Three years is an eternity in the tech world, but in the headphones category, it's hard to show drastic improvements in such a short time. The WH-1000XM6 are Sony's flagship headphones, part of a popular series known for delivering highly effective active noise cancellation (ANC) alongside high-quality sound for audiophiles. These headphones are popular among office workers in open spaces or for watching movies during flights.
Design and Controls: Sony WH-1000XM6 – Foldable and Comfortable
At first glance, the M6 (hereafter referred to instead of WH-1000XM6) looks almost identical to the previous generation, with rounded earcups, a wide headband covered in natural leather, and a soft fit without pressure. The ear cushions are made of flexible material for extended wear, reducing pressure and passively blocking a lot of noise. I wore these headphones for a long time on a flight from Tel Aviv to New York, and the experience was comfortable and light, even while wearing glasses, which can sometimes interfere with comfort. The main design upgrade is that the headphones are now foldable, taking up less space, and as a result, the case is smaller, making it easier to carry in a backpack. The weight remains similar to the WH-1000XM5 (see full review) at about 254 grams.
The controls are the same as the previous generation. The right earcup touchpad includes all essential functions: Double-tap for play/pause or answering calls, swipe left to skip forward, swipe right to skip backward, swipe up to increase volume, and swipe down to lower volume. A long touch activates the voice assistant on your smartphone.
The left earcup has a physical button – NC/AMB – which allows switching between ANC and ambient mode, where external sounds are heard, and also turning both off. Double-pressing it activates Spotify Tap or YouTube Music, enabling quick access to streaming services and automatic music selection.
Sound and Calls: Sony WH-1000XM6 – Hear Every Detail in a Song
The M6 comes with Bluetooth 5.3, 30mm drivers, and the HD Noise Cancelling Processor QN3, which, according to Sony, offers seven times faster processing than the previous generation.
The headphones support high-quality music playback thanks to Sony’s LDAC codec. Additionally, the DSEE Extreme mechanism combined with Edge-AI can restore frequency ranges lost during compression in real time. They also support the LE Audio standard – with low latency for gaming and listening to broadcasts via Auracast.
I listened to "Landing in London" by 3 Doors Down on both the M6 and WH-1000XM5 via Apple Music in Lossless format and noticed differences between the two models: The new version felt slightly more detailed and warmer. This difference was also noticeable in Aranda’s "Satisfied."
Specifically regarding the M6, the sound is pure bliss, detailed, warm, and allows you to hear how each instrument spreads across your ears. For example, in Badflower’s "Family," which is heavy on drums, you can experience the separation of the drums from the rest of the instruments without affecting the overall experience.
The headphones have 12 microphones, 1.5 times more than the previous generation, improving the active noise-canceling experience. On a flight with loud engine noises and chatter, the experience was excellent, silence was maintained, and I could focus on movies on my tablet without any interruptions.
Beyond noise cancellation, there’s also a transparency mode that lets you talk to people without removing the headphones. It worked very well, almost feeling like I wasn’t wearing headphones at all.
For phone calls, the headphones feature an AI system with six beamforming microphones, allowing conversations even in noisy environments. People could hear me perfectly when I spoke to them on the street.
Battery: 30 Hours of Music
Battery life remains the same as the previous generation, which is still long. It provides 30 hours of music with ANC and 40 hours without ANC. Charging time is 3.5 hours.
In conclusion, Sony has successfully improved its flagship headphones with the WH-1000XM6, which is no easy task given that they were already excellent. Improvements in sound, a transparency mode that works wonderfully, a feature-packed app that enhances the experience, and subtle design upgrades make the new model a strong successor.