Reddit's answer is the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700. Buy only if you prioritize all-day comfort and strong noise cancellation over long-term reliability. The WH-1000XM6 is a Stay Away — don’t buy it — get the Bose instead. At $150 against $458 today, the WH-1000XM6 costs $308 more and carries the weaker verdict.


Built from 1,791 owner opinions across both products · 111 long-term reports · how we decide
46% would buy againof 570 owners
First 6 months 32% → long-term 65%+33of 61 long-term owners
33% would buy againof 1,221 owners
First 6 months 20% → long-term 39%+19of 50 long-term owners
The WH-1000XM6's record runs 1,221 owners against 570 for the Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 — weigh the thinner side accordingly.
The bluetooth
~1 in 6 long-term reports mention a failure, most within the first 25 months. Bluetooth and firmware reboot-loop issues are the most cited components. Warranty resolution leans unresolved — the majority of reported cases landed outside warranty or went unresolved. That said, the NC700's 11% serious-failure rate is well below the 24% baseline for the 15 wireless headphones we track.
Typically reported months 0–24 · 61 long-term owners
The hinge
~1 in 3 long-term owner reports mention a failure, most often the hinge, typically inside the [2,9) month window. Reports that mention warranty mostly say it landed outside coverage.
Typically reported months 2–8 · 50 long-term owners
These are the share of long-term owner reports that mention a failure, not the share of units that fail — owners with working units mostly don’t post.
Gap today: $308 — Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 is the cheaper buy.
Price links carry an affiliate tag. It never changes the verdict.
comfort and sound quality matter most to you and you're willing to accept some reliability risk.
sound quality and noise cancellation — what owners repeat most
Reddit's answer is the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700. Buy only if you prioritize all-day comfort and strong noise cancellation over long-term reliability. The WH-1000XM6 is a Stay Away — don’t buy it — get the Bose instead.
The Noise Cancelling Headphones 700, by the numbers: 11% of its long-term reports mention a serious failure against 30% for the WH-1000XM6. What separates them is what fails — bluetooth on the Noise Cancelling Headphones 700, hinge on the WH-1000XM6. Warranty outcomes differ more: 20% of WH-1000XM6 claims were resolved against 30% for the Noise Cancelling Headphones 700.
At $458 against $150 today, the WH-1000XM6 costs 205% more and carries the weaker verdict (Stay Away against the Noise Cancelling Headphones 700's Risky Buy) — the extra money buys features, not a better ownership record.
Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 full verdict →WH-1000XM6 full verdict →All Audio verdicts →