Get Them Here:
Bose QC Headphones: https://amzn.to/3Zqe5fA
Soundcore Space One Pro: https://amzn.to/47CASqG
So the Soundcore Space One Pro are a great of pair of mid tier ANC headphones that block out a lot of noise, they have a super long battery life and they have a fun bass heavy sound signature. However, they aren’t as Pro as id expect cause they are missing some fairly common features for Mid tier ANC headphones in 2024. But today we’re going to see how the Soundcore Space One Pro stack up to the Bose QC headphones which are high mid tier ANC headphones and these are also great options for commuters like the Space One Pro cause they are so comfortable.
regarding pricing, this is a big difference between these two headphones. The Soundcore Space One Pro have a retail price of $200 but I do expect these headphones to eventually go on sale. Where as the Bose QC have a retail price of $350 but they sometimes like to go on sale for $250. Now I know price could be a deciding factor here, but if you want to pick either of these two headphones up they’ll be linked down below, or you can always press on the YouTube shopping button.
So first theres the case, unfortunately the Space One Pro come with a carrying pouch, and I find it very strange that these headphones have a carrying pouch, cause hardshell cases are now very common for mid teir ANC headphones like these. And with the Bose QC these come with a hardshell case, so this hard shell case is going to keep you headphones well protected, and I actually really like traveling with these headphones cause their case has a small foot print and its relatively thin.
But then there are the headphones themselves. Now both of these headphones have good build quality, but the Bose feel a lot more premium than the Space One Pro for various reasons. First off, whenever you handle the Space One Pro you always feel a slight wobbling where as with the Bose you dont. Tolerances on the bose are a lot tighter as well and the leatherette on the Bose feels a lot less plastic and synthetic than the leatherette on the Space One Pro.
But then theres also the fit of these headphones. The Bose are a lot more comfortable than the Space One pro for various reasons. First off the Bose have less clamping force than the space one pro so they are loser fitting. Now both of these headphones are big head approved, but if you want a loser fit then you do want to go with the Bose… but the firmer fit on the Space One Pro could be good for like the gym. But then theres also the weight on these headphones. The Space One Pro weigh in at 283 grams, which isn’t bad but it is a little above average for mid tier ANC headphones. Where as the Bose QC’s weigh in at 235 grams, which is a little below average. And with the QC’s lighter weight, you dont feel these headphones shifting their weight around when you’re walking around with them on, and they are easier to forget that you’re wearing them when you’re sitting at your desk or while in bed. But then there are also the ear pads on these headphones. Both of these earpads have big diameters to them, so if you have larger ears, then they should both have you covered. But the earpads on the Bose are a lot deeper and spacious. So if your ears stick out a lot then you’ll want to go with the Bose cause the Space one pro feel a lot more cramped by comparison. But also, the earpads on the Bose stay cooler for longer cause they have less surface area coming in contact with your skin and their foam padding doesn’t collect heat as fast as the Space One Pro’s. So from a build quality and fit standpoint, the Bose QC headphones easy out match the Space One Pro by a lot.
But when it comes to tech specs thats a different story. The Bose QC’s have an advertised battery life of 24 hours… which is fine but I would like to see more and you can’t use these headphones with their ANC turned off so you can’t extend their battery life that way. Where as with the Space One Pro, these have an advertised battery life of 40 hours with their ANC turned on and with their ANC turned off they can go for as long as 60 hours. So Bose is really lacking here.
And when it comes to charging, both of the headphones charge via a USB C port as they should. But this USB C port is strictly used for charging, you cant use it as a wired connection. But both of these headphones do have an audio jack and they come with an audio cable, so you can use them with a wired connection that way and you can also use them passively.
But when it comes to bluetooth connectivity, both of these headphones can be connected to two devices at the same time regardless of eco system so you can easily hot swap from one device to another which is good if you have an iPhone and an android device.
And when it comes to overall performance, both 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 Bose only have support for SBC and AAC, which is fine. But the Space One Pro have support for SBC AAC and LDAC which is Sony’s high res audio codec. Just keep in mind that if you want to use LDAC you have to be an android user cause iPhones top out a AAC. If you use LDAC then you can only be connected to 1 device at a time and LDAC does take an additional toll on the battery life.
But with all of that out of the way, lets talk about sound. Now with both of these headphones, you can go into their apps and you can either select from a few premade EQ’s or you can make your own. But when it comes to performance, these headphones are very different from one another. Now the Space One Pro are going to be a lot better for people that like a bass heavy sound signature cause these have a lot of resonance in their bass. But, the mass on these headphones can muddy the rest of your music, and these headphones dont have the best instrument separation, so these headphones can sound very close together and and you’re mainly going to hear the bass and vocals on these headphones. Where as with the Bose, these sound a lot more open cause they have better instrument seperation and the instrumentals have much better detail and clarity to them. However, these headphones dont have as much bass as the Space One Pro and some people will complain that these sound flat. Now from a technical standpoint, the bose are better cause they sound more open and more natural… but if you want bass, then you’ll want to go with the Space One Pro… but these can sound narrow.
And when it comes to the media controls, both of these headphones are using physical buttons. Which is fine cause some people prefer physical buttons. But I do want to point out that neither of these two headphones have wear sensors, and I do feel that this is odd cause the base space one’s do have wear sensors… and given the Bose’s price, wear sensors are very common for premium ANC headphones.
But now lets talk about the active noise cancelation on these headphones. Now both of these headphones block out an impressive amount of noise but so that you can see for yourself, we’re going to go ahead and jump into the ANC test.
ANC Test
So like you may have just seen, the Bose block out a little more noise, but regardless the Space One pro are very impressive given their price. However, the Bose QC’s ANC is more impressive than the ANC on the Space One Pro cause its able to block out a little more noise with less cabin pressure which is great for just overall comfort. However, even though the Bose QC’s ANC is good… keep in mind that these headphones dont have atmospheric pressure sensors, so their ANC isn’t as effective if you’re flying… and im just point this out cause if you’re planning on buying a pair of premium ANC headphones and you plan on flying a lot with them, then you’ll might want to go with either the Sony 1000XM5 or XM4’s cause their ANC is a lot more effective while flying than Bose’s headphones.
But then theres the ambient mode on these headphones. Now both of these ambient modes sound really natural, and with both you can adjust how much noise these headphones let in. However, the microphone array on the Space One Pro do a better job of blocking out wind noise when walking out doors… but Bose’s ambient mode sounds more natural while outside cause its not trying to filter out unwanted noise like with the Space One Pro. But one major feature the Space One pro have over the Bose is easy chat which works a little like this.
Easy Chat
So easy chat is just like Sony’s speak to chat which you can find on their more premium ANC headphones like the XM4’s and XM5’s. Just like with speak to chat when it first came out, easy chat is very easy to accidentally activate, and also since you cant manually cancel easy chat, you have to wait the full 5 or 10 or 15 seconds for your headphones to go back to normal. So easy chat is a feature that I personally dont use.
But more importantly neither of these two headphones have a conversation mode like on the Base Space One’s where you can manually activate easy chat by covering the left ear cup. And when you let go the headphones go back to normal again. And I think that its a shame that neither of these two headphones have this type of feature cause its especially useful when you’re flying.
Mic Bose Quit
But finally heres the microphone test, and surprisingly the Microphone on the Bose isn’t the best out there.
Mic Space Pro Quiet
Cause the microphone on the Space One Pro does a much better job of focusing on your voice, and I feel that it has better clarity as well.
Mic Space Pro Road
And the microphone on the Space One pro does a much better job of dealing with noise pollution. Cause right now, this microphone is doing a great job of reducing all of this road noise, cause if we were to switch over to my lapel microphone, you’re going to clearly hear all of this road noise, but if we switch back over to the Soundcore Space One Pro, it is severely reduced.
Mic Bose Road
Where as with the Bose QC headphones, these are not doing a good job of blocking out any of this road noise.
Mic Bose Chatte
And they also really struggle when it comes to blocking out chatter.
Mic Space pro Chatter
Where as with the Soundcore Space One Pro, these do a better job of dealing with this chatter. So overall, I think the microphone on the Bose is decent enough to take phone calls with while in a quiet room… but the Soundcore Space One Pro have the better overall performing microphone.
But with all of that being said, the Soundcore Space One Pro give you a very big bang for your buck… and these have a much better sounding microphone than the Bose and the have a much longer lasting battery life. However, the Bose QC headphones are still more refined and they give you a better overall experience over the Space One pro and there are genuine reasons to upgrade to them. Mainly theres the fit of these headphones, the Bose are a lot more comfortable cause they’re lighter, their ear cups are more spacious, their ear cups stay cooler for longer, and they have a loser fit. The Bose also have better sound quality cause they have better instrument separation. They also block out a little more noise with less cabin pressure and they come included with a case. The Soundcore Space One Pro do a great job of keeping up with more premium ANC headphones, but the refiness of headphones like the Bose QC’s are reason to upgrade.