Airpods Max: Apple has another winner on this one, IMO

[ironhide0427]

The sound quality over the Bose and Sony is significant to my untrained, consumer, non-pro, non-audiophile ears. The noise cancellation is also a level above. Paired with transparency, is a win for Apple.

Comfort - this is what has surprised me. This is a big factor for me when choosing headphones. I use them for hours every day, so I need a comfortable pair. This is why I have been using the Bose QC35 over the Sony XM4, Sony pinches my ear and gets hot pretty quickly, so I returned them. I purchased the Airpods Max, got them yesterday, and ready to return at the first sign of discomfort while using them. But to my surprise, IT HAS BEEN COMFORTABLE. While it is still not as comfortable as the QC35, it has not given me any discomfort. I have been wearing them for hours now, working throughout the night and at times I forget it's there. I don't know what kind of voodoo engineering Apple did but it actually does not bother me in spite of the massive weight difference from the Bose.

The integration to the whole Apple ecosystem is of course a big plus. Battery life, for what I need, is sufficient. Spatial audio is magic and has big potentials but currently very limited.

The case is the big miss here, I don't know what Apple was thinking there, but it's not enough of a drawback to stir me away from the Max.

The price, in my opinion, is justified. Like I saw in another thread...Apple Max is a Tesla, Sony and Bose are Honda and Toyota.

 

[mcaswell]

Picked mine up yesterday morning, with the assumption that I'd probably end up returning them for not being good enough (compared to my Bose NC700) for the price. But to my surprise, after listening to the most of the day, I listed the NC700 for sale on Ebay, and I'm shipping them out this morning.

One of the reasons I expected to return them was that I read from an early recipient that the APM has less bass than the NC700. But I found the exact opposite to be true... on a few bass-heavy tracks that I tried, while the NC700 had decent bass, the APM gave me almost an "I'm wearing a subwoofer on my head" kind of feeling, with the bass having noticeably more thump, but also being very clear and not overpowering the rest of the content. I also found the upper-mids / lower-highs (distorted guitar, female vocals, strings, etc.) to be smoother and more pleasant.

I agree with you also on comfort... I am able to wear them comfortably for hours (the NC700 starts to get uncomfortable to me after only 30 minutes or so, with top-of-the-head pressure and more sweaty ears).

Are these really worth $550? After initially being hesitant and skeptical, yes, I think they are, despite the annoying lack of a power button (which hopefully will be remedied in a firmware update).

 

[chicagofan00]

I’m really enjoying mine so far. Love the sound and ANC capabilities. They have also been really comfortable and I’ve had no issues with wearing them for over 2hrs straight so far this morning. Sure they have some heft to them but they feel more planted on my head versus a heavy feeling.

 

[jbachandouris]

Comfort would be a main concern for me as I have the Beats Studio 3's that I bought from Target for $175. They hurt my ears after wearing them after awhile (with glasses on), but I'm not sure I want to pay the price for better headphones.....

 

[ninethirty]

I'm genuinely with the reviewers. The sound quality is outstanding, and the build is pretty fantastic too. They look great, sound great, and I find them really comfortable to wear.

That case though... Apple's going to be made fun of for years for that abomination. I have no idea how anyone at Apple thought it was a good idea.

 

[anticipate]

I'm genuinely with the reviewers. The sound quality is outstanding, and the build is pretty fantastic too. They look great, sound great, and I find them really comfortable to wear.

That case though... Apple's going to be made fun of for years for that abomination. I have no idea how anyone at Apple thought it was a good idea.

I bought them fully intending to try and return. I was blown away. I did not expect them to be so good; they are absolutely worth the money. (I have used many headphones over the years).

Well, except for the case which is a travesty.

 

[Herrpod]

The sound quality over the Bose and Sony is significant to my untrained, consumer, non-pro, non-audiophile ears. The noise cancellation is also a level above. Paired with transparency, is a win for Apple.

Comfort - this is what has surprised me. This is a big factor for me when choosing headphones. I use them for hours every day, so I need a comfortable pair. This is why I have been using the Bose QC35 over the Sony XM4, Sony pinches my ear and gets hot pretty quickly, so I returned them. I purchased the Airpods Max, got them yesterday, and ready to return at the first sign of discomfort while using them. But to my surprise, IT HAS BEEN COMFORTABLE. While it is still not as comfortable as the QC35, it has not given me any discomfort. I have been wearing them for hours now, working throughout the night and at times I forget it's there. I don't know what kind of voodoo engineering Apple did but it actually does not bother me in spite of the massive weight difference from the Bose.

The integration to the whole Apple ecosystem is of course a big plus. Battery life, for what I need, is sufficient. Spatial audio is magic and has big potentials but currently very limited.

The case is the big miss here, I don't know what Apple was thinking there, but it's not enough of a drawback to stir me away from the Max.

The price, in my opinion, is justified. Like I saw in another thread...Apple Max is a Tesla, Sony and Bose are Honda and Toyota.

Tesla actually gives you more than Honda and Toyota. AirPods Max gives you far less, and most reviewers say the noise canceling is on par or slightly worse than the XM4s. Many reviewers also say the treble on the AirPods is tuned too bright which leads to fatigue. Add to that that they're not remotely portable headphones thanks to the weight, the lack of protective case and the much shorter battery life as well as the lack of a 3.5 port, and what you're left with is an incredibly niche pair of headphones.

 

[turbineseaplane]

We'll see - Very pricey and niche (like HomePod was)

And unlike normal AirPods, this is not some killer innovation around convenience and portability.

Really nice sounding, expensive, over ear headphones are not a new phenomenon (as AirPods were) and just adding some Apple niceties doesn't confer a massive product hit with the masses (at all).

 

[tbayrgs]

I bought them fully intending to try and return. I was blown away. I did not expect them to be so good; they are absolutely worth the money. (I have used many headphones over the years).

Well, except for the case which is a travesty.

Mostly agree. I’ve been using the Sony XM4s for a few months now and was really happy with them. I bought these expecting to try them and ultimately return them as well. I’m still not certain on whether I’ll ultimately keep them but I‘m leaning that way far more than I expected. My biggest concern was the case and its requirement to put the APM to ’sleep’. The Sonys fold up nicely for storage in an imminently more useful, protective and portable case, and have a dedicated power button so I can shut them off without having to stow them in their case. The APM though have much better on-device controls (digital crown and singular button for ANC/Transparency are terrific), better transparency mode and can easily switch between all of my Apple devices (iPhone, iPad, Watch, Apple TVs, Mac) while the Sony is limited to 2. This last feature alone is really pushing me towards keeping the APM.

I also found a hard case that appears to be able to fit the APM—if that works well enough, I may just be keeping mine.

 

[VermontsFinest]

I bought them fully intending to try and return. I was blown away. I did not expect them to be so good; they are absolutely worth the money. (I have used many headphones over the years).

Well, except for the case which is a travesty.

Also bought with intentions and (hopes) of returning. I absolutely love them so far. Listened to one track and knew they were keepers.

They sure are pricey, but somehow delivered.

 

[Led-zep]

Apple Max is a Tesla, Sony and Bose are Honda and Toyota.

that’s an awful analogy considering Tesla’s shoddy build quality and QC compared to Toyota who are the reliability kings of the auto industry

I’d say the Airpods Max are a Mercedes. Very good, luxury but they give you none of the options and expensive

 

[SPG1]

I’d have to agree. I’m completely blown away by the APM. One thing I’m wondering, is there no physical connection to each side? I’m guessing they sync together like the AirPods Pro. Would explain why each cup has its own batch of sensors. Perhaps there’s a battery on each side that’s connected to each other?

 

[Zwhaler]

Many reviewers also say the treble on the AirPods is tuned too bright which leads to fatigue.

First time I've seen someone mention the treble. I noticed it too.

My impressions are: fantastic noise cancelation, excellent level of detail in the sound, near-perfect build quality (a bit too heavy for my preference), but the EQ curve on them is a deal breaker for me.

It's not bad per se, but as someone with discerning taste the frequency response is not the particular flavor that makes me think "wow! These are the best sounding headphones".

It definitely is mid-to-upper treble biased but the way they did it doesn't really sound superior to my ears on most songs. Beyerdynamic DT-770 Pro's (wired reference headphones) frequency curve sounds better to me and they cost $200.

Not everyone will agree but I am just speaking for me personally. Overall a nice piece of tech.