Sony WF-1000XM6 review: My favorite new headphones

The small black buds (which also come in silver) have two visible microphones on the outer casing, simple Sony logos on the side, and a pair of memory foam eartips in four sizes.

A word to the wise about fit: Once you know what size ear tips you want (I stuck with the factory-fitted ones, because I have weirdly average ears), you actually have to roll and compress the foam before putting the earbuds in. This is a key component of why these particular earbuds feel so natural to me, and a big reason why noise cancellation is so good.

Complete noise cancellation is impossible due to the physics of sound, but the nerds at Sony and Bose (and even Apple) are pretty close. Adding foam is a good way to passively reduce outside noise, as the ANC is able to work with less effort as well as better passive isolation. The more you can physically remove the outside world from the listener’s world, as with foam earplugs, the better you can determine what’s actually being done through them. Foam ear tips are nothing new; Many high-end headphones have come as an option in the past, and the latest AirPods Pro also use a little foam in the ear tips for similar reasons.

Pair the excellent passive isolation with Sony’s first-class noise cancellation algorithms and processing, and you’ll get an experience virtually unparalleled in the world of portable listening. It’s like I have a light switch on for the sounds of the outside world. Is your neighbor mowing the lawn and annoying you? Not anymore. I can’t hear the clicks and crackles of my mechanical keyboard, and I can actually physically feel in my chest — rather than actually hear — the 75 dB (true average noise level) of airplane cabin noise I’m simulating and which I use to test headphones when I don’t have personal flights planned. This type of isolation makes these headphones an absolute joy to use for work or other activities you really want to focus on.

When i He does If I want to hear the world around me, the WF-1000XM6 does a tremendous job at achieving what many have attempted before them: true audio transparency. The two microphones on the outside of each earbud are large and very good at picking up everything that’s going on around you. The sound these mics deliver when you want to feel like the earbuds aren’t even there is better than any I’ve tested.

As I said in the introduction to this review, I spent hours with them and forgot they were there. I was even listening to music through my regular desktop speakers — a pair of Genelec 8040Bs meant for nerds — during that period. I tested Transparency Mode on several Zoom calls over speakerphone, and to chat with my wife in person, and no one ever complained that I was doing that thing that many headphones tend to do.

Enhanced listening

Audio connection via Parker Hall

Sony’s Sound Connect app is a lot of customizable, and it also comes with some cool Sony-exclusive stuff that people might actually want to explore. There’s a Cool mode, for example, that allows you to make it sound as if your music is coming from a pair of rear speakers, like in a coffee shop. When this is combined with Transparency Mode, you can also make every moment of your life happen through your supermarket speakers playing whatever you want. Who said listening to inappropriate 90s hip-hop while walking your dog next to your neighbors can’t be fun. if You get it right Seinfeld Song Playlist, You Can Live Like Jerry. Who said augmented reality isn’t practical?

I even set a pleasant female voice provided by Sony to greet me when I put in the earbuds: “Good morning, today is Tuesday, March 3,” and to tell me the time every hour so I can keep track of it while testing the battery life. “*ding* It’s eight in the morning.”

Audio connection via Parker Hall

While listening, the controls are simple touch controls on the side of each earbud, and you can adjust what the app does to your heart’s content. The touch controls on headphones this small may seem easy to use, and they can be at first, but I’ve gotten very used to how I hold them (I think up and down, as if you’re about to throw a paper airplane aside, works best) to adjust them.

I especially liked that these headphones really lasted a full day of work. Gone are the days of four hours of active noise cancellation (ANC) playback on earbuds. I got about eight hours out of it with ANC enabled on repeat, which is what was advertised. It was shortened a bit when I enabled LDAC, an advanced streaming codec for better audio quality (but shorter range). The high-end Bluetooth codec sucked up an hour or two of total juice, while shortening the total case and headphone time (advertised at 24 hours from a charge) to about 20 hours. To be fair, I also used varying amounts of volume and other features during this time (testing is what it is), so most normal people will probably see a little better than I did while constantly fiddling with the headphones. Practically speaking, when was the last time you had earbuds in your ears for eight straight hours without a break? I review headphones, which is rare even for me. These strikes go beyond discomfort and move into the realm of “Who cares?”

Great sound

Photo: Parker Hall

Sony has trended toward dull, clinical sound profiles in recent years, but the WF-1000XM6 are extremely enjoyable to listen to, especially in the bass. There’s a kind of gentle M shape to the frequency response that cleans up the guitars, vocals, and percussion instruments in the midrange but still gives you plenty of punch for the drums and bass. The high-end is touted for more brightness, but without making the music sound like it’s so bright that it hurts your ears.