Over the top comparisons you like, you say? Alright then!
Comparison MTW3 vs. WF-1000XM4
Here’s my rather in depth comparison of the new Sennheiser MTW3 and the Sony WF-1000XM4. Each category gets points out of 10. Without mentioning them very often in the text, I will also provide the points I would have given the MTW2 in each category for a better comparison. Note that the MTW3 are on a (possibly) pre-release firmware version 2.3.9 at the time of this comparison.
Case:
MTW3: 8.0
XM4: 7.0
(MTW2: 8.0)
Sennheiser’s case is more solidly built, feels nicer in the hands and doesn't get scratched easily. It's (still) a bit larger and "heavier", though. Both cases charge via USB-C as well as wirelessly. The MTW3 holds 3 additional charges, whereas the XM4 case holds only 2. The hinge feels stiffer on the MTW3 and the lid opens more tightly but it's probably a good idea to nevertheless take good care of both of them. I use a Spigen Case for the XM4 for extra protection.
Build Quality (buds):
MTW3: 8.0
XM4: 8.0
(MTW2: 8.0)
Tie here. Both have very good build quality. The bronze metal accents on the XM4 microphones are a nice touch but nothing that really sets them apart with regard to quality. Nothing creaks or feels cheap on both offerings.
Fit/Tips/Passive Isolation:
MTW3: 9.0
XM4: 8.0
(MTW2: 8.0)
The MTW3 fit extremely securely and also very comfortably in my ears. I don't even need the additionally provided ear fins they come with but it's very nice that they're there as they will definitely be useful for many people and for workouts/sports. The buds are yet again smaller than the previous generation, which is good imo. Sennheiser offers 4 pair of silicone tips (XS, S, M and L) with an integrated little mesh/foam piece in the top part of the tips, assumedly for driver protection (and maybe also for acoustic reasons). Passive Isolation is excellent for silicone tips and reduces noise quite significantly already. The tips are also very flexible and feel comfortable in the ear.
The XM4 are bulkier and heavier. They hurt my ears the first 2 weeks or so but that got much better over time and they are even comfortable by now. If you have small ears, that could be a bit of a problem. They don't offer any silicone tips but 3 pairs of "acoustic foam" tips (S, M and L). They also fit nicely but can get a bit itchy during longer listening sessions. They're also less durable and you will need to replace them sooner than silicone tips. They do offer great passive isolation, though. In my opinion, the XM4 sound better with regular silicone tips but the tradeoff is reduced ANC performance and isolation then. The MTW3 protrude less from the ear simply because they're the smaller and more ergonomically shaped buds.
Sound:
MTW3: 9.0
XM4: 7.0 (8.0 after EQ)
(MTW2: 8.0)
The Sennheiser beat the Sony in sound pretty comfortably imo. Things get better for the XM4 once you use the actually pretty good in app EQ but even then the MTW3 just sound clearer, more precise and spacious. The bass is more tactile, layered and defined. They have a better soundstage and better instrument separation as well. The Sony in their stock tuning are a bit thumpy in an almost bloated/muddy way with regard to their bass. It lacks precision and depth. Instead it just throws a lot of bass at you. This does work for bass heavy music and certain genres of course, but it's not very universally desirable. The XM4 also have tuned back the highs in their standard EQ setting. There is not much air and sparkle there, whereas you can hear exactly that on the MTW3. Again, you can raise the upper mids and highs on the XM4 and also reduce the bass a bit and it really helps and makes them sound quite good but you still can't reach the sound quality and level of detail that the Sennheiser offer even in their stock tuning. Both buds get more than loud enough for me, which is always appreciated.
Battery life:
MTW3: 7.5
(6.5h (ANC) / 7h (ANC off) / 28h total max.)
XM4: 9.0
(8h (ANC) / 10-12h (ANC off) / 30-36h total max.)
(MTW2: 7.0)
Sony wins here. The XM4 have a longer battery life (per single charge and in total). Both devices support a quick charge feature via USB-C. The MTW3 still have solid battery life figures that should be more than sufficient for most cases and situations.
ANC/Transparency Mode:
MTW3: 8.5
XM4: 9.0
(MTW2: 5.5)
Now that’s an interesting comparison. The passive noise cancellation is slightly better on the MTW3 and very impressive. The active noise cancelling is very close on both sets. Maybe, but just maybe, the XM4 are still ever so slightly better but I’m not entirely sure, honestly. Very close call. The Sony have the advantage of the standard foam tips here and thus the XM4 have an extremely good isolation (active + passive). However, if you’d put foam tips on the MTW3 as well, I’d be inclined to call this a tie all things considered. The MTW3 feature adaptive ANC, anti wind ANC and the possibility to switch the ANC off entirely. The XM4 can also have adaptive ANC, anti wind and off but they also let you fine-tune the ANC with a slider which is something the Sennheiser cannot do right now. If you want ANC on the Sennys, it is either adaptive, anti wind or off - nothing else. Not a dealbreaker at all for me as I usually have the ANC on max on all my TWS anyway when I need it, but it might be useful in some situations to fine-tune it manually. Ultimately, Sennheiser is here as close as they have ever been to Sony with regard to ANC performance and have improved immensely compared to the MTW2. Things might even become better over time and firmware updates (the Sony have already benefitted from this since they have been on the market for much longer obviously.
The transparency modes are both very good, fairly natural sounding and effective. I love "speak to chat" on the XM4 for certain situations on the go but only activate it when really needed. The MTW3 have the option to pause the music when you activate transparency mode, similarly to the quick attention mode on the Sony. Many TWS these days still don't have that and don't pause the music automatically, making it one additionally required tap for the same result. So it's great to have that here. In the standard setting (50%), the Sennheiser don't have a lot of white noise but there the XM4 are more transparent. You can, however, set the MTW3 to 100% in the transparency slider and have a very strong awareness of your surroundings as a result, even a bit stronger compared to the XM4. The tradeoff then unfortunately is quite a lot of white noise on the MTW3 when set to max transparency. Future updates might also work on that a bit, hopefully.
Connectivity:
MTW3: 8.5
XM4: 8.5
(MTW2: 6.0)
The MTW3 still have some early bugs and sometimes don’t connect directly when you take them out of their case. That, or they connect and immediately disconnect again from time to time and need a manual re-connect to work properly again. However, I’m absolutely positive that this will very quickly be resolved through a firmware update. They haven’t even been officially released yet so that’s not a real issue for me but something to mention as of now. That said, once they’re connected they have a very strong bluetooth connection and an even more impressive range, both slightly edging out the XM4 even in my tests. It’s close, however, and the XM4 also have a very stable bluetooth connection with a very good range. No complaints here. Sony uses Bluetooth 5.2 and SBC, AAC and LDAC as codecs. Sennheiser also uses BT 5.2 as well as SBC, AAC and aptx Adaptive which is also compatible to aptx, aptX LL and aptx HD. As an iOS user, nothing of that really matters as it will always be AAC for us anyway
Sadly, both don't offer multipoint bluetooth but at least Sennheiser claims to bring it in a future firmware update, whereas it seems unlikely at this point that Sony is going to implement this feature any more and probably saves it for the WF-1000XM5 if I had to guess. Finally, Sennheiser got rid of the old master/slave technology and both buds can now also be used independently, just like on the XM4. It was about time! Would the Sennheiser have had multipoint right from release, I would give them the edge over the XM4 but since that’s not the case, I will call it another draw here.
Controls:
MTW3: 9.0
XM4: 8.0
(MTW2: 8.5)
Touch controls as always on both. Easy to use and very responsive. Both work great and are easy to reach and to operate. What I love about the Sennheiser is that you can really customize each bud absolutely the way you like it to have. That’s really great and should be the standard for all buds. Standard settings are: 1 tap left —> transparency mode, 1 tap right —> play/pause. 2 taps left —> previous song, 2 taps right —> next song. 3 taps left —> ANC modes, 3 taps right —> voice assistant. Left tap and hold —> lower volume, right tap and hold —> raise volume. Also taking and ending phone calls is one tap on either the left or the right side and declining a call is 2 taps on either the left or the right side. So, it’s all there and freely adjustable. You can even turn off your buds via taps if you want that. Very convenient and better than on the XM4 where you cannot have it all at the same time and you have to sacrifice one big feature usually (e.g. volume adjustment) if you want to have ANC controls on the left and track skipping controls on the right side e.g.
Call Quality:
MTW3: 7.5
XM4: 7.0
(MTW2: 7.0)
Sony’s microphones have been very very average for a long time already. The XM4 haven’t been an exception in that regard. Call quality was pretty bad-ish on release day but has improved quite a bit over time and various firmware updates. As it is now, they are usable to okay-ish. They work good in ideal and quiet conditions. The MTW3 microphones as they are now are also just okay but slightly better than the XM4. The calls I had so far with them worked fine. They are also very good in ideal and quiet conditions. We have to keep in mind here that the XM4 already received many firmware updates and the same will happen to the MTW3, so this can only mean more improvements to come. Slight advantage for the MTW3 all things considered.
App Support/Other Features:
MTW3: 7.5
XM4: 9.0
(MTW2: 7.0)
The new Sennheiser Smart Control app is sleeker than the old one and offers good additional functionality like an 3-band equalizer, a connection manager, a „sound check“ feature, transparency mode adjustments (pause music or not e.g.), adaptive ANC settings like anti wind, quite interesting new „sound zones“, the feature to disable the touch controls entirely, smart pause, auto call taking, firmware updates, auto-off feature (in minutes) etc. etc, but is still a bit buggy and needs some more refinement. You also need a (free) Sennheiser account these days for it. Also, the „Discover“ tab is pretty much just Sennheiser product placements and Sennheiser „news“. Still, the app is good and there’s a lot to like already. The XM4 have one of the best apps around probably. So many useful features like „Speak to chat“, adjusting automatic ambient sound modes / locations, an actually very good 6 band equalizer, DSEE Extreme upscaling, 360 degree audio, Bluetooth priority mode, auto on-off, a feature to check the fit of your eartips, firmware updates and even more. The app is stable and reliable, gets updated regularly and just works. Advantage Sony.
Total Points / Summary thoughts:
MTW3: 82.5
XM4: 81.5
(MTW2: 73.0)
Almost a tie, ultimately. Both are terrific true wireless sets. It depends on what you want in the end. If you want the best sound out of the two and you’re all about that little extra level of detail and clarity, go with the MTW3, no doubt. The XM4 will please most people as well but they’re not quite „up there“ and not as refined in the sound department. ANC, while greatly improved on the Sennheiser, is still a couple of percent better on the Sony. So, if that’s what’s most important to you and you even need a little longer battery life, go with the XM4. Personally, I’m a sound nerd and the comfort for me is also better on the MTW3, so I will stick to the MTW3 this time around. I also prefer the more customisable controls, the slightly better microphones and the nicer case on the Sennheiser. Sound, fit, comfort etc. are still subjective, of course, so other people might pick a different personal „winner“ for themselves
