Sony WH-1000XM6 (Wireless Noise Cancelling)

[Dawood]

3 minutes of charge for 3 hours of use? Wow, I must be old or something. Has charging really gotten so quick?

 

[MrWalkman]

3 minutes of charge for 3 hours of use? Wow, I must be old or something. Has charging really gotten so quick?

Yeah, you would need to use a proper fast charger, that is capable of 9V/3A for 3 minutes for 3 hours I guess.

 

[dcguy73]

Hi bro! How are you?

I'm very hyped. Tell us about the sound pleaseeee

Mini Review of WH-1000XM6

I love Sony audio gear. I've owned the WH-1000XM series from the beginning, with the OG, 3, 4, and now 6 passing through my collection of headphones. I still have the v4 in my possession. I have owned the NW-ZX300 DAP and still own the NW-ZX507 DAP.

So I'm sorry to say that I’m disappointed in the WH-1000XM6. The sound is fine. It's definitely the most balanced sounding headphones in this series. There's a slight bit of bass boost and warmth to the sound. The treble is extended. Midrange is clear. Subbass is cleaner than previous iterations and present when needed. Nothing to complain about overall.

Sony is not going for a euphonic or rich sound with the 1000XM6’s tuning. The 6 feels like it was tuned for precision and linearity by audio engineers. It measures well and there’s nothing offensive about the sound. But the tuning sounds flat to me in comparison to the v4. Maybe "safe" is a more accurate word than flat. It's not what I'm used to getting from Sony. The sound makes me think of a DAC with an ESS delta-sigma DAC implementation. Clean, clear, tidy. That's not my cup of tea. I'm an old-school AKM fan and a modern R-2R DAC enthusiast. I prefer a sound with warmth and body over gear that measures well but doesn't commit to be exciting or euphonic.

So I don't find the 6 to be engaging. I compared them to the v4 this morning, and the v4, aside from the extremely over boosted bass, sounds warmer and more intimate to me. The 4 feels more like a traditional Sony tuning. The v6 sounds very modern and inoffensive and as a result, boring. Note: I don't mess much with EQ, so your mileage may vary.

Sound quality aside, the comfort and fit of the 1000XM6 is not great. The headphones have shallow ear cups and there’s a protruding microphone that sticks out into the middle of the cup. I have small ears, so I wasn’t affected by the protrusion, but I’ve seen others comment on it. Padding is also an issue. When I put the v4 back on my head for comparison this morning, I was surprised by how much cushier the headband and ear cups are compared to the v6. I could definitely wear the v4 for a longer flight without discomfort. The v6 I'm not so sure about, due to the thinner padding on the headband and ear cups. I can’t get a good seal when I have my eyeglasses on with the 6. They don’t go well together. I'm bald, so take my discomfort with a grain of salt if you have a full head of hair.

The best thing about the v6 for me is that its passive noise blocking combined with active noise canceling reduces outside sound more than previous generations, including my v4. The 6 is even a few degrees more effective than my Airpods Pro 2, which do pretty well themselves. When I'm wearing the 6 on the subway and at work without music playing, lower frequencies are barely audible and higher pitched sounds are muffled enough to not bother me (I've never heard a noise cancelling headphone that does great with high pitched sounds like voices). Playing music with the ANC turned on feels like I exist in my own bubble. However, with the v6 you can’t adjust the degree of noise cancelling. It’s either on or off. If you want something in-between, you’ll need to fiddle with the settings for the ambient mode.

I switched between AAC from my iPhone and LDAC from my NW-ZX507 while listening to music with the 6. Codec choice does make a difference. I found using 24-96 LDAC gave the sound a little more body than AAC, but it wasn’t a huge difference. I think Apple does AAC best with its own products.

So, overall the XM10006 is not what I hoped for. Aside from the 6's more balanced tuning and slightly better noise-canceling, I still prefer my 1000XM4 over the new model. I wish I could report better results. I'm still using the 6 when I commute to see if it improves with time. I've got another 24 days to do so until the return window expires.

 

[MrWalkman]

I wonder what the 9.0.1 and 9.0.4 updates are:

Back in January 22nd was the first time the XM6 appeared on the update server, and it was with versions 1.0.1, 1.0.2, and 9.0.1.

Then, in March, there was 1.0.4, 1.0.5, and 9.0.4.

Installing 9.0.1 and 9.0.4 will make the headphones actually show 9.0.1 or 9.0.4 in the Sound Connect app.

Also, the 9.0.1, 9.0.4, and 1.0.2 updates are quite bigger in size compared to the rest.

 

[Zhuyaj]

Mini Review of WH-1000XM6

I love Sony audio gear. I've owned the WH-1000XM series from the beginning, with the OG, 3, 4, and now 6 passing through my collection of headphones. I still have the v4 in my possession. I have owned the NW-ZX300 DAP and still own the NW-ZX507 DAP.

So I'm sorry to say that I’m disappointed in the WH-1000XM6. The sound is fine. It's definitely the most balanced sounding headphones in this series. There's a slight bit of bass boost and warmth to the sound. The treble is extended. Midrange is clear. Subbass is cleaner than previous iterations and present when needed. Nothing to complain about overall.

Sony is not going for a euphonic or rich sound with the 1000XM6’s tuning. The 6 feels like it was tuned for precision and linearity by audio engineers. It measures well and there’s nothing offensive about the sound. But the tuning sounds flat to me in comparison to the v4. Maybe "safe" is a more accurate word than flat. It's not what I'm used to getting from Sony. The sound makes me think of a DAC with an ESS delta-sigma DAC implementation. Clean, clear, tidy. That's not my cup of tea. I'm an old-school AKM fan and a modern R-2R DAC enthusiast. I prefer a sound with warmth and body over gear that measures well but doesn't commit to be exciting or euphonic.

So I don't find the 6 to be engaging. I compared them to the v4 this morning, and the v4, aside from the extremely over boosted bass, sounds warmer and more intimate to me. The 4 feels more like a traditional Sony tuning. The v6 sounds very modern and inoffensive and as a result, boring. Note: I don't mess much with EQ, so your mileage may vary.

Sound quality aside, the comfort and fit of the 1000XM6 is not great. The headphones have shallow ear cups and there’s a protruding bar that comes up to the middle of the cup. I have small ears, so I wasn’t affected by the protrusion, but I’ve seen others comment on it. Padding is also an issue. When I put the v4 back on my head for comparison this morning, I was surprised by how much cushier the headband and earcups are compared to the v6. I could definitely wear the v4 for a longer flight without discomfort. The v6 I'm not so sure about, due to the thinner padding on the headband and greater clamping force on my ears. Also, I can’t get a good seal when I have my eyeglasses on with the 6. They don’t go well together. I'm bald, so take my discomfort with a grain of salt if you have a full head of hair.

The best thing about the v6 for me is that its passive noise blocking combined with active noise canceling reduces outside sound more than previous generations, including my v4. The 6 is even a few degrees more effective than my Airpods Pro 2, which do pretty well themselves. When I'm wearing the 6 on the subway and at work without music playing, lower frequencies are barely audible and higher pitched sounds are muffled enough to not bother me (I've never heard a noise cancelling headphone that does great with high pitched sounds like voices). Playing music with the ANC turned on feels like I exist in my own bubble. However, with the v6 you can’t adjust the degree of noise cancelling. It’s either on or off. If you want something in-between, you’ll need to fiddle with the settings for the ambient mode.

I switched between AAC from my iPhone and LDAC from my NW-ZX507 while listening to music with the 6. Codec choice does make a difference. I found using 24-96 LDAC gave the sound a little more body than AAC, but it wasn’t a huge difference. I think Apple does AAC best with its own products.

So, overall the XM10006 is not what I hoped for. I wish I could report better results. I'm still using them when I commute to see if they improve with time. I've got another 26 days to do so until the return window expires.

EDIT: tried to be more descriptive and include my biases

Thanks for the review. Have you tried eq to see if it helps?

 

[dcguy73]

Thanks for the review. Have you tried eq to see if it helps?

I haven't, but I'll definitely experiment with EQ while I still have the WH-1000XM6 with me. It may make a difference. As @MrWalkman said, it helps with the XM4.

 

[Roybenz]

I fiddled with eq and think this makes it better than stock. It better than all the previous ones, and better than Bose ultra and APM imho. I also had the new bathys mg, Dali io12 and b&o h95 and h100, and I don’t miss any of them, compared to these xm6.

 

[dcguy73]

I fiddled with eq and think this makes it better than stock. It better than all the previous ones, and better than Bose ultra and APM imho. I also had the new bathys mg, Dali io12 and b&o h95 and h100, and I don’t miss any of them, compared to these xm6.

I'm curious. What makes it better than all those other headphones?

 

[Roybenz]

Not nessesearly better, just don’t miss the weird sound of H100, Dali were good but m6 has better NC and comfort. More tweaks. Sound and NC wise the Bose is far behind. M6 is very balanced and you can tweak it to your liking with 10band eq. Something none of the others can offer.

 

[tcellguy]

Mini Review of WH-1000XM6

I love Sony audio gear. I've owned the WH-1000XM series from the beginning, with the OG, 3, 4, and now 6 passing through my collection of headphones. I still have the v4 in my possession. I have owned the NW-ZX300 DAP and still own the NW-ZX507 DAP.

So I'm sorry to say that I’m disappointed in the WH-1000XM6. The sound is fine. It's definitely the most balanced sounding headphones in this series. There's a slight bit of bass boost and warmth to the sound. The treble is extended. Midrange is clear. Subbass is cleaner than previous iterations and present when needed. Nothing to complain about overall.

Sony is not going for a euphonic or rich sound with the 1000XM6’s tuning. The 6 feels like it was tuned for precision and linearity by audio engineers. It measures well and there’s nothing offensive about the sound. But the tuning sounds flat to me in comparison to the v4. Maybe "safe" is a more accurate word than flat. It's not what I'm used to getting from Sony. The sound makes me think of a DAC with an ESS delta-sigma DAC implementation. Clean, clear, tidy. That's not my cup of tea. I'm an old-school AKM fan and a modern R-2R DAC enthusiast. I prefer a sound with warmth and body over gear that measures well but doesn't commit to be exciting or euphonic.

So I don't find the 6 to be engaging. I compared them to the v4 this morning, and the v4, aside from the extremely over boosted bass, sounds warmer and more intimate to me. The 4 feels more like a traditional Sony tuning. The v6 sounds very modern and inoffensive and as a result, boring. Note: I don't mess much with EQ, so your mileage may vary.

Sound quality aside, the comfort and fit of the 1000XM6 is not great. The headphones have shallow ear cups and there’s a protruding microphone that sticks out into the middle of the cup. I have small ears, so I wasn’t affected by the protrusion, but I’ve seen others comment on it. Padding is also an issue. When I put the v4 back on my head for comparison this morning, I was surprised by how much cushier the headband and ear cups are compared to the v6. I could definitely wear the v4 for a longer flight without discomfort. The v6 I'm not so sure about, due to the thinner padding on the headband and ear cups. I can’t get a good seal when I have my eyeglasses on with the 6. They don’t go well together. I'm bald, so take my discomfort with a grain of salt if you have a full head of hair.

The best thing about the v6 for me is that its passive noise blocking combined with active noise canceling reduces outside sound more than previous generations, including my v4. The 6 is even a few degrees more effective than my Airpods Pro 2, which do pretty well themselves. When I'm wearing the 6 on the subway and at work without music playing, lower frequencies are barely audible and higher pitched sounds are muffled enough to not bother me (I've never heard a noise cancelling headphone that does great with high pitched sounds like voices). Playing music with the ANC turned on feels like I exist in my own bubble. However, with the v6 you can’t adjust the degree of noise cancelling. It’s either on or off. If you want something in-between, you’ll need to fiddle with the settings for the ambient mode.

I switched between AAC from my iPhone and LDAC from my NW-ZX507 while listening to music with the 6. Codec choice does make a difference. I found using 24-96 LDAC gave the sound a little more body than AAC, but it wasn’t a huge difference. I think Apple does AAC best with its own products.

So, overall the XM10006 is not what I hoped for. Aside from the 6's more balanced tuning and slightly better noise-canceling, I still prefer my 1000XM4 over the new model. I wish I could report better results. I'm still using them when I commute to see if they improve with time. I've got another 24 days to do so until the return window expires.

That was my experience with the XM5. The XM1-4 all had great sub bass and a very punchy driver. Yes there's mid bass bloat, but you can EQ that down and boost the kids to get to pretty good sound signature. The XM5 just sounded lifeless, dull, and unable to generate much excursive force in the bass. I really don't get where they are going with the XM5 (thin headband, shallow cups, non folding hinges) only to semi backtrack on XM6 (slightly thicker headband, slightly deeper cups, apparently new but still small driver). Oh well.

 

[Uebelkraehe]

XM4 were a bloated mess with bad technicalities to boot, it's good news if Sony has really changed course compared to these.

 

[HanzoSlash43]

Really glad that sony is start to go for a more reined in/mature sound without crazy boosts.

 

[UnderwaterB0i]

If anything, the 10 band EQ is an improvement over my experience on the XM4, and once Oratory1990 releases an EQ setting that utilizes the 10 band EQ in the native app I'll be intrigued. I bought my XM4s refurbished in 2020 and they are still going strong, mostly for calls/meetings while using my passive cans for music listening.

 

[angelom]

B&O H100, Sony XM6, Sony XM3




I receiving the XM6 today. I have experience with many, many ANC headphones and earphones (for the people that don't know me well).

The first thing I do immediately is comparing the XM6 to the XM3. Why? Because I also owning (and returning) the XM4 few years ago and the sound is almost identical to the XM3 (even the graphs showing this), but the XM4 is uncomfortable and isn't providing any real benefits than the XM3.

I never trying the XM5, but I reading that the sound quality is very similar to the XM4, so I have no interest at all even when supposedly the ANC is better and, specially, the mics for telephone calls too.

So, yes, the XM6 have better sound quality than the XM3, this is instantly clear -- the muddy and dull sound of the XM3, with what is like having 'a thick blanket on top of the drivers' isn't present in the XM6. The XM6 is a sound that I can listening in its factory sound configuration even if still not my favourite type of sound -- with the XM3 EQ is 100% mandatory.

I also quickly testing how effective is the new 10-bands EQ of the XM6 -- yes, is doing a very good job for changing AND improving the sound even more. This is very good news.

I doing some extremely quick comparisons with my H100 and the XM6, with and without EQ, in both cases I prefer the H100 with its factory sound. BUT, when EQ'ing the XM6 the difference isn't so night and day for the average consumer. The H100 still have better resolution, more delineation of bass notes, more correct midrange, more realistic timbre, little better soundstage, and instruments being separated (breathing) a little better. The XM6 still sound a little congested in comparison but (with EQ) this difference isn't so big but is still there clearly for my ears.

Then I doing some serious ANC and transparency testing ---- AND here is where I have some surprises.

1. ANC with airplane cabin noise (simulation using a YouTube video with speakers for making the sound level as realistic as is possible):

The winner, for my surprise, is the Apple AirPods Pro 2 USBC version (APP2) that blocking just a little more noise than the XM6. I testing this several times because I'm surprised and I want being 100% sure. Then, after the APP2 and XM6 is coming the H100 and XM3 with very similar level of ANC and NOT so far from the other two, but there is clearly a discernible difference.

2. ANC with loud cafe noise (simulation using youtube video with speakers for making the sound level as realistic as is possible):

The winner again is the APP2 (!!). The XM6 is very close but is coming in second position. 3rd position is for the XM3 and the H100 in 4th position by small margin from XM3.

3. ANC with loud fan (at max position # 4):

Here the winner by very small margin is the XM6, then, by very small difference, at same second position the APP2 and H100, then the XM3. BUT, the H100 is the ONLY one of the four where you can't hearing any wind noise at all, then the APP2, then the XM6, then the XM3.

Transparency mode:

The APP2 and H100 providing the best, more natural sounding transparency, more like not wearing earphones/headphones. The XM6 isn't far at all but is have little more artificial amplification but still is very good. The XM3 is very far behind in 4th position.

Fit and comfort:

I prefer the fit of the XM6 than the XM3 --- the XM6 have more clamping force but isn't uncomfortable at all for me, and is feeling more secure on the head. BUT the XM3 is still more comfortable, at least right now. Curiously, even when the H100 have more clamping force than the XM6, the H100 is clearly more comfortable with the more small earcups, but maybe this is because I already owning for 8.5 months and using them every day. (But the more big earcups of the XM6 is giving a similar feeling of the BIG iO-12 earcups, but the iO-12 earpads are genuine leather so they're clearly better for me)

Construction quality and design --- the XM6 is feeling better, more strong/less flimsy than the XM3. BUT I'm not sure I actually like the XM6 design better because some aspects of the XM3 design I still prefer, specially the earcups. I like the Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra very better in every aspect in this two categories than the XM6 and XM3.

The XM6 travel case I think is the absolute best travel case I seeing in my life --- strong, compact AND very practical with a great magnetic closure...and with a very nice material, design and colour. Genius really.

I think is taking my ears more long time for my ears becoming hot and later start sweating a little with the XM6 than with the XM3 (the XM3 is absolutely terrible for me) but I need testing this properly when I'm not changing headphones constantly for testing)

 

[IXentimenTI]

XM4 were a bloated mess with bad technicalities to boot, it's good news if Sony has really changed course compared to these.

Most ironic part of XM3/4 sound quality is that its literally the same driver used in 1AM2, which while V shaped, was very well recieved in terms of sound. As some members here can attest the difference between 1AM2 and XM3/4 is massive. You'd think all the DSP magic could atleast somewhat compensate for the differences in housing needed for ANC but apprently not.