Reviews by Topic
Our analysis shows how reviewers feel about different topics. Please note these are not full reviews.
Price Point
Drop + HIFIMAN HE4XX
These headphones sound great and are very affordable, but just know what you are getting. If you're looking for some great sounding headphones to listen to around your house using a headphone amp, these would be a great buy. But if you're looking for something to take to the gym, or use at work you'll probably want to look elsewhere. Pros - Excellent sound quality
Sony WH-1000XM4
The price is a bit higher than I would have preferred, but didn’t find better choices at a cheaper price.On the other hand I can’t see myself ever spending this much on headphones. I know there are people who can and will, but to me there’s nothing in that product to justify the price.It also feels like any product Apple releases gets bonus review points (which I think is just confirmation bias), just because Apple made it
Sound Quality
Drop + HIFIMAN HE4XX
My wife disagrees, but I think movies sound punchier and more intimate on grado cans. And they have the side benefit of letting two people listen to something and just talk like nothing since they leak like mad. But again, all round? These babies, hands down.
Sony WH-1000XM4
(Sony has assured me that the 1000XM4s will perform reliably in cold weather after it was found that the M3s had significant touch sensor problems in winter.) And aside from a few tweaks Sony made to how it upscales music, the 1000XM4s sound just like their predecessors — a very good thing, trust me.
Comfort
Drop + HIFIMAN HE4XX
All-day comfortable with ease (they can get a tiny bit warm with the alcantara pads in a hot room, but not even close to unacceptable) and utterly zero squeaks or creaks (looking at you, Audio Technica AD700's) The one, ONLY gripe I have with them is the nice cable they have is too short for anything other than a desktop amp or device RIGHT in front of you. BUT, it's replaceable, and lots of companies make cables for them. Side benefit is you can get a balanced cable for them, and if you get a BTR5 as well, that amp has a balanced output option. So they can sound EVEN BETTER
Sony WH-1000XM4
Sony has made some subtle design tweaks; they’re just the kind you can’t see. The head cushion at the top has been slimmed down; the ear pads now have 10 percent greater surface area for more contact with your head; and the curve of the headband has been “fine tuned.” I’m not some masochist who likes wearing over-ear headphones outside in the sweltering summer heat, but I’ve found the 1000XM4s to be plush and comfortable when worn for several hours around my apartment. Thanks to a new sensor inside the left ear cup, the headphones can now detect when you remove them from your ears and will pause audio until you put them back on
Fit
Drop + HIFIMAN HE4XX
It's not long enough for comfortable PC/ living room AV receiver use for me, so I ordered a replacement cable when I bought the headphone. The replacement cable is that red one that everybody else is buying. I clipped the "braided" part off, and now they're really cool looking red cables. They click really nicely into the headphones - better click than the stock cable
Sony WH-1000XM4
” I’m not some masochist who likes wearing over-ear headphones outside in the sweltering summer heat, but I’ve found the 1000XM4s to be plush and comfortable when worn for several hours around my apartment. Thanks to a new sensor inside the left ear cup, the headphones can now detect when you remove them from your ears and will pause audio until you put them back on.
Warranty
Drop + HIFIMAN HE4XX
Customer service is not amazing. Warranty is nothing special. Oh, and the stock cable is a cable. It's not great
Sony WH-1000XM4
Other than that it’s a warranty issue that you can’t fix yourself. I was offered a full refund on my 8th pair and decided to go for the Sony WH-1000XM4’s and I’ve been happy ever since.
Durability
Sony WH-1000XM4
I bought one pair of these headphones and they were defective out of the box. I returned them and the replacement was even WORSE than the first one. If two out of two of the same product are broken out-of-the-box, you have failed as a company. Sony doesn't even care either! My replacement order was shipped to me in a box just as slim as the box the headphones come in and only slightly longer with absolutely NO packing protection