Sony has come up with a number of reasons why you should choose its XM6 over everything else.
Sony’s WH-1000XM6 headphones are priced at Rs. 39,990 in India
Sony's WH-1000XM-series have always been about delivering the finest possible audio quality in a wireless format. But (and this is a big one…) they have never been about delivering audiophile-grade sound. Instead, Sony (that claims to know its users well) has been more about delivering its signature and slightly bass-heavy audio that caters to the casual listener. Given its reception (and sales) Sony took its slightly bass-heavy sound profile in stride and added minor improvements seen in the last WH-1000MX5 headphones launched in 2022.
Two years in, it's time for another upgrade. This time around, Sony is focussed on audio and noise-cancelling customisation. After using it for a few weeks I'm convinced that the new design ideas and audio features that Sony has introduced, make its WH-1000XM6 a solid upgrade even for XM5 owners.
After unboxing the headphones from Sony's environmentally conscious packaging, I immediately began to experience Sony's new design ideas. The carrying case has been completely redesigned. The headset's new design, which allows the earcups to twist and rotate when not in use, makes the carry case even flatter compared to the XM5's foldable case.
The carry case is now slimmer and more compact and reminds me of an egg, with a flattened bottom. Thankfully, it is only rounded around the sides with the top cover and bottom case being flat, making it easy to slide into a backpack or a satchel.
The zip for closing and opening the case is finally gone. There's now a magnetic flap that locks in place like a buckle (minus the pin), making it extremely easy to access the headphones compared to previous models.
For once, you can also pull out the headphones from the case using just one hand!
Inside the fabric-covered case, there is a mould which holds the headphones (with the earpads submerged) after twisting them in place. Oddly, they do not stick to the mould magnetically and they can fall off if held vertically. Unlike the headphones, the cables which include a Type-A to Type-C charging dongle/adapter and a 3.5mm cable, slide comfortably into a pouch located next to the mold for the headphones.
Given the elastic cover which holds the cables in place, it will be hard to lose these even if you hold the case vertically upside down.
The case by itself is quite solid; the mould along with the plastic shells do a fine job of protecting the headphones inside. Just keep in mind that due to the magnetic flap (which leaves a gap in the protective inner lining), full-protection from splashes of water is not possible.
There is an empty space behind the headband storage area. I wonder if Sony could have slid in some batteries and turned this chunky case into a charging case.
Since the XM5's stem and hinge were known for breaking, Sony seems to have worked on the headband and the hinge mechanism, which now finally folds like the XM4 model. The overall structure still uses polycarbonate to keep the headphones lightweight, but the company has used a metal insert or linkage at the hinge (slides into the earcup and the headband), which will add some rigidity around this known weak point.
Sony seems to have addressed the XM5's hinge breaking issue with a new component, but only time will tell how durable the new metal insert is
While the design of the earcups looks familiar to the ones on the XM5, there are some changes. Sony has gone for better accessibility, by going with an asymmetric headband design, which will instantly let users know which is the right way to wear them. The power and noise-cancelling buttons now finally look and feel different, so you won't press down the wrong one while it's worn. And finally, the earpads need no special prying tool to be pulled out for replacement.
If you are fine with not using the included case, you can bend both the earcups inwards completely and slide the headphones into a smaller pouch or pocket
As for comfort, you can slide out the headband extensions till you get the perfect fit. The earpads never felt stiff, but very comfortable while creating the perfect seal around my ears. The tension with the headband is just perfect, not too stiff like the AirPods Max and not too loose that they fall off while walking or jogging. Just don't use them for sweaty workouts as they could get damaged with all the sweat flowing into the earcups.
The Sony WH-1000XM6 headphones don't look drastically different when compared to their predecessor, but they do come with upgraded internal hardware. Sony uses a new QN3 processor and 12 mics for powering its active noise cancellation mode. Out of these, the system uses six mics when placing calls or when listening for voice commands.
Sony's Sound Connect app has been the go-to app for all of the brand's audio products. Things aren't any different for the WH-1000MX6's with some added features available in the app.
No matter what platform you connect to, you can access a majority of the features save for the ability to choose a Bluetooth audio transmission codec, which is limited to AAC for iPhone users. Android users get to choose between AAC, LC3 and LDAC codecs instead.
While testing out the headphones, I did notice the Sound Connect app installed on the Pixel 10 Pro Fold (used LDAC), frequently disconnecting from the headphones (not detecting them in the app) even though the audio kept playing just fine.
While this issue did not interrupt my music listening experience, it was irritating when changing or adjusting the numerous features. Switching to the iQOO Neo 10 (used LDAC) resolved the app issue with no problems whatsoever. Even switching to the more reliable AAC codec and giving the app unrestricted battery access on the Pixel also did not sort this issue. So, this is clearly down to the Pixel's hardware or software.
Connecting to the XM6 headphones is pretty easy. You can do this by installing the Sound Connect app and pairing the headphones using the in-app setup process, which will also let you choose and set up the other added features that come with the XM-series headphones.
Sony has always taken the kitchen sink approach when it comes to features for its XM-series headphones, which is why they have always delivered excellent value through the generations. You get the usual set of now “standard” features, such as 360 Reality Audio, Multipoint connections (2 paired devices at a time), Quick Access (5 music services), Adaptive Sound Control, Speak-to-Chat, and more. All of the usual features worked as expected and I'm happy to see the numerous choices and options available to customise these features to my liking.
If you hate that Speak-to-Chat automatically pauses when coughing, you can adjust its sensitivity (and the duration of the pause) to avoid pausing when you cough or when you agree with something that's happening on screen with a quiet “hmm”. Kudos to Sony for allowing for such a deep level of customisation indeed!
The Quick Access feature which can be set up in the Sound Connect app on Android strangely lacks Apple Music support (shown here is the setup process on iOS)
But there's plenty more features added to the WH-1000XM6 this year.
Continuing with Sony's focus on relying less on your smartphone for your music listening experience (Quick Access, Adaptive Sound Control, Speak-to-Chat and more) there's now Hands-Free Voice Control. It lets you speak voice commands for controlling music playback, bypassing the built-in (Android/iOS) voice assistant. While I liked the speed at which the voice command was executed, you have to be very accurate when speaking out the voice commands.
Saying “Turn up the volume” instead of “Turn up volume” will result in a failure to execute the command and leaving you to listen to the “Apologies the command could not be recognised” dialogue. You also have to recite the wake up trigger verbatim as the onboard assistant will refuse to wake up if you say “Hey headphone” instead of “Hey headphones”. Given the exact phrases that one needs to remember, I was happier using the source phone's built-in voice assistant, which was more forgiving when understanding my voice commands.
The power and noise-cancelling buttons now finally look and feel different, so you won't press down the wrong one while it's worn
Head gesture control (currently in beta), is another smartphone-free control system. You can nod your head to accept an incoming call, shake your head to reject it. There is a calibration and setup process for those who want to try it out, so both you and the headphones understand each other better. Post the quick setup, it works perfectly fine, with no misfires. Simple and handy as things should be!
Background Music listening mode is a lovely new addition, for those who like to play music while studying, cooking, working or to just to focus and ideate better. It basically places the music behind or (further away at a distance) so you can hear it and enjoy it, but it does not get into the way of your thoughts. In typical Sony fashion, it also lets you customise and choose how far you want the music away from you by selecting My room (simulating a speaker on your desk), Living room (about one-arm's distance from you shoulders) and Cafe (which pushes the sound to the corners of the room). One detail to note is that the Background Music feature sounds very different from simply lowering the volume of your headphones, as the latter does not simulate a sense of distance. Meanwhile, there's also a Cinema mode, which simulates the feeling of sitting in a much bigger, yet enclosed space (versus the Standard listening mode) utilising Sony's 360 Reality Audio Upmix technology.
Also new to the XM6 is a ten-band audio equaliser. Sony's made it even easier to figure out your way around the equaliser in case you aren't happy with how the default audio signature sounds or even the presets from the equaliser for that matter. The new Find Your Equaliser feature has an easy and step-by-step process to tune the equaliser and audio to your liking. This is followed by a graph showing you what the headphones sound like with the default tuning versus what you have set it to.
Lastly, a recent firmware update even enabled fast-pairing and the ability to speak to Gemini Live, like it works on the Pixel Buds Pro 2, I reviewed last year. The feature worked perfectly as expected when paired with iQOO's Neo 10.
The drivers remain unchanged since the jump to the smaller 30mm ones used on the XM5 model. Sony claims that it has improved on what it accomplished with the XM5 model by tuning the headphones to deliver an enjoyable and customisable sound. No! These aren't going to fool any audiophile anytime soon, but they do sound pretty enjoyable (for the masses) as they attempt to strike a balance between audiophiles and the casual listener, while drifting more towards the latter.
The Sony XM6 delivers crisp and detailed sound. Yes, keeping in mind the masses, these still place a bit more emphasis on the lower frequencies, but it's tight and controlled. While these are a massive improvement over the warmer and more bass-driven sound signature of the XM3 model I personally own, there is also proper emphasis given to the mid-range. This I feel has been a constant struggle with the older WH-1000XM series headphones until the XM5, which we reviewed a few years ago. There's excellent separation and you can very well tell that all the instruments are where they should be in the soundstage. And if you still feel that the bass is excessive, you can just jump into the equaliser and tweak the settings to your liking.
As for comfort, you can slide out the headband extensions till you get the perfect fit. The earpads never felt stiff, but very comfortable while creating the perfect seal around my ears.
With 12 mics and a new QN3 chip to handle active noise cancelling (ANC), the headphones do a fantastic job of cancelling out literally everything it possibly can. It worked perfectly fine on my noisy main road, which has a bridge running in between, adding some echo to the noise and cacophony. Out of this, I could only occasionally hear a faint honk, but near-perfect silence otherwise. While the usual repetitive sounds are easily wiped out, I was surprised at how the headphones nearly cancelled conversations happening right next to me. The Ambient sound mode also does a fine job of bringing in some outside noise depending on the level of noise around me. Of course, this being Sony, the sensitivity levels could be customised for the Ambient sound mode to react to surrounding sounds differently.
Range was not really a problem with the headphones. But I was interested in checking out the Game Equaliser, which according to Sony was developed using technology from their INZONE gaming brand. Switching codecs to LC3 and LE Audio (currently in Beta), there was no audio delay or latency, while playing fast-paced FPS games. The spatial positioning of the sound was downright impressive!
According to my testing, the headphones drain by 9 percent for every 5 hours of non-stop music listening at 50 percent volume, using the AAC codec and no ANC. Summarised, the WH-1000XM6 lasts up to 45 hours with no ANC. It sticks to Sony's claim of 30 hours with ANC for continuous music listening, which is pretty good for a premium headset even though these figures aren't a major jump in battery life over the previous model.
If there's one very noticeable and repetitive theme with Sony's latest WH-1000XM6 headphones, it has to be customisation. While it sounds very detailed and punchy for the casual listener out of the box, there's tons of customisation options to fidget with, whether it's the sound, the noise cancellation or even the way it reacts to different environments. And this makes it a very attractive and customisable listening experience that is really hard to ignore if you are out looking for a pair of premium active noise cancelling headphones.
Sony's WH-1000XM6 headphones are choc-a-bloc with practical features and the return to the foldable design is the cherry on the cake
If you own an iPhone and find the AirPods Max (2024) (ideally your best choice) too heavy or ill-fitting, the Sony WH-1000XM6 (at Rs. 39,990) are a good choice for casual listeners. Unlike the AirPods Max, you cannot plug in a USB-C cable and enjoy the lossless streaming formats that the Apple Music app provides. You will have to use an external DAC for this with the Sony XM6.
Bose's Quiet Comfort Ultra also retails at a much lower price point in India. While its audio quality should fall in the vicinity of the Sony, it offers the higher bitrate (and more future-proof) aptxHD Lossless codec that's better than Sony's LDAC. However, you will have to have a smartphone with Qualcomm's Snapdragon processor (Snapdragon Sound) to make the most of it.
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