Headphone Reviews

Pi8
Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

Pi6
Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

PRICE $249 (Pi6) $399 (Pi8)

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Small and low profile
Excellent sound
Audio retransmission with case (Pi8)
Minus
Pi8 is better but more expensive

THE VERDICT
Both sets of earbuds are excellent true wireless options. But the Pi8's sound quality and features set it apart, making it an attractive upgrade even for AirPods Pro owners.

These two new true wireless earbud models from Bowers & Wilkins are updated replacements to the Pi5 S2 and Pi7 S2. While the $250/pair Pi6 could be seen as an AirPods Pro alternative based on price, the Pi8 sits well above them, a $400 flagship in-ear with a very neat trick up its sleeve carried over from the Pi7 S2: You can connect the charging case to a USB-C source and the headphones will pair directly with the case.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Detailed sound
Low latency
Good voice pickup
Long battery life
Wired option
Minus
No noise canceling
Lacks deep bass

THE VERDICT
A versatile and comfortable headset option for PlayStation owners, the Pulse Elite combines the detailed sound of planar-magnetic drivers with a high-quality microphone, which makes it great for gaming.

As much as I love playing video games on my main system, I recognize that, unlike music, a soundtrack filled with effects is not one that a non-gamer will enjoy. So when I dive into a Grand Theft Auto Online session, unless I'm alone, I rely on headphones.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Exceptional sound quality
Impeccable build
USB DAC
Unique style
Minus
Noise canceling lags Sony & Bose
Non-folding design

THE VERDICT
Both an engineering achievement and a work of industrial art, the Bathys are full-size, over-ear wireless ANC headphones designed to please picky listeners on the go. They offer owners a refined blend of style and substance.

Bathys, Focal’s first adaptive noise-canceling headphones, are instantly recognizable due to the company’s unique design sensibility. They come from a multi-year in-house development effort and incorporate the company’s signature M-shaped, 40mm aluminum-magnesium alloy drivers that are made by the company in France. Because the sound quality is so good, owning them is a fun experience that makes the higher price worthwhile.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Noticeably better active noise cancellation
Improved audio fidelity
Superior fit with four ear tip sizes
Adaptive Transparency
Personalized Spatial Audio for better immersive sound
Touch-sensitive control
Easier to find when misplaced
Minus
Requires an iPhone to set up
Touch controls occasionally fidgety
Spatial audio with head tracking sometimes lost track of my head
Uses a Lightning connector instead of USB C

THE VERDICT
Just like the originals, AirPods Pro 2nd Gen up the ante on what to expect from a pair of true wireless earbuds, including better fit, better sound quality, and superior active noise canceling capabilities.

AirPods and AirPods Pro together constitute the most successful line of wireless earbuds in the world. Now, after three years of wait, Apple offers the AirPods Pro 2nd Generation ($249). With a couple of weeks of hands-on experience, I can attest that the company’s newest true wireless flagship earbuds are a technological tour de force. They represent a sizeable upgrade over the originals, even if they look largely the same. When it comes to performance and features, it’s what’s inside the iconic white enclosures that counts, and the new model is packed with technology that takes the AirPods experience to a higher level.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Soundstage-widening Dirac Virtuo processing
Adjustable Ambient Sound mode
Smart Noise Cancellation
Solid build quality
Minus
Overly sensitive touch controls
Bass lacking in certain modes

THE VERDICT
Cleer's Alpha Noise Canceling headphones are a good-sounding, airplane-ready offering packed with enough features to make them a top value compared with similar models from Sony and Bose.

Cleer Audio's new Alpha headphones, the company's flagship wireless noise-canceling model, is jam-packed with extras to augment its very good overall sound quality. At $250, the Alpha isn't a budget offering, but its many advanced and customizable features make it worth the price. With everything from app-controlled ambient audio level adjustment to smart noise-cancellation and Dirac Virtuo processing, the Alpha is primed to take on any travel adventure.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Best-in-class sound reproduction
Sony 360 Reality Audio
Excellent noise canceling
Small buds and case
Long battery life
Minus
Requires deep ear tip insertion
Complicated app, noise canceling options
Doesn't block wind noise

THE VERDICT
The WF-1000XM4 is Sony's best-performing noise-canceling bud yet, with plenty of customizable and automatic features.

Sony's new flagship true wireless earbuds, the WF-1000XM4 ($280), provide best-in-class sound quality and noise-canceling, above-average single-charge battery life, a compact and pocket-friendly charging case, and a control app that offers abundant operational features and customization options. On top of all that, it has Sony's 360 Reality Audio capability for getting enveloping sound from select subscription music streaming services.

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Solid headphone-surround
Impressive Dolby Atmos, DTS:X effects
Long battery life
Minus
Substantial vocal tonality shifts
Uneven bass presentation

THE VERDICT
JVC’s Exofield XP-EXT1 delivers an impressive rendering of effects in immersive soundtracks, but it comes up short as an all- around wireless home theater headphones solution.

True surround sound from headphones has been an audio holy grail for decades, but with the ever-increasing power and value of digital signal processing, we're now getting closer to drinking from that particular chalice. JVC's latest effort is the XP-EXT1 Personal Home Theater System, a set of wireless over-the-ear cans with a slim processor/transmitter that uses the company's Exofield DSP processing to digitally rejigger surround-encoded soundtracks, including Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, for your in-head listening pleasure.