Odi Productions
In this article, I’m going to share my HONEST Sony WF-1000XM6 vs WF-1000XM4 comparison, as someone who has purchased both pairs of earbuds with my own money.
I’ve conducted thorough testing of both wireless earbuds, and I will break down a winner for each category including:
- Comfort and Fit
- Features
- Battery Life
- Microphone Quality
- Noise Cancelling Performance
- Sound Quality
- Value
I’ll be sharing my critical opinion with 10 years of experience as a professional music producer, audio engineer, and tech journalist. I also run the RecordingNOW YouTube channel with over 17,000+ subscribers and over 4 million+ views, where you can watch the video versions of all of our reviews and comparisons.
Let’s dive right in!
Sony WF-1000XM6 vs WF-1000XM4 Comparison in Short
The Sony WF-1000XM6 significantly improves upon the 2-generations-old Sony WF-1000XM4 in every meaningful way including ergonomic comfort and fit, audiophile-worthy sound quality, noise cancelling performance, and significantly in microphone quality. The XM4 earbuds still have very good noise cancelling and a charming sound profile that is warm and musical, but it’s officially discontinued and can only be found Renewed or Used.
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Comfort, Features, Microphone Quality, and Battery Life
Comfort
The Sony WF-1000XM6 comes with 4 pairs of hybrid silicone-like and memory foam eartips.
The older Sony WF-1000XM4 comes with 3 pairs of memory foam eartips.
I prefer the comfort and fit of the newer WF-1000XM6 over the bulkier and less ergonomic XM4 earbuds.
The XM6 was specifically designed to be more ergonomic than its predecessors for a “deep ear fit”, and I find them to fit more securely than the XM4 than is quite large and round, which is not optimal for fitting the human ear shape.
With regard to the eartip materials, the newer XM6 also infuses a “hybrid” memory foam and silicone-like eartip that is slightly more compliant than the more rigid memory foam of the XM4 earbuds.
To improve the comfort and fit of both the XM6 and XM4, I’ve really enjoyed using these aftermarket ones I tested from SpinFit (note that this entire review is using the stock eartips):
Features
The WF-1000XM6 is about 4.5 years newer than the XM4 earbuds, and presents a pretty substantial leap in technology and features.
However, both support Sony’s high-res LDAC codec, which is a nice advantage for the audiophiles reading this, including myself.
The newer XM6 upgrades to Bluetooth 5.3 (from 5.2 on the XM4) and supports Bluetooth LE Audio and Auracast, making it more future-proof.
Microphone Quality
One of the more substantial leaps from the older WF-1000XM4 to the WF-1000XM6 earbuds is microphone quality.
Actually, even the previous-generation Sony WF-1000XM5 earbuds improved upon the XM4 with its introduction of bone conduction sensors for mic quality, in addition to multiple microphones.
The XM6 improves upon the XM5 even further by introducing 2 more microphones, while retaining the bone conduction sensors.
Overall, the XM6 is in another level for mic quality over the dated XM4 earbuds.
Battery Life
Sony WF-1000XM4 Battery Life
- With ANC on: 8 hours of battery life on a single charge / 24 hours total with charging case
- With ANC off: 12 hours on a single charge / 36 hours total with charging case
- Fast Charge: 10 minutes = 2 hours of playback
Sony WF-1000XM6 Battery Life
- With ANC on: 8 hours of battery life on a single charge / 24 hours total with charging case
- With ANC off: 12 hours on a single charge / 36 hours total with charging case
- Fast Charge: 5 minutes = 1 hour of playback
Battery life is actually fairly similar between the WF-1000XM4 and WF-1000XM6.
Sony WF-1000XM4 Score: 8.0 out of 10
Sony WF-1000XM6 Score: 9.0 out of 10
Winner: Sony WF-1000XM6
Sony WF-1000XM6 vs WF-1000XM4 Noise Cancelling Performance Compared
Sony is tied for currently making the best noise cancelling performance headphones and earbuds outside of Bose, and to an extent, Apple AirPods.
Even today, the older XM4 earbuds are still one of the better noise cancelling options available, years after its initial release.
But with time comes technological improvements, and the newer WF-1000XM6 improves upon the already-great XM4 earbuds in the noise cancelling department as well.
The difference here is more noise cancelling strength and consistency across the frequency spectrum.
I also greatly prefer the Transparency Mode on the newer XM6.
Sony WF-1000XM4 Score: 8.5 out of 10
Sony WF-1000XM6 Score: 9.0 out of 10
Winner: Sony WF-1000XM6
Sound Quality
I’ll start by saying that I’m a fan of the older WF-1000XM4 for music listening, and still find it quite charming.
That said, with over 4 years difference between the XM4 and XM6 earbuds, I was definitely curious what kind of improvements in the sound quality we’d receive.
First off, both of these products feature Sony’s LDAC high-res codec, as with all of Sony’s audio products, including headphones.
I think the LDAC support is one factor in the XM4 still sounding pretty good by today’s standards.
To conduct this test, I used my Questyle QCC Dongle Pro to unlock LDAC support:
If you’re an iPhone user, or if your phone doesn’t support aptX codecs, then I highly recommend you pick up the dongle above which will cover both LDAC and aptX Adaptive high-res codecs. It’s the only one of its kind that supports both, to my knowledge.
Starting with a comparison of the stock sound profiles, the older WF-1000XM4 is warmer and more “musical”, while the newer XM6 is more neutral, balanced, and accurate.
The WF-1000XM6’s balanced tonality is further exacerbated by its higher level of overall fidelity, clarity, and details over the older XM4 earbuds.
I can still enjoy listening to music with the XM4 due to its “charming” sound profile, but as an audiophile, I can’t help but notice the significant increase in technical sound quality found in the newer XM6 earbuds.
Probably the biggest difference is the bass response, which is more prominent yet cleaner on the XM6, largely due to its larger 8.4mm “Gen 2 Dynamic Driver X” versus the 6mm drivers found on the XM4 earbuds.
What I find most impressive about the XM6 is its ability to handle its strong bass response without muddying the midrange response.
The mids are nice on the XM4, arguably its strength, but the XM6 is able to be even more detailed in the mids with a very nice natural timbre.
If you only listened to the XM4, they would still sound great today in a vacuum.
But listening back to back, the XM6 sounds like 2 generations of technological improvements in its audiophile fidelity.
Overall, I actually think the WF-1000XM6’s sound quality is in a tier above the WF-1000XM4 entirely, and competes with audiophile earbuds such as Technics AZ100, Bowers & Wilkins Pi8, and Noble FoKus Rex 5 to name a few.
Sony WF-1000XM4 Score: 7.9 out of 10
Sony WF-1000XM6 Score: 8.6 out of 10
Winner: Sony WF-1000XM6
Value
The Sony WF-1000XM6 is a new release that retails at $329.99 USD.
The older Sony WF-1000XM4 is in a weird place pricing-wise, due to being discontinued.
So for now, the XM4 earbuds are mostly only available Renewed/Used for around $84 USD on average.
On paper, this would be a slam-dunk value for the XM4, and I would mostly agree.
However, I would factor in that the aging used XM4’s also likely have reduced battery capacity due to having more charging cycles than a brand new pair of XM6.
Factor in the XM6’s substantial improvements in microphone quality, noise cancelling performance, and audiophile sound quality, and I find both products to be priced rather appropriately.
Sony WF-1000XM4 Value Score: 8.5 out of 10
Sony WF-1000XM6 Value Score: 8.5 out of 10
Winner: Tie
Overall Scoring Breakdown
- Best noise cancelling performance
- True audiophile sound quality
- One of the best mic quality
- Pricy
- Comfort could be slightly improved
- Elite noise cancelling performance
- Enjoyable sound profile
- LDAC support
- Incredible value Renewed/Used
- Mic quality
- Can only buy Renewed/Used
- There’s better sound quality
Our Verdict: Sony WF-1000XM6
If you own the older Sony WF-1000XM4, I would encourage you to upgrade to the WF-1000XM6 which is much improved in every way, especially in audiophile-level sound quality.
Despite its age, I actually find the XM4 earbuds to still be very solid today, mostly due to its competitive noise cancelling performance and charming sound profile that is warm and musical.
But I’m really more impressed by the advancements and improvements that the WF-1000XM6 has made over both the XM4 and XM5 after it.
Not only is the sound quality in another level for the XM6, but it has improved upon that noise cancelling performance and substantially in microphone quality as well.
If you still love your XM4 earbuds, I get it.
But if you’re wondering whether it’s time to upgrade, or if that battery capacity is starting to wane, then look to the WF-1000XM6 and don’t look back. You won’t regret it.
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):
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 🙂
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.
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