Sony WH-1000XM6 Review Roundup: Noise-Cancelling KING? (ft MKBHD, Brian Tong, ZY Cheng)

Transcript

0:00 Speaker A: They did it, y'. Speaker A: All. Speaker A: Sony did it again. Speaker B: These are back on the throne. Speaker C: Objectively, it is a huge upgrade. Speaker D: Sony has absolutely smashed this release. Speaker E: Welcome back to RE review where we watch all the reviews so you don't have to. Speaker E: Today we're diving deep into the highly anticipated Sony WH1000XM6 headphones. Speaker E: Sony's making a big bold claim with these. Speaker F: Can they even legally say the best noise cancellation? Speaker G: Yes. Speaker F: Apparently they went through a whole bunch of certifications and tests so that in their marketing they could say it has the best active noise cancellation.

0:33 Speaker E: The best, huh? Speaker E: Let's see what the reviewers found when they got their hands on them, starting with the much discussed design changes. Speaker B: If you remember the last generation, they didn't fold at all ever. Speaker B: So they had this huge case that was more annoying to travel with. Speaker B: So first thing I was happy to see is the Mark Sixes are back to being able to fold up again. Speaker A: If you went from the XM4s to the XM5s, it's the number one thing that you missed. Speaker A: It's the number one thing that you wanted.

0:58 Speaker D: They have changed the case. Speaker C: Yeah, the case. Speaker D: Look at it. Speaker D: I mean, I've got to be careful not to make this entire video about the case for the XM6, but oh, I'm so excited. Speaker D: That's the XM5 case and that is the XM6 case. Speaker D: Look. Speaker B: And bonus, the case doesn't zipper anymore. Speaker B: It just closes with magnets at this buckle on the side and it is way faster to open and close than everyone else's zipper cases.

1:28 Speaker C: The redesign of the carrying case makes the XM6 more pleasant to try travel with as well. Speaker C: It's not only smaller now because the headphones now fold inside the case, and it just makes for a tremendously better experience when opening and closing the case. Speaker E: Beyond the very welcome return of folding and that sleek new case, the headphones themselves have seen number of physical refinements for usability and comfort from little touches. Speaker C: Like the much more distinct power button, so you can't confuse it anymore with the noise cancellation button to things you'll constantly be feeling.

1:57 Speaker C: Like the wider headband. Speaker C: The six has been designed to fit more tightly on your head so it's a better seal for noise cancellation and it doesn't wiggle when moving your head around. Speaker F: While they have what I would definitely describe as pretty solid clamping pressure, it doesn't contribute to significant discomfort for me, at least not immediately. Speaker F: And that's due to a couple of things. Speaker F: Number one is the really, really soft memory type foam that's on the ear cups here.

2:27 Speaker F: And another thing is the adequate sizing. Speaker H: Of the ear cup 254 grams. Speaker H: It weighs only 4 grams more than the XM5 and is overall pretty lightweight, especially compared to the AirPods Max. Speaker A: An awesome detail is that the ear cups are easily removable and replaceable on the XM6. Speaker A: I honestly can't tell if the XM5 can do this, but it surely does. Speaker C: Not come off easily. Speaker E: If it does, powering these significant audio upgrades is a new silicon and an increased number of microphones.

2:53 Speaker A: Well, it's going to start with the new QN3 processor. Speaker A: Okay, this is the brains of the XM6s and according to Sony, it performs seven times faster than the previous QN1 chip that's found in the XM5. Speaker C: There's a new processor in the 6 dedicated to noise cancelling. Speaker C: The XM5 was using the QN1, which has been the same noise cancelling processor since the XM3. Speaker C: So this is the first time the NC processor has ever been upgraded in seven years.

3:21 Speaker H: As well as more microphones, they're now a total of six in each earpiece. Speaker B: There are 12 microphones on these instead of eight from the last generation. Speaker E: And this new hardware directly fuels the best noise cancellation claim with more sophisticated approach. Speaker A: These new XM6s come with an improved adaptive noise canceling optimizer, which means it is constantly processing the sound that's happening around you and making you hear an experience here that just like again, isolates you from the world.

3:47 Speaker H: I spent a lot of time walking around the noisy streets of New York and riding the subway and and the headphones do a remarkably good job muffling sound across an even wider range of frequencies. Speaker C: The XM5's ANC will block a lot of it out, but if you listen for it, you can still pick up the sound from the air conditioner. Speaker C: You're aware that it's still there on the XM6. Speaker C: It disappears. Speaker C: Everything's just quieter. Speaker D: When it comes to noise cancelling, I have one question.

4:13 Speaker D: Are the XM6 the new noise cancelling kings? Speaker D: Yes, they are. Speaker E: It's not just about blocking sound out. Speaker E: Letting the right sounds in naturally also sees a big leap. Speaker B: The real highlight for me is actually the transparency mode, which feels way more natural and clear sounding. Speaker B: The transparency mode, or what Sony calls ambient sound mode, went from feeling a little muddy and unclear to literally up there with AirPods Max levels of crystal clear and natural, which is awesome.

4:41 Speaker C: I Find ambient mode back on the XM5 to sound a bit brighter than real life and that made me quite aware constantly that I was listening to my surroundings through a device. Speaker C: But it is a day and night difference. Speaker C: The XM6, it sounds like a genuinely transparent passthrough. Speaker C: Enough to convince you that it sounds like real life. Speaker E: Sony emphasizes that the new drivers and expert tuning by music industry professionals elevate the XM6's audio experience sound wise.

5:10 Speaker I: The XM6 has new drivers for richer details and clearer vocals. Speaker C: One of the studios involved in tuning the Sound for the WH1000XM6 is Battery Studios in New York City, which is one of Sony Music Entertainment's very own music production facilities. Speaker B: Basically the Mark VI's have a much stronger low end, especially in the sub bass and lowest bass. Speaker B: And the Mark VS started to feel a little spiky in the mid range where the vocals are and were a little bit weaker in the low end.

5:39 Speaker I: Also as you get higher in volume I feel like the XM6 retained more bass and to me the sound just holds up a little bit better. Speaker H: The XM6's sound is essentially an enhanced version of the XM5 sound with even smoother, more detailed sound, better mid range clarity and slightly better bass performance. Speaker H: Performance. Speaker H: It's a richer sounding headphone with a little more depth and extension to the sound. Speaker E: The companion app also introduces new ways to tailor your listening environment including a 10 band EQ.

6:07 Speaker B: Now this one new one that I found interesting is Listening mode. Speaker B: So you can listen to your audio like normal in standard mode or you can flip it to background music mode, which does an incredibly good job of making it sound like the music is coming from a small set of tinny speakers like 20ft away, like as if you're in a cafe somewhere. Speaker A: The XM6s have an ability to take two channels of audio.

6:33 Speaker A: It then passes them through a virtualizer that they use for Sony's 360 spatial sound technology. Speaker A: Then it up mixes them to multichannel. Speaker A: Well this is bringing a cinematic quality experience in your headphones and it is pretty amazing. Speaker A: Turn on the cinema mode and it completely opens up the sound and it presents the sound in a bigger sound stage that feels like you're hearing this in a movie theater. Speaker I: There is a trade off though.

6:58 Speaker I: We no longer have the clear bass option, which was an easy way to adjust the bass on the XM5 with. Speaker E: More mics dedicated to voice and AI driven noise reduction. Speaker E: Call quality is another area Sony aimed to improve. Speaker H: Sony says the headphones now have six AI beamforming microphones devoted to voice calls instead of four. Speaker A: Sony's AI noise reduction. Speaker A: This uses over 500 million voice samples to learn how to extract human voices from environmental sound.

7:24 Speaker B: But what I really think most of these microphones are better for is noise cancellation and transparency. Speaker H: All right, I'm in the streets of New York City. Speaker H: I'm with video producer, senior video producer at Nummi. Speaker H: And I have a lot of background noise here. Speaker H: I've got cars, a little bit of wind. Speaker H: Just trying to check how good the background noise reduction is and how well you can hear my voice. Speaker B: I can hear you super clear.

7:49 Speaker B: I don't hear any of the other. Speaker C: Sounds that you had mentioned. Speaker C: It's. Speaker B: Yeah, it's like you're in a closed room. Speaker G: Me. Speaker I: The XM6 are the most impressive at eliminating background noise. Speaker I: You honestly couldn't tell I was next to a busy street. Speaker I: And the vocals seem to be the loudest. Speaker E: Let's look at the practicals. Speaker E: How long does these headphones last and. Speaker H: How do they connect your devices like the XM5? Speaker H: The XM6 is rated for 30 hours of battery life at moderate volume levels with noise canceling on and 40 hours with it off.

8:16 Speaker E: A three minute charge gives these headphones three hour battery life. Speaker I: You can now listen to the XM6 while charging them at the same time. Speaker I: You can also still use them passively with the included 3.5 millimeter audio jack if the battery runs out or if you just prefer a wired connection for certain devices. Speaker A: Since Apple devices do not support Bluetooth LE audio, low latency will not be available on something like let's say your iPhone or your iPad wirelessly.

8:44 Speaker H: As far as audio codecs go, the default codec is aac, but Android users can also offer Sony's high quality LDAC codec for Bluetooth streaming. Speaker H: There's also SBC and LC3. Speaker A: Now the XM6 is support multi point connections, so that means it can connect to and switch between two devices at the same time. Speaker B: And can combine an Apple device and a non Apple device, which is sick. Speaker I: Whatever content you're watching or listening to is, it'll automatically pause whenever you play something on your secondary device.

9:13 Speaker E: Sony continues to pack these headphones with an array of smart features, many configurable through the Sound Connect app. Speaker D: Oh, and Sony has a new app which is called Sony Sound Connect, which finally brings together all of your Sony audio devices, all of your headphones, your speakers, et cetera, into one app. Speaker H: Hey. Speaker H: In Sony's pioneering Speak to chat feature that automatically lowers the volume on whatever you're listening to and switches from noise canceling to ambient sound mode to let sound in.

9:38 Speaker H: When you initiate a conversation with someone,. Speaker F: Takes like a second to kick in and then, let's see, okay, about 15 seconds. Speaker F: Okay, so that gives a minute. Speaker C: And one of my favorites is quick attention mode. Speaker C: That's when you cover the entire touch panel on the right ear cup when you're in noise cancellation mode. Speaker C: And that temporarily peeks you out into your surroundings by activating ambient mode until you remove your palm. Speaker I: Head gestures are also new, and this allows you to do things like accept the phone call by nodding your head or reject the phone call by shaking your head from left to right.

10:12 Speaker E: And in the app now, we have some different features. Speaker C: One of them is we can control. Speaker E: These headphones using a voice command. Speaker C: Hey, headphones, what's the battery level? Speaker E: Battery fully charged. Speaker G: Sometimes if I wanted to increase and decrease the audio. Speaker G: If you don't get it like perfectly or get it right, you have to continue to keep doing it over and over and over in order for it to actually go up.

10:37 Speaker B: My only downsides are literally that your ears can get a little sweaty without any ventilation after a couple hours. Speaker B: And the touchpad controls on the side are still finicky like they are every year. Speaker E: So with all these upgrades, the inevitable question of price and overall value arises, especially in a competitive market. Speaker H: The XM6 costs $450, or $50 more than the XM5, which was already expensive at $400.

11:02 Speaker D: They cost 400 quid, 400 pounds, which is a lot of money. Speaker D: The AirPods Max from Apple have kind of pushed up the price of noise canceling headphones. Speaker D: And I think he's got a point with that. Speaker B: Especially for Android people like the Bose QuietComfort Ultras are 429. Speaker B: These are better. Speaker B: The Sonos headphones launched at $450 and have dropped a little bit, but These are better. Speaker B: AirPods Max are still somehow $550.

11:27 Speaker B: You could argue though, for the Apple ecosystem people that maybe that's worth it. Speaker I: It all depends on your needs, your ecosystem, so on and so forth. Speaker I: For me, I would lean towards the XM6. Speaker I: I feel like as a whole, they match my preferences as far as what I'm looking for in a pair of premium headphones. Speaker G: 100%, Yes, they are worth your money, but in my opinion, the sound quality is not too much different than the XM5.

11:52 Speaker G: So if you can find the XM5s for a cheaper price, then it might be a good option to also go this route. Speaker A: Sony I legitimately have no notes. Speaker A: I love how Sony gives it a few years between models to bring meaningful advancements. Speaker A: So the questions that I have is like will I be upgrading? Speaker A: Absolutely. Speaker A: Will these be my new travel headphones? Speaker E: 100% So after hearing from the experts, the Sony WH1000XM6 clearly makes a strong case for being the new premium noise canceling champion.

12:23 Speaker E: The return of the much loved foldable design paired with a sleeker, more convenient magnetic case addresses key practical concerns from previous iterations. Speaker E: Reviewers universally praised these significant quality of life improvements, especially for travel. Speaker E: Internally, the new QN3 processor and increased microphone array delivered on Sony's promise of top tier, if not the outright best. Speaker E: Active noise cancellation the ability to virtually silence environments, particularly in the mid range frequencies was a standout alongside a transparency mode that now described as exceptionally natural and clear, rivaling the best in class.

12:57 Speaker E: Sound quality sees a refinement too, with the new drivers providing richer details and more balanced presentation with improved bass and clearer vocals. Speaker E: The expanded 10 band EQ and innovative features like the cinematic up mixing offer users more control and new listening experiences. Speaker E: Call quality also gets a noticeable boost making these more versatile for communication. Speaker E: While the price has increased to $450, the consensus is that comprehensive upgrades from the fundamental redesign and comfort enhancements to the core audio processing class leading an and evolved smart features make the XM6 a compelling package.

13:30 Speaker E: They represent a thoughtful, mature revolution in Sony's flagship line. Speaker E: For those seeking the pinnacle of noise cancellation, refined sound and a rich feature set in a travel friendly design, the WH1000XM6 appears to be the new benchmark to beat. Speaker E: That's it for our ultimate roundup review of the Sony WH1000XM6. Speaker E: Please find links to full videos down below and come back for more re reviews where we watch old reviews so you don't have to.