Sony ULT Wear Review: WORTH IT in 2025?

In this article, I’m going to share my HONEST Sony ULT Wear review for those who are wondering whether they are WORTH IT in 2025. I’ll also be comparing the Sony ULT Wear vs Sony WH-1000XM4, Sony WH-1000XM5, Sony WH-CH720N, JBL Tune 770NC, Sennheiser Accentum, and Bose QuietComfort 45!

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 while 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!

Sony ULT Wear Headphones Review in Short

Sony XM4 vs Sony ULT Wear vs Sony XM5 side by side

The Sony ULT Wear is a relative hidden gem in the Sony ANC headphone lineup, that I see as an improved version of the Sony XM4, for less money. Very good sound quality without any EQ required, which is rare for Sony headphones. Also, very good noise cancelling performance and comfort which is on par with the XM4. Competes fairly well in the sub-$200 budget category amongst the likes of JBL Tune 770NC and Sennheiser Accentum.

Sony ULT Wear Pros and Cons

8.5

Sony ULT Wear

Check lowest prices

POSITIVES

Great stock sound quality
Very good noise cancelling performance
Great comfort
Great value sub-$200

NEGATIVES

Cheaper build quality
Blocky design is rather ugly

Order HERE for the LOWEST PRICE AVAILABLE (Do NOT pay retail):

Sony ULT Wear (Amazon)

Want to save up to $100 or more?

Sony ULT Wear – USED (Amazon)

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 🙂

Sony ULT Wear Sound Quality

inside earcups of Sony ULT Wear headphones

First impressions on the stock sound

Wow, along with the Sony XM4, these may have the most pleasing sound profile and stock tuning of the Sony ANC headphone lineup, and that’s including the flagship XM5.

These have a sound signature that I’d describe as darker, warmer, and smoother than most consumer headphones.

The bass is the main focus and although it is a bit boomy and slightly unfocused, it’s got very good slam and deep sub-bass extension, perfect for the modern genres.

I’ll say the emphasis on bass does get fatiguing over time, and will likely need to be EQ’d for longer listening sessions.

vs Sony WH-CH720N

I do have a personal preference for more “neutral bright” detailed headphones like the budget Sony WH-CH720N, but I have to admit that the ULT Wear probably has the more agreeable and balanced tonality overall, with the WH-CH720N being livelier but pushing forward a lot of treble energy with less sub-bass.

The ULT Wear doesn’t have the airiness or magic effect on vocals like the 720N, but it’s much smoother and never sibilant or harsh.

vs Sony WH-1000XM4

The ULT Wear and XM4 are the closest in stock sound profile, with the XM4 being a bit brighter and more detailed.

One caveat to the XM4 is that it has quite a bit of sibilance and harshness in the treble from my testing, so it needs more EQ than the ULT Wear to be agreeable, in my opinion.

The ULT Wear is darker and more bass-heavy than the XM4, so it’s less balanced in that sense, but it depends on your listening preference.

Personally, I actually prefer the ULT Wear over the XM4 due to the XM4’s peaky treble issue being not as smooth as the ULT Wear.

vs Sony WH-1000XM5

Stock for stock, I actually prefer listening to the ULT Wear due to the XM5’s strangely underwhelming and muddy stock sound profile.

After EQ is dialed in, the XM5 does open up a bit and does come across as the slightly more audiophile headphone versus the ULT Wear. XM5 has better resolution, separation, and clarity than the smoother but less-detailed ULT Wear.

But still, considering the price difference, the ULT Wear sounds a little too good compared to the flagship XM5.

Overall thoughts

Overall, I’m quite pleased with even the stock sound of the ULT Wear.

I’ve grown accustomed to EQ’ing every Sony ANC headphone to date, getting good gains each time, but the ULT Wear is pleasing enough to listen to completely stock, if you’re okay with less detail and the bass being a bit fatiguing.

I’d say the ULT Wear makes a case for the best-sound Sony ANC headphone without EQ.

If I develop a custom EQ for the ULT Wear to improve it further, I’ll surely add it to this article in the future.

Sound Quality Score: 8.2 out of 10

Comfort

Sony ULT Wear weight of 253.8 grams on scale

The Sony ULT Wear is about average in weight for over-ear, wireless, ANC headphones as weighed on my scale:

Sony WH-CH720N – 186.4 grams
Bose QuietComfort – 236.1 grams
Sony WH 1000XM5 – 245.9 grams
Sony WH 1000XM4 – 251.6 grams
Sony ULT Wear – 253.8 grams
Bose QuietComfort Ultra – 254.4 grams
Beats Studio Pro – 268.6 grams
Sennheiser Momentum 4 – 292.9 grams
Sonos Ace – 318.1 grams
Apple AirPods Max – 387.8 grams

I find the Sony ULT Wear to be very comfortable and essentially the same level as the more premium XM4 and XM5.

It’s just a tad bit heavier, but the clamping force and top-of-head pressure is minimal.

Also, the interior earcup space seems to be a bit bigger than the XM5, as my ears aren’t as pressed against the fabric inside.

The cushioning could be more plush and supportive, but for its price point, it’s hard to complain.

Comfort Score: 4.5 out of 5

Features / Build Quality / Battery Life / Noise Cancelling

Sony ULT Wear headphones fully collapsed and folded

Features

The Sony ULT Wear was originally released in April 2024, so they’re a fairly modern headphone with most of the modern features:

Multiple “beamforming” microphones for taking calls
Active Noise Cancelling Mode
Transparency Mode
Smartphone app with customizable EQ (same one as the XM4 and XM5)
Multi-point connection between 2 devices at once
DSEE for sound quality

These actually do include a compact hardshell case, which is a bit unique for this price range.

The ULT Wear does fold and collapse into this case, somewhat similar to the XM4 and Bose QuietComfort series.

Build Quality

The build quality of the Sony ULT Wear is decent for the price, perhaps slightly less premium-feeling than the XM4.

The exterior is mostly plastic and feels a bit cheap, but the “budget” category of under $200 headphones can feel much cheaper than this.

Plus, these include a hardshell case for extra protection, which is unique for this price range that typically doesn’t include any case at all.

Sony ULT Wear Battery Life

The Sony ULT Wear is rated at an impressive 30 hours of battery life on a single charge, which is above average in this class.

This can actually increase up to 50 hours with ANC set to OFF.

The Sony XM4 and XM5 are both rated at 30 hours as well.

There is also a “Fast Charging” feature that provides 1.5 hours of listening time with 3 minutes of charging.

Thankfully, these also feature the modern standard USB-C charging port.

Sony ULT Wear Noise Cancelling Performance

I went in expecting the Sony ULT Wear’s noise cancelling performance to be slightly below the XM4 due to the lineup, but to my surprise, it was about on par with the XM4.

I guess this partly makes sense as the XM4 is a previous-generation model, and the ULT Wear is newer.

Now I see the ULT Wear as sort of a “replacement” for the XM4.

The ANC is still slightly below the XM5, but that has arguably the best ANC in the game currently.

Features / Build Quality / Battery Life / Noise Cancelling Performance Score: 4.0 out of 5

Value

Sony WH-CH720N vs Sony ULT Wear side by side

At the time of this writing, the ULT Wear does retail at $198, but is currently on sale for around $165.

For that price, I do think you’re getting basically a slightly “upgraded” and more modern version of the XM4, for less money than the XM4 still currently costs today (still around $248 USD brand new).

The cheaper $99 Sony WH-CH720N surprised me the most, and I find it to be a relative bargain at that price, but the ULT Wear is objectively a better headphone for sound quality, build quality, and noise cancelling performance.

I think the ULT Wear competes nicely with headphones costing between $200-$300, and find it to be a pretty good value overall.

Value Score: 4.5 out of 5

Overall Scoring Breakdown

Sound Quality: 8.2 / 10

Comfort: 4.5 / 5

Features / Build Quality / Battery Life / Noise Cancelling: 4.0 / 5

Value: 4.5 / 5

Total: 21.2 / 25

8.5Expert Score

Very Good

The Sony ULT Wear is a modernized version of the older XM4 for less money. The most pleasing stock sound profile of the Sony ANC headphone lineup, with very good comfort and noise cancelling performance, all at a great price.

Is the Sony ULT Wear Worth it?

Close up of Sony ULT Wear buttons and controls

At first, I was a little confused at the ULT Wear’s ~$200-ish pricetag and where it stands in the Sony headphone lineup.

But after thoroughly testing them, I’m walking away quite impressed and see them as an “improved” version of the XM4 for less money than the XM4 costs today.

Perhaps even a “baby XM5” is a fair description as well, although the stock sound profile is much closer to the XM4’s warmer sound signature.

Either way, I think the ULT Wear is a great value pick, and second only to the Sony WH-CH720N for $99, but admittedly, the ULT Wear is an objectively better headphone everywhere else except comfort.

After testing the ULT Wear, I’d probably skip the XM4 entirely and either go for the XM5 if I wanted better ANC and slightly more audiophile sound quality, or the WH-CH720N for its delicious vocals and lightweight comfort.

Some very strong alternatives in this class of noise cancelling headphones are:

Some Relevant Comparisons in this class of noise cancelling headphones are:

I highly recommend you check those out next!

Lastly, if you’d like to save some money and keep supporting RecordingNOW.com’s 100% independent, unbiased reviews, do consider using some of our affiliate links below to shop and even just compare prices. We purchase all products we review with our own money to maintain the highest level of integrity, and your support goes into that plus a continuously improving site experience.

Order HERE for the LOWEST PRICE AVAILABLE (Do NOT pay retail):

Sony ULT Wear (Amazon)

Want to save up to $100 or more?

Sony ULT Wear – USED (Amazon)

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 🙂

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Sony ULT Wear better than XM5?

In most cases, the Sony XM5 is a superior headphone to the ULT Wear, but is also quite a bit more expensive. The XM5 has superior noise cancelling performance and sound quality (after EQ), but they’re fairly tied in comfort and build quality.

Are the Sony ULT Wear loud?

Yes, the ULT Wear is capable of pushing some pretty loud volumes, along with ULT Bass for those that like to feel the music.

Is the Sony ULT Wear sweat proof?

No, the Sony ULT Wear doesn’t carry a sweat-proof or water-proof rating, and are not recommended to get wet.

Does Sony ULT Wear support Dolby Atmos?

The Sony ULT Wear can only support Dolby Atmos using the Sony WLS-NS7 wireless transmitter along with certain Sony TVs. It doesn’t support Dolby Atmos right out of the box.

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 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.

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.