Airpods Max vs. Sony WH-1000xm4: where's the comfort?

[east1999]

Hi everyone,

I've ordered both headphones, and I'm sharing some impressions that could be useful to other potential buyers.

Currently, I'm undecided on which to keep. I have the Airpods Pro that I use outside the home, and the Anker Soundcore Q30 that I use when working at home. I love the Pros, and feel the Anker are excellent for their price, but I have noisy neighbours, and I'm looking for a new over-ear pair for even-better ANC and comfort.

On these two points, both the XM4 and APM are great. With the XM4s I can still hear a hint of chitchat from afar, but mostly they're pretty good. So the main issue is comfort.

With the XM4, the good is they are pretty light. However, the leather ear pads fit tightly around my ears, and after half an hour I feel discomfort. With my Ankers, the ear pad size is a little bigger, so though I can feel my ears getting hot, they don't feel too tight. I have no idea how people can use the XM4s for "hours" as they say in the reviews.

As for the APMs, the ear pads are really, really comfortable. They're much more spacious, and they never feel hot. The problem is really the super-strong clamping force. I feel like I'm wearing a helmet, and at some point my whole head was hurting.

My question for users is: do these get more comfortable over time?

I like the sound and the user experience of the APMs. Everything about the Sony software is a mess, from the app to the controls to the finicky connection. The sound is good, but I feel they are meant to show power, not finesse; if I'm listening to anything with strong beats, there's that big "pow", but they're less impressive with other kinds of music or even movies, podcasts, etc.

I'm tempted to keep the APMs, but it's hard to justify spending $450 (Amazon promo) for something that hurts. I've seen people using basketballs to loosen them up, but others say the clamping is just as strong after months of use.

 

[BigMcGuire]

I had to bend my AirPods Max's head-bar outward to reduce that clamp down force quite a bit and then they became a lot more comfortable for me. But I do have a pretty wide head (not a small guy). Yes, it was painful for me until I did that.

(Use above advice at your own risk, lol).

 

[east1999]

How many times and for how long? There's a user here that used a basketball, and one guy on Reddit recommended 30-60 seconds stretches before using them. I've bent them a few times, but I worry about, a) breaking them if I do it wrong, b) potentially making them too loose, losing some of that ANC seal. I'm sure there's a sweet spot with continued use, but at the moment it's just intolerable.

 

[BigMcGuire]

How many times and for how long? There's a user here that used a basketball, and one guy on Reddit recommended 30-60 seconds stretches before using them. I've bent them a few times, but I worry about, a) breaking them if I do it wrong, b) potentially making them too loose, losing some of that ANC seal. I'm sure there's a sweet spot with continued use, but at the moment it's just intolerable.

I did it just a few times. I put my hands on the top bar with the ears facing down and with fingers under the top bar I pulled my wrists outward to bend the top bar open just a little bit. I could tell it gave a little bit and made the headphones much easier to wear. It worked for me. I read somewhere that the top bar is meant to be a little pliable. Definitely don’t take my word for it. Expensive headphones. Lol.

 

[Soondae]

I have a narrow face and smaller hat size (7 3/8") so I find the XM4 very comfortable. I have not tried the Max so cannot comment on fit and comfort. For me the XM4 was a no brainer, size and portability with the nice carry case. Also it helped that I got them at a reduced price about $200. I will use them mostly for ANC during travel so that is why the lightweight and portability were important to me.

 

[yoheywut]

I also wear a 7 3/8" hat and I had found the APM to be very uncomfortable the first few wears. I tried that stretching method on reddit where you simply grasp the cups and pull outwards so the whole headphones and band nearly go 180º flat for 15 seconds or so. Doing this, combined with wearing them more, allowed some improved comfort. I also found if I had the telescoping part extended too far (so the cups are further down on my ears) it would be uncomfortable, and sliding them up a bit would help. I was able to wear them on a 11 hour flight with a few pauses to breath here and there. Meanwhile my wife's Bose QC45 are super light and were comfortable for the few times I briefly tried them on. I ended up returning the AirPods Max for now after my trip but I kinda wish I had kept them, maybe I'll get another pair if they fall in price a little bit more. I was still a tad concerned about the overall weight and comfort long term.

 

[JCCL]

There are three main things that made me pic the XM4 and now XM5 over the Airpods Max:
1. No ability to have a multipoint connection with my Surface Pro 8 and iPhone at the same time. It was either use with Windows or use with my iPhone, and I need that function.
2. Inability to power off. I think it is ridiculous that Apple doesn't allow them to power them off. Thanks to this, I only need to charge my XM5's once every 2 weeks. With AirPods Max, you need to charge more often even if you're not using them a lot.
3. Comfort, I do think that the XM5's and XM4's are much more comfortable, the AirPods Max are much heavier, the pressure from the earpiece clamping feels very high, and overall it feels like the weight over your head is there and can be felt. Both Sonys feel much better.

Hope this helps

 

[east1999]

The weird thing is that, even though the APMs are getting a little more comfortable with use, the Sonys are getting much, much better. In that I have to agree with most reviewers: they can be very comfortable, and next to the APMs, you almost don't feel them. Coupled with the great sound, it's 85% of what makes a good pair of headphones.

Yet the little details are so poorly executed!

It's not just grab-and-play like the APMs, it's the process of turning them on, waiting for them to pair, and often, though they're already paired, re-pair them, so they actually play. The app should do so much more — for instance, you can use the "custom" button for Siri/Alexa, but not simply remove the "Ambient Sound Off" option. Since I've also turned off voice warnings, it's not always obvious whether I'm using ANC, transparency, or something in-between. I have no idea why people glorify the app; it's obviously a lame-ass half-thought Android interface, and most "options" are just ways to "optimize the experience" (technical blabber that leads to nothing) or to disable the Sony presets (eq, buttons, etc).

 

[Soondae]

The weird thing is that, even though the APMs are getting a little more comfortable with use, the Sonys are getting much, much better. In that I have to agree with most reviewers: they can be very comfortable, and next to the APMs, you almost don't feel them. Coupled with the great sound, it's 85% of what makes a good pair of headphones.

Yet the little details are so poorly executed!

It's not just grab-and-play like the APMs, it's the process of turning them on, waiting for them to pair, and often, though they're already paired, re-pair them, so they actually play. The app should do so much more — for instance, you can use the "custom" button for Siri/Alexa, but not simply remove the "Ambient Sound Off" option. Since I've also turned off voice warnings, it's not always obvious whether I'm using ANC, transparency, or something in-between. I have no idea why people glorify the app; it's obviously a lame-ass half-thought Android interface, and most "options" are just ways to "optimize the experience" (technical blabber that leads to nothing) or to disable the Sony presets (eq, buttons, etc).

Absolutely, the Sony Connect APP is garbage in it's current state. Multipoint seems to work but the APP doesn't show the multipoint devices on my IOS APP. The equalization settings in the APP sound horrible compared to them switched off entirely. I dislike that every time my XM4 is turned on that ANC is automatically enabled, forcing me to go to the APP to select Transparency mode. Come on Sony, fix this stuff! However they are a keeper as overall sound is fine and comfort for me is right on par with my old Bose QC15 which were wired only. Oh, and I love how compact and lightweight they are!

 

[BigMcGuire]

I immediately return my AirPods max to their little included case (to induce deep sleep) so I don't have a problem with battery usage. But the few times I've left them out they didn't seem to drain all that much. I think people are either like me, or usually more like my wife who use them all the time and charge them daily and she really likes them. <Just some thinking out loud>

 

[east1999]

A few notes after spending extra time with these headphones.

I decided to return both and see what pair I actually missed. At the time, I felt the Sonys would be probably be the right choice, because they had gotten so comfortable and the sound was warmer.

Nevertheless, while Amazon allowed me to return the Sonys at a drop-off point, they demanded a courier for the APMs. The courier did not show up for another five weeks, so I got used to the APMs a bit more:

• The convenience: The APMS are just incredibly convenient. I did not miss an on/off button at all, and found myself using them more often than my AirPods Pro, because the sound and the ANC are better.
• The case: I also found out I really liked the case. It was very quick to use, and I felt the unprotected part was really sturdy, whereas, the one moment I took the Sonys outside the house, I just dropped them into my backpack caseless, and worried they had been poked or dented during the trip. They seem very fragile, and I don't see them lasting long, especially if (between May to November, where I live) I'll probably sweat a lot in them. I really don't care for something with a zipper and a required position. The APM case doesn't make it into a ritual.

So, when they came to take my APMs, I was actually used to them! What I don't miss is this feeling of "putting a helmet on" every time, versus forgetting they were there, which happened with the Sonys.