The $429 Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones replace the Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 and sit a step above the $349 QuietComfort Headphones in the company's lineup. For their high-end price, these flagship headphones deliver the most effective active noise cancellation (ANC) of any over-ear models we’ve tested, bar none. They also introduce immersive (spatial) audio modes and gain AptX Adaptive Bluetooth codec support for high-quality streaming on compatible devices. We remain fans of Bose's signature audio sculpting, especially since a full-featured companion app lets you adjust the sound to taste. You should still consider Sony’s $399.99 WH-1000XM5 headphones if you prefer a more accurate audio presentation and want LDAC codec support, but the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones are simply unbeatable when it comes to noise cancellation, earning them our Editors' Choice award.
A Comfortable Fit and Good Codec Support
Available in Black, Sandstone (a Bose.com exclusive), or White Smoke, the circumaural (over-ear) QuietComfort Ultra Headphones combine a stylish design with supreme comfort. Both the headband and earpads feature generous cushioning and a vegan leather lining, so they feel exceedingly comfortable over long listening sessions despite adjusting them for a tight fit.
Internally, the headphones use brand-new 35mm drivers, but Bose doesn’t provide frequency range specs. As for connectivity, they're compatible with Bluetooth 5.3 and support the AAC, AptX Adaptive, and SBC codecs thanks to their Snapdragon Sound Technology Suite. Compared with the company's older models that worked with SBC and AAC only, this is a major improvement for Android users. For reference, Sony's WH-1000XM5 headphones maintain an advantage because of their LDAC support.
Google Fast Pair is available, as is multipoint pairing with up to two devices (unlike the QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds). Meanwhile, Bose SimpleSync lets you pair the Ultra Headphones with various Bose soundbars and speakers. You can then listen to audio playing from both the other sources and the headphones simultaneously, as well as adjust the volume of each.
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As for mics, the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones sport an impressive total of 10. Four of the five around the perimeter of each earcup are external—three are feed-forward and handle voice capture. Each earcup also houses an internal feedback mic.
The right earcup houses the physical controls, including power/Bluetooth pairing and multifunction buttons. Press the latter once to control playback, twice to move forward a track, or three times to go to the previous track. Additionally, a single press of the multifunction button answers calls, while a double press ends or rejects an incoming call. Pressing and holding the multifunction button also cycles through the Aware (transparency), Immersive (spatial audio), and Quiet (ANC On) modes by default, but you can add custom modes here via the app. Rounding out the control layout is a capacitive touch slider just below the end of the headband—swipe your finger toward or away from the headband to raise or lower the volume. I like that the volume control is separate, but I found it prone to accidental swipes when I tried adjusting the fit of the headphones, for example.
In the box, you get a 3.5mm audio cable and a USB-A-to-USB-C charging cable, both of which connect to ports at the base of the left earcup. These accessories all fit neatly into the included zip-up, hard-shell case that the headphones collapse and flatten to fit inside.
Bose estimates the headphones can last roughly 24 hours per charge (or 18 with immersive audio active), but your results will vary depending on your typical listening volume levels. Keep in mind this is with the always-on ANC and Aware modes in effect. Charging from empty takes about three hours. This battery life isn't too impressive considering that the more affordable Sennheiser Accentum headphones get up to 50 hours per charge with ANC on. Then again, the more comparable Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones have a fairly similar battery life of 30 hours.
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones App Experience
The Bose Music app (available for Android and iOS) is simple to operate and has a clean interface. The main page shows a readout of the remaining battery life, while EQ, Immersive, Modes, Shortcut, Source, and Tips sections follow.
In the Modes section, you can choose between Aware (transparency), Immersive (ANC on and immersive audio set to the Motion option), and Quiet (ANC on) modes. You can add custom modes or other presets, but the scope of customization isn't overly impressive. Essentially, you can change the balance of the ANC and Aware modes, as well as toggle the Wind Block setting. Enabling the latter automatically locks the ANC slider to its maximum level.
In the Source area, you can select from a list of previously paired devices, add a new one, and control which two devices have an active multipoint connection. The EQ section provides bass, mid, and treble faders, along with several preset options (Bass Boost, Bass Reducer, Treble Boost, and Treble Reducer). This is a basic implementation, but it's better than nothing. The Immersive Audio tile simply allows you to switch between Off, Still, and Motion modes for the spatial audio feature.
Select the Shortcut tile to assign a function to a press-and-hold gesture of the volume slider. You can disable this shortcut, or set it to provide battery life readouts, cycle through the immersive audio modes, summon your voice assistant, or play Spotify (if you have that app on your phone). Meanwhile, the Tips tile functions as a simple user guide with instructions for how to operate the controls. Rounding out the app is a settings menu where you can download firmware updates, adjust how much of your voice you hear on calls, or toggle on-head detection (the headphones eventually go into sleep mode automatically when you remove them).
Top-Notch Noise Cancellation
The QuietComfort Ultra Headphones delivered top-tier noise cancellation in my tests. They impressively dialed back low-frequency rumble, as well as substantially cut back the lows and mids from a loud recording of white noise. Some higher frequencies, however, made it past the circuitry. Meanwhile, the headphones nearly eliminated the low and midrange noise from a complex recording of a busy restaurant, with just a slight amount of chatter still audible. Compared with both the Apple AirPods Max ($549) and the Sony WH-1000XM5, the Ultra Headphones fared better on practically every test and proved the best overall.
Bose's less-expensive QuietComfort Headphones offer similar overall performance, but the Ultra model more obviously adapts to both your head movements and changes in the environment. The Ultras are also better at tamping down varied noises like music—when I blasted various Nirvana tracks in my lab, for example, the Ultra headphones lowered the overall intensity more effectively.
Keep in mind that the Ultra headphones might exert a noticeable amount of ear pressure and that the intensity of the ANC shifts depends on the relative position of the noise. This recalculation process is mostly graceful for real-world scenarios, but some listeners might find this behavior distracting.
Bose’s transparency mode, called Aware, presents your surroundings naturally and accurately. ActiveSense is Bose’s hybrid blend of ANC and transparency modes that competes with Apple's Adaptive Audio modes. In effect, it tamps down loud sounds while still letting other ambient audio through. It successfully protects your hearing but doesn't handle loud sounds particularly smoothly, so there's still some room for improvement.
Bass-Tuned Audio (Now With Head Tracking)
Bose's immersive audio is its late-to-the-game answer to Apple’s spatial audio. As mentioned, there are three options here: Off, Still, and Motion. Contrary to what you might think, the audio adjusts to your head movements in Still mode but stays stationary in Motion mode. In practice, the effects work quite well. It's difficult to say whether the Bose or Apple implementation is better, but that's primarily because I prefer to leave both off. These modes can be fun to play around with, but they essentially just slather the audio in a variety of effects that ruin the integrity of the mix.
I tried a number of EQ settings during testing, but I stuck with the default settings (EQ off, immersive audio off, and Quiet mode on) for my official listening tests. On tracks with intense sub-bass content, like The Knife’s “Silent Shout,” the Ultra Headphones deliver powerful low-frequency response. The lows sound robust at moderate volumes and never let up or distort at higher volume levels.
The drivers have no trouble reproducing the sub-bass at the 34-second mark of Kendrick Lamar’s “Loyalty.” The lowest of these notes, all of which are deep in subwoofer territory, sound full-bodied, while the various vocals come across with plenty of high-frequency definition.
Bill Callahan’s “Drover,” a track with far less deep bass in the mix, better reveals the sound signature. The drums on this track get some extra thump but never sound unnaturally thunderous. Callahan’s baritone vocals receive plenty of low-mid richness and enough higher-frequency presence to provide clarity and balance. The acoustic strums and higher-register percussive hits sound particularly bright. You can tinker with the app's EQ faders to tweak the obvious sculpting, but Bose has always tried to appeal more to bass lovers than purists.
On orchestral tracks, like the opening scene from John Adams’ The Gospel According to the Other Mary, the Ultra Headphones push the lower-register instrumentation forward in the mix, but the bright, higher-register brass, strings, and vocals never lose the spotlight.
The voice mic array works well. I could understand every word from a test recording to my iPhone clearly and the signal sounds relatively natural.
Unbeatable Over-Ear Noise Cancellation
The QuietComfort Ultra Headphones deliver the best noise cancellation of any over-ear headphones we've tested. If you have a sufficient budget and ANC is your top priority, you shouldn't hesitate to buy them. But keep in mind that you can get nearly as effective performance out of the less expensive QuietComfort Headphones if you don't mind giving up a more adaptive noise cancellation approach, AptX Adaptive support, and immersive audio modes. As for alternatives from other brands, Apple's more stylish AirPods Max offer the most seamless iOS integration and Sony's WH-1000XM5 headphones add LDAC compatibility for high-resolution streaming. But neither matches Bose in noise cancellation prowess. As such, the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones easily earn our Editors' Choice award for noise-cancelling headphones.
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones pump out robust sound and offer the best noise cancellation of any over-ear models we've tested.
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