Over-Ear
Sony WH-1000XM5
87Outstanding
$250
Full review dataSony WH-1000XM5 vs t+a WH-1000XM6: which should you buy?
Specs, scores and condensed review verdicts for the Sony WH-1000XM5 vs t+a WH-1000XM6, side by side. Where a product has no HearWiki score yet, not enough reviews have been aggregated to rate it.
Score breakdown
Each axis is a 0–10 blend of what reviewers scored, not a lab measurement.
Sony WH-1000XM5 leads on 7 of 7 measures.
- Sony WH-1000XM5
- t+a WH-1000XM6
HearWiki score
87
-
Sound
8.0
-
Noise cancelling
9.0
-
Battery
8.0
-
Calls
7.0
-
Value
7.0
-
Price (USD)
$250
$400
Generation & platform
The scores rank quality. This is the other question: is the newer one actually newer technology, or the same platform in a new shell?
Same generation
The t+a WH-1000XM6 is 3 years newer, but it is the same generation of hardware: nothing in the radio, the codecs or the noise cancelling separates them. Nothing separates them on convenience features either, so the choice comes down to tuning and price. For 3 years between them, that is a thin return - treat this as a restyle rather than a new platform.
- WH-1000XM52022
- WH-1000XM620253 yr newer
Level on: ANC type, Multipoint pairing, Companion app.
Specifications
WH-1000XM5WH-1000XM6
- Type
- Over-Ear
- Over-Ear
- Price (USD)
- $250
- $400
- HearWiki score
- 87
- Not scored
- Released
- 2022
- 2025
- Driver
- 30 mm dynamic
- -
- Driver type
- dynamic
- -
- Driver size
- 30 mm
- -
- Drivers per side
- 1
- -
- Frequency response
- 4 Hz - 40 kHz
- -
- Impedance
- 48 Ω
- -
- Sensitivity
- 102 dB/mW
- -
- Bluetooth
- 5.2
- -
- Codecs
- SBC, AAC, LDAC
- -
- Multipoint pairing
- Yes
- Yes
- Wireless range
- 10 m
- -
- Battery life
- 30 h
- 30 h
- Full charge time
- 210 min
- -
- Quick charge
- 3 min → 1 h
- -
- Wireless charging
- No
- -
- Active noise cancelling
- Yes
- Yes
- ANC type
- adaptive
- adaptive
- Transparency mode
- -
- Yes
- Companion app
- Yes
- Yes
- Custom EQ
- Yes
- -
- Wear detection
- Yes
- -
- Controls
- touch
- -
- Voice assistant
- Alexa, Google Assistant
- -
- Weight
- 250 g
- -
- Water resistance
- none
- -
- Foldable
- No
- -
- Detachable cable
- Yes
- -
- USB-C
- Yes
- -
- Microphones
- 8
- -
What reviewers said
Sony WH-1000XM5
The Sony WH-1000XM5 is a premium over-ear wireless headphone built for immersive listening, featuring top-tier active noise cancellation and support for high-resolution audio via LDAC. With a lightweight frame and up to 40 hours of playback, it's designed for long, comfortable sessions, though it lacks water resistance and a foldable design.
- Pro:Excellent noise cancellation
- Pro:Long 40-hour battery life
- Pro:High-resolution LDAC support
- Con:No water resistance
- Con:Non-foldable design
- Con:Premium price point
t+a WH-1000XM6
No summary yet - we haven't aggregated enough reviews.
Summaries are AI-condensed and paraphrased from published reviews and specs - not original hands-on testing. More on our method.
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