Odi Productions
In this article, I’m going to give my brutally honest Bose QuietComfort Ultra Review with comparisons vs Sony WH 1000XM5, Apple AirPods Max, and Sennheiser Momentum 4.
I’m going to do my best to share whether these headphones are worth it, and ideally who these headphones are for. I’ve owned these headphones for a few months now and have quite a few thoughts.
I’ll be sharing my critical opinion with 10 years of experience as a professional music producer, audio engineer, and tech journalist.
Let’s dive right in!
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones review in short
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra is the best overall wireless noise cancelling headphones available in the market today, due to unrivaled comfort, incredible active noise cancelling performance, and surprisingly audiophile-level sound quality (after some much-needed EQ). This is a nearly perfect product by today’s standards and performs favorably against its main competition including the Sony WH 1000XM5, Apple AirPods Max, and Sennheiser Momentum 4.
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Pros and Cons
- Audiophile-level sound quality (after EQ)
- Unrivaled noise cancelling performance
- Insanely comfortable and lightweight
- Expensive
- Sound signature without EQ is disappointing
- Materials feel mediocre for price
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Sound Quality
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra is not only the best-sounding Bose headphones to date, but might currently be the best-sounding wireless noise cancelling headphones in the category overall.
I know that sounds crazy, especially considering that sound quality was always the main weakness of Bose headphones in the past during my rigorous testing against very formidable competition from Sony, Sennheiser, Apple, and even Beats.
Bose’s “QuietComfort” series has always been at the top when it comes to active noise cancellation and lightweight comfort, but sound quality always left much to be desired in my opinion.
That ALL changes specifically with the QuietComfort Ultra.
Before I dive into the details, I want to make a VERY IMPORTANT note here…
When I first listened to these, I was sorely disappointed with the seemingly muddy, overly-boomy sound signature. It was so bad that I almost wrote them off from the initial impression alone.
But wanting to be fair, I researched and experimented with EQ’ing via their free Bose app, much like the drastic transformation of the Sony WH 1000XM5 after applying (extreme) EQ.
And what a dramatic night-and-day difference EQ made for these!
No joke, EQ took these headphones from borderline unlistenable (exaggeration) to audiophile-level quality.
So with that disclaimer out of the way, I’ll be reviewing the sound quality WITH the following EQ settings. I think this is fair considering EQ is using the official Bose app that is completely free.
Feel free to try this out yourself and hear the difference it makes. Personally, I believe this is how they should’ve been tuned from the factory.
Best Bose QuietComfort Ultra EQ settings
- Bass: -7
- Mid: +2
- Treble: +2
I experimented with EQ via the Bose App for many days and this setting is the most pleasing to me versus the stock sound signature. I wish they would add just a few more bands instead of this super basic EQ but it gets the job done.
Please note this setting is optimized generally for modern music, resulting in a more balanced, hyper-detailed sound.
Bass
Out of the box, the QuietComfort Ultra has TOO MUCH bass.
It completely overpowers the entire frequency response.
To my ear, I think they designed these headphones primarily for listening to Classical music, and emulating a concert hall.
In that case, they do sound fairly convincing and the rumbling bass mimics reverberations in a concert hall.
BUT, if you listen to any music that is even remotely modern with any kind of bass, the stock sound signature is so unbalanced it drowns out and muffles the mids and the highs.
Thankfully I was able to remedy this with the Bose app EQ and turning Bass down -7.
Surprisingly, the bass impact and quantity is still quite full and impressive at this setting, but just much more tamed and balanced versus stock.
It reaches down to the lowest sub-bass frequencies as well as any of its competition, notably the Sennheiser Momentum 4 which is also excellent for bass.
Mids
Once I tamed the Bass with EQ, I also boosted the Mids so they can really shine.
Mids are the frequency range that Bose headphones typically thrive in historically, and I think they are solid here once again.
Vocals and instruments are extremely detailed and fairly dynamic.
Treble
The detail and resolution in these (after EQ) is simply incredible.
Bose did a great job of smoothening out the treble frequencies, so they never sound too strident or sibilant, while still retaining tons of resolution and micro-details.
These are so clear that I was “hearing things I never noticed before” in songs that I know very well and listen to all the time.
I’ve made that statement with audiophile headphones like the $2,000 Hifiman HE1000SE, but NEVER with a wireless noise cancelling headphone. This is new territory indeed.
Audiophile: Soundstage, Resolution, Separation, Imaging, Timbre
I’d say the Bose QuietComfort Ultra is one of the first in its category/price to be considered TRUE “Audiophile quality“.
Competitors like the Apple AirPods Max, Sennheiser Momentum 4, and Sony WH 1000XM5 are all decent and can be enjoyed by audiophiles, but I would actually place the QuietComfort Ultra in a tier slightly above them.
I’d say the Momentum 4 comes closest in terms of soundstage, separation, and resolution, but I find the EQ’d QuietComfort Ultra to be more enjoyable overall.
Head-to-head against the more expensive AirPods Max, the QuietComfort Ultra has more resolution, wider soundstage, and more effortless separation and layering. There is so much micro-detail in a singer’s breathing and throat noises (sorry), reminiscent of higher-end audiophile headphones.
If I were to rank these headphones in terms of preference + desired sound signature (NOT in terms of pure sound quality ranking):
- Bose QuietComfort Ultra (with EQ)
- Apple AirPods Max (stock)
- Sony WH-1000XM5 (with EQ)
- Sennheiser Momentum 4 (stock – couldn’t find an EQ setting I liked)
Without EQ applied, the QuietComfort Ultra would be 3rd and Sony WH 1000XM5 would be last. I’d say it would be rather close between the Momentum 4 and AirPods Max for first, and only because the Momentum 4 is a bit too bass-heavy.
If I absolutely HAD to nitpick these on an audiophile level, vocals and certain instruments have an unnatural timbre, the bass is sluggish and not nearly as tight as planar bass, and soundstage is not as expansive as open-back (duh).
That said, these headphones were so good I’m practically splitting hairs for it to even be critiqued, else I would just be gushing about how good these sound. They aren’t just good “wireless noise cancelling” headphones, they’re good headphones period.
Sound Quality Score: 8.9 out of 10
Comfort
True to its namesake and history, the Bose QuietComfort series has always been insanely light and comfortable to wear for hours on end.
The Ultra carries on this tradition, and is one of the lightest headphones tested, only slightly heavier than the Sony XM4/XM5, and “little brother” QC45:
- Bose QuietComfort 45 – 235.1 grams
- Sony WH 1000XM5 – 245.9 grams
- Sony WH 1000XM4 – 251.6 grams
- Bose QuietComfort Ultra – 254.4 grams
- Beats Studio Pro – 268.6 grams
- Sennheiser Momentum 4 – 292.9 grams
- Apple AirPods Max – 387.8 grams
As you can tell from the list above, the Momentum 4 and the Apple AirPods Max, especially, are significantly heavier, and this difference is pronounced when worn on head.
The lighter weight translates to less top-of-head pressure, combined with plush cushioning on both the headband and earpads.
The clamping force is perfect with very little pressure and not bothersome at all, unlike the AirPods Max.
I can wear these for hours and they don’t seem to get too warm inside the earcups either.
I think the QuietComfort Ultra is deserving of no less than a perfect score when it comes to Comfort.
Comfort Score: 5 out of 5
Features / Battery Life / Noise Cancelling
Features
Being released in late 2023, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra has pretty much all the modern features worth noting: customizable active noise cancellation, spatial audio, and a free Bose companion app with EQ.
Make no mistake, the star of the show is the noise cancelling features which we’ll get to in a moment.
Bose has their own implementation of Spatial Audio called “Immersive Audio”, and I found it quite good and totally comparable to Spatial Audio on Apple headphones.
The only critique here is that connectivity is limited to 2 devices at once, which is the same for any non-Apple headphones.
If you’d like to switch, you’ll need to use the Bose app to do so.
This is one area where native Apple products like the AirPods Max are superior, as they can switch seamlessly between 3+ devices and are smart enough to do so without having to lift a finger.
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Battery Life
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra boasts 24 hours of battery life on a single charge, and in my testing I found this number to be fairly accurate.
The Ultra takes 3 hours to charge via its USB-C charging port, and has a “quick charge” function that can turn 15 mins of charging into 2.5 hours.
24 hours of battery life is slightly above average, compared to 20 hours for the AirPods Max, for example.
The Sony WH1000 XM5 is rated slightly higher at 30 hours, and the Sennheiser Momentum 4 is an outrageous 60 hours.
That said, I only found myself needing to charge once per every 1-2 weeks when using the QuietComfort Ultra.
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Noise Cancelling Performance
Ahh, this may be what some of you came for…
To cut to the chase, this is the best active noise cancelling performance I’ve experienced to date, and that’s after testing a LOT of headphones on airplanes, coffee shops, and city environments.
It’s Bose after all, right?
Not only is the active noise cancellation extremely effective and powerful, but it allows a whopping 11 levels of customization between “Transparency mode” and “Noise Cancelling”.
This granularity allows any user to dial in their preferred level of noise cancelling to suit their environment and desired awareness of surroundings.
Also another reason I’m rating the noise cancelling highly is that it’s one of the smoothest implementations compared to older, more invasive noise cancelling that created a very “pressurized” feeling and added slight hums or white noise.
There’s very little of that found here, and it just sounds like… well, nothing at all.
Features / Battery Life / Noise Cancelling Score: 5 out of 5
Value
Alright, well here is a category in which the QuietComfort Ultra should face more diversity.
The Ultra retails at a whopping $429 USD, which basically puts it at the higher end of its category compared to the sub-$400 Sony XM5 and sub-$300 Sennheiser Momentum 4.
Only the Apple AirPods Max retailing at $549, and other more niche brands like Focal and Bowers & Wilkins would be priced higher.
Although the Ultra’s pricetag was initially hard to swallow, after thoroughly reviewing and putting it through its paces, I have to say that the price is… fair.
We’re looking at best-in-class for noise cancelling, comfort, and even sound quality.
But there is a small case working against the Ultra’s value, and that would be due to the fact that there are some older gems like the previous-generation sub-$250 Sony WH 1000XM4.
The Momentum 4 is typically over $100 cheaper than the QC Ultra on any given day, and it’s pretty hard to argue that the Ultra is 20-30% more headphone.
That said, the Ultra is more deserving of its pricetag than the AirPods Max, so I still view it as a very solid value, just not a “steal” by any means.
Value Score: 4.0 out of 5
Are the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones Worth it?
As of right now, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra is worth every penny as the leader in noise cancelling performance, comfort, and shockingly, sound quality.
Compared to its peers from Apple, Sony, and Sennheiser, I would personally choose the QuietComfort Ultra over any of those at the time of this writing, and I’m daily-ing them as we speak.
This one really shocked me. Admittedly, I was never “wowed” by Bose headphones when it came to sound, but after applying some EQ to these bad boys, I think these are in another tier.
Still, the competition is as stiff as ever these days, so it’s worth checking out my other reviews if you are interested in any of the models mentioned in this article.
Also, if you’d like to support 100% independent unbiased reviews, consider using my affiliate links to shop and even save money! Thank you.
Overall Scoring Breakdown
Sound Quality: 8.9 / 10
Comfort: 5 / 5
Features / Battery Life / Noise Cancelling: 5 / 5
Value: 4.0 / 5
Total: 22.9 / 25
Order the LATEST VERSION for the LOWEST PRICE AVAILABLE (Do NOT pay retail):
Want to save up to an additional $100?
Disclosure: These affiliate links may provide a discount and in return, give us a commission in order to keep this website 100% independent to ensure honest unfiltered reviews 🙂
FAQ
When did Bose QuietComfort Ultra come out?
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra’s official release date was October 2023.
What is the predecessor to the Bose QuietComfort Ultra?
Technically, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra is their highest flagship model which replaces the previous NCH 700. In the current Bose product lineup, the QC Ultra sits above the current QuietComfort released in September 2023, a model which replaces the QC45.
How many mics does the Bose QuietComfort Ultra have?
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra has 10 microphones, with 5 placed on each earcup. These microphones are designed specifically for clearer wireless hands-free calling, and I found them to be quite decent in my testing.
How We Tested and Our Methodology
RecordingNOW.com is a 100% independent publisher with over 10 years of experience testing and reviewing consumer electronics and headphones.
We currently purchase all of the products we test with our own money, and are not paid by any company or manufacturer to influence our opinions or decisions.
After purchasing the product, we conduct up to hundreds of hours of detailed hands-on testing in a controlled, acoustically-treated environment. Noise cancelling performance is tested in the real-world, primarily on airplane flights, coffee shops, and walking around large metropolitan city environments.
ODi Productions is our resident expert and author of this article, with 10 years of experience as a professional music producer, tech journalist, and audiophile.
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