Why I like them

Over the last several years, Sony has made some of the best noise-canceling headphones on the market, so it’s a big deal when the company comes out with a new flagship model, like the WH-1000XM6, which arrives three years after the release of the WH-1000XM5. Though the XM5 was — and still is — one of the top over-ear Bluetooth headphones, there’s always room for improvement. With the XM6, Sony has fixed the small design flaws of its predecessor while bumping up the overall performance. The result is a headphone that’s arguably edged just ahead of the competition and is now at the top of its class. Read my WH-1000XM6 review.

Reasons to buy

The WH-1000XM6 are excellent for frequent travelers, remote workers and commuters who demand top-tier sound quality, noise canceling and call quality in a very comfortable headphone. If you can afford the high price, you’ll appreciate what Sony has achieved here.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

If you’re budget-conscious or already own Sony’s WH-1000XM5 headphones, you should hold off until they go on sale. They offer some significant improvements over the XM5s, but not enough to justify rushing to upgrade at full price.

While Bose’s new flagship QuietComfort Ultra Headphones may not be a huge upgrade over the company’s Noise Cancelling 700 headphones, they feature a more premium design along with Bose’s new Immersive Audio feature, which delivers some sound-quality enhancements. Along with excellent sound and great noise canceling, the QC Ultra Headphones are also superb for making calls, with top-notch background noise reduction. All that adds up to the best new noise-canceling headphones of 2024 and a worthy adversary to Sony’s highly rated WH-1000XM5 and Apple’s AirPods Max.

Why I like them

We reviewed Skullcandy’s wired Aviator Roc Nation headphones all the way back in 2011. Now Skullcandy’s brought the Aviator design back in a wireless noise-canceling model called the Aviator 900 ANC headphones. They kind of surprised me because Skullcandy is better known for its Crusher headphones, which deliver bone-rattling bass but are not so-called premium-sounding headphones. However, the Aviator 900, developed in partnership with THX, deliver surprisingly impressive sound. They’re not so great out of the box, but after you make some tweaks to the EQ in the app and turn on the THX spatial audio, the sound improves dramatically and is arguably more exciting than the new Nothing Headphone (1)’s sound and more fun to listen to.

Like the Nothing Headphones (1), the Aviator 900 ANC list for $300 and have a translucent theme. However, the Aviator 900 are lighter (289 grams) and more comfortable to wear. Plus, they not only fold flat but fold up into a well-designed crossbody travel bag (you can remove the strap) and have some nifty physical control buttons. I also liked the integrated mini LED display, though its value is dubious because you can’t see it while you have the headphones on. The Aviator 900 offer good noise-canceling and voice-calling performance, though the Nothing Headphone (1) may have a slight edge in those departments. Even so, I slightly preferred Skullcandy’s headphones for their fit and sound, especially after a firmware upgrade fixed an early issue that some people experienced with the sound distorting at higher volumes.

Reasons to buy

The Aviator 900 ANC headphones offer a comfortable fit and strong overall performance in a unique, eye-catching design. They also seem to regularly go on sale for $200, which makes them significantly more affordable than the Sony WH-1000XM6 and other premium noise-canceling headphones.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

The headphones are fairly pricey, so you may want to wait for them to go on sale. They’ve dipped to as low as $200 during Amazon Prime Day, and I suspect we’ll see them sporadically discounted to near $200 as we head into the holiday buying season.

Why I like them

Bowers & Wilkins PX7 S3 technically aren’t the company’s flagship headphones (the PX8 are), but they’re arguably better than the more expensive PX8s, offering improved sound quality and superior noise canceling in an upgraded, slimmer design (300 grams) that fits my head more comfortably. The drivers aren’t the same as the PX8’s carbon cone drivers, but the redesigned 40mm biocellulose drive units have an improved chassis, voice coil, suspension and magnet that, according to B&W, deliver «lower coloration and distortion, improved resolution and superior dynamics.» Additionally, for the first time in a set of B&W headphones, the drive units are powered by a dedicated, discrete headphone amplifier that provides more «scale and energy to the sound.» I did think their sound was more revealing and open compared to the earlier S2e, and they are more exciting and fun to listen to. At the default setting, the treble may be a touch aggressive for some folks (a tad too much sizzle), which can lead to some listening fatigue. But you can play around with the five-band equalizer in the companion app for iOS and Android to smooth things out and give the headphones a slightly warmer sound.

While these are pricey headphones, at least they look like premium headphones and are made with premium materials. In my tests in the noisy streets of New York, I found that the noise canceling is significantly improved — it’s better than PX8’s — though it’s not quite up to the level of what you get with Sony’s and Bose’s flagship noise canceling headphones. I also thought the voice-calling performance has been upgraded — the headphones have eight microphones total, four in each ear cup.

While callers said that the background noise reduction wasn’t quite as good as what they heard when I was talking to them on Sony’s WH-1000XM6 headphones, they said they could hear my voice well with minimal background noise.

It’s also worth noting that these headphones have USB-C audio for a lossless wired connection (and they also come with a 3.5mm analog cable that stows away nicely in a compartment inside the headphone’s hard case). Android users should note that they have support for Qualcomm’s aptX Adaptive and aptX Lossless audio codecs that can help improve sound quality when listening wirelessly over Bluetooth to high-resolution tracks from music streaming services like Tidal, Amazon and Qobuz. However, very few mainstream Android smartphones support aptX Adaptive or Lossless (more support Sony’s LDAC audio codec).

Reasons to buy

The sleekly designed, swanky Bowers & Wilkins PX7 S3 are excellent noise-canceling headphones that are a clear improvement over their predecessor. That said, the biggest reason to buy these over Sony’s WH-1000XM6 headphones, which carry the same list price, is that you like their look better. They also feature USB-C audio, while the XM6 doesn’t.

Reason to skip/keep looking

From an aesthetic standpoint, I prefer the design of the PX7 S3 to the Sony WH-1000XM6’s. But I can’t say the PX7 S3 is any more comfortable or sounds better; I slightly preferred the sound of the Sony, in fact. And the Sony offers slightly better noise canceling and voice-calling performance, along with some extra features such as Speak-to-Chat and Quick Attention mode. If you already own the earlier PX7 S2e, it’s probably not worth shelling out full price for PX7 S3. The same is true if you own Bowers & Wilkins’ flagship PX8, which could get the S2 treatment in 2025. The PX7 S3 sounds more exciting than the PX8, but it’s debatable whether it sounds better. I would give the slight nod to the PX8, but that’s just my personal taste.

When you have a product that a lot of people love, change can be risky. Such is the case for Sony’s WH-1000XM5, the fifth generation of the 1000X series headphones, which were first released in 2016 as the MDR-1000X Wireless and have become increasingly popular as they’ve improved with each generation.

Over the years, Sony has made some tweaks to the design, but nothing as dramatic as what it’s done with the WH-1000XM5. Other than the higher price tag, most of those changes are good, and Sony’s made some dramatic improvements with voice-calling performance, as well as even better noise-canceling and more refined sound.

Why I like them

A lot of people expected Sonos’ first headphones to be able to stream lossless audio over Wi-Fi in your home and then use Bluetooth outside your Sonos home network. However, Sonos reps told me that listening to music over Wi-Fi would greatly reduce the headphone’s battery life and the company opted to leave that feature off. So even though they’re equipped with a Wi-Fi chip so you can tap into a Sonos sound bar at home for private late-night viewing (Sonos refers to this as the TV Audio Swap feature), they’re not really Wi-Fi headphones and are first and foremost noise-canceling Bluetooth headphones — and I was mostly quite impressed by them. Read my Sonos Ace review.

Sleekly designed, at 312 grams, they’re not as light as the 254-gram Sony WH-1000XM6s or the 253-gram Bose QuietComfort Ultras, but they’re considerably lighter than the 385-gram AirPods Max and I found them quite comfortable to wear, with a relatively small gap between the headband and my head (they hugged my head nicely with just the right amount of clamping). I also appreciated tat their chrome metal yoke allows the headphones to swivel in multiple directions — the hinge is hidden — and the ear cups adhere magnetically like they do on the AirPods Max and are replaceable, which is good.

All in all, the Sonos Ace headphones perform very well across the board with strong noise canceling, excellent sound quality and very good voice-calling performance. Well balanced, they’re clean sounding with nice detail and sparkle in the treble along with punchy, powerful bass that doesn’t get boomy. Vocals sounded natural and the headphones have a relatively wide soundstage. It’s also good to see that the headphones have USB-C audio support (wired listening with a USB-C cable) and spatial audio with head-tracking.

Reasons to buy

The Sonos Ace are one of the top noise-canceling headphones on the market, rivaling flagship models from Sony, Apple and Bose. Now that they’ve been out for more than a year, we’re seeing some good discounts on them, which makes them a better value, and a potential alternative to Sony’s new WH-1000XM6 headphones. While you don’t have to be an owner of Sonos speakers to buy them, Sonos soundbar owners can leverage the TV Audio Swap feature for private late-night viewing (the Ace delivers virtual surround sound in this mode).

Reasons to skip/keep looking

You can make the argument that Sony’s new WH-1000XM6 are slightly better overall for around the same price (I’m talking list price — and yes, they’re too pricey for some folks). But with the Ace selling for as low as $330, they’re an easier sell.

Why I like them

Sony’s improved entry-level noise canceling headphones, the CH-720Ns, have a bit of a plasticky budget vibe, but they’re lightweight (only 192 grams) and very comfortable. Part of me was expecting them to sound pretty mediocre, but I was pleasantly surprised, as these headphones offer good overall tonal balance with punchy bass, decent clarity and a fairly wide soundstage (the headphones are suitable for a variety of music genres. They also offers decent noise canceling and good voice-calling performance.

No, they don’t sound as good or perform as well as Sony’s WH-1000XM5 or new WH-1000XM6 headphones. But they sound more premium than they look — and feel — and their overall performance is a step up from their predecessor, the CH-710Ns. Are they worth $150? Maybe — or maybe not. But the good news is that, like the CH-710N and WH-XB910 before them, these frequently are discounted to closer to $100, which makes them a good value.

Reasons to buy

Budget-conscious buyers seeking Sony quality at an accessible price point will find these offer a significant step up from truly entry-level headphone options.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

The main reason not get these is that you simply want a more premium noise-canceling headphone that not only offers better build quality but better overall performance along with more advanced features like ear-detection sensors, LDAC audio codec support and Sony’s Quick Attention and Speak-To-Chat features. Sony also leaves out any sort of carrying case or pouch with these headphones, which is slightly disappointing.

When Sony’s WF-1000XM4 earbuds came out in 2021, we awarded them a CNET Editors’ Choice. And while they’re excellent, we had some quibbles — they’re on the large side and aren’t a good match for certain ears. Clearly, Sony took those gripes to heart when it set out to design its next-generation WF-1000XM5 flagship noise-canceling earbuds. Not only are the XM5s smaller, but they also offer improved performance pretty much across the board, with better noise canceling, great sound quality and voice calling. Are the XM5s perfect? Not quite. At $300 — $20 more than their predecessor — they’re costly too. Overall they’re really impressive; among the very top earbuds on the market.

Why I like them

JBL’s new flagship noise-canceling headphones, the Tour One M3 Smart Tx, are a nice step up from the company’s earlier Tour One M3. Not only are the more comfortable (they weigh 278 grams and have an upgraded ear cup design), but they feature better noise-canceling, slightly improved sound quality and good voice-calling performance. The headphones also come with an accessory that isn’t included with competing premium noise-canceling models: the JBL Smart Tx audio transmitter, which enables you to wirelessly deliver audio to the Tour One M3 from any USB-C or analog audio source such as an inflight entertainment system, PC, tablet or television. It has a touchscreen LCD that allows you to control the Tour One M3’s features, including music playback, call management and EQ Settings JBL says the Smart Tx — it’s rated for up to 18 hours of battery life — also has the ability to broadcast any audio source to an unlimited amount of Auracast-enabled devices.

JBL’s previous two Tour One models fell a little short of Sony’s and Bose’s premium noise canceling offerings. But its upgraded and more refined third-generation Tour One M3 headphones are more viable alternative to those models, though they would be more enticing if they were priced closer to $300. Equipped with newly designed 40mm Mica Dome drivers, the sound is well-balanced and dynamic, with well-defined bass and some sparkle in the treble. The mids, where vocals live, could sound a tad more natural and clear, you can make some tweaks to those aforementioned EQ settings to dial in a sound profile that’s optimized for your hearing and specific musical tastes. In the end, the Tour One M3 are very good noise-canceling headphones, with a robust feature set, including JBL Spatial Sound with head tracking, 8 mics (4 on and in each ear cup) and support for the LDAC audio codec for Android devices. Their only issue is that their sound and noise canceling doesn’t rise above the competition in this price range. So, as I said, they probably need to cost a $50-$100 less for someone to choose them over Sony, Apple or Bose.

Reasons to buy

JBL’s Smart Tx audio transmitter is a distinguishing feature and the headphones are nicely design and offer very good performance overall.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

From a sound quality perspective, the Tour One M3 aren’t quite as great as some other headphones in this price range, including the Sony WH-1000XM6 and Bowers & Wilkins PX7 S3.