QuietComfort 45

Sony XM5/XM6 have good mic but the hinge weakness worries me. Bose CQ45/Bose QC Ultra are very comfy but their mic while okay for WFH it does not work for open plan office as they pick up chatter very easily. I ended up getting an AKG N9 which also comes with a Usb dongle

Ur getting some wild answers from ppl who know a lot more than me; I have Bose QC45s and I love them. I’ve tried Sony XM6s and they’re also great.

Bose QC45. Na pepperze idzie je znaleźć za niecałe 800 zł. Bardzo wygodne, świetny ANC i długa praca na baterii.

On a college campus and I can state that it is: (1) AirPods of all different varieties and it isn't even close. Guessing they have > 80% of the earbud market on college campuses. Now for over the ear headphones I'd say it is a split between the Sony CH720N/XM4 vs the Bose QC35 or QC45 vs the Beats Solo 4. Behind these would be the AirPods Max and the JBL Tune 770.

NC700 are pretty light headphones (around 254 grams) so this surprises me a bit. The XM6 weight about the same, the QC a bit less and the really good ones I have (Bathys/Px8) and the Px7s3 a lot more. Would look at the XM6 which has a phenomenal microphone and ANC solid (if a bit bass forward) sound (EQ helps) and pretty comfortable although I don't like the shallow earpads. The Bose QC Ultra and QC are also right around the XM6 and NC700 in weight but may feel more comfortable for you as they don't use the same headband.

I also have B&W Px8 and love them for travel but you wont' find them or other B&W headphones that I would get (Px7s3, Px8 Px8 ii) for < $400. For ANC you really can't go wrong with Bose or Sony. Both have really good ANC and microphones. Bose are pretty close to the build of the B&W Px series they just don't use premium leather on the headband and have much more plastic in the build. Sony is their utilitarian look, which I happen to not be a huge fan of as the earcups are quite shallow and the headband is less comfortable than the B&W or Bose. Aventho have a very strange upper range that I would stay away from. Momentum 4 has very good (not top in class like Bose and Sony) ANC with a very good App and a very nice commercially forward sound. I've never used AKG so can't comment on those.

Bose QC line and B&W Px line for me are the most comfortable headphones and they have pretty similar architecture and just differ in build quality. I don't find the Sony line very comfortable as the headbands are not extremely well padded and the earcups are really shallow.

I'm not sure I understand the premise. You are saying that the stock commercial sound out of the box doesn't meet your expectations. I'd say the same thing about the stock sound out of the box of the Audeze headphone line in general. That doesn't make them bad headphones. It means that what I like in my sonic presentation doesn't match the stock sound Audeze is going for. Thus, the reason for EQ. And I would argue pretty strongly that independent of the 360 abilities of their headphones that AirPod Max sound better than either of those two headphones as they don't to me. If you want to argue that having a 3-band EQ is a joke in 2026 that would justify the scorn at Bose. But both of those headphones sound pretty good with either the Sony EQ App or Wavelet if you use Android for Bose. And yes, I have the Bathys and they do sound crisper and cleaner in the lower end. But probably not $400 better.

So as you know glasses interfere with passive isolation which plays a huge role in blocking the noise and undermines the ANC As such which material is best for that ? AirPods Max material or Bose fake leather ? My qc45 don't block nearly as much noise as they used to on day 1

QC35 the GOAT. Partner got QC45 and theyre pretty similar but the QC35 still feel better overall. I swear they sound better but could be wrong. Just have to replace the ear pieces like once a year.

I'll throw in my 2c based on ones I have actually owned and used both on iOS and Android... 1. Bose QC (or QC45s) or QC Ultra. The most comfortable. Good enough sound, excellent ANC. Fold for easier carrying on the move. They have APTX adaptive/Snapdragon sound but no standard or HD APTX. Not many devices out there support Snapdragon sound 2. Sennheiser M4s. Fantastic sound, terrible ANC. Do not fold. 3. Sony M4s and M5s. Bose level ANC, mostly good if a little muddy at times sound. Cook my ears, the least comfortable by some distance, for me at least. M5s do not fold. 4. B&W P7 S2e. Fantastic sound. Ok, probably good enough ANC. Do not fold 5. B&W P7 S3. Pretty much as per the S2es, but they sound better and maybe the ANC is slightly better too, still not at Bose or Sony levels though. Still do not fold. They have Snapdragon sound, but they also have APTX HD and standard. I could never buy Sonys again unless I was sure the ear cooking had been resolved, I suspect though that this is down to their overall approach to ANC. The Bose QC45s or the new QCs (non-Ultra) are head and shoulders the most comfortable over-ear ANC cans I have owned.