Ripped off?! 😲 Bose QC Earbuds II vs AirPods Pro 2 vs Sony vs Samsung | Review
Bose is saying that the QuietComfort Earbuds II has the world’s best noise cancelling, and we are going to find out if that is true. But aside from talking about stuff like noise cancelling, specs and features, we’re also going to cover many more aspects, like its pros and cons, its sound quality and call quality performance versus some of the most popular true wireless earbuds.
Based on your suggestions I will be comparing them to the AirPods Pro 2, the Sony LinkBuds S, the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro and the first gen Bose QC earbuds.
First let’s get to the best part. Let’s find out if these really cancel the most noise among the best noise cancelling earbuds.
Noise Cancelling KING?
Testing them using loud simulated background noise that mimics the conditions in a noisy cafe (ANC samples here), the QC Earbuds II does cancel more noise than the others. It cancels about as much low frequency rumble, and it’s able to sense and cancel more mid-range noises than the rest.
Fit and Comfort
This is despite the fact that it doesn’t use foam tips. It’s only silicone, but these tips are designed in a way that does a very good job of passively blocking mid-range noises, while being more comfortable to wear than traditional earplug designs. That is because you don’t have to wedge them into your ears, they just seal the rim of your ear canal. So I was wearing these for hours and I don’t feel any discomfort, which is awesome.
But are these going to be less stable than traditional earplug style tips?
Well, they do have stability fins that do a pretty decent job of keeping them in place, which is crucial for maintaining that noise cancelling power while being on the move. But I do prefer the first version’s fins which do a much better job of locking in the earbuds.
Bose probably changed the design of the ear tips to reduce the profile of the earbuds, so that they can fit into a smaller case, and to keep it more in line with current standards of how tiny these earbuds should be.
Wearing these earbuds, it definitely is a lot more low profile than the first Gen QCs.
But its case is still on the larger side. It’s not going into my coins pocket for sure, but it is still a vast improvement over the first gen’s QC earbuds case. This thing is huge.
Transparency Mode
In terms of transparency I have to say that these have some of the best transparency modes. If you wear these earbuds, stand in a noisy environment and take one earbud out, there is going to be very little difference between what the transparency is picking up and the real world.
But I did notice that when I was ordering a drink, that counter lady’s voice sounded a little like it came from the side when it should have been coming from the front. So it was a little disorienting. In that sense the AirPods Pro 2 still has the best transparency in the market. It’s like there’s no difference between its transparency and the real world environment. But the QC earbuds IIs aren’t too far behind.
Bose QC Earbuds II in case.
Using its Transparency in the real world, it was very sensitive to any sound that it perceives as being louder than normal. And that triggers some noise cancelling to block that noise. It’s very responsive but can take some getting used to, because of how the noise cancelling fades in and fades out.
Sound Quality
The sound samples were quite revealing. You could tell that the QC II had a more intimate, closed-in soundstage, a soundstage that was even narrower than the previous QC model. There just wasn’t as much airyness as the other products. But it did have the deepest bass extension.
Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II Frequency Response Curve vs the others.
Its bass wasn’t exactly more impactful but there was more volume and gravity. And if we compare their frequency response curves (see above), you can see that the QC II has quite a bump over the others in the sub bass frequencies from 20-80 hz.
Apart from that, I’m loving how smooth, rich and detailed vocals sound on the QC II. It’s nicely separated from the bass, so there’s no bloat in the vocals. And it’s nicely rolled off in the upper mids, so you can feel the presence, but you don’t hear the sibilance. Overall, great audio performance, just a slightly different sound signature from the others, and from the previous version.
Do I prefer its sound over the previous model? I’ve got to say that, not really, because I do prefer how the first QC earbuds spreads out the soundstage, but the QC II does have better bass. Either way, if its sound is not hitting the right spot, and you want it to sound better, you can do some simple customizing in the Bose Music app. There are some presets and a graphic EQ that you can play around with.
Bose Music App
Call Quality
Testing its call quality in both quiet and noisy conditions, using the same background noise as during the ANC test, and some wind noise coming from a fan, it seems like the QC II’s voice pickup is quite okay in quiet conditions. But in noisy environments it doesn’t cut as much background noise as competitors from Apple and Sony. My voice also sounded a lot softer than the first gen QC earbuds. In terms of overall call quality, it seems a lot to me like a downgrade. You may listen to the samples here.
Alright! Let’s jump into the pros and cons.
Pros
It does have the best noise cancelling that I have tested in a pair of earbuds. It is extremely effective at cancelling mid range frequencies. (I do want to manage expectations here, you are still going to hear some noises. That’s just how physics work. It’s impossible to block or cancel everything with earbuds, because sound travels through everything and everywhere, including through your own body.) But in terms of noise cancelling, these are the most effective right now.
These are also very comfortable with great stability and comfort, and you can wear them for hours and hours, no problemo. Also if you love bass, it’s easy to recommend the Bose, cause you’re going to enjoy its bass extension and detail very much.
But there are also some Cons that really set this product back. Bose is charging a lot of money for these earbuds, and I don’t really think they should.
Cons
First, you can’t use only the left earbud alone. If you want to use just one bud it has to be the right. As far as I know, every major brand now supports single earbud use for both sides, only the Bose doesn’t at this moment. Maybe this will change in a future firmware update, but as of this video it does not support single earbud use on the left.
You’ve heard the call quality. It’s fine in quiet places, but in noisy conditions, it’s a downgrade even from the previous version.
The app experience is also inconsistent across iOS and Android. On iOS the app is very smooth and snappy, but on Android it’s extremely laggy. This makes it very frustrating to do simple things like tweaking the graphic EQ, or changing noise cancelling modes from the app.
And I haven’t gone into the fact that these don’t support multipoint pairing, its controls are barely customizable, there’s no Google Fast pair, and no wireless charging.
But, why? Even the first gen Bose QCs had wireless charging!
So Bose is very smart in emphasizing the QC II’s ANC performance in their marketing. Because despite making it smaller, bumping up the battery and its ANC performance, it is really hard to justify charging more money than the competition from Sony, Samsung and Apple. Unless! You can claim that its noise cancelling is the best there is - which it is, as far as I know, at this moment.
At this price, I’m expecting more juiciness from it. But anyway let me know in the comments if the QC II buds are a smash or pass for you.
If you’d like to check the latest prices any of the earbuds, you may do so through the links below.
Amazon
Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II - https://amzn.to/3gHBWmq
AirPods Pro 2 - https://amzn.to/3VbAmsW
Sony LinkBuds S - https://amzn.to/3xNMab7
Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro here - https://amzn.to/3piWy5v
Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (Gen 1) - https://amzn.to/38eYEut
Lazada
Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro - https://s.lazada.sg/s.bMK1a?cc
(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!
