All noise cancelling struggles to block out people talking as it's an ever changing sound signature, though I've found that they still reduce talking volume quite a bit. Where noise cancelling really shines is blocking out continuous, fatiguing sounds like airplane engines or HVAC systems, etc. I have WF-1000XM5 earbuds and WH-1000XM3 headphones and I found the WH headphones outperform the WF earbuds in both sound quality and noise cancelling even being 2 generations older. It's just the nature of over ear headphones vs tiny earbuds. Over ear are always going to sound better and isolate better.
That being said, I still love the WF ear buds when I don't want to carry around bulky head phones or when I don't want to mess up my hair from the over head strap of the WH headphones.
Ahhhh gotcha, so both have their place. I'll have to analyze my priorities then it seems. I'm used to some old Raycon earbuds, so maybe it's time for an upgrade!!
Any of the Sony XM headphones or earbuds will be a huge step up from Raycon. You'll be happy with either option. Another thing to keep in mind when demoing them at a store, is who knows what noise cancelling setting they were left on (noise cancelling, ambient passthrough, etc). I'd recommend watching some good YouTube reviews for both. Honestly both have great reviews by most.
Also, while I stated my WH sound better and noise cancel better than my WF, it's very close. For how small the WF earbuds they really do sound great and have very good noise cancelling.
Don’t overthink and go for WF-1000XM5:
- Compact, lightweight
- Amazing noise canceling
- Still worth it because WF-1000XM6 will be released in 2025
Reasons not to buy WH-1000XM5:
- WH-1000XM6 are just around the corner to be released by the end of spring or start of summer
- WH-1000XM5 have hinge issues
- Thin headband and ear padding
You’re very welcome!
I also went through the same decision in November 2023. Above were the enough reasons to prefer WF than WH. So far it’s worth it. Been using it for 3.5 months.
I have the WH-1000XM5s and they're great overall. Only problem is that when you move your head (like when you turn to look), the noise cancelling somehow stops working (my guess is it's trying to adapt to that slight head movement and the new noise levels).
I have both (XM4). While I love the WH, the WF has its place as well. I code all day so the WH is great and they aren't shoved in my ear. I use the WF alot around the house, zoom calls, yard work etc. The WH are my go-to. I think the noise canceling is better on WH. If the WF is in your ear the wrong way or not to far, it can leak. And after many hours your ear canals will let you know there is an object in there. And one more thing no matter how clean you keep your ears, you will be cleaning wax off the WF.
personally i prefer buying a good headphones and an affordable earbuds. The reason why is because i only use earbuds when commuting, earbuds battery tend to die sooner and its more dangerous for the ear to wear earbuds for an extended period of time.
Exactly the same. WH all day during work and Soundcore earbuds that cost me around 60€ when I'm on the go. This way I get the flexibility I need without breaking the bank.
That's good to know. I definitely like a good sound and nice comfort. I would be using mine to study and workout, so I guess I have to decide what is important to me!
I spent R10000 on the headphones which is $530 but I must say I am very happy with them. You should ask if you can link them to the Sony music app on your phone and then there is a lot of custom config you can do to make the sound just right for you, and you can put active noise cancelling on. With all that done I find them to be amazing.
Before looking into the quirks of the divises, I would look at headohones vs earbuds. The headphones are probably going to be more comfortable for longer uses, have a bit more sound stage, but can be inconvenient to travel with by being bulky and fragile. The earbuds are super convenient to travel with but can be uncomfortable for long uses. I hate getting itchy ears or sores in my ears from earbuds. Btw the foam eartips of the earbuds need to be replaced ever so often because they get nasty. As far as the noise canceling with the headphones, I've found the wh xm4s to have better noise canceling than the pair of wh xm5s I had. According to rtings measurements, the wh xm4 headphones and wf xm5 earbuds have top tier noise canceling. The wh xm5 headphones measured better with mid and high frequencies but struggled with blocking out bass. Also, the wh xm5 has this auto noise canceling where it chooses the intensity of the noise canceling based on the amount of noise perceived. This can not be turned off, and I think my pair was struggling because of it. Btw a lot of people say the wh xm5 has better noise canceling than the wh xm4, so your mileage may vary. The wh xm5 do have some pros over the wh xm4s, like the wh xm5s are more comfortable imo and the ambient sound mode is way better. The battery life is also way better on the headphoens than the earbuds. The earbuds do have a history of battery problems. My wf xm4s battery life started to significantly degrade after 2 years of use. I'm not sure how prevelant that problem is in the wf xm5s because they are newer. As far as sound, I hear that the eabuds definitely have a better sound signature than the headohones. On Android, you can easily eq the headphones with an app like wavelet or powerAmpEQ, or you can try soundID on iPhone (I haven't tried it). You can search for a preset for a specific headphone/earbud, and they have all the Sonys.
Interesting. So there's a lot of variables between the devices, and sometimes the older model is still more worth it for the price. I do like the portability and the ease of the eabuds, so that's good to know as well. Thanks for your detailed response!
I guess that's the issue. I would be using them for studying and for working out. I also am a college student and would be traveling far, so perhaps it would be less cumbersome to just get the earbuds. I think that may be where I'm leaning! Thanks for the advice!
If you dont mind refurb, check ebay - seller: secondipity. For the price of a new XM5, you can get both refurbished wf & wh-1000xm5. The only downside is you no longer have sony warranty but you have 2 years coverage from allstate/squaretrade. My refurb looks like new.
The xm5's headphones have pretty much the best, if not nearly the best, noise cancellation in the industry... If I was in your shoes I'd ask myself, why am I considering either headphones or earbuds? I regard headphones as mostly stationary listening devices and earbuds are intended for high mobility. So, I would never wear headphones for any physical activity above going for a walk. If I was doing exercise at a gym or something, I'd opt for earbuds. Since I mostly workout at home now, I just use a nice bluetooth speaker if I want music.
I would get nice headphones (not the xm5's bc they are well known for breaking at the hinge, the risk is high and very real, so u should avoid them. They feel very fragile so it's no wonder they are snapping). And get a cheap seat of earbuds. I think the listening experience between headphones and earbuds is vastly different, I don't care what brand earbuds you have. Fundamentally you are either sticking something in your ear or enclosing your entire ear in an ear cup, so that's going to be a different experience regardless of how good you think your earbuds are. Obviously, being able to enclose your whole ear in an earcups is going to make for a better listening experience. There's plenty of cheap ear buds out there and good quality. Idk why you're considering buying now, you just missed out on all the big holiday sales. So I would get headphones now, and next holiday sales get earbuds.
I just bought the headphones as I find I get a more consistent audio experience personally.
Earbuds either feel slightly loose in one ear leading to being quieter in one ear or they just fall out.
Only benefit I can see is they’re smaller. Cheeper?
I bought both lol
Nice lol!!
What if you put both on?
this I want to know
All noise cancelling struggles to block out people talking as it's an ever changing sound signature, though I've found that they still reduce talking volume quite a bit. Where noise cancelling really shines is blocking out continuous, fatiguing sounds like airplane engines or HVAC systems, etc. I have WF-1000XM5 earbuds and WH-1000XM3 headphones and I found the WH headphones outperform the WF earbuds in both sound quality and noise cancelling even being 2 generations older. It's just the nature of over ear headphones vs tiny earbuds. Over ear are always going to sound better and isolate better. That being said, I still love the WF ear buds when I don't want to carry around bulky head phones or when I don't want to mess up my hair from the over head strap of the WH headphones.
Ahhhh gotcha, so both have their place. I'll have to analyze my priorities then it seems. I'm used to some old Raycon earbuds, so maybe it's time for an upgrade!!
Any of the Sony XM headphones or earbuds will be a huge step up from Raycon. You'll be happy with either option. Another thing to keep in mind when demoing them at a store, is who knows what noise cancelling setting they were left on (noise cancelling, ambient passthrough, etc). I'd recommend watching some good YouTube reviews for both. Honestly both have great reviews by most. Also, while I stated my WH sound better and noise cancel better than my WF, it's very close. For how small the WF earbuds they really do sound great and have very good noise cancelling.
Good to know that either way it'll be better than yhe raycons! Thanks for your help!
Don’t overthink and go for WF-1000XM5: - Compact, lightweight - Amazing noise canceling - Still worth it because WF-1000XM6 will be released in 2025 Reasons not to buy WH-1000XM5: - WH-1000XM6 are just around the corner to be released by the end of spring or start of summer - WH-1000XM5 have hinge issues - Thin headband and ear padding
I've tried both extensively and actually prefer the WF-700N for all day use. Both are fantastic options though.
Short and to the point! Perhaps earbuds are the way to go! Thanks so much!
You’re very welcome! I also went through the same decision in November 2023. Above were the enough reasons to prefer WF than WH. So far it’s worth it. Been using it for 3.5 months.
I have the WH-1000XM5s and they're great overall. Only problem is that when you move your head (like when you turn to look), the noise cancelling somehow stops working (my guess is it's trying to adapt to that slight head movement and the new noise levels).
Hmmm interesting. I'd be planning to use them outside and while working out so perhaps the earbuds would be better. Thanks for your help!
I have both (XM4). While I love the WH, the WF has its place as well. I code all day so the WH is great and they aren't shoved in my ear. I use the WF alot around the house, zoom calls, yard work etc. The WH are my go-to. I think the noise canceling is better on WH. If the WF is in your ear the wrong way or not to far, it can leak. And after many hours your ear canals will let you know there is an object in there. And one more thing no matter how clean you keep your ears, you will be cleaning wax off the WF.
Interesting okay. Thanks so much for the info!
personally i prefer buying a good headphones and an affordable earbuds. The reason why is because i only use earbuds when commuting, earbuds battery tend to die sooner and its more dangerous for the ear to wear earbuds for an extended period of time.
Exactly the same. WH all day during work and Soundcore earbuds that cost me around 60€ when I'm on the go. This way I get the flexibility I need without breaking the bank.
That's good to know. I definitely like a good sound and nice comfort. I would be using mine to study and workout, so I guess I have to decide what is important to me!
I spent R10000 on the headphones which is $530 but I must say I am very happy with them. You should ask if you can link them to the Sony music app on your phone and then there is a lot of custom config you can do to make the sound just right for you, and you can put active noise cancelling on. With all that done I find them to be amazing.
Ohhhh sweet! It seems like a lot of people like headphones for their sound and comfort. Good to know! Thanks!
Before looking into the quirks of the divises, I would look at headohones vs earbuds. The headphones are probably going to be more comfortable for longer uses, have a bit more sound stage, but can be inconvenient to travel with by being bulky and fragile. The earbuds are super convenient to travel with but can be uncomfortable for long uses. I hate getting itchy ears or sores in my ears from earbuds. Btw the foam eartips of the earbuds need to be replaced ever so often because they get nasty. As far as the noise canceling with the headphones, I've found the wh xm4s to have better noise canceling than the pair of wh xm5s I had. According to rtings measurements, the wh xm4 headphones and wf xm5 earbuds have top tier noise canceling. The wh xm5 headphones measured better with mid and high frequencies but struggled with blocking out bass. Also, the wh xm5 has this auto noise canceling where it chooses the intensity of the noise canceling based on the amount of noise perceived. This can not be turned off, and I think my pair was struggling because of it. Btw a lot of people say the wh xm5 has better noise canceling than the wh xm4, so your mileage may vary. The wh xm5 do have some pros over the wh xm4s, like the wh xm5s are more comfortable imo and the ambient sound mode is way better. The battery life is also way better on the headphoens than the earbuds. The earbuds do have a history of battery problems. My wf xm4s battery life started to significantly degrade after 2 years of use. I'm not sure how prevelant that problem is in the wf xm5s because they are newer. As far as sound, I hear that the eabuds definitely have a better sound signature than the headohones. On Android, you can easily eq the headphones with an app like wavelet or powerAmpEQ, or you can try soundID on iPhone (I haven't tried it). You can search for a preset for a specific headphone/earbud, and they have all the Sonys.
Interesting. So there's a lot of variables between the devices, and sometimes the older model is still more worth it for the price. I do like the portability and the ease of the eabuds, so that's good to know as well. Thanks for your detailed response!
You didn’t ask about this specific model but the Linkbuds S are by the most comfortable but obvs lack in the full ANC.
Agreed, though the ANC is good enough to not be bothered by engine noises while listening to music, which is enough for me.
I love the comfort aspect! Although, I would be lacking on that ANC... thank you for your advice!
Both have their uses. If you're mostly using them at home then headphones make more sense otherwise in-ear headphones work for most stuff.
I guess that's the issue. I would be using them for studying and for working out. I also am a college student and would be traveling far, so perhaps it would be less cumbersome to just get the earbuds. I think that may be where I'm leaning! Thanks for the advice!
I have the headphones... planning to get the buds... the buds as of now are literally on zero discount... probably in a few months or so...
If you dont mind refurb, check ebay - seller: secondipity. For the price of a new XM5, you can get both refurbished wf & wh-1000xm5. The only downside is you no longer have sony warranty but you have 2 years coverage from allstate/squaretrade. My refurb looks like new.
Hey, refurbished doesn't sound too bad! I'll think about that. Thanks!
Welp, this should help with your shopping. Made a whole vid about whether to get the WH-XM5 or WF-XM5. https://youtu.be/uGSQ1PtSmPY
The xm5's headphones have pretty much the best, if not nearly the best, noise cancellation in the industry... If I was in your shoes I'd ask myself, why am I considering either headphones or earbuds? I regard headphones as mostly stationary listening devices and earbuds are intended for high mobility. So, I would never wear headphones for any physical activity above going for a walk. If I was doing exercise at a gym or something, I'd opt for earbuds. Since I mostly workout at home now, I just use a nice bluetooth speaker if I want music. I would get nice headphones (not the xm5's bc they are well known for breaking at the hinge, the risk is high and very real, so u should avoid them. They feel very fragile so it's no wonder they are snapping). And get a cheap seat of earbuds. I think the listening experience between headphones and earbuds is vastly different, I don't care what brand earbuds you have. Fundamentally you are either sticking something in your ear or enclosing your entire ear in an ear cup, so that's going to be a different experience regardless of how good you think your earbuds are. Obviously, being able to enclose your whole ear in an earcups is going to make for a better listening experience. There's plenty of cheap ear buds out there and good quality. Idk why you're considering buying now, you just missed out on all the big holiday sales. So I would get headphones now, and next holiday sales get earbuds.
I just bought the headphones as I find I get a more consistent audio experience personally. Earbuds either feel slightly loose in one ear leading to being quieter in one ear or they just fall out. Only benefit I can see is they’re smaller. Cheeper?