Bose - QuietComfort Headphones

Paid $329 for them about 2/3 weeks ago and they’re easily the best headphones I’ve ever had. I’ve had a few different headphones/earbuds over the years. Started with first gen AirPod Pro’s in 2021, had to warranty them out I swear every 2 months (Apple replaced them 5 times under warranty), once they finally broke and Apple would not replace them for free, I fell victim to Beats and got Beats Studio Pro’s (I did not like them the second I pulled them out of the box). Ended up getting AirPod Pro 2nd generations (love those and they are serving backup duty to my Bose QC Ultra headphones. I also briefly got a pair of Bose QC’s 2023, but ended up giving those to my dad since I was honestly very content with my AirPod Pro’s. That was until I got the sudden urge to buy headphones again. Living in Iowa, I use my headphones as earmuffs when I walk around when the weather starts getting cold 🤣. Was between the Sony XM6 and the Bowers and Wilkins PX7 S3. The second I tried out the Sony in the store I immediately ruled them out. They look cheap, felt meh, no headband cushioning, and while the sound was decent and the tech features were nice, I just did not love them like I did the Bose when I tried them in store. The Bowers and Wilkins however would have gotten the sale if it wasn’t for their meh adaptive and noise canceling. Loved the sound signature over the Bose (not by much though, the Bose still sounded amazing in comparison) but as someone who uses transparency mode about 97% of the time, mic quality was very important to me and it just felt artificial on the B&W. I also liked that the Bose had the ActiveSense feature where in Aware mode it still filters loud sounds, similarly to my AirPods Pro. The only thing I wish the Bose did have from my AirPods is conversation awareness but honestly it’s easy just to swipe the volume control down when I start talking so I’ve gotten used to it. They get to join my growing Bose family. I’ve got a 10 year old Bose Wave in my room, a SoundLink Flex 2nd Gen, SoundLink Max, and now these!

I unfortunately don’t remember the sound of the QC 2023’s much anymore, I’d say the Ultras are maybe a bit more clearer and the noise cancellation is definitely stronger. However I did recently compare wearing my Dad’s QC’s to my Ultras and the comfort is better on the QC 2023’s (not that the Ultras are uncomfortable but there’s more clamping force and they are heavier)

I just got these on sale at Costco for $170 on the last day of the discount. They were listed as normally being $330 and I needed new headphones so I said fuck it. I'm pretty satisfied with my purchase after listening to some music and thought the sound quality was pretty good although I'm not a huge audio expert.

Good? Meh. Acceptable? Sure. Costco has the Bose Quietcomfort SC for $220 right now and they're .... fine. Beats Studio Wireless are also ... fine, and you can snag them for like $170 at Best Buy now. Neither are great, but both will get the job done.

I've been demoing the Bose Quietcomfort SC ($220 at Costco right now) and I'm ... reasonably impressed? They're not best in class at anything but they're better than the competition.

\[**Tl;dr:** These are a perfectly good pair of ANC headphones that will serve most people very well. They’re not super resolving and their slightly bassy consumer tuning and their layering and instrument separation leave a lot to be desired from an audiophile standpoint, but they sound perfectly nice and the ANC functionality is great; exactly what I’ve come to expect from Bose. They’re also a distinct step up from some of their competitors with regards to their controls and app-accessible tools. They’re my new recommendation for anyone trolling in that market; if I didn’t already own similar products that I like better, I would probably keep a pair of these for travel. Unfortunately, they have to compete with the Airpods Max and Bose 700s in my collection, and those are headphones that I REALLY, REALLY like for this use case. Whole-hearted recommendation for most people, they’re just not for me. [**Scores:**](https://daemonxar.blogspot.com/2025/02/on-my-skewed-rating-scale.html) Cost-agnostic:  6 out of 10 Cost-sensitive:  7 out of 10

except the gen1 ultra doesn't work through the mini jack cable while turned off (unlike the QC 2023) so im not even sure if you can do this! definitely a welcome improvement for the gen2 either way

I have the Bose QuietComfort SC and I recommend them 100%. Very comfortable.

Bose QuietComfort SC seems like a great deal at it's current price if you can afford the difference from the previous ones. It's extremely comfortable and the sounds is also great.

Ended up returning these. An audible digital crackle will be heard when I pause/unpause audio, I found this really infuriating. My older QC 35s do not do this.

These are my only ANC headphones, and I love them, I don't see replacing them anytime soon. I like their sound profile more than any QC headphones ever (had the 35 II, 45 and tried the 700), and the EQ is useful for minor adjustements. Comfort is the best part, I often forget them on my head. They are basically the only ANC headphones at that price point where my ears don't touch the drivers. However, the main gripe I have with them is how the earpads fall apart after a year or so, which was an issue on older QC headphones but this seems to happen much quicker on the newer ones. But thankfully I know how to sew, so I just sew where it's supposed to rip and they basically last forever that way (I recommend doing that when the pads are new to avoid deformation though).

For the combination of comfort and ANC and decent mics you can't beat Sony 1000XM5/XM4/XM6 or Bose QC 2023/ultra/ultra 2 they are all within your price range, industry leading ANC and comfort.

No problem! I had my bose QC 2023 on a plane for about 8 hours, can't hear any noise besides my music, didn't have any discomfort, and it drained like 40% battery. My fiancée said it sounded decent over the phone too.

My quiet comfort 2023s are great so far on my and I just got them today they’re so clean lol