Inside the box
Apple is unsurprisingly, not, generous with the AirPods Max.
Inside the box you have :
- the Apple AirPods Max
- a travel bag made of faux-leather
- one USB-C to Lightning cable
That’s it.
Additional accessories
There are absolutely no improvements you can do regarding the AirPods Max. It’s made to work with an Apple device, preferably an iPhone, and every time you’ll want to connect anything else, the headphone will set your back.
Sure, you can plug your own DAP, but you’ll have to order a separate lightning-to-jack cable, and you won’t be allowed to use your own DAC, as everything will be translated by Apple’s own chipset.
Isolation
If not as good as the AirPods Pro, the AirPods Max is one of the best noise-canceling headphones on the perfect.
I take the train every day, and to cut myself from the outer world is mandatory. I use headphones/earphones to isolate myself, work, or rest during my travel. If I use my CIEM half of the time, paired with my FiiO M15 or the EarMen Sparrow when I want to go light, the other half, I trust my AirPods Pro. Even to this day, their noise-canceling performances remain top-notch.
Surprisingly, the AirPods Max doesn’t match the Pro performances in this regard. It’s not bad, far from it, the headphones outperforming my old Sony WH-MX3 and the Sennheiser Momentum 3 Wireless. Traffic jams, train humming, wind noises, all of them are completely, and brilliantly, shut-off by the Max.
But, high-pitched noises or fast-moving cars can still fool the headphone. Sometimes, you’ll feel like something, somehow, pierced your bubble of tranquility, and that’ll feel very uncanny. I’m pretty sure that Apple will improve their noise-canceling through various software updates, as they did for the AirPods Pro, but for now, it’s still a bit buggy.
For example, one out of two times, the right side of my headphone completely turns down the noise-canceling, giving me the most bizarre experience, where you hear absolutely everything from one side, and nothing from the other one. Again, this will surely be fixed, later on, but for now… it’s a bug, not a feature.
Transparency mode
Just a quick word regarding the Transparency mode: it’s the best, all systems included. Once you’ve activated this mode, you’ll feel like you’ve never worn the AirPods Max in the first place. Every outside noise blends naturally with your music, and the headphone avoids the horrendous “megaphone effect”, amplifying exterior noises beyond any measure.
Sure, you’ll look like a complete douche, keeping your headphone while talking with whom you need to. But, it works so well, that you’ll always do that, instead of removing the headphone.
The article continues on Page Five, after the click here
MhtLion
Definitely the best review on Airpod Max I’ve read! Have you tried the optional cable? Some says it sounds better with it, and some says it’s the same.
Thomas Hoff
the fact that it works best with Apple Music should be a reason not to buy into Apple’s walled garden. Apple Music is horrible. I have recently untethered myself from Apple and am loving it.
Darwin
Nah Apple Music is great. Best sound quality. Best interface. Now high res and Atmos audio. Nothing else even comes close. Even the best price!
Jazz1
Well I’ve been on and off about buying these headphones. I’ve read many a review, mostly some too bias, and some too insanely harsh. I think your review “hits the nail on the head”.
Soooo, I have ordered them after finding and reading this review, after reading many other review and watching many YouTube pundits 😉
I do own a B&W PX7 headphones which I like very much. I am hoping the sound on this Apple headphone exceeds the PX7 to some extent. So thanks to your review I dig deeper into the Apple “walled garden”.
Any updates you care to share?