[Brave Heart]

I flexed the XM4 headband a bit and it's made it feel a bit better on the head.

 

[OmniscientNihilist]

I also find the comfort of XM4 a step down from XM3. The headband padding is thicker but harder... ultimately worse. The cups are technically bigger (by 10% they say) but I don't know where that went, because they actually feel smaller around the ear, they are indeed a bit deeper but that goes away when the pads compress when wearing and then they begin to touch the sides of my ears on the top-back. They should have been angled with more space in the back like the Bose or Huawei Studio. Overall the XM3 felt better to me... They always improve in some areas and step back in others, otherwise there would be nothing to "improve" in the next iteration. Oh... and the headband also started to creak when stretched to put on... like the XM3. After only 20 days of light use And sometimes they creak when wearing and slight movement of head/jaw...
I like the sound better though (with some EQ to lift the mids and dial down the highs and high mids a bit), but I still don't know if I'm going to keep or return them.

This sounds right to me most of the times (I like warm sound with body in the vocals):
400 +3dB / 1k +4dB / 2.5k +4dB / 6.3k -2dB / 16k -2dB / Clear Bass +2 (because the bass is reduced always when you touch the EQ and I like the default amount)
But sometimes when the mastering is more linear, I keep them on default / no EQ.
I would be curious to see what EQ do you guys use, if any.

i had a pair of sennheisers that started creaking a bit, i returned them and the next pair did same thing so i got rid of them.

that stuff drives me crazy

 

[KopaneDePooj]

Does your XM4 creak?
After about two weeks of use they started creaking when pulled apart to put on head , like in this video :



I had this with the XM3 too. Somtimes they creak when wearing too, which is very annoying. Reddit and others are full of such reports. What's going on? Why does a top product has this flaw?

 

[BigZ12]

Been experiementing with Sony WH-1000XM4, Fiio BTA30 with LDAC, Peter's Equalizer APO Configurator Extension, BlueStacks with Apple Music Lossless on Windows 10.
Wow, who could've thought the XM4s could sound this good
Used AutoEQ settings (Fixed band), from Github (jaakkopasanen).

 

[Eagle_Driver]

After plenty of time with the WH-1000XM4, my later opinion still stands. I have discovered the reason for my finding: The WH-1000XM4 suffers somewhat from the typical closed-back headphone “honk,” or lower-midrange resonances. This is the primary reason why some of the bass runs into the mids.

 

[Uchiges Yury]

Played with Sony's APP EQ for quite some time in order tobrighten the sound of this strange XM4.
First I recorded a full range 20-20k test file to check the freq. response. To check response I used an LG V30 microphone and SPECTROID APP. Phone on a towel and headpones right above microphone pressed by hand. File played from xs max via BT, NC ON, volume 50%.
No EQ adjustment graph:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YzYQ4LzkWrtocKUeCOQIK105AdnAKd6o/view?usp=sharing
and a setup: 400: +7, 1k: +4, 2.5k: +7, 6.3k: +6, 16k: +10. Clear bass = 0.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YzYQ4LzkWrtocKUeCOQIK105AdnAKd6o/view?usp=sharing, https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rdVecoQOnWIaadylsp3myoouJczVkPoe/view?usp=sharing
Checked a lot of different settings and found this the most flat. Since EQ is crap, there is simply nothing to do else. Good that setup will work with all devices by default.

 

[KopaneDePooj]

Played with Sony's APP EQ for quite some time in order tobrighten the sound of this strange XM4.
First I recorded a full range 20-20k test file to check the freq. response. To check response I used an LG V30 microphone and SPECTROID APP. Phone on a towel and headpones right above microphone pressed by hand. File played from xs max via BT, NC ON, volume 50%.
No EQ adjustment graph:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YzYQ4LzkWrtocKUeCOQIK105AdnAKd6o/view?usp=sharing
and a setup: 400: +7, 1k: +4, 2.5k: +7, 6.3k: +6, 16k: +10. Clear bass = 0.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YzYQ4LzkWrtocKUeCOQIK105AdnAKd6o/view?usp=sharing, https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rdVecoQOnWIaadylsp3myoouJczVkPoe/view?usp=sharing
Checked a lot of different settings and found this the most flat. Since EQ is crap, there is simply nothing to do else. Good that setup will work with all devices by default.

Hey, they use special headphone "heads" and still don't get it right all the time with measurements, so I wouldn't trust a phone on a towel... no offense.
Welcome to head-fi!
It's ultimately about what YOU hear and like, because your ear shape and the way you hear plays a crucial role, no need to measure the headphone. For example to me the XM4 sounds a smidge too bright and processed (artificial) on a narrow frequency portion somewhere in the upper mids, don't know exactly where, but in comparison the B&W PX7 is much more natural and less grainy, although it sounds even brighter. In any case, I wouldn't bump the highs on the XM4, just raise the 400, 1K and 2.5K bands. because the mids are recessed to my ear. For my ear and preference I lower the 6.3K and 16K by 1 or 2 dB... just to mask that artificial DSP-like zing they have.

 

[kalsarikannen]

Looking at the frequency response measurements for Dekoni earpads. Does it mean that they reduce the bass? Would appreciate if someone could explain me this chart

https://dekoniaudio.com/product/dek...ement-ear-pads-for-sony-wh1000xm4-headphones/

 

[lmf22]

Looking at the frequency response measurements for Dekoni earpads. Does it mean that they reduce the bass? Would appreciate if someone could explain me this chart

https://dekoniaudio.com/product/dek...ement-ear-pads-for-sony-wh1000xm4-headphones/

Yes, the chart shows the Dekoni pads will reduce the bass compared to stock pads; volume is reduced from at the 10Hz-100Hz range, which is part of the bass region.
Here's an article on how to read frequency response charts and how it affects music, https://www.headphones.com/pages/measurements-and-frequency-response

Ear pads can also affect soundstage and imaging, not just the frequency response. So keep that in mind when testing different pads.

 

[MrWalkman]

Yes, the chart shows the Dekoni pads will reduce the bass compared to stock pads; volume is reduced from at the 10Hz-100Hz range, which is part of the bass region.
Here's an article on how to read frequency response charts and how it affects music, https://www.headphones.com/pages/measurements-and-frequency-response

Ear pads can also affect soundstage and imaging, not just the frequency response. So keep that in mind when testing different pads.

I didn't try the XM4s yet, but XM2 and XM3 were both a bit boosted in the lows area, so maybe reducing the bass would not be a bad idea at all.

 

[leveller1642]

It’s been a while since I cared about sound quality. I remember my old set up- lossless > Apogee Duet FireWire > Burson HA-160 > Sennheiser HD-600. This was utter bliss. I bought these Sony’s a couple of weeks ago after reading about all the hype. Tried with AAC 256 from old iPhone SE and Apple lossless from my M1 MacBook Air. I still have Etymotic ER-4P and HF5 which were favourites from that era and they still sound as good as they did then.

My thoughts? Just horrible. Bass heavy. Veiled. Tried using the app to adjust the frequencies. Still awful. Going to have to sell these.

 

[Quadfather]

i had a pair of sennheisers that started creaking a bit, i returned them and the next pair did same thing so i got rid of them.

that stuff drives me crazy

Use silicone lubricant

 

[Eagle_Driver]

It’s been a while since I cared about sound quality. I remember my old set up- lossless > Apogee Duet FireWire > Burson HA-160 > Sennheiser HD-600. This was utter bliss. I bought these Sony’s a couple of weeks ago after reading about all the hype. Tried with AAC 256 from old iPhone SE and Apple lossless from my M1 MacBook Air. I still have Etymotic ER-4P and HF5 which were favourites from that era and they still sound as good as they did then.

My thoughts? Just horrible. Bass heavy. Veiled. Tried using the app to adjust the frequencies. Still awful. Going to have to sell these.

It's not just bassy. The bass actually bleeds into the lower mids. It suffers many of the failings of over-ear closed-back headphones in general.

And the bassiness is in large part due to the magnets that are a bit undersized for the headphone driver size. Tyll's old review of the TOTL MDR-Z1R showed undersized magnets for a 70mm driver after disassembly. Perhaps Sony was trying too hard to boost the bass in its headphones while somehow trying to retain the audiophile-friendly character?

I do not dislike the WH-1000XM4. It is just overrated, IMHO.

 

[lambdastorm]

These days I live 20 minutes away from the local flagship Sony store. They have quite a bit of stuff here, first floor the consumer stuff. headphones, TVs, cameras, experimental fancy VRs, second floor is dedicated to home theater setup. What's surprising is their third floor. The entire floor is dedicated to CIEMs. Apparently they have their most expensive CIEM lineup there, you can custom order a pair that they tune to your exact liking. And of course for that money you can buy a car or whatever.

Anyhow, most time I stop by to try the XM4. I already own the XM3 and the QC35, so I just want to see how much of an improvement the 4 is to the 3. First off, sound quality. In my opinion the 4s fix the bloated bass on the 3s to a degree. They still have a bit of bass bloat/bleed but not to the extent of the 3s. Bass digs deeper, has less quantity and is overall better-controlled. Noise cancelling is pretty much the same. They claim improved NC but it's really not that apparent. Comfort is similar to their predecessor as well. The earpads are super soft but there's not much breathing room for the ears. Your ears will get sweaty after a while. Now to the more useful features. First, the distance censor is great. It detects when you takes off the headphone and pauses music when you do. That's a really neat feature. I like it. The speak to pause music function is a bit of hit or miss. Sometimes even humming to music can make the headphone think you're talking to someone. I turn it off most of the time. Multipoint connection is GREAT. I haven't tested connecting it to two devices, but this is a must-have feature that the 3 is sorely missing. Having to disconnect from my phone just to play music from my laptop is super annoying.

One question though, can the two connected device use different protocols? I haven't tried it myself, but I've heard that when multipoint is enabled both device will default to SBC.

 

[Eagle_Driver]

can the two connected device use different protocols? I haven't tried it myself, but I've heard that when multipoint is enabled both device will default to SBC.

When multipoint is enabled, only AAC is available. While it works fine if a connected device is an Apple device, AAC is very erratic for Android devices.