[ubs28]

As my first pair of ANC earphones I am slightly disappointed, while it definitely does reduce the amount of noise you can hear to me its just like “isolation” rather than actual cancellation, I can still hear quite a bit. Is that normal? I can’t imagine these being too great on a plane but I will find out Friday when I take my flight to nashville.

Could be normal. I can also still hear things with the Sony WF-1000XM3. But try it out in a plane and see how it goes as it should cancel out "noise" of a plane.

 

[sandy1010]

So are these an upgrade over the Sony WF-1000XM3? What I don't like about the Sony is:
- too bulky to carry around
- uneven treble (not a huge surprise since even their $2000 Z1R has a treble that sucks)
- doesn't fit my ears properly
- not as comfortable as my other IEM's
- controls suck

I am willing to trade in sound quality if it fixes all these issues of the Sony.

Also how much worse do these sound then the Sony?

Depending where you are, Apple have a 14 day return policy for used items. From looking at the US website this includes AirPods.

but double check before you buy.

 

[neil74]

So are these an upgrade over the Sony WF-1000XM3? What I don't like about the Sony is:
- too bulky to carry around
- uneven treble (not a huge surprise since even their $2000 Z1R has a treble that sucks)
- doesn't fit my ears properly
- not as comfortable as my other IEM's
- controls suck

I am willing to trade in sound quality if it fixes all these issues of the Sony.

Also how much worse do these sound then the Sony?

I am interested in this too. I have the Sony's, like them but do like you find them a little bulky and also find the controls very frustrating. If the Airpods are on-par for ANC and Sound quality then I will get some.

 

[royjl]

had tried, the noise cancelling is really good, and feel very comfortable when wearing it, but a little worry about the connection issue which happens sometime in my airpods

 

[neil74]

Anybody know how they connect? i.e. with the Sony's each bud connects direct to the phone as opposed to one bud to the phone and then bud to bud (through your head )

 

[broopa]

Sound quality surprised me on these in my brief use of them, much better than Gen 1. treble and highs felt a little off but bass had decent extension. ANC didn't work as well as I thought it would, but I'm going to walk around my down town today. My apartment might not have been the best test bed for noise cancellation. I did notice a change in ear pressure when it was on though which is a new experience to me, not used to ANC headphones.

 

[bobeau]

I'm thinking the ANC doesn't work quite as well as the XM3 probably due to the vented nature. It seems to work marginally better than a good sealed IEM IMO.

 

[monsieurguzel]

So are these an upgrade over the Sony WF-1000XM3? What I don't like about the Sony is:
- too bulky to carry around
- uneven treble (not a huge surprise since even their $2000 Z1R has a treble that sucks)
- doesn't fit my ears properly
- not as comfortable as my other IEM's
- controls suck

I am willing to trade in sound quality if it fixes all these issues of the Sony.

Also how much worse do these sound then the Sony?

I would say that these are very much of a sidestep from the Sony earbuds. The airpods are a lot more seamless with iphones, are more compact, have better mics, are more comfortable, and have slightly better transparency mode than Sony earbuds. They both have similar battery life and comparable NC (i actually get better NC with Sony's using Comply tips). Sony earbuds beat the airpods on sound quality by having a much more immersive and engrossing soundstage, deeper bass that hits harder, and wonderful mids. Using a mild EQ on the Sony app, i'm able bring a little bit extra sparkle to the highs than default settings.

I also have a pair of SE846 that i've used for over 4 years now and have barely touched them since getting the Sony earbuds so i think that's saying someting. While not technically as good as the 846's they're extremely enjoyable to use. I feel that if I only have Airpods Pro, i'd still be craving for better sounding earbuds at the end of the day.

But as you said, if you're willing to trade sound quality of Sony's for all the other factors, you'll be perfectly happy with new Airpods Pro. Just keep expectations in check - I would say that they are a modest upgrade from regular Airpods sound (which is a pretty low bar to start with) but nothing even remotely close to 'Pro' level.

 

[monsieurguzel]

I'm thinking the ANC doesn't work quite as well as the XM3 probably due to the vented nature. It seems to work marginally better than a good sealed IEM IMO.

Agreed. A good sealed IEM probably lets less sound in that a vented ANC earbud. The one thing you are giving up with traditional IEMs though is transparency mode which comes in very handy.

 

[buzzlulu]

I would say that these are very much of a sidestep from the Sony earbuds. The airpods are a lot more seamless with iphones, are more compact, have better mics, are more comfortable, and have slightly better transparency mode than Sony earbuds. They both have similar battery life and comparable NC (i actually get better NC with Sony's using Comply tips). Sony earbuds beat the airpods on sound quality by having a much more immersive and engrossing soundstage, deeper bass that hits harder, and wonderful mids. Using a mild EQ on the Sony app, i'm able bring a little bit extra sparkle to the highs than default settings.

I also have a pair of SE846 that i've used for over 4 years now and have barely touched them since getting the Sony earbuds so i think that's saying someting. While not technically as good as the 846's they're extremely enjoyable to use. I feel that if I only have Airpods Pro, i'd still be craving for better sounding earbuds at the end of the day.

But as you said, if you're willing to trade sound quality of Sony's for all the other factors, you'll be perfectly happy with new Airpods Pro. Just keep expectations in check - I would say that they are a modest upgrade from regular Airpods sound (which is a pretty low bar to start with) but nothing even remotely close to 'Pro' level.

A good post raising quite a few valid points.

I was an early adopter of the Sony's and ultimately returned them.
In the end I could not get a good seal even with 3rd party tips - and most importantly I simply found them uncomfortable. Many on the Sony thread have made similar comments about comfort.

There is a saying that the best camera is one you always have with you so you can take photos.
In the same light the Sony might be the better ANC ear buds however if I do not take them with me - due to fit and comfort - than what good are they.

Apple has another Blockbuster product on it's hands.

 

[Duncan]

Well, I had the 1st gen Airpods when the hype train was at full speed - one brief listen, and I realised that I had wasted my money...

I was walking past an Apple Store today and I decided to buy a pair on a whim, after the generally positive reviews that I have read...

ANC seems to be okay, SQ seems to be not so bad (not in the same league as my RHA CL2 / DragonFly Cobalt combination, but - that'd be a tall ask!), definitely listenable - the one bit I don't quite get though is the talk of the EQ automatically changing - is that part of the ANC? - I cannot find anywhere where I can switch that functionality off?!

 

[emrelights1973]

The call quality is excellent with airpods, how about these ones?

 

[swmtnbiker]

Do these support aptX?

 

[s1m0]

Can anyone compare these to the addiems / apple in ear headphones with remote and mic?

Thanks!

 

[SilverEars]

Do these support aptX?

Apple products support at most AAC. TW are at most AAC or AptX. Similar data quality.