For the price, Can’t beat the Max

[Htsi]

L

My B&O HX arrived today and as I was playing with them I was again disappointed at the connectivity versus my AirPods Pro (and presumably AirPods Max). So I took a look at Apple's site and they had some space gray available for pick up. So I went ahead and took some of the friendly advice and bought them. I have had them home for about 45 minutes. I have a couple of initial thoughts. For reference, I currently have the Bose NC700, B&O H9 3rd Gen, and B&O HX. I also have already purchased and returned the Sennheiser Momentum 3. By the end of this week (and if I want to keep my wife hopefully sooner!), all but one of these will be going back.

• They are definitely well built and very premium feeling. I figured this would be the case, but opening a new Apple product is always a pleasure and makes you feel like you really got something special.
• The case is a joke. I am sorry, maybe after a few days I will appreciate it or something, but my initial impression is that it will go in the box and I would get a 3rd party solution.
• The weight might be an issue. Sitting still, they are totally fine. I do not feel there is too much clamping pressure. I also do not "feel" the weight in general. As soon as I move, then you are reminded just how heavy they are. leaning forward does give the sensation that they are going to fall off.
• They are producing noticeable cabin pressure. These are the only headphones I have currently that exhibit this to a noticeable degree. Having said that, it is something that most people will acclimate to if past experience with my older QC-35II's is any indication.
• The connectivity is great. Just like my AirPods Pro, it is truly seamless. As I stated in my original post to this thread, this is one of the major reasons to by the APM.
• The sound is really good. Having said that, I do not feel qualified to judge sound and I have barely had them.
• No chance to use Spatial Audio yet, but I will hopefully this evening.
• Transparency is amazing as expected.
• Haven't had much chance to test ANC, but initial impressions is that it is at least "close enough" to all the others to not matter

Those are just some very preliminary thoughts. Overall, they are about what I expected so far. Having said that, the connectivity would be enough for me to keep them if they prove to be comfortable. Currently of the headphones I have here, they are definitely the least comfortable mostly due to the cabin pressure. Not sure how the weight will feel on my neck after a few hours.

In case anyone wants to know what indecision (or insanity?) looks like.

View attachment 1751070

LMAO! Hope you find the one that suits you best. I agree on the connectivity. This walled garden is fab, I can’t deal with regular BT.

 

[Htsi]

Exactly this. The connectivity is the killer feature for me. If one of the others could match that feature, they would likely be the pick because of better portability and comfort. But like you said, once you go over 2 it becomes a pain. I have 4 Apple devices I would use, plus an Apple TV that could occasionally be used.

The B&O HX and NC700 have a transparency mode with the same button as the APM. The transparency isn't as good as the APM, but it works.

Feature-wise, all of these are on par outside of connectivity. Now the implementation may be on one than the other, but they all have transparency, good enough ANC, good SQ (those the Bose is definitely the worst of the bunch).

Overall, I like them. The thing that will kill them for me is the comfort. If that doesn't improve, it will be a dealbreaker.

They are heavy but I find them really comfortable on the ears along with the capability to change/wash cups easy. Clamping is higher than others I’ve tried but really the xm4 felt like toys after these

 

[Htsi]

The headband is easily replaceable so I don’t mind the case. And I feel it’s open to vent out the ear cups. Closed box would cause stank

 

[UBS28]

Exactly this. The connectivity is the killer feature for me. If one of the others could match that feature, they would likely be the pick because of better portability and comfort. But like you said, once you go over 2 it becomes a pain. I have 4 Apple devices I would use, plus an Apple TV that could occasionally be used.

The B&O HX and NC700 have a transparency mode with the same button as the APM. The transparency isn't as good as the APM, but it works.

Feature-wise, all of these are on par outside of connectivity. Now the implementation may be on one than the other, but they all have transparency, good enough ANC, good SQ (those the Bose is definitely the worst of the bunch).

Overall, I like them. The thing that will kill them for me is the comfort. If that doesn't improve, it will be a dealbreaker.

The “connectivity feature” is really bad to the point I cannot even use it anymore while I am using a Mac.

When I am changing tracks on my iPhone, I get notifications from the APM on my Mac while I am working.

This is really silly because I am playing music from my iPhone and not from an other device, so why is the APM spamming my Mac’s each time I change tracks on my iPhone.

I had to disable the “auto-switching” feature from my AirPods Pro too, due to other issues.


Now if anyone knows how to fix the APM spamming my Mac’s with notifications when I change tracks on my iPhone, please let me know.

 

[TriApple]

Exactly this. The connectivity is the killer feature for me. If one of the others could match that feature, they would likely be the pick because of better portability and comfort. But like you said, once you go over 2 it becomes a pain. I have 4 Apple devices I would use, plus an Apple TV that could occasionally be used.

The B&O HX and NC700 have a transparency mode with the same button as the APM. The transparency isn't as good as the APM, but it works.

Feature-wise, all of these are on par outside of connectivity. Now the implementation may be on one than the other, but they all have transparency, good enough ANC, good SQ (those the Bose is definitely the worst of the bunch).

Overall, I like them. The thing that will kill them for me is the comfort. If that doesn't improve, it will be a dealbreaker.

Yep, you have a very similar array of headphones and experiences that I shared and coming to a similar result.

I listed my Audeze Mobius the other day and gave my MX3s to my teen. Ride these for a while.

for WFH where I am swapping devices, calls, videos, music, occasional meditation… these things are a huge fit for my workflows and sound great enough.

also, I don’t watch a ton of stuff but I tried spatial audio on my iPad Pro with the Apple TV+. Holy crap, it was incredible.