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Bose QuietComfort 35 II Review (Noise Cancelling Headphone)

Bjpenn88

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FWIW I bought a set of these due to the good review and compared to my Sony XM3, I find myself preferring the Sony - that is over Bluetooth connection. The Sony’s sound clearer and have nicer cleaner bass.
 
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amirm

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So it appears this headphone was measured while it was wired direct to an external headphone amplifier. However, wouldn't it be more reasonable to conduct the review/measurement of Bluetooth,ANC headphones while they are in the state for which they were designed? i.e when connected over bluetooth, using the internal DAC, with ANC on? Or is the intention that we are comparing them to other wired headphones with a proper DAC?
Bluetooth can vary the frequency response depending on the codec used. It also adds artifacts of its own which impacts tests such as distortion. Note that when I turn on NC, the DAC and internal amp is used even though I am using wired connection.
 

Bjpenn88

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Bluetooth can vary the frequency response depending on the codec used. It also adds artifacts of its own which impacts tests such as distortion. Note that when I turn on NC, the DAC and internal amp is used even though I am using wired connection.
Thanks Amir, I did not realise that the internal DAC and amp were activated when using wired connection
 

svenz

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QC35 ii are easily the most comfortable headphone I own. They are really light despite being packed with electronics - I barely notice I'm wearing them. Official weight is 240g. They're great for wearing out of the house or when working away from home. The only issue is they can get sweaty if it's warm - not much breathability.
 

Bjpenn88

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QC35 ii are easily the most comfortable headphone I own. They are really light despite being packed with electronics - I barely notice I'm wearing them. Official weight is 240g. They're great for wearing out of the house or when working away from home. The only issue is they can get sweaty if it's warm - not much breathability.

Have you tried the Sony XM3/4? I found them even more comfortable
 

Helicopter

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I ordered a pair. Thanks again Amir for providing the information for me to base my decision.
 

riker1384

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@amirm
Maybe a suggestion, for these amped/DSPed headphones, some sort of noise measurments would be interesting to see, absolute or in the form of SINAD. I don't doubt that it's not that bad, you would have mentioned it if you heard it, but, unfortunately I can't remember the model, but about 5 years ago I remember that the hiss was quite audible on some of those Bose. Interestingly my friend that I consider a good listener also couldn't hear it so maybe subjective assessment may have it's limitations even tough I don't doubt your acuity. For me it was a no go. I don't think I could pull this info on these THD graphs neither. It was full band whitish noise. Just a suggestion.
Yes, I tried a pair of their wireless headphones and they had some very noticeable and annoying noise pumping.
 

MayaTlab

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Yes, I tried a pair of their wireless headphones and they had some very noticeable and annoying noise pumping.

By pumping, do you mean a white-is sort of noise at a constant level or at varying levels ?

I don't have the QC 35 II but I have the 700 and the latter exhibits a number of characteristics that I haven't encountered yet with other ANC headphones, at least not to the extent that I could easily notice it.

When there is no playback the ANC "hiss" is fairly unobtrusive. However, if I play a track containing low frequency information (example : Girl I Love You from Massive Attack) at a very low level (whether it's lowered on the headphones themselves or the playback software), barely above the listening threshold (it isn't from the track itself), I can hear the noise floor rising and lowering in tune with the music, sometimes with a sort of "chirping" electronics whine on top of it (from the same album by Massive Attack, Babel is a good example of that rythmic noise floor). If I play a track containing only high frequency information (ex : the first few seconds of Ghost In The Shell's soundtrack), the noise floor remains low. Same with simple tones. Tested on four different copies BTW (because of various unrelated problems that required an exchange). It isn't the end of the world but in some situations I can hear that phenomenon at normal listening levels (just like one can hear the significant amount of ANC hiss some headphones always have).

Interestingly this happens whether ANC is on or off, and whether I'm using AAC or SBC, and whether I'm using my iPhone or my Mac.

I haven't noticed this behaviour on the AirPods Max as a counterpoint.

In general the 700 is a little bit noisy in terms of pop at startup, introduction of audible artefacts when playing high frequency tonalities in bluetooth, etc. There's also an interesting phenomenon whereby I can hear slight popping noises when rapidly adjusting the volume a few seconds after I've stopped playback, but this is all quite moderate and less obtrusive to me than the always, constantly higher noise floor I've heard on some other ANC headphones.

For those who have tried both the 700 and QC35 II, which one of them has the most audible hiss when ANC is turned on ?
 

riker1384

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By pumping, do you mean a white-is sort of noise at a constant level or at varying levels ?
I think it would just turn on and off. When there was no sound coming from my computer, it would be silent. Then when there was sound, the noise would kick in. It was doing this repeatedly whenever I listened to speech and such, whenever there was a bit of silence the noise would cut out momentarily which made it more noticeable than if it was constant. I assume this was a power-saving measure, that it was cutting off the amplifier when it wasn't needed.
 

Trouble Maker

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The OEM Bose pads are a bit pricey, but small change next to things like medical co-pays and flood insurance.
I've discovered that non-OEM pad (several I tried) were waste of money. The OEM pads are only ones to buy IMO.

Which other one's have you tried?
My just split on the 'inside' seam. I had been itching for a reason to upgrade to some newer Bluetooth ones, like the Bose QC35 or similar. So this feels like a natural time to do it, but with so little travel lately it feels harder to justify. Replacement pads seem like a wiser less fun decision.
I like the idea of a different materiel to hopefully make them a little less hot.
 

Bjpenn88

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Bought this headphone and didn’t like it sound didn’t seem as clear and bass not as tight as competitors. Ended up selling it, I suggest trying before you buy
 

Nango

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Might be of interest here:
 

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Helicopter

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I ordered a pair. Thanks again Amir for providing the information for me to base my decision.
These have turned out to be just great. I thought they would just be for travel, but i find myself grabbing them at night regularly. We have a baby in our room and my wife blasts noise to help her sleep. These headphones are so great in this application too.
 

Macy0771

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Just bought a pair of QC35 II and something really bothers me. Is it true that the frequency response curve would compensate for changes in volume level change? Say, I set the volume of the music player to 100% and system volume to 50%, and the bass would be way much more than setting the music player to 100% and system volume to 50%. Does higher system volume result in lesser bass??
 

KeithPhantom

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Any thoughts on how these compare to the AirPods Max?
Both stock, the QC35 II are better. The AirPods Max have some issues in the frequency range concerning the vocals (they are a bit recessed in my opinion) and they are not as 'detailed'. I returned them after a few days of evaluation. ANC performance is pretty good on both, but from what I remember the QC35 II block more high-pitch noises, while the performance in the lower frequencies (rumbles and the such) is pretty close. With EQ (using my QC35 II with it), the Bose gets so close to the target. They have displaced my HD 600 as my main headphone. Both are a good buy, but for me the Bose did it.
 
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DeepFried

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I've always been very pleased with my QC35II's, they're very comfortable, have great noise cancelling, good battery life, very good fit in the ear cups despite their smaller size (quite impressive really), and i don't hate the way they sound.

They're not perfect however, the stock ear pads fall apart within a year of daily use, fortunately superior 3rd party replacements can be got from Amazon (its not often I say 3rd party pads are better!), and yes they do get quite warm, even in the winter my ears get a bit red. Another complaint is that the headband cushion is not replaceable without complete disassembly of the headphones including unsoldering the wires between the cups. The battery is also not user replaceable.

As for the sound signature (NC on) I find them generally unobjectionable, when swapping to them from other headphones I find them a bit dark, but my brain rapidly adjusts. They're broadly a well balanced headphone, on the warm side, but aside from being well balanced there is nothing special going on.

I don't see them as an audiophile headphone, they're just a very competent consumer headphone with great utility - bluetooth, noise cancelling, portability, comfort, etc. I almost never listen to music with them, but for podcasts or radio etc i'm often wearing them.
 
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