HWM Singapore – August 2019

TEST

BENCHMARK PERFORMANCE

BEST

WORST

NOISE҃CANCELLINGPERFORMANCE

Sony

WH-1000XM3

Bose

QuietComfort

35

II

JBL

Live

650

BT

Jabra

Elite

85h

Master

&

Dynamic

MW65

NOISE҃CANCELLING PERFORMANCE COMPARED

To test the noise-cancelling capabilities of these headphones, we ran a recording with a mixture of

train noise, cabin noise and traffi c noise via speaker on loop and switched out headphones in random

order. The process was repeated till we had a good idea of how each headphone performed relative

to each other. Here’s how the headphones ranked.

As you can see, the

WH-1000XM3 still

takes the noise-

cancelling crown, with

the QuietComfort 35

II close behind. Both

of these headphones

will signi cantly

reduce background

noise once ANC is

activated so loud

engine roars become

nothing more than

a whisper, and

background chatter

literally fades away.

The JBL Live 650 BT

does fairly good job

too, but not to the

extent where engine

noise fades away

completely. With

the Jabra Elite 85h

and the Plantronics

BackBeat Go 810,

you’ll hear even

more cabin noise,

and probably be

able to still have a

conversation with

the cabin crew if they

raise their voices. The

Master & Dynamic

MW65 truthfully

isn’t that far off from

the Jabra and the

Plantronics, but you’ll

probably still raise the

volume of what you’re

listening to a little.

Plantronics

BackBeat Go 810

60 HWM | AUGUST 2019