Bonus trick to make the AirPods Max sound better Go to Settings, Accessibility, Audio/Visual, Headphones Accommodations and enable it.

Stumbled upon your page when looking up HomePod reviews and I’ve been hooked ever since!

In the Bluetooth settings for the Max, you can set the button to toggle between ANC and Off, or whatever you like. Might be useful if you’re using Off a lot

One thing might have affected on the difference between Spotify / Apple Music is AirPods Max uses AAC codec for Bluetooth Audio. Spotify audio has to be re-encoded to AAC before it gets transferred wirelessly, but Apple Music gets sent directly without any further compression.

Hey bro, nice video. Another thing that makes a big difference in how open and airy the Maxs sound is in the Accessibility menu in settings. Go to settings on your iPad or iPhone, then to Accessibility, then scroll down and select Airpods. Then select the Airpods Max. Then select Audio Accessibility Settings. Then select Headphone Accomodations. Toggle that setting on and leave everything at the default settings which are Balanced Tone and Slight. You will definitely get a more open, airy, atmospheric sound qualify to what you’re listening to. I can’t go back to the way they sound without this setting on. It also improves the sound of Airpods Pro.

I tried it. I preferred with Noise Cancelling on. I understand turning of NC creates the air but with it on, I just hear more music. So I prefer NCon. What made more of an impact for the audio quality for me was to go to iPad or iPhone’s Settings - Accessibility - Airpods - Airpods Max - Audio Accessibility Settings - Headphones Accommodations (turn this on) then choose Balanced Tone and Slight. I am listening to music, remastered in iTunes, sounds great. Without these settings used, the Max sound dull. I am comparing my Max to my Bose Quiet Comfort 35’s, version 1 which sound muddy compared to my Max. Balanced keeps the mids but the high’s are still there. Have used my QC35’s for years. Time to move on. Hope this helps.

So I'm gonna pay $600 for noise cancelling headphones and turn off active noise cancellation to make them sound better??? Wut???

It’s worth explaining why Apple music sounds better than Spotify on the AirPods Max. Under the Bluetooth spec, headphones need to choose a codec with which to transfer audio files between the iPhone and the headphones. AirPods Max only support AAC, which is actually part of the MPEG 4 spec (which is a lot more modern than MP3, which is part of the MPEG 1 spec). if you listen to MP3 source material, your iPhone needs to trans-code to AAC before using Bluetooth to send the file to your AirPods (Max or otherwise). That is why you are getting quality loss. I don’t believe Bluetooth supports MP3 as a native codec, so I don’t think any headphones natively support MP3 over Bluetooth.

Dude. Tidal and Accessibility/Audio/Visual Headphone Accommodation will melt your mind.

I had ignored the “Off” option (No Transparency, no Noise Cancellation, just physical seal) but I’ll try using it when I’m trying to focus on my music. I assumed Noise Cancellation would be the best experience but maybe not!

I just got Apple AirPods Max. They sounded really good, but not as dynamic or even loud as in the store. I already have Apple Music, so I made the two quick changes you suggested, and wow… that’s the sound I was expecting. It really makes a significant difference. Thank you! They sound like the pair that convinced me to buy them. Subscribed.

I absolutely love the active noise cancellation particularly in public. I am going to try the Apple Music because I have the apple one package but haven’t used Apple Music because all my playlists are on Spotify.

Saw this ages ago, but the YT algorithm recommended it again! You totally called it. New music service to take advantage of the hardware.

I can’t hear shit differently but still love the video.

Go into iPhone/iPad settings and turn eq to flat. The APM overly boosts the highs to the point they are harsh sounding and the flat setting fixes this

Another little tweak that affects the sound quality (I altered this and it made the sound quality even better) is with your headphones connected to your iPhone, go into: Settings/Accessibility, scroll down to the Physical And Motor section and touch the AirPods option. Next select the AirPods Max. Next touch Audio Accessibility Settings. Next touch Headphone Accommodations, and in the section where you see Slight, Moderate, Strong, alter between Moderate and Strong. The default setting is Slight. I found altering it to Moderate, noticeably improved the sound quality.

“I’ll do anything for a click” 🤣🤣 i love the honesty, just subscribed 👍🏽🎯

I did my own comparison of Spotify and Apple Music and you are correct. Apple Music has more dynamic range - scintillating highs, tight bass and an airiness that gives that something extra Spotify lacks.

Why’d you quit making videos? Your channel was taking off!

AirPods Max aside. I can remember when I was in the market for a music streaming service, and I was trying out Spotify, Apple Music before deciding which one to keep and which one to cancel. I was using a pair of Bowers & Wilkins P7 Wireless (which are a high end pair of headphones). I ensured I was using the highest quality streaming setting on Spotify. I added the exact same album to both Spotify and Apple Music. I could tell right away that the Spotify version was noticeably lower sound quality. It lacked the detail and sparkle and overall fullness of the Apple Music version. I can remember mentioning this online at the time on a forum, and was told, like you said in the video, the AAC format Apple Music uses is a more efficient format to what Spotify uses, and this is the reason for the better sound quality.

You said in the video that Spotify uses MP3 codec, but then you corrected yourself by displaying the OGG Vorbis label while playing your samples. Fair enough. However, the Ogg Vorbis codec is in no way inferior to that of the AAC codec. Let's just get that out of the way. The small differences you're hearing probably have nothing to do with the codec, but other things, more notably the difference limiting and compression settings between these two platforms. It's very likely that the track you played was mastered very loud and ended up getting more limited on Spotify which can account for the difference in sound.

Tidal sounds the best…. If…IF you have an android and can use the awesome codecs.

Where are you man ! We need regular uploads !! You’re hilarious 😆

For those of you wondering what happened to Erfon: He’s now hosting a podcast called “The Cultcast” (as of August 2022). Please bring the videos back Erfon. We miss you!

Hey Erfon! It's been a while since we last heard from you, buddy! I hope all is well!!! Can't wait for your next vid :)

I agree it definitely sounds better on Apple Music. Of course if you're listening through computer or phone speakers you won't hear the difference. I wonder if Tidal would sound much better.

I once did a sound test of a few songs in both MP3 and Apple’s AAC format with $200 Etymotic headphones. It was obvious and incredible the level of separation and depth of all the layers of the AAC tracks. The MP3 versions all felt flat. They literally sounded compressed. It is for this reason that I’m an iTunes Match subscriber.

I've always maintained that Apple Music AAC sounds miles better because it uses psychoacoustic compression as opposed to MP3 and OGG. But no one would listen to me because as a fan boy it sounds like I'm schilling. Glad to finally hear someone prove this.

Watching this a year later, he mentioned apple making a new music service and now we have spatial audio which sounds amazing on AP Max

Yep the Headphones Accommodation setting makes a huge difference 😀😀

Just got max’s today and after setting them up…I’m blown away. As a current Beats and Bose owner, these made me smile involuntarily once I cranked them more than any other. Love them.

Where you at, bro?

Ive tried them all with Max...Amazon music Ultra HD (free 3 months...and they just announced that all their music will be hd next month !) They really shine!

I loved it so much when he started vibin out to the music lmao

That is quite nuanced. Have you tried tidal?

thanks to you I discovered new music there. played it non stop today on my APMs!

*_"Turn off noise cancellation and turn off transparency mode"_* ... AND be in a quiet room. NC mode is a *_compromise_* for when you're in a noisy environment instead of a quiet space, like on an airline flight. Also, as I'm over 60-years old, I suffer from some high-frequency hearing loss. So I've used the Settings -> Music -> EQ and selected "Treble Booster" to give me back those higher sounds. That made a world of difference to me. BTW, this can also be done on a Mac by going to the Music app and typing Option-Command-E on the keyboard or clicking on the Window menu -> Equalizer. The Mac equalizer is much more nuanced than the menu-only equalizer on iOS.

So, you make the claim that Apple Music has significantly better imaging and quality noting the example of the "chime tree" You play it on the Spotify to test and it sounded decent, you play it on Apple Music and literally right before that apparent "chime" sound you audibly and VISUALLY turn the volume up to the point it's clipping and then say you can hear the chimes more? Well no shit?

That red light through your knurls… hypnotic 😂

great 👍 content is superb, we really miss you, please 🙏 we need some content….this channel must survive.

I'm glad someone else has noticed this difference with AAC. Put this down to something else as well. That is Apple knows the internals of AAC since it is theirs and the processing engine in the Airpods Max takes advantage of this to deliver a sound that is more open and inviting compared to what you get with Spotify. The way I did my testing was by using a Thinkpad with a Dragonfly Cobalt DAC and the Apple $35 cable to connect and get BT out of the way (along with the LDAC vs AAC arguments). I also listened to other sources such as Amazon HD Ultra. Everyone's ears are different along with what they like but carefully listening to the same tracks on AAC directly connected as I indicated vs Amazon Ultra HD did not show a difference. I also have other phones to use such as HiFiman 400s, Westone studio in-ear and Sony WH1000-XM4 as comparison. My preference after listening a lot was between the Airpods Max and the HiFiman units depending on whether i an in a noisy environment or not. I have also used the Cobalt DAC plugged into my iPhone 12 Pro Max using the adapter or to USB-C on the iPad Pro. I don't currently see a way to go to the OFF position that you suggest when not being used with an Apple device such as my Thinkpad testing.

Budyyyy, you left the most important tip out. Go to Settings, Acessibility, Audio/Visual, Headphone Accommodations. Then you turn it ON, select “Balanced Tone” and set it to Moderate Level (on Strong you might face a little distortion). Now play your favorite songs, turn it on and off and be amazed with the difference ;)

This works on Beats Solo Pro as well 😁

We need more Erfon Elijah!!!

Don’t have my AirPods max yet, but I did compare Spotify to Apple Music with the AirPods Pro, and you’re right the audio quality on Apple Music does seem to be better!

Just go with Amazon Music HD and play Ultra HD you will see the difference on both apple music and spotify. Tidal cost 19.99 while amazon music cost 12.99 and you have access to Hd and ultra HD hi res audio

It’s 1 year since u posted new subscriber here

I have but I wish they were louder

Man you were spot on! Now that Apple Music has the new spatial audio with Dolby atmos!! Great prediction!!

I need to say this. The thumbnail used for this video is what captured my attention first. Good job on that 😂

Heyhey… just found your Channel and I love your content and way to present stuff… what happened that you don‘t put new videos out for over a year? Are you ok?

It's time to come back, HomePod 2 is out

To get the best quality, you have to use the headphone adapter jack, the lightning to 3.5mm jack that you buy from apple, it built to deliver lossless audio. It will convert the digtal signal to analog for your headphones. At least thats what i heard from an expert.

I literally bought those two dr. Disrespect songs because I hear them in your videos so much

😢 you need to look at Max Tech’s videos to understand why you don’t get many views. You need a hook, an intro, some foreshadowing, a teaser, just hook us for 10 seconds so you can get the algorithm going. You are so entertaining I hate to watch it go unnoticed!

I totally agree with you. After buying the Airpods Max, I immediately tested Spotify, apple music and Tidal extensively to get the most out of the new headphones. To my amazement, Spotify failed every song. Apple music and Tidal were up the same, so I decided on apple music just because of the price. I am firmly convinced that the APM is the best place to be in the apple ecosystem.

Really enjoy the content, keep up the GREAT work. 👍🏼

Do i hear the diffrence? Yes. Am i going to use apple music? No.

when he said apple music better than spotify... Tidal "Left the chat"

Go into settings go to the music tab and u can play with the EQs for whatever specfic genres u may like (iphone users)

USE THEM WIRED! This isn't talked about enough. Use the Apple lightning to headphone cable with the DAC built in and a good quality analog headphone amp for best SQ. Wireless bluetooth standards are still using lossy compression.

I can agree the fidelity does differ between the two BUT you did playback the Apple music test run at a slightly higher db than the spotify one. That alone relies on perceived (actual in this case) loudness which creates bias in favor of apple music simply because it was louder. I would be interested in seeing this test conducted with active visual metering on the db and LUFS of both tracks played to ensure the difference isn't a placebo due to perceived loudness.

Bro! You were right...they added lossless and spatial audio support. I think in a future update the Airpods Max can stream lossless over AirPlay.

Good video! One thing that made a huge difference for me was to also turn off Spatial Audio. It's nice for things that are encoded for it, but for things that are not it messes with the right/left mix and gives an inferior experience.

I already use Apple Music over spotify but thanks to your video, i do find that turning off transparency/anc mode does make a big difference. I’ll definitely be listening to my airpods max this way when i’m just chilling at home

Where have you been?

Update: I went into the settings on iPhone for the Airpods Max while connected using BT and changed the settings to include the third mode of the button to include the mode without Noise Cancellation and even when direct connected via the Cobalt DAC to a Thinkpad I could still have it without noise cancellation or transparency. It does seem to improve the overall effect.

Bro where are you? Your reviews are the best.

Where has he disappeared?

You’re awesome! I’ve always known that ANC degrades the sound and always keep it off when doing critical listening on my other wireless headphones - but with the APM it seemed like Apple had made the decision for you and you could only toggle between the two filters. With ANC turned off now they sound way closer to the XM5s in terms of instruments sounding richer, more nuanced and true to life. Thanks to you I’ll no longer be returning the APM this weekend! If anyone is still skeptical listen to Solo Cello: Contemporary Hits (feat. Trevor Exter) - Get Lucky.

Always love you reviews and energy man, but you really out did your self on the recording in this one. The in ear mics illustrated the difference so well. Great job!

This goes for any noise cancellation headphones. Once NC is activated, you’ll lose some quality in the sounds.

Issue actually is that Spotify is using OGG while the Airpods only support AAC (guessing), so OGG is being recompressed to AAC . Also Apple fibs a little bit on that 256kbps, the profile used for compression is called constrained variable bitrate and from I have seen (from iTunes store purchases) the bitrate varies from 256kbps to 500kbps.

Erfon, I have a new rabbit hole for you: Ripping my music I discovered that Apple's AAC-Codec has another mode (besides ABR, CBR and VBR) - it is called True-VBR. One can only access it with the XLD Ripping software, but it uses Apple's native codec embedded in QuickTime. This codec uses as much bandwidth as it thinks it needs to produce best sound quality. It can range from 0 kbit/s for silent parts to as high as the source material has for complicated parts. Apple is claiming it would use VBR 256, but I reckon it is True-VBR instead, just _called_ "VBR 256" in order to avoid confusion amongst users, who are accustomed to these terms. Just google a bit for "True-AAC" and you'll find some interesting informations.

Love the doc and the fact that u love em too is extra points, your review are underrated u should be at top of review channels, your hilarious and unique while giving a great detailed review

I have everything Apple. When I received my AirPod Max headphones I felt they didn't sound quite like they did in the Apple store. Really good but not great. I did what you suggested and it made them feel truly worth the money. My youngest son is getting a pair for his birthday and the first thing we’ll do is what you suggest. Thanks...

where did you go??

I have tried AirPods Max in the Apple brand store and I was pleasantly surprised in terms of comfort, sound quality, noise reduction, etc. It is an excellent product!

Dr.D just gave you a new sub.

great comparison, thanks for pointing out the differences, and showing your results. great quality video and recordings.

Erfon Elijah??? He is the simply the best! Selten so gute Präsentationen mit Witz und Laune gesehen! Bitte weiter so Erfon👏

We miss you! Come back!!!

I was just watching videos about airpods max as I just got one and came across your video. I have never seen someone review a headphone with mics like those and also loved the humour. Sub right away! 👍🏻 good job

I love your endless enthusiasm. Amazing and love the videos.

Hoping you come back soon Efron. We miss you! 💕

I discovered everything you talked about here on my own when testing my Bowers & Wilkins PI7’s… And naturally applied the same to my AirPods Max. Another tip: Electronic EQ makes the music sounds much much better.

Ella i got these headphones because i wanted to complete my iPad setup. I had a bitter gripe about the sound quality too but I’ve come to realize that you aren’t going to find 1 single head phones that are going to do everything you want. So that’s why i have the AirPods max for casual use but if i want to have a more bass experience then i will just use my skull candy crushers.

I totally agree, even with AirPods pro changing from Spotify (free) to Apple Music lossless made a huge difference !

Love your videos.... you should do more just talking about tech things and whatever you like it and moves your channel

Is there a difference if use them with the cable (lighting - 3,5 jack) instead of bluetooth? Thank you for your content!

We want to make a comment about the Home Pod mini. As you have pointed out, the Dolby Atmos effect is only achieved with large Home Pods, and that effect is impressive, we like it a lot in the available content. But what if the Mini could be used as a complement to the Atmos to gain spatiality, transparency, real location of sound sources? Well that would be spectacular, but of course it is not yet planned by Apple, as you have commented in your videos. However, we were left with the doubt and did an experiment: we bought a couple of minis and first coupled them to be configured in stereo, placing them in a different room than the large Home Pods. Once we put them in stereo we put them behind the place where we have the TV and the speakers, respecting the left and right channels. So, through the Apple TV 4K, which previously has the large Home Pods as default speakers, we configured it in such a way that, in addition to using those default speakers, it would use the Mini. What happened? A radical change, especially in presence, in addition to the fact that many sounds now come from virtual sites, something that did not happen before. It's not that the Minis are set to Atmos, that's not possible, but they do help the front speakers in Atmos to deliver a better picture and immersive feel. We really liked the experiment and hopefully Apple will one day allow the configuration of the Mini together with the others to have a really complete Atmos.

Where have you gone? Need more of your videos

I really can't hear a difference in these clips. using airpod max'es. Only difference is the volume is louder for apple music? Am I deaf?

Heard the difference on my headphones! That sparkling sound def sounds clearer and more vibrant on apple music - real interesting. Thanks a lot!

WTF happened to this guy???

I thought the sound was terrific but I took them back... why? 2 concerns 1.) they are heavy. Noticeable heavier than I expected. Could have lived with this because of the great audio... but 2.) they were warm on my ears after 10 minutes or so. This was THE dealbreaker for me! For this money if I can’t wear them in comfort, what’s the point of having them! Returned, reluctantly, but returned. RAN

at wired time Bluetooth on / off does *airpods max* microphone works?? please reply...

Thank you !! I was about to send take these back and purchase the Sonys again.

This is top 5 most Duche baggy people I’ve ever witnessed

I only use Apple Music, it’s just always felt more alive compared to other platforms