Best Noise Cancelling Earbuds

Taking the top spot from the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds is its sequel – Bose’s QuietComfort Earbuds II.

We haven’t heard a true wireless that can suppress sounds as well as the QuietComfort Earbuds II, not even the Sony WF-1000XM5 (which do come very close).

A good sign of how powerful noise-cancellation was is taking the earphones out and hearing our loud the outside world is, and with the QuietComfort Earbuds II, the outside world sound incredible loud. While not every sound is removed, these buds weren’t far off from total silence, and they’re than the impressive original at blocking out people’s voice.

The Aware mode is just as good letting the surrounding noises with clarity. Bose’s ActiveSense technology works similarly to the AirPods Pro 2 in automatically reducing background noises when in transparency mode. It works well at suppressing sudden spikes in sounds around you. Our only issue with the ANC is that there is some wind distortion in blustery conditions. It’s minor but considering the performance, we expected it to be better in this respect.

The sound quality is better than before with the top end of the frequency range brighter and bass is bigger and punchier. Vocals carry more weight too, and there’s a better sense of depth and width than there is on the original. It’s not as finely-balanced as the WF-1000XM5, but if you enjoy plenty of bass wallop to your trucks, then the Bose is better than the Sony in that department.

The design has been changed from the original QuietComfort Earbuds, ditching the bulbous shape and Stay Hear tips for a shape that fits into the ear better. It’s not as compact as the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 but still fits well into the ear, and there are different sized ear-tips and wing-tips for a more secure fit.

Features-wise, the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II aren’t kitted out with as many features as their rivals but there is a three-band EQ to change the sound of the buds in the Bose Music app, and some customisation of controls and noise-cancelling modes. The wireless performance is excellent, consistently reliable with not dropouts.

They have been replaced by the QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds, which are more expensive but add support for Bose’s immersive audio technology and aptX Adaptive/Snapdragon Sound Bluetooth.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II