Pros
✅ Amazing ANC
✅ Custom Tune Technology
✅ Comfortable
✅ Quality case
Cons
❌ No LDAC codec
❌ Medium quality microphone
❌ No IP rating
Overview
Bose QuietComfort Ultra is a high-end, premium headphone developed by Bose, renowned for its exceptional ANC (Active Noise Cancellation). When activated, it allows you to experience true silence. However, beyond its outstanding ANC, this headphone also delivers high-quality sound with deep, powerful bass, making it an excellent choice for those seeking a well-rounded, top-tier headphone.
At Technowant, we have given it the title of “Best Noise Cancelling Bass Headphone” and included it in our Best Headphones for Bass list. We brought this headphone to our testing studio, where we conducted a full 14-day evaluation, assessing every aspect of its performance. The following post on our website presents our detailed test results.
What you’ll read next is the outcome of our extensive testing.
Why is Techowant Trustworthy? At Technowant, we scientifically test headphones in our dedicated headphone testing studio to ensure accurate and reliable evaluations. For more details, you can read about our headphones Testing Method.
Design
As a high-end, premium headphone, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra fully meets buyers’ expectations in terms of design and comfort. Like previous Bose models, its design is sleek, minimalist, and elegant, appealing to the majority of users. The headphone features angled drivers with the Bose logo engraved on them.
For our testing, we selected the black version, but this headphone is also available in White Smoke, Diamond 60th Edition, and Lunar Blue. In all color variants, the headband connectors are silver, except for the Lunar Blue version, where they match the headphone’s color.
Comfort
During our tests, we tried to find even a single flaw in terms of comfort—and we couldn’t. This headphone is exceptionally comfortable in every way. Weighing just 253 grams, it applies no extra or unusual pressure on the head or neck. The earcups and headband are designed to fit various head and ear sizes and are made from high-quality, soft padding for added comfort.
Build Quality
The earcups are foldable, allowing you to flatten and inwardly fold them for better portability. The body is crafted from high-quality, durable plastic, giving it a premium feel, while the folding hinges are made of aluminum for enhanced durability. In our opinion, one of the most important features that should have been included in this headphone is an IP rating for dust and water resistance. The absence of this certification is disappointing for a headphone in this price range.
Controls
For physical controls, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra features two buttons on the right earcup along with a touchpad. Additionally, you can control the headphones via the app.
The touchpad is primarily used for volume adjustment—swiping up or down increases or decreases the volume. However, you can customize the hold function through the app to add additional controls.
For physical button functions, refer to the table below.
Connection
You can use this headphone in both Bluetooth and wired modes. For wired usage, a 1-meter TRS 1/8-inch to TRS 1/16-inch cable is included in the case, allowing you to connect the headphones to your desired device. However, unlike most other headphones, wired mode requires the headphones to be powered on, meaning you cannot use them in wired mode while they are turned off.
This headphone features Bluetooth 5.3 and supports multipoint connection along with most Bluetooth codecs. The best codec for connecting to this headphone is aptX Adaptive, as it supports high-quality audio while maintaining lower latency compared to SBC.
One drawback in the connectivity department is the lack of LDAC support, which offers significantly higher audio quality than other codecs.
Case & Accessories
The case of this headphone is high-quality, durable, and elegantly designed. It provides protection against water, dust, and impacts, ensuring the safety of your headphones. Inside the case, dedicated compartments are designed for the headphones and cables, keeping everything neatly in place.
Along with the headphones, you receive a 1-meter TRS 1/8-inch to TRS 1/16-inch cable and a USB Type-A to Type-C charging cable.
Stability
The stability of this headphone is high, and it stays securely on your head during daily activities. However, like most over-ear headphones, it may fall off during intense activities such as sprinting. That said, it is perfectly suitable for moderate workouts like yoga, gym sessions, walking, and light jogging.
Sound Quality
This headphone belongs to a category where measuring its sound profile and frequency response with a fixed result is nearly impossible. This is because it features CustomTune technology, which analyzes the shape of your ears, ambient noise, and other factors as soon as you put it on, aiming to adjust the sound based on your personal hearing characteristics.
We measured the frequency response of this headphone in a studio environment using a Brüel & Kjær 5128 test head, and you can see the graph below. However, when we actually wore the headphones and listened to various tracks, each team member had a slightly different perception of the sound, especially in the high-frequency range.
Bose Quietcomfort Ultra Frequency Response
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Listening Test
While the sound of this headphone may vary from person to person due to its personalized tuning, it also has many common characteristics. One thing that stands out is its powerful bass performance this headphone delivers a deep and strong bass, and everyone on our team who tested it agreed. If you look at the frequency response graph, you’ll notice that in the bass and sub-bass range, it exceeds the Technowant preference curve by 7 to 10 dB. When I listened to Espresso by Sabrina Carpenter, the kick drum was incredibly punchy, and the bass sounded well-aligned with the beat, making for an enjoyable listening experience.
The midrange performance of this headphone is truly outstanding. The main musical elements, such as vocals, acoustic instruments, and organs, fall within this range. Despite the strong bass, the vocals and instruments remain clear and well-defined. If you check the frequency response curve, you’ll see that it closely follows the preference curve in this range. When I listened to Die with a Smile by Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars, the instruments sounded excellent, and the vocals were crisp, making for an incredibly immersive experience.
The treble frequencies are where CustomTune technology creates the biggest variation. My personal experience, along with that of a few team members, was that the treble sounded slightly muffled and lacked sharpness. However, my colleague Susan did not experience this and found the treble frequencies, such as backing vocals, to be crisp and clear. Interestingly, the frequency response graph does not indicate a significant treble deficiency, which suggests that this perception may vary between listeners.
As always, we asked representatives from nine different groups in society who use headphones the most to share their opinions on this model. We had them test the headphone and rate it on a scale of 1 to 10 based on its sound quality and overall performance. You can see the results of this survey in the chart below.
ANC & Isolation
The performance of the Bose QuietComfort Ultra in both isolation and active noise cancellation (ANC) is outstanding—something expected from a headphone produced by Bose.
The ANC effectively reduces low-frequency sounds such as the rumble of bus, airplane, and truck engines, as well as even thunder. If you look at the graph above, you’ll see that in ANC mode, this headphone can reduce low-frequency noises by up to 29 dB. It also performs exceptionally well in midrange frequency noise reduction, lowering them by up to 37 dB.
What makes this even more impressive is that most noise-canceling headphones primarily focus on low-frequency noise reduction while passive isolation handles high frequencies. However, the ANC of this headphone can even reduce high-frequency noises like wind noise, as shown in the graph above.
Additionally, the passive isolation of this headphone is excellent. If worn properly, and if you don’t wear glasses with thick arms, the isolation works exceptionally well. (The red curve in the graph above represents the isolation performance of this headphone.)
You can customize the ANC level through the Bose Music app. There is a slider in the ANC section—increasing it reduces ANC strength while allowing more ambient sound in (Aware Mode).
Sound Leakage
When using this headphone in environments such as the subway, bus, or library, you won’t have to worry about sound leakage disturbing those around you. The sound leakage in this headphone is very minimal, allowing you to comfortably listen to your favorite music at high volume without bothering others.
App
By installing the Bose Music app, you can access all the features of this headphone, including firmware updates, battery percentage, different modes, ANC settings, equalizer adjustments, and more.
Customizing Sound with EQ
For personalizing the audio experience, the app offers a three-band equalizer, allowing you to adjust the bass, midrange, and treble to your preference. If your experience with the headphone’s sound is similar to mine and you find the treble range slightly dull, you can boost it by 2 to 3 dB for improved clarity.
Immersive Audio
In the Modes section, activating Immersive Audio changes the headphone’s sound profile, making it feel wider and more spatial rather than coming from a single point, creating a more engaging listening experience. This feature includes two modes: Motion and Still.
In Motion Mode, the sound remains unchanged even when you move your head.
In Still Mode, the stereo sound source stays locked in one place, meaning that even if you turn your head, the sound appears to come from a fixed position—similar to having a speaker placed in a room.
Battery Life
According to Bose, the QuietComfort Ultra can stay powered on for an average of 24 hours. However, based on our tests, this headphone lasted 26 hours and 53 minutes at high volume, which is an average performance for a high-end headphone in this price range.
To fully charge, the headphone requires 2.5 hours, but it also supports fast charging—with just 15 minutes of charging, you can get up to 2.5 hours of playback.
Microphone
This headphone also features a relatively high-quality microphone, though its quality isn’t sufficient for podcast recording. However, it is suitable for voice calls.
While the headphone’s active noise cancellation for external sounds is exceptional, its microphone noise cancellation is rather average. In our opinion, Bose could have used a higher-quality microphone with better noise cancellation capabilities for this model.
Below, you can listen to two recorded samples using the microphone of this headphone. The first recording was made in a studio environment without background noise, while the second recording was captured with street noise in the background.
In Studio:
In Street:
Final Verdict
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra is a high-end headphone with a sleek design, exceptional comfort, outstanding sound quality, and unparalleled active noise cancellation (ANC).
If ANC performance is your top priority, you can confidently choose this headphone without hesitation. Additionally, if you’re looking for a headphone that can provide long-term comfort and premium sound quality, this is an excellent choice.
While its price is relatively high, it justifies its cost given the quality and features it offers.
FAQs
Yes, you can consider alternatives like Sony WH-1000XM5, Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless and Apple AirPods Max as replacements for this headphone.
No, you cannot listen to music by connecting the charging cable. The charging cable is designed solely for power transmission and does not support audio transmission.
We have not specifically tested this, but it is highly likely that enabling Immersive Audio will increase battery consumption.
No, unfortunately, this headphone does not support Quick Pairing with Android or iOS.
