AirPods Pro 2 vs Sony WH-1000XM4 vs WH-1000XM5 - Impossible to compare?!
In response to viewer feedback, I’m going to compare the AirPods Pro 2 to the full sized Sony WH-1000XM4 and XM5 headphones. The most obvious differences here are portability, and the fact that with the full sized headphones it packs all the battery inside (see below), so you don’t have to constantly recharge them in a case, like the AirPods Pro 2. But in this article, we’re gonna go a lot deeper than that, we’re gonna compare their call quality, noise cancelling and sound. And at the end, we’re gonna talk about which one you should buy.
Sound Quality
Do note that earbuds and headphones do sound very different due to the driver size and position. Also the air volume in the ear canal is very different depending on whether it’s headphones or earbuds. So it’s not really about which one sounds better in this article, it’s more about identifying the differences between the AirPods Pro 2 and these Sony headphones. You can listen to their differences here.
From the outset, I can tell that the AirPods are brighter sounding, and that the Sony headphones have more thickness in the bass. The frequency sweep below seems to suggest as much. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Due to the difference in driver size and the way the driver sits over the ears, headphones do provide more enveloping, immersive audio, while earbuds like the AirPods Pro 2 are going to offer a more in-the-head audio experience. Some people prefer that, but that also has an impact on soundstaging.
Both the Sony Mark 4 and 5 headphones are high-res certified, and they do support streaming over LDAC which is higher bandwidth than the regular AAC codec on the AirPods Pro 2. But not many people can hear the improvements that Hi-Res audio brings especially if you’re listening to standard resolution music from Spotify and Apple Music. Furthermore, iOS devices don’t support Hi-Res streaming anyway, so if you’re in the Apple camp, it’s not really an incentive to go for the Sonys in this regard.
But if you’re an audiophile on an Android device, who’s into more serious listening, the Sony Mark 4 and 5 have a lot more to offer in terms of streaming your hi-res music. Another edge the Sonys have is the ability to finetune their sound in an app. The Sony Headphones Connect app is available on both iOS and Android, whereas for the AirPods, sound customization is only possible on iOS. Even so, sound customization on the AirPods Pro 2 is very simplified, and you don’t get as many options to tweak the sound as the Sonys, even if it’s on an iOS device.
Call Quality
In terms of call quality, testing them in both quiet and noisy conditions using some really loud cafe style background noise, and some wind noise from a fan, I think the AirPods Pro 2 is the best among them. My voice was clearer than on the XM5 in quiet conditions, and in the same noisy conditions it did cancel as much background noise and wind noise, and it’s doing that with minimal degradation of my voice which is awesome. Listen to the samples here.
Noise Cancelling
In terms of how much noise it’s cancelling, the AirPods are extremely close to the XM4 than the XM5. It is definitely capable of cancelling as much low frequency noise as both headphones, but the XM5s are the most effective noise cancellers among them. That being said, the AirPods Pro 2 employs very similar Adaptive Noise Cancelling tech to the XM5. It uses different degrees of noise cancelling depending on the noise, so if it’s a quiet environment it relaxes the noise cancelling to save power. But when some kind of brief sound pops in, it ramps noise cancelling up. In theory it makes a lot of sense, like if you’re flushing the toilet. But in practice, it’s too sudden and too sensitive to brief noises that sometimes the ANC feels like its stuttering. This is true both on the AirPods Pro 2 and the Sony XM5s. Maybe some software update will happen in future that will make them less reactive to very brief noises which I will be covering in future. You can listen to the difference here.
Transparency Mode
In terms of transparency, I’m just going to say that the AirPods Pro 2 is the best among them. They just feel like you’re wearing nothing at all. Among the Sonys the XM5s are closer to the AirPods with just a hint of white noise in its transparency.
Conclusion
To conclude, why should you get the AirPods Pro 2? Simply put, there are some things it simply does better. Its call quality is better, its integration with iOS devices is also a big plus. So you can enjoy all the iOS exclusive features like Spatial Audio with head tracking when watching videos on certain apps, handsfree Siri, the ability to share your audio with another AirPods user. That is why if you already have the Sony headphones and you are using an iPhone, it makes a lot of sense to get the AirPods Pro 2 cause of how integrated it is into the iOS experience. Plus if you’re always on the move, you may not always want to rock headphones, right? Headphones are bulky, and you might be looking for something a lot more portable on certain days. But if you’re on Android, there is less incentive to choose the AirPods over Sony headphones. Because without app support, you won’t be getting the most out of the AirPods anyway. So you’re going to get more value from being able to access all the features and customizations from the Sony Headphones Connect App with the XM4 and XM5.
The WH-1000XM4 and XM5 also supports multipoint pairing. This lets you connect up to 2 devices at the same time regardless of whether it’s PC, Mac, iPhone or Samsung Galaxy, you will be able to listen to audio and answer calls from both devices. I like that because it’s a lot more flexibility than Apple’s Seamless switching, which, again, is restricted to Apple devices only. So those are the reasons in favour of the Mark 4 and Mark 5 headphones from Sony. But what do you think? Leave your comments below. And if you’d like to check the latest prices, you can do that from the links below!
AirPods Pro 2 - https://amzn.to/3UoeJG8
Sony WH-1000XM5 - https://amzn.to/4bIqJtZ
Sony WH-1000XM4 - https://amzn.to/3UL9YID
(Affiliate Links Disclosure)
When you make a purchase through the Affiliate Links on this site, the site earns a small commission at no cost to you. Thank you for your support!
