00:00Can you really tell the difference between $150 headphones and headphones that cost $400 more?
00:11Given their relatively unknown name and low price point, you might be quick to dismiss
00:16the Soundcore Space Q45 headphones, but they're actually some of the best affordable noise
00:20cancelling headphones that you can buy.
00:22In fact, there's a lot to like about these Soundcore headphones, but do they have what
00:26it takes to stand up to the $550 AirPods Max?
00:44I reviewed these when they first came out about three years ago and found that they
00:48look great, sound awesome, and have enough smart features to justify the very high $550
00:54price tag for some people.
00:56Now, price aside, what do these two headphones offer, and which one is actually right for you?
01:01Let's start with the basics and why either of these headphones are worth getting in the first place.
01:06Design is going to be a huge factor for a lot of people.
01:09I mean, take the AirPods Max.
01:11These became such a status symbol mostly for how they look.
01:15They're very iconic, very Apple.
01:17Now, the Soundcores aren't nearly as recognizable, but in terms of comfort and build quality,
01:22things get a little bit interesting.
01:24I've never thought that the AirPods Max are the most comfortable pair of headphones.
01:28These cushions, they're decent, but the way that the headband is balanced, you don't
01:32get any extra cushion here.
01:34When I was trying out the Soundcores, the headband cushion is the first thing that stood
01:38out, and these earcups are extra plushy.
01:41I also like the metallic detail on the top of the headband, though the rest of the headset
01:46is kind of plasticky.
01:48It's worth mentioning that after using the AirPods Max for about three years, the earcups
01:55are starting to feel a little bit deflated, but on a positive note, they're magnetic,
01:59so they're removable, replaceable, and washable.
02:02Both headphones are also one size fits all.
02:05The Soundcore has this clicky band.
02:07It's pretty typical.
02:08Like, listen to that.
02:09But in very Apple fashion, the telescoping arms are, like, completely silent.
02:14Do you hear the difference between that?
02:16In terms of connectivity, both headphones have Bluetooth, but for those who want a wired
02:20connection, the Soundcore Space One also have a 3.5 millimeter headphone jack.
02:30Unsurprisingly, the AirPods Max only have a lightning port.
02:33They haven't been updated to USB-C yet, so you're stuck either getting an adapter or
02:37a solution like the AirFly Pro if you want to hook up to the entertainment console in
02:42an airplane.
02:43Of course, if I'm going to talk about connectivity, I have to talk about one of the biggest selling
02:46points of getting not just AirPods Max, but AirPods in general.
02:50The AirPods Max have Apple's H1 chip, and although they haven't been updated to the
02:53newer H2 that's in the AirPods Pro Gen 2, they still offer plenty of connectivity features.
02:59You can seamlessly pair to any of your Apple devices, switch between devices easily, and
03:03they also have Find My, so you never have to worry about where you last left them.
03:07Instead, you might need to worry about battery life.
03:09The AirPods Max only have 20 hours of active listening time, and they don't have a power
03:14button, which is something I've just never been able to wrap my head around.
03:18Which wouldn't seem that bad if the Soundcore didn't get up to 50 hours with active noise
03:23cancellation and up to 65 hours with active noise cancellation turned off.
03:28Then when your headphones are out of juice, the Soundcore gets you 4 extra hours with
03:32a 5-minute charge, where you only get an hour and a half with a 5-minute charge on the AirPods
03:36Max.
03:37Maybe if Apple would just add a power button, things would be easier.
03:40Whenever I'm testing the ANC performance of headphones, I like to get some anecdotal
03:44experience around the office or when I'm traveling.
03:47I've lined up some tracks that simulate the sounds that you might hear while you're commuting
03:50in a busy city, then some of the high frequencies that you might hear from sirens driving by,
03:55and then low frequencies that you get from the rumble of an airplane engine.
03:58Sorry if I'm yelling, I already turned on active noise cancellation on the Soundcores,
04:02and what I'm going to do is play the same track at half volume through my phone's Bluetooth
04:06connection.
04:07Then I'm going to feed in the tracks and see just how much of the outside noise I can
04:11hear.
04:12It's quite faint, and if I am lost in a song, I'm not going to hear it, but it almost sounds
04:16like there's a very faint background track on my headphones that has people talking in
04:22the background.
04:23Someone's talking right now, right?
04:24That's exactly...
04:25Yeah, I can hear that.
04:26I don't hear anything right now.
04:28During this part of the track, I remember on the Soundcore headphones, I could feel
04:31like I heard someone talking in the background.
04:33What?
04:34No, I didn't hear.
04:36There was a beeping sound.
04:37I'm sure you guys heard it.
04:39I did not hear that at all.
04:41Even from just that first test, I can tell how the difference in effectiveness is reflected
04:44in the price.
04:45Now I'm going in for the low frequency noise, which again is like the rumble of an airplane
04:49engine.
04:50It's one of those things where when I take these off right now, I feel like I'm on an
04:54airplane and I did just take my headphones off.
04:57Wow.
04:58Okay, so now that the track was just loading up, I could hear it through.
05:00For the low frequency sounds, these are very good, but you still are going to hear some
05:04of that rumbling, especially when you pause your track or skip to the next one.
05:08The performance for low frequency sounds is so good that even when I'm not playing music,
05:12a large majority of the low frequency is blocked out and when I do have music playing, I can
05:17hear absolutely nothing.
05:18For our last test, we're getting to our high frequencies.
05:21I could still tell that there was ambient sound, but it was far more bearable than I'm
05:24sure you guys could hear through my microphone.
05:27So as was the case with the Soundcore headphones, on the AirPods Max, I can hear the high frequency
05:32kind of like around my head almost.
05:35It just has that extra little level of muffling the sound, but these still perform surprisingly
05:39well for the price.
05:40And if I had no idea what headphones these were, I would think that they cost more than
05:44$150.
05:45So, do the AirPods Max sound $400 better?
05:57Not quite, but I've noticed some key distinctions between the two.
06:00One thing I really like about the Soundcore is the stereo performance.
06:03I get a lot of distinction between the different sound elements.
06:07The bass is good.
06:09It doesn't give that like deep body thump.
06:12But if you put these on without having previously tried the AirPods Max or the Sony Mark 5s
06:16or even the Bose QC Ultra, I don't think you'd know what you were missing out on.
06:21I'm remembering why I liked these so much when I first reviewed them.
06:24The vocals are unmatched and I think that was the biggest difference that I picked up
06:27compared to the Soundcores.
06:30The singer sounds like he's right in front of me singing.
06:33I'm not missing out on any of the nuances or sophistication in the voice.
06:37I'm getting like a full range of the vocal frequencies and they feel like they're on
06:42top of the song.
06:44They're not just getting mixed up and lost.
06:46By comparison, I'm remembering that the sound of the vocals was a bit murkier on the Soundcore
06:52headphones.
06:53The best analogy I could give is that the Soundcores put you in the middle of a concert
06:56floor, whereas the AirPods Max puts you in the center of the actual stage.
07:01Especially when you factor in a feature like spatial audio that uses head tracking to keep
07:05the music in place, you could turn around in a circle and feel like all the instruments
07:09and singers stay where they're supposed to be.
07:11It's pretty cool.
07:12Is it an extra $400 cool?
07:15For audiophiles?
07:16Probably.
07:17But for the average listener?
07:19So what's the deal?
07:20We have what I would consider the best headphones that you can get for $150, and then we have
07:25what many would consider the best premium headphones, especially for Apple users.
07:29No shocker.
07:30The AirPods Max have better sound quality, but they also have the conveniences of being
07:33part of the Apple ecosystem, and features like spatial audio are a game changer.
07:38On the other hand, all-day comfort, a headphone jack, and epic battery life are things that
07:43matter to a lot of people.
07:45Don't get me wrong, the AirPods Max walk the walk and talk the talk, but if we're talking
07:49about practicality, I think these are hard to beat.
07:51But what do you think?
07:53Which headphones would you buy?
07:54Be sure to let me know in the comments below, and if you want to see more of what we're
07:57up to, be sure to follow us on social at Tom's Guide.
08:00And as always, I'm at Kate Kozich.
08:02Thanks for watching, I'll catch you next time.
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