Sony WH-1000XM5 Headphones: Now Even Harder To Beat

Hard to believe that after a few years, Sony went on to overthrow Bose in the best noise-canceling headphones. So what happens after doing that and practically dominating the market? I’m sure this is a question Sony asked themselves before crafting their 5th-generation flagship headphones.

The answer appears they came up w/ was a fresh new design, better audio, better mics, & leveling up their ANC abilities even more. But w/ all of the new changes, we got an even higher price point. So instead of being $349, these XM5s are now $399. When 1st announced, we were curious if all of the changes & enhancements warrant the new price point. So after a few weeks w/ them, we aim to answer as well as the overall experience w/ them.

So 1st and foremost, the design is the biggest change to the Sony’s as they decided to change some things up. You have a new body comprised of recycled plastic w/ a soft coating + vegan leatherette which gives you a thinner headband yet w/ redesigned cups to better cover the ears. The cups still rest on your shoulders however you can only rotate them one way though – which I am not the biggest fan of. And due to the new design, these don’t fold anymore so this makes the carrying case larger as well. So if you have a smaller bag compartment you’re used to putting your headphones in, its gonna have to now go somewhere else.

If there is an area to contest the higher price point on the XM5s, it would be the new look & materials used.

Probably one of the only things I like from the new look is that it retains the touchpads on the sides + the 2 physical buttons for controls. They did change the label of the Custom button to the NC/AMB button which actually makes more sense. So coming from either the XM3/XM4s, there isn’t anything new to learn in regards to controlling them. Swipes for volume/track control and taps for play/pause. Hey, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.

With a more plastic-like build, these are lighter by like a hair (at 0.551lbs) compared to the XM4s (0.559lbs). The new build makes it a bit more a fingerprint magnet and offers zero sweat/water-resistant. So much to the point that the included paperwork advises you not to get them wet. So if you’re thinking about picking these up for the gym or outdoor commutes, these might be more designated for travel. Despite a few of my gripes w/ the new design, I do prefer the fit/comfort of the XM5s. Now these are a bit more snug ergo creating a tighter seal to better block more noise on top of the ability of their mics. They are great for all-day wear but despite not being sweatproof, you will sweat in these in hotter temps.

Interestingly enough, Sony changed drivers here for the XM5s. As the XM4s had 40mm drivers, the XM5s now have 30mm ones. And while it might sound like a downgrade on paper, Sony got a lot more sauce going on here to make it a worthwhile upgrade in sound quality. You got Bluetooth 5.2 for longer range as well as adding the joys of multipoint Bluetooth here where you can automatically switch between devices. Add this w/ high-end audio thanks to its support for LDAC, SBC, AAC sound profiles

While testing these, I was editing some videos on these as well as checking out season 3 of Barry & season 4 of Westworld on HBO Max, emptying out my Watch Later playlist on YouTube, and some tunes by Maxwell, Usher, Ro James, & more. The new features give this a more natural audio quality while maintaining that thump in bass. As well as their audio being refined, detailed, and being wide in soundstage. You can do tweak the sound to more of your liking via the Sony Headphones Connect like usual.

The XM5s sound quality, ANC, & mics combo widen their lead even further as the best noise-canceling headphones.

As part of leveling up, Sony added more mics to make their ANC even better. So there’s now 8 in total w/ 4 dedicated for noise-canceling + 4 for phone calls. Sony still have their HD Noise Canceling Processor QN1 and then a 2nd one to add on to combat noise-canceling more so. This all applies to using them for phone calls as well. This happens thanks to their AI improvements to them to help make these the go-to cans for Zoom calls. All of this combined w/ a more snug seal to make their noise-cancelling superior against the competition.

Sony gives the XM5s the industry standard amount of juice for ANC headphones and easily lives up to it. We mean 30 hours w/ ANC & 40 hours of juice w/ ANC off. Although it does take a little longer to fully charge despite its fast charging feature. It takes 3 & a half hours to charge fully & fast-charging grants you 3 hours of juice in a 3-minute charge. So kind of everything you would expect here.

Despite the new design being divisive, Sony's new XM5s make the lead in ANC headphones even larger.

So are the Sony WH-1000XM5s worth the $400 pricing? I think the XM5s are worth the $$, especially in ANC, mics, comfort, & audio quality. However, the design aspect is where one can easily argue its worth. I would have preferred if Sony took a similar design route from Apple’s AirPods Max or Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2s. But one negative out of 4 are still pretty good odds – especially when the 4 positives are easily the most important parts. And if you have the XM4s, you don’t have to run to upgrade to these but if you got the XM3s & the $$$, now would be the perfect time to step up to the XM5s. For everyone else on the hunt for the best pair of ANC cans for travel or everyday, look no further than these.