Sony WH-1000XM6 Review

The WH-1000XM series has been around since 2016, with each generation refining what was already one of the best in its class.

Sound Quality

The XM6 subtly improves on the excellent sound quality of the previous generation, offering one of the best listening experiences.

The punchy lows are a force to be reckoned with, yet don't overpower. They create a fun, lively, and theatrical listening experience. One music expert noted, “The lows are an absolute diva making sure they are noticed in every track, yet somehow don't send the mix into an off-kilter chaos.” For those who love to feel the bass, the XM6 is sure to please, with clean, bumpy beats that make you want to groove.

The highs have a wonderfully vibrant display, but it sometimes sounds like they take a backseat. It's like Dolly Parton took a step away from the mic, and you just wanted to tell her to sing louder so you could hear the full brilliance of her legendary vocals. The good news is that the highs never sound harsh or piercing. One expert said, “The crash of symbols, the jangle of a honky tonk piano solo, the shout of a violin in its upper registers, I was able to listen to it all at my preferred volume level without ever flinching.” Impressive!

Soundstage

The Sony XM6 has one of the most wonderfully atmospheric soundstages we've ever tested. It felt like we were at a live symphony with violins on the left, flutes in the center, and cellos on the right.

The track “Bubbles” by Yosi Horikawa highlighted the incredible height and depth of the XM6's three-dimensional soundstage. As ping-pong balls, marbles, and other objects were dropped from the sky, we could hear them whizzing past us until they hit the ground and bounced into the distance. While the sound lacks some width (we didn't hear balls behind us), they still do an excellent job of creating an immersive atmosphere.

Frequency Response

We measured the XM6's frequency response.

Just like our Target Response Curve, the XM6 has gently elevated lows and highs that bring life to every track. The bass tracks slightly above our preference curve, but is not so divergent that it throws off the balance.

Comfort and Fit

The WH-1000XM6 is more comfortable than its older siblings, but some headphones are better. Sony seems to have listened to user complaints about the finicky fit of past generations, but we think there is still work to be done.

Upgrades include more plush padding on the headband and earcups. However, while we could wear the XM6 for most of the day, we noticed pressure points on the top of our heads. At 255 grams, they aren't cumbersome, but because the thin headband doesn't disperse the weight, they eventually feel heavy.

Most of us could wear these with glasses, but some of our team thought the combination of glasses and strong clamping force was uncomfortable within a few hours. If all-day comfort is your top priority, you might be disappointed.

Noise Cancellation

When it comes to noise canceling, the WH-1000XM6 is incredible. It creates a sense of calm in the roughest settings. Its top-tier transparency mode lets you stay aware of your surroundings.

“Mega soundblocking,” that's how another tester described their experience. Without ANC enabled, passive cancellation blocks out an impressive amount of mid-to-high-range sounds, like babies crying, keyboards, or hands clapping. This is a stunning feat. With the ANC on, low-to-mid range sounds like boisterous chatter and rumbly garage doors were dulled down to a mere whisper.

The ANC offers near-perfect silence in a simulated cafe with clashing dishes, humming fans, and buzzing conversations.

The hear-through mode is equally stunning, relaying ambient sounds with great detail. We could carry on a conversation without taking them off, and we could hear footsteps behind us and fans humming nearby. While many headphones have a loud or unnatural playback, the XM6 relays sound with a natural and pleasant quality that we enjoyed.

Ease of Use

If you love fine-tuning your listening experience, you'll love the WH-1000XM6's.

Controls

While we're generally not fans of touch controls, the XM6 are intuitive and responsive, making skipping a track or adjusting the volume quick, smooth, and frustration-free.

With Quick Attention Mode, you can place your palm over the earcup to temporarily pause the audio. There's also Speak to Chat, which pauses the music when you talk. Or, if you take the headphones off, the Automatic Pause kicks in, stopping the music and resuming right as soon as you put them back on.

Customization

The app is chock-full of features, including: personalized hearing, a custom sound profile tailored to your unique hearing sensitivity; 10-band Equalizer; Digital Sound Enhancement Engine (DSEE), which cleans up low-quality files for more crisp and layered audio; and customizable ANC slider that lets you choose how much ambient noise to cancel or keep, which can be useful for those sensitive to ANC effects.

Other notable features include spatial audio with head tracking and an adjustable voice prompt volume. The spatial audio felt a little artificial when listening to music, but it could be great for transforming casual TV into a cinematic experience.

Battery

With a runtime of 30 hours, the WH-1000XM6 is more than enough to last, but it falls short of some competitors, especially those without ANC.

Three minutes of quick charge adds three hours of listening, and you can keep listening while the headphones charge. If the battery is totally dead and you don't have a power source, you can plug in the audio cable to keep listening.

Call Quality

The Sony XM6 delivers one of the best call qualities we've seen. Whether calling from a quiet office or a busy subway platform, these headphones effectively reduced background noise and relayed voices loud and clear.

While most headphones failed our subway test miserably, the XM6 excelled, eliminating almost all background noise. However, the female voice is distorted a bit.

Our second stress test is a simulated call from a vibrant office space with keyboards, coworkers, and air conditioners. Again, the XM6 reduces most of the ambient noise, pushing the caller's voice forward.

Without any background interference, voice clarity sounded so clear and natural that we didn't notice a difference when switching between our cell phone and the headphones.

Should You Buy the Sony WH-1000XM6?

If you have the budget for premium sound, noise-blocking, and call quality, then the XM6 is an excellent choice. The default bassy mix delivers a satisfying low-end punch while still leaving room for endless sound customizations to tailor the sound to any genre or mood. While cozy enough to wear for extended sessions, the fit isn't our favorite, and could be a bummer during extra-long flights or workdays.

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