The best over-ear headphones in 2022
The all-time over-ear headphones in 2021
Included in this guide:
The best over-ear headphones deserve to be your first port of call when shopping for a durable, long-lasting pair of cans — especially if you desire one with active noise counterfoil (ANC). Over-ear designs grade a seal around your entire ear, not simply your ear canal, so are usually better at blocking out outside noise than even the very best wireless earbuds.
Indeed, most of our favorite noise-cancelling headphones are of the over-ear diverseness, merely that doesn't mean there aren't more affordable models as well. Whether y'all're looking for a luxurious pair of loftier-end headphones or something inexpensive, light and portable, we've got you covered with our picks of the all-time over-ear headphones we've tested.
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- We've found the all-time headphones with a mic for voice and video calls
Editor's Note: The Tom's Guide Awards 2021 for audio accept been announced, and the Sony WH-1000XM4 has won the Best over-ear headphones award! Head to the audio awards page to see all the winners and recommended runners-up.
What are the best over-ear headphones?
The championship of best over-ear headphones correct at present goes to the Sony WH-1000XM4. Whether information technology's well-baked audio quality, effortlessly effective ANC or its long battery life, the WH-1000XM4 is a vivid all-rounder that's not too expensive.
In 2nd place is the Bose 700. This has nigh all of the same qualities equally the WH-1000XM4 and its dissonance cancellation tech is fifty-fifty ameliorate. Even so, the Bose tends to be more than expensive.
And so we have the Apple AirPods Max, a very pricey simply feature-rich pair of over-ears that combines good one-time-fashioned sound quality with some highly avant-garde EQ and surround sound features.
The all-time over-ear headphones you can buy today
The Sony WH-1000XM4 is a acme pair of headphones. It sounds superb, coping very well with a huge range of tracks and genres, and is comfortable to wear for hours at a fourth dimension. Other highlights include ambient sound control to hear what's going on effectually yous and speak-to-conversation for automatically pausing music when you speak.
And, while the ANC may non be the best in its class, Sony's noise-cancelling nonetheless silences more than enough background noise to make enjoying the WH-1000XM4 fifty-fifty easier. Battery life is outstanding, too: we got 29 hours of playback from a single accuse, and that was with ANC on. Switch information technology off in quieter places and information technology'll keep going even longer.
Read our full Sony WH-1000XM4 review .
Nobody does active noise-cancelling quite as well as Bose. The replacement for another tiptop-quality ready of ANC cans, the Bose QuietComfort 35 Two, the Bose 700 adds a slick new design, useful capacitive touch controls and even meliorate audio quality.
What makes the ANC so bang-up isn't only its effectiveness, but the amount of command Bose affords you over it. Through the mobile app there are no fewer than 11 different levels to cull from: so you can leave a touch of ambient dissonance coming in if yous desire to listen for announcements or stay condom near traffic, or you can turn it upwardly to total and silence fifty-fifty the kinds of noises ANC can have trouble with, like speech communication.
See our full Bose 700 review .
Every bit expensive as the AirPods Max is, in that location's a sense that you lot get what you pay for: the aluminium and mesh fabric build is costly and comfortable, while sound quality and ANC effectiveness are upwardly in that location with the all-time.
Apple tree has also loaded the AirPods Max with some rather advanced features, like Adaptive EQ, which tailors the sound output co-ordinate to how the AirPods Max sit on your head: frequencies are tweaked to account for the fit of the earcups and the size of your ears. There'south also Spatial Audio, a very impressive version of digital surround sound, though as this feature requires a recent iOS or Mac device to piece of work the AirPods Max are best suited to existing Apple tree fans.
See our total Apple AirPods Max review .
It shouldn't be a surprise to come across audio specialist Sennheiser on our best over-ear headphones list. The HD 4.l BTNC is a pair of headphones that perfectly exhibits the visitor's ear for high audio quality. Information technology's relatively affordable, too, especially considering it comes with active racket-cancelling; it's a cheaper alternative to the Sennheiser Momentum 3 Wireless.
The Hd 4.50 BTNC's dissonance cancelling doesn't work quite as that of the Bose 700, only for well under $200 it'due south still a nifty deal. The comfortable, no-nonsense pattern and intuitive controls likewise help cement the Sennheiser Hard disk drive 4.fifty BTNC as an ideal pick if you want to endeavor your first pair of over-ear ANC headphones with a limited budget.
Encounter our full Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC review .
With infrequent bombardment life and full noise counterfoil, complete with an Ambience fashion, the Cleer Enduro ANC is a stone-cold bargain. Certain, its ANC tech isn't on the same level of the Bose 700, but for well under $200 in that location aren't many pairs of over-ear headphones that offer such a complete package.
It's even got support for the high-quality aptX Adaptive Bluetooth codec, and if you lot instead connect using the bundled iii.5mm cable, y'all can listen to Hi-Res Audio as well. You tin manually adapt the EQ likewise, using the companion app, though nosotros liked the default, bass-heavy audio signature.
Read our full Cleer Enduro ANC review .
Few over-ear headphones come up equally finely crafted as the Bowers & Wilkins PX7 Carbon Edition. And it'southward non all style and no substance, either: sound quality is genuinely on par with the very best, and its ANC technology is pretty good as well.
It's expensive, costing much more than than the Bose 700 or Sony WH-1000XM4, but there'southward definitely a sense that it's earned that price. The soundstage is strikingly wide, adding drama to the songs that demand it, and while at that place are no EQ customization options the audio is well-balanced plenty non to need them. There's besides a unique and enjoyable "Soundscapes" feature that tin can mix in nature sounds to aid you relax.
See our full Bowers & Wilkins PX7 Carbon Edition review .
Replacing the widely popular QC35 II is the QuietComfort 45, an updated accept on the model that revolutionized the dissonance-cancelling category. Bose equipped these over-ear headphones with a half dozen-mic array that blocks out a vast number of ambient noises, much like the flagship 700, and produces crisp-sounding calls in most environments. The minimalist, cozy design remains mostly untouched, though these cans are lighter and sturdier than their predecessor. Audio quality has been improved to produce richer, more than detailed sound. A lengthier playtime (24 hours on a single charge) also gives this version an reward over other Bose models.
It'southward a shame that Bose didn't offer an choice to turn off ANC mode for power conservation. These headphones don't come with some software perks found on older Bose headphones either. Still, this is a top-tier noise canceller that is sold for a reasonable toll.
Read our full Bose QuietComfort 45 review .
When it comes to 3D sound on headphones, the AirPods Max had that marketplace locked down until the Yamaha YH-L700A showed up. These large wireless cans pump out category-leading spatial audio, creating a listening feel that can be enjoyed with whatever stereo audio content from "nearly any source." Yamaha's head-tracking engineering makes it so that music and movies modify with how y'all turn your head, automatically adjusting the output on each aqueduct to hear details and effects accurately in a 360-degree soundscape. Yous become several 3D modes for different content, along with strong noise counterfoil and wireless operation.
Being i of the heavier models out, information technology's unlikely that yous'll be wearing these on commutes. The uneven playtimes when enabling and disabling 3D Sound Field likewise presents an effect for anyone jumping on an international flight. But if you're planning to apply spatial audio headphones for at-dwelling listening, the YH-L700A is the way to go.
Read our total Yamaha YH-L700A review .
Microsoft might not be the starting time name in sound, simply the Surface Headphones 2 is a pleasant surprise. Information technology both sounds better and price less than its predecessor, the original Surface Headphones, and information technology makes up for middling battery life with some very fast charging: nosotros went from empty to full charge in well under an hour.
The Surface Headphones 2 might besides be a proficient choice if you use Windows a lot. Information technology requires a Microsoft 365 subscription, but in that location's a unique vox dictation feature that uses the onboard microphones to turn your spoken communication into text in Word or Outlook.
Read our full Microsoft Surface Headphones 2 review .
The idea of solar-powered headphones just screams gimmicky, but the Urbanista Los Angeles is far from it. These wireless cans avowal Powerfoyle solar cells on the headband that capture solar energy when exposed to light, allowing yous to recharge on the fly, as long as information technology's exposed to sunlight exterior or any other powerful light source. You lot tin even gauge how much power the headphones are gaining or draining when in utilize through the companion app. Once achieving a full accuse, up fourscore hours of use (50 hours with ANC on) is available, which is the longest-rated playtime in the category. Sound is besides bass-forrard and brings an energetic presence to almost songs.
Bear in mind that the clamp force on these headphones is incredibly tight, making them uncomfortable to wear later on an 60 minutes. ANC is also weak compared to other noise-cancelling models. All the same, the Los Angeles deserves recognition for its ingenuity.
How to choose the best over-ear headphones for you lot
PICKING THE Best HEADPHONES AND EARBUDS STYLES
When shopping for headphones, you've already narrowed things down massively by deciding on a pair of over-ear cans specifically. But in that location tin still be much variation in the design of individual pairs, so yous should all the same look out for factors like the headband shape or the corporeality of earcup padding to estimate how comfortable they might be. Don't exist afraid to pass on headphones you don't like the aesthetics of, too.
Sound quality is clearly important. You tin read more well-nigh how we exam this below, simply you should consider whether you'd adopt a balanced audio signature or once that favors a item part of the frequency spectrum. Electronic fans might prefer heavy bass, for example. That said, a lot of over-ear headphones take mobile apps that let you tweak the EQ to your liking.
Think about how much bombardment life you'll demand as well. Over-ear headphones can deliver anywhere betwixt well-nigh 20 and 60 hours of playback and then you should never demand to recharge likewise often, though naturally longer is usually meliorate. Keep in mind that ANC will reduce bombardment life when information technology'south turned on, every bit it needs to permanently ability the onboard microphones.
How nosotros examination the best over-ear headphones
We thoroughly test every pair of headphones based on a variety of factors, and employ a consistent testing approach so any comparisons with other pairs are trustworthy and fair.
In this case, every pair of over-ear headphones has been used over the course of a week for 2 hours at a time. This allows the tester to both judge the audio quality across a mix of genres and volumes, and to see how comfy the headphones are when worn for extended periods. We'll listen to hip-hop, rock, jazz, classical, pop and more to see how each pair performs, and will do the same with movies, podcasts and games, where applicative.
We too test the effectiveness of features similar noise-cancelling in real-life situations, and will make sure manufacturer claims nigh battery life and Bluetooth range are accurate. Build quality, the ease of setup and whatever control schemes — including those involving an app — will also be judged.
We rate over-ear headphones with a five-point system (1 = worst, 5 = all-time). Products that excel in one or more particular fields that's rated 4 stars or higher up may as well receive an Editors' Selection accolade.
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Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/best-picks/best-over-ear-headphones
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