AirPods Max Reviews

[blairh]

Those people probably prefer muddy overpowered bass.

Eh. Allow me push back. I'm sure an audiophile or someone with a more sophisticated understanding of audio quality would agree with you (because it's technically correct). But ultimately certain genres of music will simply benefit more from stronger bass. Especially true in rap and pop music. Even the CNET review from David Carnoy, someone whose reviews I respect, made this point regarding the Sony's vs the APM. My guess is that I'd prefer the sound of the Sony's over the APM simply for their stronger bass performance. I don't see anything wrong with that.

 

[yticolev]

My guess is that I'd prefer the sound of the Sony's over the APM simply for their stronger bass performance.

To repeat MICHAELSD: Some prefer muddy overpowered bass. I think that also sums up Beat's business model.

 

[Mr. Y]

Today I did a bit of running around and with the snow in the Northeast had to toss my AirPods Max into my backpack along with my laptop, iPad and stacks of paper and other items. They held up well despite concerns about the case. The cans were flat against everything else and their aluminum finish covered. The arms and headrest experienced no signs of actual or potential damage. I was reminded just how truly sturdy the steel in these things is. The exposed parts, it seems, may have actually been designed to be resistant to damage in these scenarios without the need for a full and bulky case.

 

[Rogifan]

Apple AirPods Max: Measurements & First Impressions – In-Ear Fidelity

A brief primer for the upcoming review of Apple's flagship headphone, the wireless AirPods Max.

crinacle.com

 

[Herrpod]

There is an app, it is in Bluetooth settings.

It can be set balanced, strong, and slightly moderate, and a little bar to adjust

Nope. A proper app would alter it on all devices you connect to, including TVs, android devices, streaming boxes etc.

 

[Herrpod]

FYI on battery.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1339361399747694594

As opposed to headphones with on off buttons that wouldn’t drop a single percentage.

 

[iBug2]

As opposed to headphones with on off buttons that wouldn’t drop a single percentage.

Headphones with on/off buttons lose battery when they are off as well.

 

[certen]

Nope. A proper app would alter it on all devices you connect to, including TVs, android devices, streaming boxes etc.

It is proper, it will set for all Apple devices. I am not sure if it sets only on the iCloud enabled devices or on the headphones though. I suspect it is both

 

[mcaswell]

Headphones with on/off buttons lose battery when they are off as well.

Maybe, but not much... I've gone MONTHS between charges on my (now sold) Bose NC700. Sounds like the absolute best we can hope for on the APM is a week to 10 days. It needs a power button!

 

[Rogifan]

Maybe, but not much... I've gone MONTHS between charges on my (now sold) Bose NC700. Sounds like the absolute best we can hope for on the APM is a week to 10 days. It needs a power button!

Is charging headphones that difficult? I have an amp that I use with my headphones and when it gets low on battery I just charge it while I’m sleeping.

 

[ninethirty]

Eh. Allow me push back. I'm sure an audiophile or someone with a more sophisticated understanding of audio quality would agree with you (because it's technically correct). But ultimately certain genres of music will simply benefit more from stronger bass. Especially true in rap and pop music. Even the CNET review from David Carnoy, someone whose reviews I respect, made this point regarding the Sony's vs the APM. My guess is that I'd prefer the sound of the Sony's over the APM simply for their stronger bass performance. I don't see anything wrong with that.

There's nothing wrong with personal preference, but if the music wasn't designed to sound so bas heavy, that's not how i want to hear it.

Equating quality with stronger bass would be like saying that stronger auto tune does in fact make one sound better. Spoiler alert: it most definitely doesn't.

 

[deuxani]

Is charging headphones that difficult? I have an amp that I use with my headphones and when it gets low on battery I just charge it while I’m sleeping.

Yes it is. When you grab your headphones you expect them to have charge. If you for instance take off your AirPods Max with 80% charge left, wouldn't use your headphones for 2 weeks and then suddenly want to use them... too bad, battery is dead, first charge them. While any other headphones would still be at 80% as when you turned them off two weeks ago. To some people that's a deal breaker (for me for instance). I use my headphones sometimes every day of the week, sometime not for 1 week, sometimes not for 2 weeks or longer, but every time I grab them they have enough charge to be used for hours.

 

[mcaswell]

Is charging headphones that difficult? I have an amp that I use with my headphones and when it gets low on battery I just charge it while I’m sleeping.

No, it's not that difficult (which is why I'm not returning my APM), but it's something I'll have to remember to do once a week even if I'm not using them (sometimes I get into a "speaker mood" where I don't feel like listening through headphones for a while).

Then there's the issue of constant (and unnecessary) drain/recharge cycles that will shorten the lifespan (with the alternative being keeping it plugged in all the time, which also carries a risk, as they say keeping li ion batteries at 100% all the time is not good for them).

It's not unlike having a car that you can't shut off the engine. You park it, and the engine just idles all night, consuming gas for no purpose other than to keep the car ready to go at a moment's notice. Thanks, but I'd rather have the ability to turn the headphones off when I know I'm not going to be using them for a while (and no, I don't want to fiddle with that ridiculous looking case, I don't even want to have to look at it).

If the APM weren't as good as they are, I'd be returning them for this silly omission.

 

[Rogifan]

Yes it is. When you grab your headphones you expect them to have charge. If you for instance wouldn't use your headphones for 2 weeks and then suddenly want to use them... too bad, battery is dead, first charge them. While any other headphones would still be at the same percentage as when you turned them off two weeks ago. To some people that's a deal breaker (for me for instance).

I guess for me if I was spending $550 on a pair of headphones it would be rare that I’d go weeks without using them. Maybe a couple days at most but that’s it.

No, it's not that difficult (which is why I'm not returning my APM), but it's something I'll have to remember to do once a week even if I'm not using them (sometimes I get into a "speaker mood" where I don't feel like listening through headphones for a while).

Then there's the issue of constant (and unnecessary) drain/recharge cycles that will shorten the lifespan (with the alternative being keeping it plugged in all the time, which also carries a risk, as they say keeping li ion batteries at 100% all the time is not good for them).

It's not unlike having a car that you can't shut off the engine. You park it, and the engine just idles all night, consuming gas for no purpose other than to keep the car ready to go at a moment's notice. Thanks, but I'd rather have the ability to turn the headphones off when I know I'm not going to be using them for a while (and no, I don't want to fiddle with that ridiculous looking case, I don't even want to have to look at it).

If the APM weren't as good as they are, I'd be returning them for this silly omission.

How is this different than an iPhone or iPad? I never shut either of those devices off.

 

[blairh]

There's nothing wrong with personal preference, but if the music wasn't designed to sound so bas heavy, that's not how i want to hear it.

Equating quality with stronger bass would be like saying that stronger auto tune does in fact make one sound better. Spoiler alert: it most definitely doesn't.

I never said stronger bass meant superior quality. I’m simply telling you what I prefer for a sound signature.

 

[deuxani]

I guess for me if I was spending $550 on a pair of headphones it would be rare that I’d go weeks without using them. Maybe a couple days at most but that’s it.

I understand that philosophy. Many people use their headphones every day for multiple hours. But some people enjoy the over-ear experience on occasion (I have my regular AirPods in for 8 hours per day). And for those occasions I prefer good quality, so spending €630 would be a lot, but worth it. I have the XM3's and they are great, but the plastic creaks sometimes and that's really annoying. So I would really enjoy a better build quality, but not at the expense of having to think about charging it (like my damn Apple Pencil which is always dead because I don't use it often and you can't turn it off).

 

[mcaswell]

How is this different than an iPhone or iPad? I never shut either of those devices off.

I rarely have to specifically charge my iPhone... the time that it's plugged in to my car anyway (for CarPlay) is usually sufficient to keep it in a good range. If I do need to charge it, it's a simple matter of setting it down on the charging pad on my desk or nightstand (compared to having to find and plug in a lightning cable... yes, I know, first world problems!).

The other big difference is that my iPhone NEEDS to be on all the time, so that I can be accessible. I could shut it completely down if I wanted to save battery life, but I get a benefit from leaving it on all the time. With the APM, it just sits there and wastes power, with this serving no other purpose than to save me from having to turn them on when I want to use them (again, not unlike leaving your car idling in the driveway so you don't have to be bothered with the huge hassle of turning the key the next day when you're ready to drive to work again).

If Apple added the ability to power them down, I would not do so every time. There is a degree of convenience with being able to just grab them off the stand at any time and have them instantly ready to go. But when I'm heading to bed I'd like to be able to turn them off for the night.

Look, I get it, to you this clearly falls into the "not a big deal" category. But to others, it's a deal killer (and it was a borderline deal-killer for me... if these headphones hadn't sounded outstanding, I would have returned them).

 

[Rogifan]

Connected podcast review. Mostly from
Federico Viticci. Basically AirPods Max better than Sony XM4 (or any other wireless) but not as good as more expensive Sony wired headphones playing lossless music.

http://relay.fm/connected/325

 

[macnmac]

I understand that philosophy. Many people use their headphones every day for multiple hours. But some people enjoy the over-ear experience on occasion (I have my regular AirPods in for 8 hours per day). And for those occasions I prefer good quality, so spending €630 would be a lot, but worth it. I have the XM3's and they are great, but the plastic creaks sometimes and that's really annoying. So I would really enjoy a better build quality, but not at the expense of having to think about charging it (like my damn Apple Pencil which is always dead because I don't use it often and you can't turn it off).

my xm4s feel cheap after having the APM...

 

[adrianlondon]

my xm4s feel cheap after having the APM...

On the plus side, they ARE cheap compared to the APM

 

[macnmac]

On the plus side, they ARE cheap compared to the APM

ya get what ya pay for... or not...

 

[sean+mac]

It's not unlike having a car that you can't shut off the engine. You park it, and the engine just idles all night, consuming gas for no purpose other than to keep the car ready to go at a moment's notice. Thanks, but I'd rather have the ability to turn the headphones off when I know I'm not going to be using them for a while (and no, I don't want to fiddle with that ridiculous looking case, I don't even want to have to look at it).

This is exactly what my electric car does. It'll lose 1% just sitting there each night because of the computer and data connection (has a higher power draw when the security mode is actively running.) Without the security turned on it will also eventually will go into a deeper sleep, but there is always some power draw to occasionally wake for LTE communications. More noticeable losses when left alone for a week, like in these COVID times or coming back from a holiday.

Would be a non-issue if I had home charging though.

Edit: will add while my post is fresh... I am hopeful of some firmware changes to make auto turn-off smarter (based on the various accelerometers and sensors) or to allow a long push to turn off. I can't see why a software update couldn't improve either situation. Given the mixed review of passive drain, will wait to experience it myself before weighing in. I am not too concerned for my use cases. (Traveling: I'd use the ugly case anyway. At home: lightning cables everywhere and iOS/Mac OS make it easy to see the remaining power should it get low. Doesn't take long to get a 90 min charge boost if empty and they can be used while charging.)

 

[yticolev]

Nope. A proper app would alter it on all devices you connect to, including TVs, android devices, streaming boxes etc.

Really? You want the same EQ for vastly different devices? Bizarre also that you want an Apple app to work on Android.

Fortunately, the settings are per device.

 

[Rogifan]

ATP review: Marco Arment is the first reviewer I’ve seen complaining about the earcups and earcup fabric. He also complains about the Digital Crown being too finicky. Haven’t heard anyone else say that. Of course these guys love to pick nits so I’m not surprised. Marco does say AirPods Max are the best dynamic/closed back headphones he’s used.
Oh one other thing: Marco says transparency mode is not good. He’s the first reviewer I’ve heard say that. The Connected guys thought it was really good.

https://atp.fm/409

 

[mcaswell]

This is exactly what my electric car does. It'll lose 1% just sitting there each night because of the computer and data connection

A loss of 1% a day wouldn't be a big deal at all. But I think we're talking more along the lines of at least 10% a day (even if just sitting unused)... haven't done precise measurements, but mine seemed to lose about 6% overnight (12 hours).