Skip to main content

Sony's new MDR-1000X noise-canceling headphones are its best yet

IFA 2024
This story is part of our coverage of IFA Berlin 2024

Judging by the fact that it kicked off its IFA 2016 press conference with audio-related announcements, music and sound seem to be a major priority for Sony. While the first spot went to its new Signature Series audio products, Sony followed up with something that is probably more attractive to your average music listener, its new flagship noise-canceling headphones, the MDR-1000X.

Sony says it has made a number of advances that give the MDR-1000X its best noise cancellation yet, but it has also made it much easier to find the right noise cancellation for you. The headphones include a personal noise cancellation optimizer that analyzes the shape of your head and other factors like hair style and whether or not you’re wearing glasses. Then, its new Sense Engine 2 takes that data and customizes the noise cancellation.

Recommended Videos

“The MDR-1000X are not just Sony’s best-ever noise-canceling headphones,” Sony Electronics director of mobile audio Dunja LaRosa said in a statement. “They are also great looking, and most importantly, fantastic sounding headphones worthy of the Sony name and tradition.”

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Blocking out noise is great, but it doesn’t mean a thing if the audio quality is lacking — but that shouldn’t be the case here. Sony’s LDAC technology is used to deliver audio at what the company says is three times the quality of traditional Bluetooth streaming. The headphones support hi-res audio when in wired mode, and when playing wirelessly, the MDR-1000X use Sony’s DSEE HX, which can upscale audio to near hi-res quality.

A few features are included to ensure the world around you isn’t obscured. Quick Attention mode is activated by placing a hand on the side of the headphones, allowing outside sound to come through, whether it’s an announcement or simply a co-worker asking a question. Ambient Sound Mode lets outside sound through, while still allowing the listener to listen to their music.

sony-mdr-1000x
Image used with permission by copyright holder

With the MDR-1000X, there is no need to worry about a long day or long flight wearing down your battery. Sony claims a playback time of up to 20 hours, and that’s with noise cancellation turned on.

Two color options are available for the MDR-1000X; black and gray-beige. No matter which color you pick, the headphones come with a synthetic leather carrying case, power and audio cables, and an airplane adapter.

The MDR-1000X retail for $400, and will be available beginning in October from Amazon, B&H Photo-Video, and most Best Buy and InMotion Entertainment stores. If you want to reserve yourself a pair, pre-sales are available now.

Kris Wouk
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Kris Wouk is a tech writer, gadget reviewer, blogger, and whatever it's called when someone makes videos for the web. In his…
Sony debuts the WF-C700N, its most affordable noise-canceling earbuds
Sony WF-C700 with charging case.

Sony has announced its latest wireless earbuds, and they bring the cost of the company's excellent active noise cancellation (ANC) technology to a new low price. At $120, the WF-C700N are a step up from the entry-level $100 WF-C500, which lack ANC, yet they're considerably more affordable than the $200 Sony LinkBuds S or the $279 WF-1000XM4, the company's only other ANC models.

The WF-C700N can be preordered immediately in one of four colors (black, white, lavender, and sage green), with an expected delivery date of April 17 to April 18.

Read more
KEF takes a swing at Bose, Sony, and Sennheiser with its first wireless ANC headphones
KEF Mu7 wireless noise-canceling headphones.

KEF, the British audio brand best known for its high-end speakers, has launched the Mu7, its first set of premium, wireless noise-canceling headphones. They're priced at $400 and come in two slightly different color tones: silver gray, and charcoal gray. For the moment, they're only available at KEF's website.

The Mu7 are very distinctive, with a design created by Ross Lovegrove, who collaborated with KEF on its first set of wireless earbuds, the Mu3. In fact, the Mu7 look like a scaled-up version of the Mu3, with a similar smooth-oval shape for the earcups and plenty of aluminum used throughout the headphones. The design mirrors other high-end wireless headphones with a fold-flat set of hinges, but KEF only includes a carry "pouch" instead of the nearly standard zippered carry case.

Read more
Sony’s new flagship headphones promise best-in-class noise canceling and calling
Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones seen in silver.

As expected, Sony has taken the wraps off the fifth generation of its flagship line of active noise cancellation (ANC) wireless headphones. The WH-1000XM5 have been priced at $400 -- $50 more than their predecessors, the WH-1000XM4 -- and they sport a new, lighter-weight design, dual noise-canceling processors, eight microphones, and hi-res audio capability. The XM5 can be pre-ordered starting May 12 in both black and silver (a sort of sand color), and general retail availability begins May 20.

Sony plans to keep selling the older XM4 model alongside the new XM5, at least for the foreseeable future. The biggest change to Sony's design for the WH-1000 series is a move away from the traditional flat-headband plus earcup forks design to an integrated approach. The headband sliders are now tubular and connect to a hidden pivot inside the tops of the earcups, creating a similar profile to both the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 and the Apple AirPods Max. The new design means that, unlike the XM4, which can fold flat, then fold again to take up less room, the WH-1000XM5 can only fold flat.

Read more