AirPods Pro (2nd generation)

Hi everyone! I was having lots of audio issues lately and it's hard to play well, because I just couldn't hear the footsteps. The directional audio in games were absolute trash, I couldn't pinpoint anything. The treble was piercing and fatiguing to the point, I had to take it off. Sound quality in general was absolutely bad. I only found out what's causing all this, because lately I've started to test lots of headphones and IEMs. After the 3rd and 4th headphones/IEMs, experiencing the same problem... I thought okay, it's definitely my motherboard audio and I need a DAC. Until I decide on which DAC to buy then, I borrowed my friend's Apple USB-C dongle so I don't have to use the motherboard's soundcard. This was the most shocking moment though... The treble fatigue, the directional audio, the sound quality were still the same and they were somehow even worse. Then I thought... What if... It's my Ugreen jack extension cable that causes all this? The cable length is 1m by the way. I thought to myself, haha it's stupid it's definitely some settings problem or similar. For the record, I did try all kinds of settings like disabling audio enhancements and spatial sound, the problem was still present despite of changing the settings in Windows. Lo and behold... I connected everything without the ugreen jack extension cable and I got my insane audio quality, no ear piercing treble anymore and the directional audio in games are finally great. Who could've thought... I hope this helps to anyone out there who is in a similar situation.

I got these both within 30 minutes of earning my doctorate. The AirPods I drove immediately to Best Buy last Monday after I defended, and the Hifimans came today. Four years ago I got myself the Sundara and pro 1s as gifts to myself for getting my masters, so these seemed like very fitting upgrades. I’m not qualified to do a real review so here are just likely strange and incoherent descriptives. The AirPod pro 3 compared to the 1 is very different. The v shape is very apparent, at least to me and my anatomy or whatever the fuck. Yes it’s trebly, but idk it never stabs my fucking ears like my x2hrs do. So I get to enjoy it with no pain. The bass is a lot, and it can sometimes be too much, but the quality of the bass is never bad. Overall, I really like them. They’re kinda ridiculous in their tuning and there are indeed times that I’m just like wtf and kinda laugh, BUT, I’m never put off by what I’m hearing. With other exaggerated v shapes I might just wince or be confused or annoyed, idk it’s just usually upsetting. I guess to use an analogy, imagine equating treble to scented candles. You like the stronger scented candles, but the really strong ones make you sneeze every now and then (stabby peaks). Now imagine a candle was just as strong but somehow you never had to sneeze. That is how the app3 do their V tuning. But sometimes, even if you’re not sneezing, sometimes the scent just gets too strong and it just feels like you’re in a stuffy room with no fresh air. So it’s never a painful scent, it’s never a bad scent, it’s just too much of a scent. The AirPod pro 1s were just a very inoffensive candle you comfortably light up that isn’t going to bother you in any way, but you’re also not gonna go “damn that smells fucking good,” like a linen scented candle or something. Two tracks: No Problem by Lil Scrappy - this song absolutely fucking slaps with the APP3. It’s not that busy and you just enjoy the ridiculous bass. Seditionist (remixed/remastered) by CLIQUE - at first it also fucking slaps and sounds extremely heavy but then the vocals kick in and it fucking sucks. They’re so boxed in and tin can sounding. There is way too much going on at the end of the Vs that you’re just confused left looking for the midrange. Okay now for the edition xv, which I’ve had for 5 seconds. I did the most uncontrolled ABing with the sundara playing the Seditionist song and, they’re really fucking good. They’re warm, full sounding, spacious, just weighty and heavy, and really don’t seem to be slacking in detail. The sundara in comparison I think do maybe allow me to “dissect” the song better, like I can pay attention to the details more, but it’s really just by a hair, and I think this is really only because it’s less crowded by the weight and fullness that the XV have. For example, vocals sounded more forward and I could just pay attention to them more on the sundara, but with the XV vocals may be just slightly recessed, slightly less able to dissect em, but you gain so much more space. You gain way more than you lose. Guitars on the sundara sounded so clear, and on the xv they also sound pretty much just as clear, except they now also come with weight and heft to them. 0:54 in the track, the heftiness and vocal presentation between the two headphones is significantly apparent. Oh yea and comfort. Idk they feel the same to me. In some ways the build quality of the xv is better, they look beautiful, but in hand you feel the plastic and then they don’t feel quite as fancy.

Those earbuds are awesome. They have phenomenal sound quality, in fact the best sound quality out of all true wireless earbuds I ever tried (bose qc ultra ii, sony 1000xm5, samsung galaxy buds 3 pro, airpods pro 2, devialet gemini ii). Upgraded to these from the Sony WF-1000XM5. The anc is not as good as Sony but it atill pretty good. They are also super comfortable, and are good for gaming as they have low latency (compared to the XM5). Battery life is also insane. Overall would really recommend those earbuds especially to audiophiles who are looking for a pair of non-wired earbuds.

It’s been a long time coming. I researched HiFi audio for years while dabbling with Vanatoo speakers, and AirPods. Those were my only frame of reference in the higher/mid end audio gear. Before those I just used whatever I had over the years. I had a pair of Beats a long time ago and didn’t like them at all. I’ve had a few gaming headsets that sounded pretty bad, and the old wired Apple earbuds that used to come with iPhones back in the day. But never anything like this. My Vanatoo speakers sound great but they’re not headphones. The moment I put on the Edition XV I was unquestionably blown away. I’m running them through a Topping E2X2 audio interface and they sound phenomenal 👌. I’m already wondering if they could sound better through a stand alone DAC/Amp like the Topping DX5 II. Any advice would be much appreciated.

I have been using the Sony XM6 for over a week now and coming from long time owner of AirPods Pro 2 & 3, Bose QC Ultra 1/2, and AZ100, I have some thoughts to share with those that are on the fence. Coming from long time owner of AirPods Pro 2 & 3, Bose QC Ultra 1/2, and AZ100. First of all, ANC: My usual use for ANC is during commuting, where the XM6 is good but not as good as APP3 and Bose QCU 2, XM6 doesn't block out higher pitch noise as good (Just a little bit behind) as the other 2 (Example: Female singing, Gym Treadmill whining noise, Train screeching etc etc). That's where I thought it's a tier behind those 2, but when I use it in cafes or office scenario, it outperforms every other earbuds. Low to mid noises are cancelled out completely, where you can't even hear people talking where APP3 you can still hear some slight chattering in the mids. So example if you are listening to a live band, APP3 you can hear people singing with piano/guitar, XM6 you can only hear hi hats and nothing else, and Bose are like middle of those 2. AZ100 is more of a second tier where it usually only blocks out lower mids and you can hear some of the higher pitch noise or people talking, but its still good enough (Not good enough for me where train in my place is over 95-100db loud!) For Scale- APP3 9.5/10 XM6 9.8/10 Bose QCU 2 9/10 AZ100 7/10 Transparency mode: This is where APP excel at, 10/10 no doubt, but I do think premium earbuds nowadays are not too far off, all Bose, Sony and Technics have very good transparency mode! I can give like 9.5/10 for 3 of them. Fit This is where everyone will be different. APP3 is the most comfortable to me, but also it doesn't stay in my ear long ( I have oily ears, and can only last 30 mins before it starts to slip out) and The other bean like shape is more friendly to my ears. AZ100 has to be the most secure buds for my ears but ears do still feel pain after an hour or two of use. Bose has the most balance with their wing tip where give you right comfort and secure its position tightly. For XM6 it is slightly special for its shape, since its thicker than all the others, it will stick out of your ears a lot and almost fully depending on the tips to secure its position, but its not uncomfortable, you still feel its presence, just the position will be very different from other earbuds. sound Quality: This is where I think Sony wins by miles against Bose and APP. They added a new pressure release vent (sort of) that sacrifices ANC on higher frequency, but the sound stage feels wider, where you dont feel like listening through earbuds and slightly outside of your head (On the standard listening mode) where on AZ100 still a bit cramped inside. AZ100 sounded more V shape with boosted bass and energetic treble which most of the people should be fond of, and Sony is very balance (like flat water). Bose is....only bass. APP has Okay sound quality but it does give you proper Spatial Audio support. Overall, I think XM6 is quite a good choice for those that wants to have earbuds that can do T0 ANC and T0 Music Quality, just more expensive than all the other competition. Feel free to ask me anything! Extra Note: XM6 seems to take 0.5 sec to activate/calculate for Ambient/Noise cancelling compare to other buds which are almost instant. Does anyone has similar experience?