Bose QuietComfort Ultra vs NC 700 - Not Really an Upgrade? 🤔
Reviewed by Aaron - 13 December 2023
The Bose NC 700’s an old product, been in the market for 4 years but it makes a lot of sense comparing them to the QuietComfort Ultras because of how popular these were. I’m sure that there are people still holding on to them that are looking to upgrade, but aren’t sure if it’s justified going for the Ultra’s, or maybe you’re somebody looking to cop a cheap NC 700.
At least according to Bose, the Ultra’s supposed to be an improvement over the 700s in almost every way, even ditching the one piece headband for the more familiar folding cup design in response to feedback about some people not really liking the way the 700 could only fold flat, thus taking up more space.
All the controls are now on the right earcup, and instead of the dedicated swipe pad for controlling volume being on the front side of the earcup, now it’s located under the cup so all the controls can be operated with your thumb. The Ultras are also more modern in the sense that its battery life is longer, up to 24 hours instead of 20, and it’s got spatial audio with head tracking. So if you’re watching videos on your TV, you can toggle into immersive mode and get fixed spatial audio that resembles having actual home theater speakers.
And it supports aptX adaptive which streams at higher bitrates when you’re connected to a device that’s Snapdragon Sound certified like the Sony Xperia 5 V. But aside from that, in this review, we’re also going to compare them to the NC 700 in terms of call quality, noise canceling and sound, and whether you should get the Ultra or just stick with the NC 700.
Microphone Comparison
In terms of call quality, they both are quite comparable in quiet environments, and the Ultras are a little better in noisy conditions, although they arent too far apart, especially when it comes to wind blowing into the microphones. Listen to the samples.
(Tested in both quiet and noisy conditions, using some really loud cafe style background noise and some wind noise from a fan.)
Active Noise Canceling Comparison
In terms of active noise canceling, the NC700s are still great for general noise canceling of voices, crowds and public transport. In fact when they first launched it, it was the best noise canceler in the market, but the QC Ultras are simply way ahead. In general they are able to cut about 10db more noise than the 700s. There’s just so much more silence. Have a listen to the samples.
Transparency mode Comparison
In terms of transparency, the 700s do sound natural and clear, but the Ultras sound more transparent because there’s less occlusion and certain sounds in the mid range are amplified a bit more.
Sound Quality Comparison
In terms of sound quality, frequency sweeps show that the QC Ultras are a lot more v-shaped. You’re going to get more oomph and gravity in your bass, and soundstaging is a little more wide. (Listen to Sample A)
However, it is a bit darker than the 700s in the mids. 700s have more zing in the upper mids which makes vocals sound a bit crisper, and having a flatter curve in the lower mids also brings out the timbre in vocals better. (Listen to Sample B)
I personally get more enjoyment out of the Ultras because I do prefer vocals to have a darker tone, and I do like that extra heaviness in my music. But if you like vocals, the 700s do sound pretty good. The thing is, the Ultras are a bit louder so if you want more volume, you’ll get that more with the Ultras, if you’re paired to multiple devices, that does not affect the Ultra’s sound quality, whereas on the 700s, it does sound a bit more muddy in the mids. Not surprised, back in 2019 that compromise with multipoint pairing was considered normal.
Pros and Cons
That being said, one of the 700’s benefits that doesn’t get mentioned a lot is the ability to turn off active noise canceling. It may seem like a minor thing, but when you’re left with 10pc battery with a full hour’s commute ahead of you, at least it’s still possible to squeeze more juice out of its battery by turning off ANC, which you can’t do on the Ultra. Another area which I do prefer the 700s for is they do feel a bit more comfortable to wear than the Ultras. Although its clamping force is a little tighter than the Ultras you don’t really feel it as much, because its cushions are more plush.
The 700’s headband also has this silicone cushion that I feel makes more sense for long term owners, people who don’t have the habit of upgrading every few years. Because the Ultras, like most headphones use synthetic leather on this part, but eventually, synthetic leather flakes away, then you’ll have to peel it off entirely, or upgrade to a newer model because it’s not possible to replace the headband cushion alone.
Apart from that, I think the QC Ultras are a pretty substantial upgrade over the NC700 in terms of sound, noise canceling, battery life and features. And if you’re using a Snapdragon sound device, your experience gets a further upgrade in the form of aptX Adaptive support. So that is how the Bose QC Ultra compares to the NC700.
If you want to see me more videos of the Ultra, get subscribed and tap the bell button to stay notified. I’m also on Twitter where I tweet about stuff I’m passionate about, so do follow me there. And by the way, I have also reviewed the Bose QC Ultra earbuds. If you want to know how they compare to the most popular buds in the market, click right here.
If you’d like to check the latest prices of the headphones in this review, click on the links to their Amazon pages below.
Check latest prices
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones - https://amzn.to/3QU2X5U
Bose NC 700 - https://amzn.to/46UAGAP
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