SonyWH-1000XM5 Premium Noise Canceling Headphones, Auto NC Optimizer, 30-Hour Battery, Alexa Voice Control, Black

I thoroughly enjoy what Sony has to offer in their product line. I have the PlayStation 5, a Sony Bravia 4K TV and several other Sony products. Yes although I have owned a few of their product line I will not try to be biased here with the review. What got me into Sony products was really their earphones dating back to 2011! They have the best earphones you could get for $20 back at the time in 2011 and now the quality they still continue to put out never disappoints! Here's the pros and cons of the Sony WH-1000XM5.Update: I also picked up the XM4 Earbuds from Sony and take note that those are on a different level for listening to music compared to the XM5 Over the Ear headphones. Shares the same features like the XM5, not the same sound like over the ear obviously but also more marketed to those who goes to the gym and likes something more compact.Pros:Comfortable and lightweight!I don't ever have a complaint with what they have to offer when it comes to comfort. These are better than BOSE in regards as to comfort. I think the one thing that makes them comfortable also is that they are light. They weigh only about 0.56 pounds! People tend to have problems with headphones if they are heavy in my opinion! I also assume they use a low density memory foam for cushioning which is great but will eventually need to be replaced or tended to if left compressed or squished for too long.Unique featuresNoise Cancelling is top notch but not much different than their previous lines in my opinion! It is a standard these days to get noise cancelling and the headphones are great for drowning out noise if need be. They also tend to those who need to be aware of their surroundings by implementing a ambient mode like previous models. Works great and works like a charm by either taking the headphones off or covering the touch control panel. Also the Speak to Pause Music feature is insanely nice to have! Helps when your hands are busy and or you just don't want to adjust your headphones having to speak.Superb sound!The sound quality out of these are amazing! Does really well in all areas of music genres. Particularly really in low frequencies for bass! I get to enjoy these at a great volume and it pairs amazingly with my PS5 as a gaming headset! (Will mention the headphones does not come with a microphone for gaming when using a headphone jack.) As a pair of noise cancelling headphones, you can expect to hear a positively good detail in music, movies, gaming or even a phone call! They are clear and surprisingly really balanced. The microphone on these headphones for phone calls are great. Better than the previous versions.Fast charging!The charging rate of these headphones is incredible! I never knew how fast charging can be with this! There's times I have left this powered on overnight as I'm at work for my 10 hour job and it was drained by the time I wanted to use it again. In those times I left it charging and goodness greatness these were ready to go in a about 10-15 minutes! I enjoy these so much that I'm actually glad they have a 24-30 hour battery life.Cons:Cost.Its expensive! If you can get these on sale, it's worthwhile! If it's in your budget go for it! You pay for what you get in my opinion and these are worth their weight in gold!Fitment.They don't exactly fit around my short wide neck whenever I need to take it off and be present in a conversation or in my surroundings. Not exactly a big matter or deal breaker. More so it's a personal perspective. My neck size is 15 ¾ inches in circumference and that's pretty average I believe. I have to extend these in order to keep them around my neck without compromise. They also do not fold inward like the previous Sony headphone models but again never a issue.Cushion. Yes the ear cup cushions are comfortable but again when I place them around my neck it compresses the cushion to a point where it feels awkward after putting it back on. I'm looking at other options to replace their soft fit leather design.Update: There is different earcups that you can replace the OEM cups with but it comes at a cost of I believe $60 which is worth noting.Conclusion.Worthiness of $350+ (price as of 12/07/2022) during the holidays? Yes!Personal opinionated review:Sony WH-1000XM5 or other leading competition? Sony, easily Sony. I've never been unhappy about this purchase and I tell people that Sony is industrial leading company that continues to impress people when it comes to their headphones. Beats by Dre(Apple), Apple and Bose has always been great by popularity but Sony gets appraised by quality!I will update this review as I go until they put a new model out.

Searching for headphones is quite difficult for me. I was a bit iffy on picking up these XM5’s as I barely knew anything of them. As of 07/11, they were on a deal. Picked them up for a little under $250.In terms of sound quality, these ARE ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. They sound so crisp. The cushions do sit on your ear a bit deep for the noise cancelling but it’s nothing uncomfortable. They don’t bother my head when using for more than 3 hours.They’re very lightweight which is absolutely perfect for me.For my Gamers, I did try these on my ps5. I won’t tell you they’re the perfect for gaming but they absolute work amazing. I could hear everything that was going around me. Foot steps, firing, people talking. It was great. Although my main priority for these are not for gaming, these are very well such a good pair of headphones.I do love the touch features on the side of the headphones it’s very convenient. Simple to understand. You can deactivate this feature in the app so that’s a plus.Now here comes the little downer for me. The bass. I’m a huge bass person when it comes to headphones. I came from the Skullcandy crusher evo. Comparing the bass from these two, Skullcandy takes the win. The bass isn’t the heaviest on the xm5, you can tweak with the EQ in the app and get some bass, which is fine, but don’t expect nothing HEAVY. For me, it’s a little downer BUT the sound makes up for it.Other than that, these headphones are absolutely worth it. Especially if you find them on a deal, they’re definitely a grab!

I bought the Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S2 a couple of years ago, refurbished like new. Its sound is excellent, and its soundstage is good as they claim. However, its microphone was not as good as I had hoped.Fast-forward to 2024, the Sony WH1000MX7 was on sale for nearly 50% off the original MSRP. Of all of the Bluetooth headphones with ANC, it was consistently rated the best or runner-up. Notably, its microphone was well-regarded.I bought one, refurbished like new.I will compare these two as they were contemporaries and direct competitors.My general use cases consist of listening to music while I work, participating in a virtual meeting, and talking on the phone while I do chores around the home.Music on the Bowers and Wilkins is where the headphones shine. The Px7 S2 was reported to have a very neutral sound out of the box. I found that to be very true. Its soundstage magic and clarity of drivers gave each part of the music very good separation.I listened to the Jurassic Park theme song from years ago — don’t judge. It is orchestral with many instruments contributing to the detailed delight of sound. I use this track to sound-check every new pair of headphones I get, so this would have been the sixth or seventh pair of headphones I used to listen to that theme song. For the first time, I heard two or three instruments whereas before I thought there was only one.How did the Sony’s do? They were pristine headphones, but they couldn’t achieve that level of detail and separation.Out of the box, the Sony headphones are said to be a bit bass-heavy. However, the customization feature of the app allowed me to tune the bass to my preferences.Sony partially compensates with its app and five-channel equalizer, but it could not better B&W’s music-playing prowess.For the second challenge, the Px7 S2’s were wasted on video conferencing calls. Yes, my managers never sounded so life-like except when they were in person. My tuned Sony cans were more than capable of reproducing their sound. Sony wins this round, because my colleagues described me as sounding more loud with my Sony’s.And in the final challenge, I switched between the two headphones while taking telephone calls. For the most part, the Px7 S2’s was overqualified in sound production. Background sounds on my end were also filtered out by the mic, except on two occasions when I got ice from my ice dispenser and ripped open a package at chest height. Meanwhile, the Sony sounded just fine, but the ice dispenser was not so annoying at the other end.Other notes:The Px7 S2 has a physical button to toggle on-off. It’s a quick flip of the switch, and within seconds it is connected and ready to go.The Sony’s power button is a press-and-hold button. It’s a little more annoying, because if you hold it too long, it does something else. It takes just as long to get connected.Gone are the days I tell my conversation partner to wait while I get bluetooth connected and have to put on elevator music for them.Of the two designs, I prefer Bowers and Wilkins’s.The Sony headphones rely mostly on touch controls. Although all manner of functions can be done via touch, I can’t remember which gesture does what. The Px7 S2 uses physical buttons for volume control, play/pause, and connect and disconnect. Once more, I prefer the physical controls.Finally, the B&W headphones are noticeably heavier than the Sony ones. If you’re sitting and staying still, the extra weight doesn’t matter. On the other hand, if you’re up and about and turning your head often, the Sony’s feel much more planted on the head.The Sony’s are generally regarded as having better ANC. In my experience around the house, they’re very close. It still surprises me which sounds get through ANC and which don’t. With enough happening around you, the Sony’s seem to block more sound.You can’t go wrong with either pair of headphones. It’s very much up to your preferences. If you like strawberry — I don’t know — go with one of them. If you prefer chocolate, then go with the other one, I’d say.Ok fine. If you want a more feature-filled app or better EQ or better mic or lighter weight => Sony.Sound or materials and style => B&W.How about that?