The annual summary of your listening habits has become a phenomenon – but aside from being a marketing wheeze, Wrapped doesn’t always reflect what we truly love
The problem is when that streaming service also tells all its company friends what music you streamed, which helps them profile you even more accurately.
I’m also in the market for new headphones! Wireless. I currently have a pair for gaming and a pair for music/travelling. It’s critical the travelling pair have outrageously good sound cancelling. Both must have a mic. Unlimited budget.
Okay so this provides an interesting set of restraints as they are traveling headphones. I have yet to find what I consider the perfect traveling headphones but there are a couple I have found that come close.
The Sony WH-1000XM5 and the Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra’s
Bose has some remarkable ANC, after all that is one of the things that really established their name in the market. My main two complaints with the Bose is the sound signature isn’t always the best (IMO) and that the app can be finicky at best bordering on terribly annoying.
The Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra’s are really amazing for the ANC and their sound is improved with their new processor but if you are on an apple device you will miss out on this feature. Only devices with a snap dragon 888 or newer can take advantage.
One of the caveats is that the microphone quality is not the best I had some complaints about call quality when using the Bose.
One pro is that they collapse into a smaller form factor with a slightly better carrying case.
For the Sony XM5 I really preferred the sound signature and styling is just Chefs Kiss. They fold flat enough which makes packing them easy enough even if they aren’t as small as the Bose. I also prefer that the XM5 has a 3.5mm audio jack instead of a 2.5mm on the Bose. It feels more likely to last longer. Also because they are slightly older you can probably find a better deal.
The Sony does a remarkably good job at rejecting background noise when making phone calls and has a much wider band of frequencies captured. The Bose sounds very tiny and scratchy.
The Sony also has a longer battery life which is nice.
I know you said that outrageous good noise cancelling is key but if you are willing to compromise a little on the ANC quality the Focal Bathys have far superior sound.
The frequency curve on the mids to low end is practically flat, it does fall off the tiniest bit on the upper mids and lower highs but for me this means you get a really accurate sound reproduction that isn’t tiring and can be listened to all day long. The soundstage is really wide especially given that they are closed back.
The looks are a bit odd and they are a bit on the larger side. They still fold flat and they have a superior amount of cushion and I think the build quality is better.
Oh if you are a bass head that just wants super punchy powerful bass go for the Sony’s over the Focals. The Focals are more accurate but less present.
Lastly is my currently traveling setup. Its… non-traditional. I am using a pair of Samsung Galaxy Pro 2 buds which really fit my ear well and already have some pretty remarkable ANC. Not nearly Headphone level but still very good. Here is the non-traditional part: if I REALLY need to block out outside noise IE on a construction site or in the shop I wear the buds underneath a pair of passive cancelling earmuffs. Specifically the Peltor X5 Earmuffs.
It’s not stylish but the Earmuffs + Buds + Comply Foam tips feels like you are in a void. Barely have to touch the volume to hear your music as clear as day.
Awesome thanks for the write up! The headphones I’m replacing are XM3 but I’ve had them over 5 years now I think and they’re showing their age (just aesthetically as the cushions are starting to crack, and flaking isn’t far away imo) so I suspect I’ll go for the XM5 as I’ve been really happy with these.
For gaming I think I’ll stick with steelseries (assuming they still have a model that does replaceable batteries) as I always forget to charge stuff so the base station charging the spare has been awesome.
If you want to extend the life of your XM3’s you can get some high quality upgraded cushions from “Wicked Cushions” for $30. They have a couple of different styles other than just straight black.
I don’t mind the wire, but wireless could be very nice. I’m an audio technica fan.
It would be awesome to have headphones with a good microphone, for calls at work. They’ll also have to be comfortable - I like to jam while writing code for multi-hour sessions.
My home computer doesn’t have bluetooth, so I’m probably team wired.
No, but the more they know about you, the surer they can be that different groups of data belong to the same person. Since music taste is quite personal, it helps quite a lot in constructing a profile. And I sure hope you do understand that it isn’t ideal that tech giants know everything about you.
Yes, but you also won’t give them your payment information every time you use the internet, or on every device, so often it might just as well be someone else on your IP address.
The music streaming service, that I stream music from, knows which music I streamed. I’m shocked.
The problem is when that streaming service also tells all its company friends what music you streamed, which helps them profile you even more accurately.
I listed to marina and the diamonds and tool. Maybe they could pitch me better headphones? I am actually in the market for new headphones.
Genuinely looking for new headphones?
Wired or wireless?
I kind of love headphones.
I’m also in the market for new headphones! Wireless. I currently have a pair for gaming and a pair for music/travelling. It’s critical the travelling pair have outrageously good sound cancelling. Both must have a mic. Unlimited budget.
Have at thee!
Okay so this provides an interesting set of restraints as they are traveling headphones. I have yet to find what I consider the perfect traveling headphones but there are a couple I have found that come close.
The Sony WH-1000XM5 and the Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra’s
Bose has some remarkable ANC, after all that is one of the things that really established their name in the market. My main two complaints with the Bose is the sound signature isn’t always the best (IMO) and that the app can be finicky at best bordering on terribly annoying.
The Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra’s are really amazing for the ANC and their sound is improved with their new processor but if you are on an apple device you will miss out on this feature. Only devices with a snap dragon 888 or newer can take advantage.
One of the caveats is that the microphone quality is not the best I had some complaints about call quality when using the Bose.
One pro is that they collapse into a smaller form factor with a slightly better carrying case.
For the Sony XM5 I really preferred the sound signature and styling is just Chefs Kiss. They fold flat enough which makes packing them easy enough even if they aren’t as small as the Bose. I also prefer that the XM5 has a 3.5mm audio jack instead of a 2.5mm on the Bose. It feels more likely to last longer. Also because they are slightly older you can probably find a better deal.
The Sony does a remarkably good job at rejecting background noise when making phone calls and has a much wider band of frequencies captured. The Bose sounds very tiny and scratchy.
The Sony also has a longer battery life which is nice.
I know you said that outrageous good noise cancelling is key but if you are willing to compromise a little on the ANC quality the Focal Bathys have far superior sound.
The frequency curve on the mids to low end is practically flat, it does fall off the tiniest bit on the upper mids and lower highs but for me this means you get a really accurate sound reproduction that isn’t tiring and can be listened to all day long. The soundstage is really wide especially given that they are closed back.
The looks are a bit odd and they are a bit on the larger side. They still fold flat and they have a superior amount of cushion and I think the build quality is better.
Oh if you are a bass head that just wants super punchy powerful bass go for the Sony’s over the Focals. The Focals are more accurate but less present.
Lastly is my currently traveling setup. Its… non-traditional. I am using a pair of Samsung Galaxy Pro 2 buds which really fit my ear well and already have some pretty remarkable ANC. Not nearly Headphone level but still very good. Here is the non-traditional part: if I REALLY need to block out outside noise IE on a construction site or in the shop I wear the buds underneath a pair of passive cancelling earmuffs. Specifically the Peltor X5 Earmuffs.
It’s not stylish but the Earmuffs + Buds + Comply Foam tips feels like you are in a void. Barely have to touch the volume to hear your music as clear as day.
Awesome thanks for the write up! The headphones I’m replacing are XM3 but I’ve had them over 5 years now I think and they’re showing their age (just aesthetically as the cushions are starting to crack, and flaking isn’t far away imo) so I suspect I’ll go for the XM5 as I’ve been really happy with these.
For gaming I think I’ll stick with steelseries (assuming they still have a model that does replaceable batteries) as I always forget to charge stuff so the base station charging the spare has been awesome.
Thanks again!
Anytime!
If you want to extend the life of your XM3’s you can get some high quality upgraded cushions from “Wicked Cushions” for $30. They have a couple of different styles other than just straight black.
That’s always a tough one!
I don’t mind the wire, but wireless could be very nice. I’m an audio technica fan.
It would be awesome to have headphones with a good microphone, for calls at work. They’ll also have to be comfortable - I like to jam while writing code for multi-hour sessions.
My home computer doesn’t have bluetooth, so I’m probably team wired.
OK, there are many different ways to approach your current setup.
Wired vs wireless isn’t that much of an issue as you can get very affordable Bluetooth adapters for your computer.
Also the goal of what you want your headphones to do is going to come into play here as well because you may want a stationary setup vs mobile.
Then there’s the microphone requirement…
Actually rather than fill an unrelated thread with headphone advice I’m going to DM you.
An unlikely pairing, but one that matches my own tastes.
What are they going to do, black mail me by telling my friends I listen to Taylor Swift occasionally?
No, but the more they know about you, the surer they can be that different groups of data belong to the same person. Since music taste is quite personal, it helps quite a lot in constructing a profile. And I sure hope you do understand that it isn’t ideal that tech giants know everything about you.
They have my payment information. They don’t need to guess.
Yes, but you also won’t give them your payment information every time you use the internet, or on every device, so often it might just as well be someone else on your IP address.
If the article had been about that, that would have been an interesting article.