AirPods Max is here! First impressions and photos thread

[kmanmx]

Watching Greyhound on mine right now through my iPhone. This spatial sound is wild. The bass in parts is shaking my head (no exageration).

Though, contrary to earlier reports, I dont see any support for spatial audio through my Macbook. I only get options for transparency / noise cancelling on my Macbook Air (2020 - M1).

 

[AppelGeenyus]

they do not go loud as I would of liked, the AirPods Pro sound much louder and nicer IMO, for me these are no where near good enough to keep

I'm finding that. They just need a couple more notches of volume along with a little custom EQ. They are very clear & precise though.

Assuming you don't have 'Reduce loud sounds' setting on, both yall are legally deaf.

 

[adrianlondon]

Though, contrary to earlier reports, I dont see any support for spatial audio through my Macbook. I only get options for transparency / noise cancelling on my Macbook Air (2020 - M1).

Big Sur 11.1?

 

[kmanmx]

Big Sur 11.1?

Yep, updated last night.

 

[Kylo83]

for some reason the AirPods Pro sound better for singing etc but the bass is obv better on the max, I keep trying different songs on both and keep enjoying AirPods Pro better maybe its because it goes straight into the ear and they are louder

 

[Asthmatic Kitty]

i think people are getting confused about the big sur 11.1 release notes: they say "support for airpods max" and then the other lines after that are more like an advert for airpods max, ANC and spatial audio etc. etc. it's not to say that spatial audio works on macs.

 

[macnmac]

can you see if you can wear the case as people have been meme, asking for a friend...

 

[deevey]

Assuming you don't have 'Reduce loud sounds' setting on, both yall are legally deaf.

It appears that Apple headphones only go up to 10

 

[kmanmx]

i think people are getting confused about the big sur 11.1 release notes: they say "support for airpods max" and then the other lines after that are more like an advert for airpods max, ANC and spatial audio etc. etc. it's not to say that spatial audio works on macs.

Exactly.

 

[Moriarty]

Assuming you don't have 'Reduce loud sounds' setting on, both yall are legally deaf.

Or will be soon. Like, seriously. Seriously.

A little under half volume is plenty enough for comfortable listening in a quiet environment. And you should not increase the volume just because your surroundings are noisy, that’s a recipe for tinnitus. That’s what ANC is for.

 

[MayaTlab]

I don’t sense sarcasm here, so I am genuinely curious if I’ve overlooked the 3.5mm to lightning adaptor... what makes it a wonder at $9?

It measures insanely well for something so small, low power and cheap : https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...pple-vs-google-usb-c-headphone-adapters.5541/

 

[kmanmx]

Not sure what is going on with the battery life on my Max's. Have been listening for 1hr, 26mins at 3/4 volume with ANC on. It's dropped from 60% to 55% battery. (they were delivered on 60%). At this rate, it works out at closer to 30 hours total battery life, which is 50% more than Apple claimed. So that seems very unlikely. I'll keep an eye on it...

 

[Herrpod]

You cannot judge your comparisons of the Airpod Max against that of the Bose QC35 and Sony XM3/XM4 because the Boch and Sony are no where near the same price bracket and as such, the materials used and overall desgin is going to be much much different.

This is a ridiculous statement.

 

[Rogifan]

Sounds like that's more of a DAC/AMP limitation issue. If you're using wired headphones that are harder to drive then buy something like the Dragonfly Black DAC. That will drive any headphones louder than a phone or notebook output and sound a hell of a lot better too. You'd need a lightning to USB adapter to use on iPhone.

I am using an amp but probably not a good one. I’ll check out the Dragonfly. ??

 

[bscheffel]

You'r probably one of those blokes that don't look better with a pinch of femininity, good of you to realise that and steer far away from them.

I am in the market for some headphones as my Bose qc35's are wearing badly (foam ear pieces falling apart and on/off switch turns on for no reason flattening battery). I've always been happy with the sound and noise cancelling of my Bose - and I can afford the exorbitant price apple wants for these in Australia...

BUT

I will not buy these, because the cover thing looks stupid. and feminine. and I'm a bloke - I don't carry a purse.
and I will not pay $900 AUD for these, only to have to buy a proper case from a 3rd party that's just stupid.

so Sony - here I come.

for anyone wondering about the definition of "toxic masculinity" - this is a good example

 

[error]

I received the (black) Apple Lightning to 3.5 mm audio cable two days ago… and it's a very well made headphone cable. Thin, flexible and with a good quality 3.5 mm audio plug. $35/€39 could have been $15/€15 less, or better: it should have been in the AirPods Max box. But I'm not going to connect these headphones to some cheap and vague cable brand on Amazon.

I've also connected the lightning part to my iPhone and the audio plug to my olde Audioengine A5 speakers… works perfectly!

Apple should offer a 3 m option, 1.2 m can be a bit too short in some situations.

 

[yegon]

Or will be soon. Like, seriously. Seriously.

A little under half volume is plenty enough for comfortable listening in a quiet environment. And you should not increase the volume just because your surroundings are noisy, that’s a recipe for tinnitus. That’s what ANC is for.

This cannot be stressed enough.

I stopped using the og AirPods in noisy environments for this reason. To hear them required ridiculously high volume levels, which I wasn’t prepared to do.

I see people using them in railway stations all the time. Those same people would likely wrench their AirPods from their ears if they listened at 80% in a quiet environment.

Of course, if you’re already deaf or losing hearing, hence the high volume requirement, I sympathise.

 

[bscheffel]

lol I was thinking that too but technically toxic masculinity is usually associated with the behavior harming the individual or society - in this case it's someone potentially missing out on something because they can't bear the risk of looking even the slightest bit girly.

 

[UBS28]

With transparency mode on, the left ear cup has a very strange pressure. Anyone else notice that? Or do I have a lemon.

It is not my ear, because if I turn around the headphone, the problem is on the other side.

 

[gjfffm]

Yep, updated last night.

Maybe just for M1 Macs?

 

[adrianlondon]

Though, contrary to earlier reports, I dont see any support for spatial audio through my Macbook. I only get options for transparency / noise cancelling on my Macbook Air (2020 - M1).

This support document implies no Macbook has spacial audio.

Control Spatial Audio and head tracking

Turn on or off the immersive Spatial Audio surround sound experience available on AirPods 3, AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max.

support.apple.com

 

[LongWayHome]

First impressions:

The good:
They sound great
Noise Cancelling is excellent
The ear muffs are comfortable

The not so good:
The are really heavy and its noticeable and not good.
The mesh at the top is almost guaranteed to rip as it is paper thin
The case is useless and they might as well not even shipped a case with these.

I like the sound but not sure if I'm keeping them as the comfort level due to the weight is concerning.

 

[vladi]

Mine should be here tomorrow and listening to my XM4's right now. Really hard to believe that they are light years ahead of the Sony's. Especially EQ'd.

Of course they are not but we not gonna get into that.

 

[zombierunner]

To each their own, I am sticking with my Bose QC35.

 

[laptech]

This is a ridiculous statement.

Please explain why is it a ridiculous statement?

The OP is comparing a $500 headphone to that of $200 headphone and is saying the $500 is better. Well duh!!! of course the $500 headphone is going to sound better, look better and feel better when compared to a $200 headphone which is why you cannot objectively compare the two against one another.

To make any comparisons valid, the Airpod Max should be put up against headphones in the same price bracket. Do you not think so?