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Sony has a very robust headphone line up. And personally I think that as of early September 2019 the Sony 1000XM3’s are best premium ANC headphones on the market and I also think the Sony XB900N’s are the best Mid tier ANC headphones on the market. But today we’re going to be comparing the Sony XB700’s to the Sony WH-CH700N.
Now I'm fully aware that this is a weird comparison video cause this isn’t apples to apples comparison. But im going to be comparing these headphones together cause they constantly go on sale between a few dollars off one another especially on prime day and black Friday. But over all both of these headphones are very different from one another, and depending on your needs one may be better than the other.
Typically, the Sony WH-CH700N’s have a retail price of $200. But they constantly go on sale for $150 or $130 dollars, but the last few prime days and black Friday’s they’ve gone on sale for $100 which is a steal. Then there’s the Sony XB700’s which went on sale on prime day for $78 which is 40% off its normal retail price of $130. So defiantly there are deals to be had here. If you want to pick either of these headphones up they’ll be linked down below and if you’re watching this video on Black Friday or Prime day please let me know by leaving a comment down below.
But now let's get started. First off, the Sony XB700’s are newer than the WH-CH700N’s cause they were released in the Spring of 2019 where as the WH-Ch700N’s were released in the spring of 2018. And I do think this does correlate to build quality cause the Sony XB700’s are better built than the Sony WH-CH700N which like to crack and squeak a lot when ever you flex its headband. Now yeah both of these headphones are mostly made out of plastic, but build quality has always been a weak point of the WH-CH700N’s in general. But since late 2018 till now Sony has been improving the build quality of all of their newer headphones which is great. But I also want to quickly point out that both of these headphones can only be laid down flat and neither one of them come included with a carrying case. So if you plan on taking either of these headphones on the go with you the I highly advise you invest in a hardshell carrying case.
Now regarding comfort, the XB700’s are on ear headphones where as the WH-CH700N’s are over ear headphones and right off the bat I do wanna say that both of these headphones are big head approved. But in general im not the biggest fan of on ear headphones cause you never forget they’re there, but thanks to the XB700’s soft ear cups and very minimal clamping force I can wear these headphones for a good long while. But if you are looking for maximum comfort then you might want to go for the WH-CH700N’s cause they have these super spacious ear cups. Surprisingly the ear cups on the WH-CH700N’s are more spacious than the ear cups on the Sony XB900N and Sony 1000XM3’s. The only complaint is have comfort wise on the WH-CH700N’s is that their padding is very stiff. But other than that, these headphones should be able to accommodate most ear types.
Regarding tech specs, the XB700’s have an advertised battery life of 30 hours where as the WH-Ch700N have an advertised battery life of 35 hours with ANC turned off. Now both of these headphones have way above average battery lives which is great… but something to take into consideration is that the XB700’s charge via a USB C port which might be important to you if you’re an android user where as the WH-Ch700N’s charge via a micro USB port.
Now when it comes to wireless connectivity both of these headphones have stable connections which is important, but both of these headphones can only be connected to one device at a time. Which means you can’t hot swap with either of them. Both of these headphones also have zero latency when watching Netflix or HBO on your phone, but they both do have a slight latency when watching youtube videos on an iPhone. But if you’re an android user you’re going to have zero latency across the board.
And for my android users the WH-CH700N have both ATPX and APTX HD support where as the XB700’s only have APTX. But keep in mind, if you decide to use a costume EQ on either of these headphones they’re going to automatically revert to SBC. But for my iPhone users both of these headphones have AAC support.
But now let's talk about how these headphones sound cause they perform very differently. The XB700’s are a part of Sony’s extra Bass headphone line for people who really like bass. And through their app you can go in and raise the bass to the point where they are going to rattle your head. Now yeah all of this bass is fun and all but it can get old after awhile so if you don’t want to use it you can just turn the feature off. Now when you listen to music with these headphones the EQ is going to constantly readjust it self to put an emphasis on the bass depending on how high you have your bass turned up to. But it also means the EQ is constantly going to be moving the Mids and vocals back and fourth. Plainly said, if you want to throughly enjoy your music you shouldn’t crank the bass too high. Personally I just keep mine at 4. But one of the reasons I really like these headphones is cause their extra bass features makes watching movies more immersive. If you crank the bass up on these guys then when there’s action going on you feel it. So the main take away here is these headphones are fun to listen to, I wouldn’t crank the bass up too high if you don’t want to drown out all of your music, but the extra bass feature makes watching movies with these headphone more immersive.
But then there’s the WH-CH700N’s which have a fully customizable EQ so you can make them sound how ever you want. Unlike the XB700’s where you can only adjust their bass. And you can even have multiple EQ settings for different listening situations. Now in general the WH-CH700N’s do sound better than the XB700’s cause their mids and highs are much more pronounced and over all they do have better instrument separation and a wider sound stage. And surprisingly these headphones do have an impressive amount of bass. Now they don’t have as much bass as the XB700’s but they do have more than what you’d expect. Over all, both of these headphones sound good, but if you want the better listening experience than you should go for the WH-CH700N.
But another major difference between the two headphones that could be a differentiating factor for most people is that the WH-CH700N have active noise cancelation where as the XB700’s don’t. And having ANC on your headphones could be a big deal for people who plan on commuting with their headphones on a regular basis. So we’re going to jump into an ANC test.
So like you may have just seen the WH-CH700N don’t block out nearly as much noise as the 1000XM3’s… which is a given but it does do something. Although the ANC on the WH-Ch700N isn’t all that effect at blocking higher frequency sounds like chatter it does do a good job of blocking out constant low frequency sounds like road noise when you’re on a bus. But in general, the ANC on the WH-CH700N is decent cause it doesn’t have any cabin pressure, there’s no background hissing, and it doesn’t change the way you music sounds. But if ANC is a big deal for you then I would consider looking into getting the XB900N or the 1000XM3’s.
But finally let's talk about the microphones on these headphones. Sony has never had great microphones in their headphones compared to the competition.
But objectively speaking the Sony WH-CH700N does have the better microphone here.
So over all, both of these headphones are a steal on Black Friday or Prime Day. But personally I would recommend you go with the XB700’s if you’re looking for an inexpensive pair of headphones to use at the gym. Their 30 hour battery life means you can go through a few work out sessions with them on a single charge and their Extra bass can help physic you out for your next set. Where as if you’re a commuter on a budget then I think you should go with the WH-CH700N cause their active noise cancelation is pretty useful for your daily commute on the bus. But also since the WH-CH700N’s just sound better and have over ear ear cups they’ll might appeal to someone just looking for cheap headphones to listen to music at home or watch Netflix with on your phone.