Pros & Cons
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- Crisp, detailed sound with deep bass
- Excellent noise cancellation
- Lossless audio via USB-C
- Good battery life
- Comfortable to wear
- Quick to power on and connect
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- High price
- Basic app with limited EQ
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen) Specs
| Active Noise Cancellation | |
| Connection Type | Bluetooth |
| Connection Type | Stereo 3.5mm |
| Connection Type | USB-C |
| Type | Circumaural (over-ear) |
| Wireless |
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones were our top pick for noise-cancelling headphones until Sony debuted the $449 WH-1000XM6 earlier this year. Now in their second generation, the $449 Bose cans cost $20 more than before and have to work harder than ever to stand out. The company did a great job tuning the audio, which is deep and rich, while making small but meaningful tweaks to the design, such as polished metal frames, lossless listening via USB-C, and longer battery life. The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen) are an excellent option that many will surely enjoy, but they fall just short of the Sony WH-1000XM6, which offer better audio and more effective noise cancellation, so they remain our Editors' Choice winners.
Design: Only Minor Updates
Overall, the design of the second-generation QuietComfort Ultra Headphones remains largely unchanged from the first generation, except for a few minor details. The most obvious visual difference is that the new headphones have a glossy metal frame, rather than a matte one. They come in Black, Desert Gold, Driftwood Sand, Midnight Violet, or White. I received the Sand color, which is simple yet stylish with a rose gold accent.
I find the headphones reassuringly solid, though, apart from the frame, there's an enthusiastic embrace of plastic. None of the plastic feels cheap, and I'm not worried about the headphones' longevity. They don’t have an IP rating for protection against dust and water, but this is true of most over-ear noise-cancelling models.
(Credit: Christian de Looper)The second-gen model is slightly heavier than the first-gen model (9.33 ounces versus 8.96 ounces), but I found the difference imperceptible when holding them and, crucially, when they were on my head. They have the same clamp force and plush padding under the headband, making for a comfortable fit.
Physical controls remain unchanged. The left earcup features only the USB-C port and the 2.5mm audio output (why not the more standard 3.5mm, Bose?), while the right earcup includes a power/Bluetooth button, a multi-function button, and a touch-sensitive strip for volume control. Press the multi-function button once to play or pause audio, twice to skip forward, and three times to skip back.
While you can't customize what the buttons do, you can use the volume strip on the right ear cup as a shortcut control. You'll need to enable it in the app, but once you do, you can touch and hold on the volume strip to access features such as checking your battery level, changing immersive audio modes, or activating your default voice assistant.
You won't have to use the power button as often. They automatically power up when you place them on, thanks to better head detection. Furthermore, if you remove them and lay them flat, they enter a low-power mode that Bose says can run for months.
(Credit: Christian de Looper)The USB-C port serves two purposes. In addition to charging, you can also use it to connect to a device, such as a phone or laptop, for lossless audio via USB. It’s a cool feature, and one I hope to see become more common. (It's already available from the $549 Apple AirPods Max, though not the Sony XM6.) You can also use the 2.5mm port for unpowered listening.
They connect via Bluetooth 5.4, and they support Bluetooth multipoint for up to two simultaneous connections, along with Google Fast Pair for quick pairing with Android devices. They support the AAC and SBC codecs, along with AptX Adaptive for hi-res audio. Bose hasn’t disclosed the size or frequency range of the drivers.
(Credit: Christian de Looper)In addition to the headphones, Bose includes a sturdy carry case, a USB-C cable for charging, and a 2.5mm-to-3.5mm cable. The carry case, a zip-up box with a soft-touch feel, resembles the one that comes with the first-generation model.
Battery Life: Improved, But Not Class-Leading
One area in which Bose has improved the QuietComforts is battery life. While the last-gen model had a relatively short battery life of 24 hours with active noise cancellation (ANC) turned on, the new pair offers 30 hours of battery life. That's still not incredible, but it's on par with the Sony XM6 (30 hours) and better than the AirPods Max (20 hours), although it falls short of the $399.99 JBL Tour One M3 (40 hours).
Bose has added the ability to charge and listen via USB-C simultaneously, a feature that Sony doesn't offer on the XM6. A full charge takes three hours.
App Experience: Bose Needs to Do Better
The headphones are compatible with the Bose app (available for Android and iOS), which is well-designed and easy to use, but somewhat limited in terms of functionality, especially if you prefer granular control over settings and audio adjustments.
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(Credit: Bose/PCMag)From the app's main screen, you can view battery levels and access shortcuts to various settings, including listening modes, noise control settings, and immersive audio settings. You can choose to combine some of the independent settings into what Bose calls modes, which essentially allows you to create and save presets for the various ways you prefer to listen. When you create a mode, you can set the level of noise cancellation, turn wind block on or off, and select the immersive audio setting that suits your preference.
There's an EQ available in the app, but it remains unimpressive. It includes four EQ presets and a user-adjustable, three-band EQ with simple bass, mid, and treble sliders. In comparison, Sony's app features a labeled seven-band EQ, so you know exactly what you're adjusting. Considering how much these headphones cost, this is something I'd really like to see Bose improve.
Noise Cancellation: Sony Maintains Its Lead
Bose has introduced a new version of its ActiveSense technology, featuring a revised algorithm and more precise adaptive behaviors that it claims help mitigate unexpected spikes in noise. Although it's an incredibly close race, Bose is unable to retake the lead.
(Credit: Christian de Looper)The noise cancellation remains outstanding and is second only to Sony among current-generation models we've tested. Bose's new cans do an incredible job of cutting out the noise from a plane, blocking most of the low-end rumble and mids, leaving only a quiet white noise that was easy to ignore when listening to music. On the bus, they do a fantastic job of reducing the growl from the engine and a good job of reducing less persistent noises, such as the doors opening and closing. And, in a busy cafe, they cut out most of the background noise, including all but the closest conversations. The Sonys, however, provided a more convincing silence.
Bose says it made the Aware Mode more natural-sounding, and while that does seem to be the case, it's still not as good as the ambient mode on the AirPods Max, which remains best-in-class. The Bose QuietComforts still can’t quite reproduce high frequencies in the same way, and still introduce a background hiss that somewhat compromises the illusion of not wearing headphones. The Aware Mode is not bad by any means, and is still ideal for both quick conversations and longer-term awareness when needed.
Sound: Superb, Detailed, and Immersive
The second-gen QuietComfort Ultras sound excellent. They’re punchy and well-rounded, but not exactly neutral. There's a subdued response in the midrange, but many listeners may appreciate that about them.
Set to the default tuning with noise cancellation off, they produce deep and strong bass that is emphasized without being overbearing. On a track like “Silent Shout” by The Knife, which relies heavily on sub-bass to drive the song forward, the kick drums are rich and thumpy, while the bass synth sounds heavy and deep. Coupled with crisp-sounding percussion and a pleasing vocal presence, the track becomes dynamic and interesting.
(Credit: Christian de Looper)Kendrick Lamar's “Loyalty” also relies on sub-bass, but in a more apparent way, through a bass line that’s present throughout much of the song. They do a fantastic job at producing that bass line, and only struggle with the lowest note, which still produces some rumble. The vocals are smooth and rounded, while the percussion and sound effects are clean and full.
“Drover” by Bill Callahan sounds sublime. This track relies less on sub-bass, but instruments like the kick drum still pound with a satisfying depth. Callahan’s vocals are deep and strong, without losing definition, while the high-end percussion, like the cymbals, sounds present and sharp. The acoustic and electric guitars lack some presence due to the headphones' slightly subdued midrange, but it isn’t distracting and certainly doesn’t make either guitar sound boring; it just makes them slightly less biting. This track also showcases the Ultra's wonderfully wide soundstage, which gives each instrument ample room to find its own space in the mix.
The expansive soundstage is even more apparent on orchestral tracks, like the opening scene to John Adams' The Gospel According to the Other Mary. Here, they ensure the different sections are relatively distinct, while allowing the solo vocalist to stand out in the mix.
(Credit: Christian de Looper)They have one of the best implementations of spatial audio I’ve heard so far. It sounds much more natural than the vast majority of others I've tested, and creates a more immersive listening experience. It's especially well-suited to video content.
Overall, I really like the sound quality. They offer more crisp, high-end detail than the previous-generation model, even if the difference isn’t radical. My only wish is that Bose allowed for more personal tuning.
The microphone sounds fine, but not exceptional. Audio recorded with it comes across as compressed and lacks body, leaving my voice a little thin. It’s sufficient for voice calls.