So now that that AirPods max are here there’s definitely a lot of hype around them cause they’re from apple. Now even though the AirPods Max do deliver when it comes to sound and active noise cancelation… personally I find it very hard to justify them cause they just have a lot of quirks to them that are very hard to over look when you’re dropping $550 for your headphones.  

So today we’re going to be comparing the AirPods Max to more sensible options like the Sony 1000XM4’s… and we’re also going to be comparing them to the Sony 1000XM3’s… cause cause even though the 1000XM4’s are out… these are still a great pair of ANC headphones.

Now like I just mentioned, the AirPods Max retail for $550 which is considerably more than the rest of the competition. So for that reason these headphones are subject to more scrutiny from me. Where as both the Sony 1000XM4’s and 1000XM3’s retail for $350 which I reasonable for a pair of premium ANC headphones. But both of these headphones can routinely be found on sale. Right now the 1000XM4’s are on sale for $278. Regardless if you want to pick any of these headphones up they’ll be linked down below. And if you want to learn more about these headphones and get into the nitty gritty please watch their full reviews cuase we’re only going over their main differences.

Now first off we’ve got to address the carrying cases here. The AirPods Max come included with this smart case. Now even though this smart case feels premium, with a luxurious feeling outside and velour inside… its just not going to properly protect your headphones cause this headband is just so exposed. Where as both of Sony’s headphones come included with proper hard shell carrying cases that are going to actually protect your headphones and they even have a little storage compartment for you cables. So definitely this is a major draw back for the AirPods Max. If you planing on traveling with these then I highly suggest that you invest in a hardshell case.

But now lets talk about the headphones themselves. Build quality wise the AirPods Max are in a league of their own. They have aluminum are cups, this head band slides in and out, up top this headband is covered in silicon giving use a soft touch feel, we’ve got this fabric mesh canopy that have a surprising amount of spring to it and then we’ve also got fabric ear pads. All in all the AirPods Max are exquisitely built. Where as with both of Sony’s headphones they’re mostly made out of plastic. Now the ear cups on both of them have a soft touch feel to them, the 1000XM4’s have slate feeling plastic arms where as the plastic arms on the 1000XM3’s have a smooth feel to them… and the leatherette on both of these headphones does feel a little synthetic a little plastic. However the leatherette on the 1000XM4’s does feel a little softer than the 1000XM3’s. All in all both of Sony’s headphones have good build quality and I can vouch for the 1000XM3’s longevity cause these things where my daily drives for almost 2 years and I put them through a lot from all of the videos that I’ve made with them… But I’d be lying if I didn’t say the AirPods Max where better built and should be able to stand up to more wear and tare then these other plastic options.

But unfortunately the AirPods Max’s exquisite build quality really does hinder them when it comes to comfort. For starter’s the AirPods Max weigh way above average coming in at 385 grams. Where as your typical pair of premium ANC headphones weigh in around 270 grams. So what this 385 gram weight on the AirPods Max means is that these are a pair of headphones that you never forget that you’re wearing even when you’re just sitting still. And these are also a pair of headphones that you really notice swinging around on your head when you’re walking around with them on. And also these headphones might also develop some neck strain on the back of your neck after wearing them for like an hour or so. Where as both of Sony’s headphones weigh in at 254 grams which is what we like to see. With both of Sony’s headphones you do forget that you have them on for awhile and you barley notice them swinging on your head when you’re walking around with them on. So even though the Sony’s aren’t using as luxurious materials… they’re considerably lighter than the AirPods Max which I feel is super important. 

But weight aside both of Sony’s headphones are more comfortable than the AirPods Max for 2 key reasons. First of the Sony’s have much less clamping force than the AirPods Max making them big head approved. Where as the AirPods Max are not big head approved cause they have a lot more clamping force. Now I've tried stretching these headphones out and leaving them stretched out over night… but these headphones still have a lot of clamping force. So if you want something with a looser fit then you’ll definitely want to go with the Sony’s. But then there are the ear pads. Now the ear pads on the AirPods Max are more spacious than the ear pads on both the 1000XM4’s and 1000XM3’s. Now for those who may not know… the ear pads on the 1000XM4’s are a little roomier than the ones on the 1000XM3’s… Now even though the ear pads on the AirPods Max are the most spacious ones here… personally im not the biggest fan of them cause they’re fabric. Now these fabric ear pads do a great job of not over heating… but since this fabric is rather course… for me they can get itchy at times. Where as the leatherette ear pads on the Sony’s don’t get itchy. So overall, even though the AirPods Max have amazing build quality… they’re not the most comfortable headphones to wear. They weigh way above average, they’re not big head approved cause of all of their clamping force, and their fabric ear pads can get itchy. So when it comes to comfort, both of Sony’s headphones easily take the win here. 

But now lets talk about tech specs. Now the AirPods max charge via a lighting cable which is nice can you can charge your iPhone and headphones with the same cable if you still prefer to use a wired connection. Where as both of Sony’s headphones charge via a USB C port which is convenient if you daily drive an android device… but still USB C is becoming rather common which is nice.

But when it comes to battery life, the AirPods Max have an advertised battery life of 20 hours with their ANC turned on. Now even though its okay… it is a little below average these days. Cause for comparison both of Sony’s head phones have an advertised battery life of 30 hours with their ANC turned on. But keep in mind you can always stretch out the battery life on all of these headphones if you use them with their ANC turned off.

Now when it comes to bluetooth connectivity… there’s a few key things to keep in mind here. Now the AirPods Max are using Apple’s H1 chip which means a few things. Now besides making pairing to your headphones super easy… it also allows you to hot swap between any of your apple devices associated to your iCloud account. Which could be a huge deal for an apple power user that might have an iPhone, multiple Macs, and maybe even an iPad. 

And the H1 chip also allows for hey Siri so you can just be like hey Siri call so and so or so send so and so a text and boom its done. All with all just your voice. 

Where as with the Sony’s they don’t have hey Siri support so you are going to have to press and hold to active your voice assistant. But also only the 1000XM4’s can only be simultaneously connected to 2 devices at the same time… where as the 1000XM3’s can only be connected to 1 device at a time. 

Now two devices should be plenty for most people… but if you are an apple power user with an iPhone, multiple Macs, and maybe even an iPad. Then you’ll might be interested in the AirPods Max cause of the H1 chip. 

Now from a performance stand point all of these headphones have zero latency across the board when watching movies or videos on your phone whether you’re using an iPhone or an android device… but when it comes to audio codecs the AirPods Max only have support for SBC and AAC. Now if you’re an iPhone user this isn’t a huge deal cause iPhones top out at AAC any ways… But both of Sony’s headphones have support for higher quality audio codecs. 

The 1000XM3’s have support for APTX, APTX HD and Sony’s only LDAC… where as the 1000XM4’s only have support for LDAC cause it looks like Sony is phasing out APTX support with their newer headphones. However just keep in mind if you want to use LDAC with the 1000XM4’s then they can only be connected to one device at a time. 

But if you want to you can always just use a wired connection with either of these Sony headphones cause they both have a 3.5 millimeter audio jack… and they both come included with an audio cable. Where as with the AirPods Max you can use a wired connection with them if you need too… but you're going to have to get apple’s lighting to audio cable which is sold separately. 

But now lets talk about listening to music with these headphones. Now without a doubt the AirPods Max sound much better than both of Sony’s headphones. The AirPods Max have strong vocals and dynamic bass that both kicks a good amount so that you can physically feel your music and it also resonates a decent amount as well. But the most important thing is that the AirPods max sound much more open than the Sony’s. Where as the Sony’s can sound a little narrow. Now even though I really like how the AirPods Max sound… I still maintain that the Sennheiser Momentum 3’s sound better. Their treble is as high, their bass hits a little harder and resonates deeper and they sound a little more open. But nonetheless the AirPods Max really do deliver when it comes to sound. Now the Sony’s also sound good and thanks to their fully customizable EQ you can make them sound however you want. If you like a neutral EQ you can that or if you want a more bass heavy EQ you can also that. Now the stand out characteristic about the Sony’s is that they do have more head rattling bass than the AirPods Max. So if you’re someone that really likes bass than you might want to go with the Sony’s. But over all, all of these headphones sound good… but the AirPods Max do sound noticeably better specifically cause of their openness. 

But now I want to quickly address the media controls on these headphones. Now both of Sony’s headphones are using touch pads. And in general these touch pads are very easy to use and they’re super accurate. But some people just don’t like touch pads or want to have to deal with touch pads on their headphones… so the AirPods Max have you covered with their digital crown. 

However something that both the AirPods Max and Sony 1000XM4’s do have are wear sensors… so when you take these headphones off they’ll automatically pause your music and when you put them back on they’ll start playing your music again. Now personally I don’t really care for wear sensors and usually just turn them off… but this is something the Sony 1000XM3’s don’t have. 

But now lets talk about the active noise cancelation on these headphones. Now the ANC on all of these headphones don’t change how your music sounds which is good… and the microphone array on all of these headphones does great job of rejecting wind noise when walking out doors. But the AirPods Max do block out noticeably more noise than both of Sony’s headphones. But so that you can see for yourself we’re going to jump into an ANC test.

So like you may have just seen… the AirPods Max just brutally go after those constant low frequency sounds thus clearly blocking out more road noise than both of Sony’s headphones. Now even though more higher pitched sounds manage to get in during the chatter portion of this test… since the AirPods Max just utterly annihilate those constant low frequency sounds… they give the perception of blocking out more noise in the chatter portion of this test as well. Now even though the AirPods Max do block out the most amount of noise here… the major trade off here is cabin pressure. Now you’re not going to feel too much cabin pressure if you’re playing music with these headphones… but you will feel like you gotta pop your ears from time to time. Now if you’re watching a movie with these headphones then you’ll notice that cabin pressure a little more and you’ll really notice that cabin pressure if you’re not playing anything with these headphones. Where as both of Sony’s headphones have significantly less cabin pressure which contributes to over all comfort. Now cabin pressure might not be an issue for everybody… but it is for me. I feel that if you have issues with the cabin pressure found on the QC 35’s then you’ll might have an issue with the cabin pressure on the AirPods Max. So overall even though the AirPods Max block out an impressive amount of noise… personally for me I still prefer the ANC on Sony’s headphones cause of the reduced cabin pressure.

And personally I still feel the ANC On the Sony 1000XM3’s is superior to the ANC on the Sony 1000XM4’s cause they do a slightly better job of blocking out low frequency sounds.

But now lets talk about the ambient modes on these headphones. Now all of these headphones have very natural sounding ambient modes and they all do a great job of blocking out wind noise when walking out doors. However I do wish that you could lower the amount of noise the AirPods Max lets in cause they let in A LOT of noise. Where as with the Sony’s you can adjust how much noise they let in. And you can even set them to only lets in people’s voices. And over all I still maintain that Sony has the better ambient mode cause both the 1000XM3’s and 1000XM4’s will actively block out sudden spikes in loud noise like this.

So like you may have just seen, as soon as the Sony detected that sudden loud noise they turned off their ambient mode. And when that loud noise stopped that turned their ambient mode back on. Now keep in mind that only the 1000XM3’s and 1000XM4’s can do this. So don’t go trying this with lower models like the Sony XB900N or the WH-CH710N. But technically the AirPods Max also have an active ambient mode… but they’re much slower to react. But let me just show you what im talking about. Now fair warning if you’re wearing headphones take them off.

So like you may have just seen, the AirPods Max are much slower to react which is not a good thing. Now having an active ambient mode might not be a huge deal for some people… but trust me it really does come in handy. Whether you’re commuting to work in the city and a police car drives by with the siren blaring, or if you’re just at your desk working and your dog starts barking cause there someone at the door… you’ll be glad that your headphones are smart enough to actively react if you’ve got your ambient mode turned on. So I really hope apple pushes out a software update that will make the active ambient mode on these headphones more active. 

But the Sony 1000XM4’s also have a few extra tricks up their sleeve. First of which is speak to chat which works a little like this.

Now keep in mind only the 1000XM4’s have this feature and not the 1000XM3’s. But personally I don’t use speak to chat and I do prefer to use quick attention which is available on both of Sony’s headphones where if you fully cover their touch pad they’ll lower the volume of your music and pump in all of the ambient sound around you like this. 

And then when you let go they’ll start playing your music again. Now I do feel quick attention has room for improvement… but nonetheless I do like that Sony’s headphones have an option where you can quickly talk to someone without having to remove your headphones. Now even though the AirPods Max will automatically pause your music when you take them off. But now you’ve got you hands full or you’re going to have to put them around your neck.

But finally here’s the microphone test. Now unfortunately the microphone on both of Sony’s headphones aren’t the greatest. The microphone on the 1000XM3’s sounds very muffled. 

Now the microphone on the 1000XM4’s does sound a little better. But my voice doesn’t sound super clear. So personally I would avoid taking phone calls with these headphones. 

But then there are the AirPods Max. The microphone on these headphones sound great. And the microphone on the AirPods Max sounds noticeably better than the microphone sound on AirPods and AirPods Pro.

And this microphone also does a great job of blocking out ambient noise. Cause right now we’re running the road noise simulation. And if we were to switch over to my lapel microphone you’re going to clearly hear all of this road noise. But if we were to switch back over to the AirPods Max… the road noise is severely reduced but more importantly my voice is front and center.

And this microphone also does a great job of blocking chatter. So over all the AirPods Max have a great microphone for phone calls.

So with all that being said… even though the AirPods Max really do deliver when it comes to Sound and Active noise cancelation… they aren’t without their drawbacks and quirks. Even though the AirPods Max block out more noise than both of the Sony’s cause they brutally go after those low frequency sounds… they do have a considerable amount of cabin pressure which contributes to over all comfort. And in general comfort is the AirPods Max’s biggest set back. These headphones weigh above average, they have a lot of clamping force so they aren’t big head approved and their fabric ear cups can get itchy at times. Now ive said this in the past, you can have a pair of headphones that sound great and block out a ton noise… which is what we have with the AirPods Max… but if your headphones don’t fit well you’re not going to want to wear them. Which is a shame cause I really like how these headphones sound. So comfort is the main reason why I still recommend either of these Sony’s over the AirPods Max. 

And it also doesn’t hurt that the Sony’s cost significantly less, they come included with an actual case, and they also come included with an audio cable. Basic stuff I might add. Now if you’re currently rocking the 1000XM3’s you should be perfectly fine… but if you opt to go with the newer 1000XM4’s then you are going to enjoy slightly roomier ear pads and simultaneous multi device connectivity.