Sony WH-XB910N Review

Sony’s Extra Bass headphonSony WH-XB910N Reviews have been a staple for almost a decade, and the company usually delivers on its promise of delivering a lot of basses. The bass community will love this, but what about the rest of us? We put the Sony WH-XB910N through a two-week performance test to see how it stacks up, and it has a lot going for it. With the correct equalization, this active noise canceling (ANC) headset might be a huge success.

Sony WH-XB910N Specification

PROS

• The sound that is loud and lively
• Long times playing
• Great background music mode
• 360-degree sound and support for DSEE
• Have a lot of connections

CONS

• Horrible merging of voice assistants
• Some songs have too much bass

Price

Sony WH-XB910N headphones were initially priced at $249 but have since been discounted to $150 and are now available at major online stores, including Amazon(opens in new tab) and Best Buy(opens in new tab). There are three options to choose from black, blue, and grey. The package includes:

• A storage pouch.
• An AC adapter.
• A USB-C charging cable.
• A user manual.
• A quick reference guide.
• A warranty card.

The Clear Enduro ANC ($129) is our current mid-range favorite, although these headphones are more costly than the Bose 700 ($379) and the Sony WH-1000XM4 ($349). Take a look at our top-rated noise-canceling earbuds if you’re considering going completely wireless.

Design

The WH-XB910N’s design is a dead ringer for the Mark series, which means it looks sleek and understated. They appear great from a distance and complement other high-end products. However, the all-plastic construction makes them feel flimsy and inexpensive. These cans also have a noticeable lack of detail. The WH-1000XM4 has refined thanks to its attention to detail, slender buttons, and rose gold accents. Large buttons and an embossed light grey logo are the WH-XB910N’s only redeeming features.

The WH-XB910N is also lightweight, coming in at 8.8 ounces compared to 8.9 ounces for the WH-1000XM4. You may wear them around your neck or head without worrying about extra weight. The soft cushioning on the headband and ear cups is relaxing. The headphones conform to the shape of the skull, and the extenders offer several length options, so comfort is not an issue regardless of head size.

Battery Life

With Active Noise Cancellation enabled, the WH-XB910N lasted for 37 hours and 9 minutes in our lab tests. This is an excellent performance, and Sony claims that with ANC turned off, the headset may last for up to 50 hours. It can be charged over USB-C, but if your headphones suddenly stop working, you can use the port to plug in a new pair.

Controls

Sony designed an intuitive control system that is simple to learn and uses various media functions. Playback, call management, and volume adjustments can all be handled using swipes and several taps on the right ear cup. The touch panel’s precise input recognition makes it a joy to use gestures like swiping left and right to skip tracks or adjust the volume. The power/pairing and listening mode buttons are on the left earcup. Each one provides reliable tactile feedback to guarantee a proper response to user input.

I wish I had the same positive experience with a voice assistant. It’s been a nightmare, to put it mildly. Despite my best efforts, I could not get Alexa and Google Assistant to function together. The digital assistant requires a native configuration in the companion app and manual activation (tap and hold on the right ear cup) before it can be used. When it’s functioning, voice commands for Google Assistant, Alexa, Siri, and Bixby are often understood and carried out adequately by the microphones.

Noise Cancellation

Not Sony’s best effort in noise cancellation. These headphones can’t compare to the Mark series’ noise isolation, let alone those of the Bose 700 or the cutting-edge Shure Aonic 40. Depending on your location, you may have some peace and quiet. I could hear the rest of the house from my home office, including the toddler’s tantrums. External noises, such as doorbells, further confirmed the WH-XB910N’s difficulty with mid and high frequencies, and my mother-in-law’s iPhone speakerphone talks were audible at a rather loud volume.

Outdoors, ANC performs better. In the pavilion, I was able to tune out the sounds of the world, including cars pulling into the driveway and planes passing overhead. The headphones’ resistance to wind may be their most impressive hidden quality. If you experience whisking due to strong winds or fast-moving vehicles, you can disable this effect by activating a setting within the app. While it won’t eliminate all the background noise, it certainly helps.

Pros and Cons

Verdict

You may thank Sony for being so generous. Since the WH-1000XM4 is practically perfect and well worth the asking price, it didn’t have to release a cheaper version of its flagship ANC headphones. However, we were given the WH-XB910N, a model with many of the strengths and weaknesses of the brand’s other offerings. The benefits far exceed the drawbacks, and at only $150, you can’t beat the value of such high-quality audio. If that doesn’t cut it for you, the cheaper and more feature-packed Enduro ANC is worth looking into.