In the headphone market, Apple is getting all the coverage with its AirPods. On the other hand, the market for consumer wireless headphones is concentrated around three players: Sony, Bose and more recently Apple with its AirPods Max.
It is therefore in an increasingly competitive market that Bose is launching its QuietComfort 45, its new wireless headphones with active noise reduction. On paper, no big revolution in the range: Bose seems to have taken up the ingredients of the QC35 II and added a USB-C port and a transparent mode now essential in this segment.
What is the Bose QC45 worth on a daily basis? Does Bose manage to compete with Sony and Apple? Answer in this test of the QC45 model.
Bose QC45 price and availability
The Bose QC45 is already available at a price of 349 euros. The headset loses very little in value, it is unlikely to see discounts in the first months after release. It comes in two colors: black or cloud white (our test model).
For comparison, Sony’s WH-1000XM4 is sold at a price of 329 euros. Apple’s AirPods Max is the most expensive of this top three on the consumer wireless headphone market. It is around 489 euros including current discounts.
Bose QC45 at the best price Base price: €349
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Bose knows its classics
Five years. Bose fans have waited five long years to discover the successor to the mythical QC35 II. It’s a long time to discover… a QC35 III. Do you find us categorical? The facts, however, prove us right.
Aesthetically, the QC45 uses exactly the same lines as its predecessor. In itself, this is not a bad thing since it is arguably one of the most comfortable consumer wireless headphones on the market. Firstly because it is the lightest of the infernal trio Bose, Sony, Apple but also because its padded headband distributes the weight on the top of the skull.
Concretely, the QC45 is the helmet that you carry around everywhere, all day long, without feeling any heat in the ears or contractions of the neck. To spoil nothing, the design, although plastic, is decidedly elegantespecially in cloud white color.
Bose also sails against the tide when it comes to ergonomics. Touch surface point here, the Bose QC45 headphones take over the physical buttons of its ancestor. Only the interactions change slightly.
On the right, the central button allows you to start or mute a sound (one press), to go to the next title (two presses) or previous one (three presses). A long press activates Google Assistant. You guessed it, the two buttons surrounding it allow you to increase or decrease the sound.
On the left, the single button allows you to switch between active noise reduction mode and transparent mode (aware). No passive sound reduction therefore, but we will come back to this later.
This technical choice is made at the cost of certain features that are very useful on a daily basis. For example, the sound does not cut off when removing the Bose QC45 headphones from his ears. However, it is a great classic of wireless headphones that has become almost essential.
The Bose QC45 fits in a small, simple but effective hard case. The American also provides a USB-C cable as well as a 2.5 mm jack.
A mastered but unsurprising score
All fans of the brand will tell you, what makes the strength of Bose is its sound signature. The QC45 obviously inherits this know-how and is therefore distinguished by a sound that no other manufacturer can reproduce.
The Bose signature, what is it? It’s first controlled treble, never saturated, sometimes on the wire but (as they say) it passes. It’s also very present mediums even if the amateurs of podcasts would prefer a little more roundness and warmth.
But Bose sound is above all good bass control, even more so with this QC45 which inherits automatic adjustment according to volume. Clearly, when the volume is high, the bass is slightly less powerful so as not to stifle the mids and highs. Smart.
The fact remains that beyond this signature so atypical that we widely noticed during this test, the QC45 headphones suffer from the same defect as the AirPods Max: it has no equalizer. It is therefore impossible to adjust the sound according to one’s tastes as is the case with Sony headphones. Mostly, the QC45 does not mark a transcendent advance compared to its five-year-old predecessor, which is more unfortunate.
Silence, we Bose! (or not)
If there is one area in which Bose has always been able to distinguish itself, it is that of noise reduction. And for good reason, the brand is historically an expert in aviation audio devices, especially pilot headsets.
From this expertise was born the QuietComfort range, combining the notions of comfort (Comfort) and silence (Quiet). Without surprise, the QC45 headphones follow in the footsteps of a QC35 II already very good at noise isolation. Bose masters this art to perfection. In the subway, on a train, in the street, in the office, nothing manages to pierce the noise barrier of the American.
Still, competition has improved considerably in five years. Also, it is very difficult to decide between the QC45, the WH-1000XM4 from Sony or the AirPods Max from Apple. In reality, the difference between these models is played out in versatility and in this little game the QC45 does not particularly shine.
On the contrary, the American firm is content to offer two listening modes: with active noise reduction or with transparent mode, great novelty of this new generation. There is therefore no wireless listening with passive isolation (based solely on the covering effect of the foams). For listening with passive isolation, turn off the headphones and connect the jack cable provided in the box. In 2021, it’s a fair bit.
Another small disappointment: the new transparent mode does not reach the level of that of the AirPods Max. Some will say that Apple’s headphones cost much more when they were released. Fair enough, but the QC45 doesn’t do better than the WH-1000XM4 either.
In fact, the transparent mode is more like a passive isolation mode (barely better) rather than a true transparent mode. The latter is based on the capture of ambient noise by the external microphones (four in number here) and then cancel them thanks to the power of the algorithms. However, many external sounds seem to pass through. For example, the voices are not very audible like the rest of the medium and high frequencies.
We expected much more from Bose, especially since this transparent mode is the only real novelty of this QC45. Why does the American manufacturer not offer the possibility of adjusting the transparency, for example? The result is therefore far too fair after five years of waiting.
24 hours
On its official website, Bose announces that its QC45 can withstand 24 hours of use with active noise reduction. This would therefore represent a 20% improvement over the QC35 II.
First good news, the American was very precise in his estimates. We also found on average just over 24 hours of use with ANC. A great performance then.
Another good news, the Bose QC45 now charges with a USB-C cable (micro-USB on the QC35 II) which will avoid looking for a cable different from that of your smartphone.
The choice of this connector also allows you to benefit from faster charging. Allow 2h30 for a full charge and 30 minutes only to gain 3 hours of listening.
And on the B side?
The Bose QC45 comes with the Bose Music application inaugurated with the Headphone 700. More ergonomic than Bose Connect, this application mainly allows updates to the headphones. Because in the absence of an equalizer it only integrates actions available from the physical buttons.
Let’s not be too cruel either and emphasize all the same that this companion application allows you to configure the various devices with which the QC45 has already been paired. A good point.
The headset connects elsewhere in Bluetooth 5.1 at a time when most competitors are adopting Bluetooth 5.2. After five years of waiting, it’s one more disappointment, especially since connection losses are not uncommon, especially on Youtube. Fortunately, the good management of the multi-point consoles us. A little.
Finally, for conversations, the four external microphones suffer from the same shortcomings as other wireless headsets. Inside, without hubbub, communications are clear and our interlocutors hear us perfectly. In open space or in the street, it is difficult or even impossible to hold a communication worthy of the name. Like its rivals, Bose therefore fails to circumvent the laws of physics according to which a microphone works best when it is closer to the mouth.
Bose QC45 at the best price Base price: €349
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Our opinion after the Bose QC45 test
With the QC45 headphones, Bose is tripping over the carpet a bit. Five years after the excellent QC35 II and four years after the Headphone 700, the American seems to be resting on its laurels. In and of itself, the QC45 is not a “bad” headset. Very comfortable, it delivers excellent sound quality. Nothing to say either about the active noise reduction, perfectly mastered, as well as its very good autonomy.
The problem is that the QC35II is just as good, the more feature-rich Headphone 700. Finally, the QC45 is nothing more than a QC35 II with a USB-C port and a perfectible transparent mode. Above all, the QC45 suffers from fierce competition.
Offered at 350 euros, it is too expensive for what it offers. For 330 euros, we recommend the Sony WH-1000XM4 instead, which is more complete and closer to the standards of 2022. Unless you swear by the Bose signature, and on the condition of not having a QC35.
Bose QC45
350€
WE love
- Comfortable
- Signature Bose sound
- Good active noise reduction
- Excellent autonomy
We love less
- Same design as the 5 year old QC35 II
- Bluetooth 5.1 only
- Perfectible transparent mode
- Few new features compared to the previous generation
- Price too high