There was a time when Bose alone ruled the active noise cancellation (ANC) landscape, and all other headphones claiming to tamp down ambient noise weren’t nearly as effective or were even more expensive. But things are changing, and while the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 offer some the best ANC we’ve tested, other models are catching up. Of the top contenders, Sony’s WH-1000XM4 noise-cancelling headphones clearly stand out, with excellent ANC and an arguably better audio experience. But which pair is right for you? Let’s break it down category by category to help you figure it out.
Which Headphones Have Better Noise Cancellation?
Let’s start with hiss. In a quiet room, turning the noise cancellation on each should tell us if either model is adding high-frequency hiss to the equation—a common trait in ANC headphones, especially lower-tier models that use the hiss to mask frequencies they have trouble cancelling out.
In high-performance pairs like these, we expect to hear little or no hiss. This is the case with the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700—in a quiet room, turning the ANC on to maximum level actually manages to make the room even quieter. The Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones produce some audible hiss, but just barely, and certainly not enough to make or break your decision.
Of course, the hiss test says nothing of what the headphones do to cancel out actual noise, from the whir of an AC unit to the rumble of an airplane. We started by comparing the headphones against the same deep low frequencies played at high volume over near-field monitors to give us an idea of how the ANC circuitry handles deep rumble like you hear on a plane or train.
With the ANC at maximum level (10) on the Bose model, the low-frequency audio cancellation is impressive. You still hear the rumble, but much of the low-frequency intensity is diminished. The Sony model actually seems to dial back some of the deepest low frequencies even more, while both let through some of the higher frequencies associated with the rumble. So while the Sony model does produce some hiss, it’s slightly more effective against loud low-frequency rumble.
Tested against the same recording of a loud restaurant, the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 do a solid job of dialing back the overall volume, as do the Sony WH-1000XM4. It’s close, but we give the edge here to the Sony model, which seem to lower the overall volume level just a bit more.
With loud rock music playing through nearby speakers, the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 and the Sony WH-1000XM4 both offer dramatic reductions in volume. The Bose headphones seem to let fewer of the highest frequencies through, but are slightly less effective with the mids and lows. The Sony headphones cut out a larger swath of low and mid-range frequencies, but leave more of the highs to be heard, creating an odd filtered effect. This, in particular, is quite a stress test—that either pair effectively reduces such a loud signal with both booming lows and bright highs is impressive. It seems unlikely that you’ll ever be using ANC headphones in a real-world scenario like this, but it gives us an idea of what the circuitry for each model can do when pushed to the limit.
When we lower the music to a level you might experience in a restaurant or bar, and combine it with the crowd chatter, we have a more useful test. In this scenario, both headphones perform quite well, and it becomes a bit like splitting hairs. Generally speaking, we’d say that high-mid and high-frequency content seems to slip past the Sony WH-1000XM4’s circuitry just a bit more than with the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700, while both do a laudable job of eliminating the lows and low-mids.
So the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 produce little or no hiss and are generally excellent for noisy environments, while the Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones are slightly more effective at tamping down deep low-frequency rumble, but also produce a bit of audible hiss. It’s easy to give the edge to Bose here if you approach this category with purity in mind—the lack of hiss is impressive. But if you’re trying to tamp down sounds like airplane and train rumble, you might actually prefer the Sony model.
Which Pair Sounds Better?
Bose is notoriously secretive about publishing specs, while Sony is relatively transparent. Thus, we can tell you that the WH-1000XM4 headphones employ 40mm drivers that deliver a frequency range of 4Hz to 40kHz, although that seems to refer to when the headphones are used in wired mode (and regardless, 4Hz and 40kHz are optimistic values for any frequency range). Both the Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 and the WH-1000XM4 are compatible with Bluetooth 5.0 and support AAC and SBC codecs, but not AptX.
See How We Test HeadphonesSee How We Test Headphones
The Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700’s sound signature is a little brighter and more exaggerated in the lows than the Sony model. It’s balanced, but perhaps overly bass-heavy and bright for audiophiles. And with no EQ to tweak the audio experience, what you hear is what you get.
The Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones deliver a bass-forward sound signature, with plenty of sculpting in the highs and high-mids. It’s a balanced sound despite all of the sculpting—expect more kick drum thump in the lows and more crisp treble edge lending itself to vocals and higher-register instruments. And you can tweak the balance in the app’s EQ.
When it comes to microphone performance, Bose’s four-mic array offers slightly more clarity, for a cleaner sound overall, while the Sony mic picks up a little more low-end, so things sound less thin. Callers should be able to understand you easily through both models, provided you have a reliable cell signal.
Beyond Basics: Accessories, Apps, and Battery Life
Both models come with nicely designed, flat zip-up carrying cases with built-in loops for hanging. Both also ship with an audio cable for passive listening, and the Sony model includes an airline jack adapter.
The Bose app (for Android and iOS) offers excellent granular control of the ANC/Ambient modes, but lacks much beyond this. The app allows you to set up either Alexa or Google Assistant as your voice assistant, which you can access via a dedicated button on the headphones (Siri is also always accessible on iOS devices). Other than this, there are some minor tweaks you can make in the settings menu, but there is no changing the EQ for a different sound signature.
The Sony Headphones Connect app (for Android and iOS) includes audio extras like 360 Sound, an immersive audio effect that we find underwhelming. There’s also an Adaptive Sound Control feature that tailors the audio performance based on your environment—basically, the overall sound signature and volume will adjust slightly based on the ambient volume levels around you. Purists will want to leave this and 360 Sound off, but they’re harmless inclusions. The included five-band EQ is far more useful, and represents an area where Sony gives you a lot more control over the audio than Bose does. The app has a slider to blend ambient and ANC modes, but you can also turn both off, unlike with the Bose app. Beyond this, there are basic changes you can make to the headphone settings, including assigning various functions to the Custom button on the left earcup.
Sony estimates battery life to be roughly 30 hours (or 22 hours when using the headphones with ANC on in cabled mode), while Bose estimates battery life to be up to 20 hours. Ultimately, your results will vary drastically based on your volume levels and your use of ANC and other extra features.
The Absolute Best Noise-Cancelling Headphones (Spoiler: It’s a Tie!)
The Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 retail for $379, but can often be found for closer to $300. The Sony WH-1000XM4 noise-cancelling headphones go for $349, but look to be on sale at most retailers for $278 as of this writing. Keep in mind prices fluctuate, especially during the holidays, so we’ll put it this way: As long as you’re willing to do some moderate hunting online, price shouldn’t really be the determining factor when choosing between these two pairs.
Ultimately, the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 eke out a victory in the noise cancellation department thanks to a lack of added hiss. As for audio performance, Sony’s WH-1000XM4 headphones provide a better balance of lows, mids, and highs, and they also offer EQ. At the end of the day, both pairs earn the same rating from us because it comes down to whether you prefer slightly better noise cancellation or slightly better sound quality. The good news is that both are nearly as good as you can get in either category, so you’re not making a major sacrifice by selecting one over the other.
If you’re still undecided, or both of these pairs are out of your budget, check out our stories on the best noise-cancelling headphones and the best noise-cancelling true wireless earbuds for more top picks in a wide range of prices and designs.
