Apple AirPods Max Wireless Over-Ear Headphones, Active Noise Cancelling, Transparency Mode, Personalized Spatial Audio, Dolby Atmos, Bluetooth Headphones for iPhone – Space Gray

They work very well, audio quality is high, battery is long lasting, very light weight and comfortable, noise cancellation is top tier, and the physical controls on the top beat all of the stupid motion and tap controls of other headphones. Only worth it if you have an iPhone, the integration is flawless.

The AirPods Max exceeded my expectations from the very first moment. The sound quality is impressive: deep bass, balanced mids, and crisp highs. The noise cancellation is one of the best I’ve experienced — it truly isolates you even in very noisy environments. Comfort is another highlight. The ear cushions are soft, the headband distributes the weight well, and I can use them for hours without discomfort. The connection with Apple devices is instant and stable, and the Transparency Mode feels very natural. Although the price is high, the quality is noticeable in every detail. If you’re looking for a premium audio experience and long-lasting headphones, they are definitely worth the investment.

Overall still your best option even in 2025. As a medical student who's used them 12 hours a day for a few months of use here is my review. Transparency mode is the best on the market, noise cancellation is also outstanding. The accommodating ear cups are very comfortable unlike the shallow cups of the Sony MX6s. The build quality is second to none. The sound quality is exceptional and more vivid and immersive than AirPods pro 3 thanks to the bigger more capable drivers. Even with that being said I would have loved if they updated this 2024 release with the H2 chip, a lighter design, and better battery life/ANC, but even still they are on top. If you have more than two apple products like say a mac and iPhone and want headphones (not ear buds) these are a no brainer. I use my AirPods pro 3 for working out and phone calls but these for long study sessions as the silicon tips of AirPods build up ear wax after some time and for that reason are uncomfortable for me for extended use. I don't feel the weight becomes an issue for long use, but I do take them off for at least 5 mins an hour so I can take a quick break. I will say out the box they are quite tight but you can modify that search on google "Finally solved the AirPods Max clamping force tightness" and read the post on that. After stretching them out on my 15 hour study days I wear them about 12 hours. The 20 hour battery life for my purposes is excellent. They go into low battery mode after 5 minutes of not being on, even when not in the case, however the low power mode is slightly more efficient in the case as the bluetooth turns off, but this is negligible, and overall I will say the idle battery life is amazing. As far as the smart case, I like it, it's simple and effective, but its not fully protective so I wouldn't be throwing your AirPods in a bag with anything sharp that can damage the mesh headband. I also would be careful to order a light colored one if you wear anything on your skin often or expect them to get dirty/stained. Overall very happy with these airpods and use them everyday when I study.

These are premium headphones and they sound amazing. They have great ANC and are super comfortable. They pair perfectly with the Apple ecosystem, and while they are a little pricey, the build quality and experience make them worth it.

These are the best headphones I've ever owned. The sound quality is excellent, 3D spatial placement works well, noise cancellation works exactly as described. And pairing with a laptop seems flawless. Battery life is fine, good for a week or longer with no recharging.

UPDATE OCT 2023: Here is my original review which still holds true now that I have owned the Bose NC 700 for a couple of years. Last week, I bought the new Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra over-ear headphones. I added that review and comparison at the bottom. ———————— Original review…… For the past ten years I have enjoyed and been dependent upon noise canceling headphones. With that has come a journey into the audiophile community with others who are on a quest for high-fidelity sound. My journey led me to many headphones that sound absolutely pristine but none with noise canceling and few are wireless. Until late, the Bose Noise Canceling 700 are my compromise for great sound and noise canceling in a wireless headphone. So, when Apple announced the AirPods Max, I had to try them to know how they compare to my Bose 700. Here are my conclusions so far... STYLE The fit and finish on the AirPods Max is absolutely beautiful! Love it much more than the Bose. I just like the way they look and feel. Before I purchased the AirPods I probably watched 50 unboxing and review videos. So, I thought I had a good idea of how they looked. They are nicer in person. Sleek, premium, modern and minimalistic. COMFORT Comfort is about the same! AirPods Max are definitely heavier but do not necessarily feel much heavier on he head as the weight is balanced well. I have larger ears and the ear cups on the Bose 700 go a little deeper to make room for my ears. So, over several hours, the Bose do feel slightly more comfortable. The Bose also do not get as warm as the Apple. TRANSPARENCY MODE Transparency mode, in my opinion, is actually more natural on the Bose. The Apple headphones actually amplify the sound around you a few decibles too much. In other words, things sound louder than they actually are with the transparency mode on the AirPods Max. Also, the Bose reproduces your own voice much more naturally when in transparency mode. SOUND QUALITY Sound quality at certain volume levels is almost exactly the same. Kind of unbelievable. It is as though Apple reverse engineered the Bose 700 and copied its sound signature and noice canceling to within 5 percent. There is a definite sound quality difference though that changes with the volume level. This is all about the DSP. Of course, the digital signal processing (DSP) is called Computational Audio on the Max and Volume Optimized EQ on the Bose. This is what works differently and what accounts for sound differences dependent on the volume. Basically, the Bose sound better at 60 percent volume and below. Bose just has it dialed in so that everything sounds rich and balanced. I usually listen to music at about 55 percent volume on my iPad. So, I prefer the sound of the Bose. The sound at 60 percent and below on the AirPods Max suffers from a veiled upper midrange. An alto saxophone, for example, will sound as though it is being played behind a wooden door. Now between 60 and 70 percent volume is where both headphones sound virtually the same. It is uncanny! Both sound absolutely wonderful. Probably the best you will ever hear on wireless noise canceling headphones (yes, the Sony has an amplified and unnatural mid-bass making them sound deep but not high fidelity). At 70 percent volume and above the Bose DSP begins to lower the bass response to avoid distortion. The bass gets progressively quieter as you increase on the Bose to where there is virtually no bass at about 90 percent volume. The AirPods Max, on the other hand, handle bass very nicely from 70 all the way up to 100 percent. In fact, they sound perfectly balanced all the way from 60 to 100 percent volume with no sound quality degradation. If there is a fault it is that the bass loses a little nuance. In other words at high volumes the bass is a little over controlled. The softer vibrations like on the trail of a bass string get lost a little. So to summarize the sound comparisons. The two headphones sound equal from 60 to 70 percent volume. The Bose sound bette at 60 percent volume and below. Finally, the AirPods sound better (by quite a bit, it’s not even close) at 70 percent volume and above. CONTROLS The final comparison are the controls. Apple wins in my book. The Digital Crown has a perfect feel to it. It rotates very smoothly with a perfect amount of resistance. It presses well also. Apple has hyper dialed-in these controls. It makes me never want to have to use the touch-pad on the Bose 700 ever again. WHICH ONE IS FOR ME? Everything is comparable on these two headphones, but in the end, sound quality at my preferred listening level wins out. Since I listen to at about 50 percent volume, the Bose continue to be he choice for me. I just have a fixed routine for when I use noise canceling headphones. Now, I am sure that Apple could probably update their firmware to adjust the computational audio in order to fix the balance issues below 60 percent volume. If they did, then the fit and finish and controls might win me back over to the AirPods Max. But, the slight compromise in long-term comfort would cause me to hesitate a little. ONE LAST THING One last thing, the spatial audio is pretty Amazing. If I had to watch movies on my iPad these headphones would be a must. The surround sound effects are as good (slightly better) than my Bose home theatre system. The overall sound quality for movies is slightly less (more sterile and hollow sounding, probably because of the limited Bluetooth codec) than my Bose home theatre system. —————————- BOSE QUIET COMFORT ULTRA VS BOSE NC 700 (and AirPods Max) Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra Headphones Several years ago, I discovered Bose Quiet Comfort headphones. My first pair wore the QC15 and I have owned every iteration since then. Until now, the best of the best have been the Bose NC700 which are spectacular headphones. Now, I find myself the proud owner of the company’s newest over-ear headset, the Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra. After thorough comparison, I can confidently say that the new Ultra are an upgrade in every way. There is especially one aspect which causes the Ultra to make them an absolutely must-have for music lovers. I will get to that in a moment, but first here are my thoughts on how the NC700 and QC Ultra compare: COMFORT I am very happy to report that the Bose QC Ultra are more comfortable than the NC 700 headphones. They are lighter, there is less clamping force and the headband distributes weight better on the top of your head. I used to consider the NC 700 headphones as the second most comfortable pair of over-ear headphones second only to the QC45. Well, the Ultra now take this 2nd place spot and they are almost as comfortable as the 45. Very Great! NOISE CANCELING Yes, Bose has also improved the noise canceling. When in quiet mode the headphones put you in a place where the world simply disappears. Each iteration of Bose headphones through the years has improved upon the previous in this area. The Ultra are no different. In fact, when I was testing them out my wife was standing 3 feet from me and trying to talk to me. I never even knew she was talking. This has never happened with my older NC 700. SOUND QUALITY The QC Ultra are more of a spiritual successor to the NC700 than they are the QC45. The sound is much more similar to the NC700. What they retain is the excellent clarity and instrument separation. The mids are just as perfectly present. Also the highs have a very pleasing ring without ever sounding harsh. What was great on the 700 but even better on the Ultra is the bass. Bose says that the new Ultra are now taking samples of sound inside the ear ups and then actively adjusts the bass to sound best dependent on the shape of ears, the seal of the pads, etc. This really does make a difference. I wear glass which compromises the acoustic seal. The Ultra compensates for this and makes the bass sound deeper and have a greater punch than my NC700. So, the sound signature overall is better and gets WAY better with immersive audio. But, we are getting to that. IMMERSIVE AUDIO This is the feature! If you are a music lover then this is the feature which gives the biggest incentive to upgrade from the NC 700. Music with immersive audio just sounds better. I have several setups of actual stereo bookshelf speakers around my house. I always preferred a good pair of music monitors over headphones. Why? Because you can hear and imagine the soundstage in front of you. Good recordings place an orchestra or band members several feet from each-other as you listen. With live listening you can hear the music spread throughout the venue and this is what immersive audio on the Quiet Comfort Headphones does. It places the band a couple feet in front of you. It feels like you can point to and reach out and touch the various vocalist and instruments. It is so great! It is exactly like advertised. Immersive audio makes it sound like you are listening to a good pair of speakers in a room acoustically ideal for premium audio. Now that I have heard it, I can never go back to regular headphones. CONCLUSION There is so much more good that I could say about the Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra headphones. The buttons are well placed and are useful - even the touch-sensitive volume slider works well enough! The app also just works and all the needed settings are there to easily adjust. The carrying case looks premium and is compact. It is smaller than the NC700 case and even more compact than the QC45’s storage option. There are some things I do not like about the headphones. For example, immersive audio for movies is still not as good or immersive as Spacial Audio on Apple’s AirPods Max when watching Dolby content. Also, the placement and function of the buttons is different than what I am used to on the 700. In the end though, I am ecstatic with what Bose has done in their newest iteration of Bose over-the-ear noise canceling headphones. My NC 700 are going on eBay and I look forward to many great years with the Ultra. Well done Bose!

Worth the money. Transparency is freaky good; ANC is right up there with Bose. Sound is clean and balanced—tight bass, super clear mids/highs. Spatial Audio/Dolby Atmos is a nice addition. On the heavier side, but never got uncomfortable. Apple’s Transparency Mode still sounds the most natural to me. Bose QuietComfort Ultra edges it in pure ANC, but the gap is small IMHO What a joke of a case. Offers little protection and forces the weird “always-on unless in case”. Pros – Best-in-class transparency; excellent ANC – Clean, non-fatiguing sound + Spatial Audio – Apple ecosystem pairing/switching is instant Cons – Heavy – Smart Case is silly I recommend to Buy if you’re on iPhone and want the most natural Transparency with top-tier ANC. If you prioritize max ANC or lighter weight, check Bose QC Ultra; if you want USB-C, grab the new colorways instead of Pink.

I am a certified audio engineer for music/films so this review is coming from that perspective. EXEC SUMMARY: if this fits in your budget or you can stretch these, GET THEM! Omg! The sound. The comfort. The battery life. Wow. Now onto the specifics. I’ll start with the one negative I’ve consistently read/heard from reviews: the weight. They are noticeably heavy taking them out of the box. BUT- not a worry. You will never feel this weight wearing them b/c they are SO COMFY. You actually do forget that there is even a headband (probably the biggest reason they are so comfy, but the extra large cans also as it never interferes with your ear). As i write this now I’ve been wearing these for 18 straight hours. Still don’t feel them or am cognizant of them being on beyond the sound coming into my ear (and especially with Spatial Audio since it mimics the audio as if it’s coming from your surroundings). CLARITY: We’ll start with the sound first (why we buy these things right?) UNREAL. As a certified audio engineer i can’t believe this sound is possible from headphones. Imagine the best surround sound experience in a theatre you ever experienced- believe it or not this is even better than that. The sub-woofer effect is better than any sub-woofer experience I’ve had regardless of form or venue or location. That’s “holy cow how is that possible” component #1. #2 is the spec i read that convinced me to get these- automatic multi-band compression. This is stuff only the most advanced audio engineers do but so complicated and easily F’s up your mix even if everything else is perfect. Basically different components to sound are where different things sit mostly, like vocals, high ends, sub-woof rumbles, filler/thickness of sound. Those are what the “bands” mean. To automate and smooth out each band/category so it’s always at the optimal level is just… freaking next level. Most audio engineers dont’ even touch this (myself included) it’s so intricate. THESE HEADPHONES DO IT AUTOMATICALLY! And yeah.. wow. The cleanest, clearest, yet deepest, thickest, intricate sound I’ve ever experienced. CONNECTIVITY: can’t speak for droids as i am apple ecosystem. It auto detects if you put these on or not and that’s better than the earbuds who connect as soon as you take them out of the case/charger. it immediately disconnects and stops when yo lift them off your ears. Nice. FUNCTIONALITY: Apple ecosystem-ish here too. I prefer HEY SIRI which I’ll explain later. One weird thing is this. Sometimes when I’m playing a DOLBY ATMOS or surround selection, the settings say “SPATIAL AUDIO NOT AVAILABLE” and is greyed out as if it’s off, yet it’s actually clearly working and on. So if you’re a Spatial Audio person and turn it on, just know it is always working when anything is actually mixed to be so- no worries. CONTROL BUTTONS: The one gripe i have is here. The volume scroll button is way too easy to accidentally touch and thus I’ve turned up the volume quite a bit many times not meaning to. HEY SIRI works great so i just do that instead. 2 buttons: operation (scroll wheel for volume that is also a button for music/phone control- start/stop/forward/back or answer/end/hold, etc), mode button (noise cancellation enable/disable/off <- to save battery). But everything except Spatial Audio (that i can tell) can be done via HEY SIRI. DURABILITY: obviously i can not test this having these for less than 24 hrs but what I CAN say is what everybody else has said- the quality of build and materials is OBVIOUS. No plastic. The fabric/flexi headband is not only comfortable but also won’t disfigure or crack or break. Other parts are metal so will hold up better also. And because it’s so comfy you won’t need to be adjusting or moving it like you do most other ones (or at least i do) so less touching and adjusting means less human wear and tear. Oh and i love that the actual ear pieces are magnetic which means if either ear piece/speakers go bad, it probably means we can buy replacements and keep these going as long as we want without needing to buy a whole new set down the road. LOVE IT! SUMMARY: yeah. If you can afford or splurge- so way and above better than anything else I’ve tried. And I’ve tried a lot over the years (mostly earbuds). My go to previous to this (and will now use as my gym set) are the Bose QuiteComforts. They don’t even compare in sound, comfort, battery life, controls, build quality, noise cancellation/isolation, and just that “it factor” in experience. IMMEDIATELY noticeable. And that’s from a certified audio engineer of music/film perspective. WHO WON’T LIKE THESE: those that want boomy boomy heavy bass (as most people do). These are just as deep and thick, but tighter and cleaner so you can “hear the frequencies better” rather than have any frequencies “muddy” up other frequencies and cross lines. It’s’ an audio engineering thing. lol. But even those people may appreciate just how awesome these sound in the low end especially come movie watching time (you can still clearly hear vocals and high end without the boomy bass muddying what people are saying).