XM6 is smaller or more comfortable and cancels noise better and sounds more refined. Speaker G: Battery life is the same, but the overall experience is better. Speaker D: If you already own the previous WF1000XM5, the improvements here probably aren't enough to justify the upgrade.

12:13 Speaker D: The fit is better, the sound is marginally improved, the ANC is modestly better, and the microphones are significantly better, but battery life and codecs and everything else remains identical when it comes to value. Speaker B: For me, the XM6 instantly jumps to the top of the list as one of the best all arounders when you factor in the noise canceling performance, the mic quality and the sound quality.

12:38 Speaker B: So for that reason alone, I think that the XM6 is worth the price. Speaker I: I've been testing this for a few days now. Speaker I: They perform great on all fronts and I think the comfort is definitely improved with the XM compared to the XM5. Speaker H: Has Sony finally beaten the AirPods Pro? Speaker H: No, they haven't. Speaker H: In my opinion, the AirPods Pro 2 and 3 are the best ANC earbuds on the market. Speaker H: However, that's a bit of a biased conclusion because if you're in the Apple ecosystem, if you've got an iPhone by default, these are the best choice.

13:09 Speaker A: Now as much as I love the Bose, I gotta be honest with y', all, I like the Sony's better in every single way. Speaker A: First of all, the call quality was better, the transparency mode is better, and the active noise cancellation. Speaker A: Now don't get me wrong, the Bose has God tier active noise cancellation, but the Sony's I haven't heard anything better yet. Speaker C: Which one would I actually keep in my everyday carry?

13:34 Speaker C: If we're talking about something that I'm going to use every day and wear hours at a time, I'm still rocking my AirPod Pro 3s. Speaker C: For me, they just fit way better. Speaker C: They feel a lot more lighter in my ears and just more comfortable overall. Speaker E: So who should buy these? Speaker E: If you're an Android user who values sound and noise cancellation above all else, this is the earbud to beat. Speaker E: If you're deep in Apple's ecosystem, the AirPods Pro 3 remain the safer bet at a lower price.

13:59 Speaker B: Overall, the Sony WF1000XM6 earbuds receives an 8.7 out of 10. Speaker B: To me, these are unique because they combine the daily usage practicality of that elite noise canceling performance, microphone quality with fairly good comfort and at least a secure fit for when you're working out. Speaker B: I know it's early in the year, but if there isn't another earbud to enter the market that's going to be really shaking things up.

14:24 Speaker B: Then I could see the Sony XM6 being the best wireless earbud of 2026. Speaker I: For a proper premium pair of earbuds. Speaker I: Hands down they're among my absolute favorites right now in 2026, helped along massively by the excellent noise cancellation. Speaker I: The fully customizable EQ settings clear a bit of the find your equalizer. Speaker I: That's definitely an excellent feature and plenty more unique tools bunged in these things which really do help to set them apart from the rest of its rivals.

14:51 Speaker E: Thanks for watching this ultimate roundup review of the Sony's WF 1000X Mark VI earbuds. Speaker E: Please find links for full videos below and come back for more re reviews where we watch all the reviews so you don't have to.