[aleniola76]

Thanks @jb2unique
Following your advice I found the thread on Reddit and users seems to successfully pair new earbud with the old one through a factory reset as shown on the Sony support page : https://helpguide.sony.net/mdr/wf1000xm4/v1/en/contents/TP1000428697.html

I’ll try as soon as I am back home

I found it! Just a bit dirty but working perfectly
Kudos to built quality from Sony…2 nights outdoor with temperatures below freezing and no issue at all

 

[dweaver]

Late to the WF-1000XM4 party but finally decided to give these a try since there were on sale.

Have to say I am more impressed than I thought I would be. I bought the Linkbuds S last summer and enjoyed them but found the signature to be a bit bland. The XM4 in comparison has much better bass and the mids and treble seem more responsive to EQing.

Not as comfortable though but OK once I switched to the regular Sony hybrid tips.

My pair came with firmware 1.5.0 and no updates appear to be available beyond that. In reading the 1.6.1 appears to not add multi-point so I will just wait for that update to drop (hopefully not just vaporware).

I resisted buying this model as I was not super impressed with the XM3 and had read this model was even darker sounding. But they really do respond well to EQ. Currently enjoying +3 +5 +7 +5 +3 with clear bass +1.

 

[nc8000]

Late to the WF-1000XM4 party but finally decided to give these a try since there were on sale.

Have to say I am more impressed than I thought I would be. I bought the Linkbuds S last summer and enjoyed them but found the signature to be a bit bland. The XM4 in comparison has much better bass and the mids and treble seem more responsive to EQing.

Not as comfortable though but OK once I switched to the regular Sony hybrid tips.

My pair came with firmware 1.5.0 and no updates appear to be available beyond that. In reading the 1.6.1 appears to not add multi-point so I will just wait for that update to drop (hopefully not just vaporware).

I resisted buying this model as I was not super impressed with the XM3 and had read this model was even darker sounding. But they really do respond well to EQ. Currently enjoying +3 +5 +7 +5 +3 with clear bass +1.

I use the XM4 for music on the go and the Linkbuds S for sleep buds with audiobooks and both are great each for their intended use but there is no doubt to me that the XM4 is the overall better and more capable but also cost near double

 

[dweaver]

Very true, which is part of why I originally bought the Linkbuds S. I paid full retail for the S and they were only $50 more than the XM4 on sale. So definitely the more affordable option. I have the S and the GB2P both work well if I use them for sleep. I am leaning towards just keeping the GB2P as they offer a more dynamic sound and are arguably as comfortable. The GB2P also has better battery life so don't beep at me about low battery which is annoying when asleep.

 

[MrWalkman]

Late to the WF-1000XM4 party but finally decided to give these a try since there were on sale.

Have to say I am more impressed than I thought I would be. I bought the Linkbuds S last summer and enjoyed them but found the signature to be a bit bland. The XM4 in comparison has much better bass and the mids and treble seem more responsive to EQing.

Not as comfortable though but OK once I switched to the regular Sony hybrid tips.

My pair came with firmware 1.5.0 and no updates appear to be available beyond that. In reading the 1.6.1 appears to not add multi-point so I will just wait for that update to drop (hopefully not just vaporware).

I resisted buying this model as I was not super impressed with the XM3 and had read this model was even darker sounding. But they really do respond well to EQ. Currently enjoying +3 +5 +7 +5 +3 with clear bass +1.

XM4 are better than the XM3. Had the XM3 and I was never actually impressed. I can listen to the XM4 for a long time if I need to do something and I don't need to interact with anyone, and in general I use them a lot more than I used the XM3. I also like the noise cancelling a lot. They're really good for them being buds.

I forced an update to 1.6.1 to mine, they were on 1.4.2 before. They work fine, but indeed, there's no real need to update if nothing is wrong.

 

[dweaver]

Hmmm, first negative for me. They start to slip out of my ears after a while. Might make them a poor choice for jogging and exercise. But I do own the GB2P which would be a better option in that regard anyway...

Might do some tip rolling to see what happens...

 

[dosley01]

Hmmm, first negative for me. They start to slip out of my ears after a while. Might make them a poor choice for jogging and exercise. But I do own the GB2P which would be a better option in that regard anyway...

Might do some tip rolling to see what happens...

Spin-Fit CP360 solved that for me. I normally prefer foam, but the OEM was a little small. Comply's were pretty good but ended up liking the SF better.

 

[dweaver]

Just testing the Spinfit C360 and they are comfy.

Looking at my battery life my right earbud is at 37% and the left is at 56% so quite a gap between the 2 buds. Is this normal or do I have a bad pair?

These were brand new so should not have battery issues.

I usually take out the right bud first, would this account for anything in a weird way?

 

[dweaver]

Interesting, in reading the battery difference is caused by the Google assistant feature, so have disabled that to see if it gets these closer to the same for battery life. Don't really need that function anyway...

 

[dweaver]

Been listing using LDAC with a combination of ANC/Ambient/off and my right bud still has 36%. This is after 4.5-5 hours so not to bad for battery life.

 

[nc8000]

Just testing the Spinfit C360 and they are comfy.

Looking at my battery life my right earbud is at 37% and the left is at 56% so quite a gap between the 2 buds. Is this normal or do I have a bad pair?

These were brand new so should not have battery issues.

I usually take out the right bud first, would this account for anything in a weird way?

That's the experience I have with the Linkbuds S where my right bud is out of juice while the left bud still has 25-30% left. On my XM4 there is a few % difference

 

[dweaver]

I read a reddit article that mentioned this is from the Google assistant because it uses the right bud only. Makes sense since you use the right bud to activate it.

Turned it off and the long press setting disappeared in the settings.

Could it also be the speak to chat feature only using the right bud? Guess I will find out....

 

[dweaver]

OK the more I thought about it, the more turning off speak to chat made sense as it would require have a mic live at all times to listen for when I talked. So turned that feature off. Will test after the batteries are fully charged.

The CP360 were nice and comfy and seemed to help with the loosening of the buds in ear. Time will tell the full story. They had a nice sound using them. So now have 2 TWS using those tips, glad I got 3 pairs when I bought them.

 

[dweaver]

After turning off the Google assistant and the speak to talk feature the gap between the 2 buds is much closer. Currently sitting at R 79% and L 76% so those features definitely are right bud specific. I expect a bit of a gap between the buds as I find almost all TWS suffer from this to some degree.

Also noticing the gap between more recent TWS releases and the XM4. All my newer buds are more comfortable and have better Ambient modes than the XM4. I imagine these will be 2 areas addressed with the XM5 if / when it is released.

I hope they might increase the amount of sound let in when at full volume for ambient when they finally release the next firmware update. I like ambient for at home so I can hear my wife when she asks me something while I am wearing the buds and right now the ambient is so low at its highest setting it's almost like just passive mode.

Speaking of passive mode, these isolate so well I am hardly even using ANC so the battery life is very good. those percent above are after having the buds out of the case for 5hrs. I didn't always have them in my ears during that time and had them out long enough I the buds turned themselves off once. But this does mean I could very likely use these for an entire workday without having to put them in the case.

If the XM5 could be 10-15% smaller in diameter, have the same battery life, and ambient and microphones as good as the Linkbuds S with this good or better sound, I don't think I would hesitate to long to buy them... whereas is took 2 years before I finally was willing to give the XM4 a try. I will likely wait until early adopter prices drop, but other than that would jump on them.

EDIT: now sitting at 63% and 61% and have now had these out of the charger for 6-7hrs, again not always in my ears, so not always playing music. But a very good example of what a typical work day will look like for usage. I think I will dig up a little clam shell to hold the buds when not in ear, so I don't lose them and will start to take them out in the morning and not put them back into the case until the end of the day. Between that and consciously only charging the case when it gets low I might be able make these retain their charge for a good long time.

 

[nc8000]

After turning off the Google assistant and the speak to talk feature the gap between the 2 buds is much closer. Currently sitting at R 79% and L 76% so those features definitely are right bud specific. I expect a bit of a gap between the buds as I find almost all TWS suffer from this to some degree.

Also noticing the gap between more recent TWS releases and the XM4. All my newer buds are more comfortable and have better Ambient modes than the XM4. I imagine these will be 2 areas addressed with the XM5 if / when it is released.

I hope they might increase the amount of sound let in when at full volume for ambient when they finally release the next firmware update. I like ambient for at home so I can hear my wife when she asks me something while I am wearing the buds and right now the ambient is so low at its highest setting it's almost like just passive mode.

Speaking of passive mode, these isolate so well I am hardly even using ANC so the battery life is very good. those percent above are after having the buds out of the case for 5hrs. I didn't always have them in my ears during that time and had them out long enough I the buds turned themselves off once. But this does mean I could very likely use these for an entire workday without having to put them in the case.

If the XM5 could be 10-15% smaller in diameter, have the same battery life, and ambient and microphones as good as the Linkbuds S with this good or better sound, I don't think I would hesitate to long to buy them... whereas is took 2 years before I finally was willing to give the XM4 a try. I will likely wait until early adopter prices drop, but other than that would jump on them.

EDIT: now sitting at 63% and 61% and have now had these out of the charger for 6-7hrs, again not always in my ears, so not always playing music. But a very good example of what a typical work day will look like for usage. I think I will dig up a little clam shell to hold the buds when not in ear, so I don't lose them and will start to take them out in the morning and not put them back into the case until the end of the day. Between that and consciously only charging the case when it gets low I might be able make these retain their charge for a good long time.

Playing aac and with anc and eq enabled I get about 10 hours per charge