Apple AirPods Max

Apple’s first own-brand noise-cancelling headphones are heavy on the luxury and sound – but also on price. The AirPods Max cost £549 and are the most expensive of Apple’s headphones line that includes the £159 AirPods, £249 AirPods Pro and sets from the Beats brand such as the £270 Solo Pro and £300 Studio 3 Wireless.

They share the AirPods name but the Max are a completely different beast, designed to beat the market leaders Bose and Sony in the premium noise-cancelling game.

Comfortable and airy but weighty

The Max are made of aluminium and stainless steel, which feel more luxurious than plastic but weigh 385g – 130g more than most rivals. The weight is primarily in the ear cups, not the headband, which makes them well balanced on your head. Tilt your head forward or back and the ear cups will move a little but the mesh headband stays in place.

The ear cups are really comfortable. The pads are made out of memory foam covered in a woven fabric and do not make my ears sweat like some rivals can. The arms extend height adjustment and the ear cups tilt and rotate to fit the side of your head. The spring-loaded hinges apply firm but not overly strong pressure to keep the headphones in place. Once adjusted properly the Max are very comfortable even for extended periods.

Specifications

Weight: 384.8g

Drivers: 40mm

Connectivity: 2x Apple H1 chip, Bluetooth 5.0, Lightning charging

Bluetooth codecs: SBC, AAC

Battery life: 20 hours ANC on

Connectivity and controls

The Max have Apple’s H1 chips in them, the same as the AirPods Pro, which means they have the same strong Bluetooth 5 connection supporting SBC and AAC audio formats, plus instant pairing and seamless, automatic switching between Apple devices. They also have the option of having voice assistant access using the “Hey, Siri” wake word and having Siri read messages to you as they come in. It all works very well.

Connectivity with other non-Apple devices was solid, but only Apple devices, such as an iPhone, can change settings and remotely control features such as the noise cancelling.

The top of the right ear cup has a button for toggling noise cancelling modes; press and hold it to put the headphones into pairing mode or continue hold to reboot them. There is also an enlarged digital crown jog-dial button, as previously seen on the Apple Watch, which you turn for volume and press once, twice or thrice for playback controls. Press and hold it to invoke Siri. Both buttons are top notch.

Oddly there is no power button. The headphones go into a standby state when taken off or put around your neck for a few minutes but only turn off when slipped into the case.

Quality music

The Max produce the sort of fantastic sound you should expect, joining a rare bunch alongside the B&W PX7 and Sony WH-1000XM4 that sound so good you will be able to hear new elements in well-worn tracks.

Bass is powerful and tightly controlled: present when needed but not overpowering. Mids are precise and do not dominate, while highs sparkle with energy and clarity. Every tone is finely balanced but they are not flat, with a pleasing, full and well-judged sound that is good at any volume.

Grand orchestral scores delight with dynamic range and a wider sound than most. Subtle when needed, the Max can still highlight detail even in complex tracks such as The Who’s Baba O’Riley. They have plenty of punch in tracks such as Highly Suspicious by My Morning Jacket, aggression when needed in Dr Dre’s Next Episode and enough power to give a full rendition of the deep bass in Lindsey Stirling’s Crystallize. Miles Davis sounds particularly sumptuous and they can just as easily make the most out of high energy EDM as chilled-out downtempo.

Bass heads looking for thumping low-end in every track will need to look elsewhere – there’s no equaliser to crank up – while they could be a touch more raw in grunge tracks such as the classic Smells Like Teen Spirit.