Bose recently presented its new flagship model, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones. In the price range of around €300, the product introduces a number of features that have attracted attention in the headphone market. Here are excerpts from the Bose marketing description:
“Revolutionary Bose 360-degree sound – personalized audio.”
Sound you can feel. These headphones with spatial audio and Bose 360-degree sound push the boundaries of listening. Your music now sounds more real than ever before.
Welcome to the acoustic sweet spot. What you hear appears directly in front of you—as if you were not wearing headphones at all.
Incredibly natural sound. Experience astonishingly realistic sound—as if you could almost touch it.
Immersion Mode. Combine full noise cancelling with Bose 360-degree sound for an unprecedented listening experience.
Sound has never felt so real. Become one with the sound. CustomTune technology adapts the audio reproduction individually to your ears so that everything sounds exactly as it should.
Personalized sound in three steps:
Analyze the individual shape of your ears
Detect possible distortions
Personalize the sound so it sounds best for you
All of this sounds very promising—but what is actually revolutionary about it?
My opinion on this:
As is often the case today, considerable technical effort is used to achieve a result that ULTRASONE has already perfected purely acoustically with the S-Logic sound system for almost 35 years. Spatial sound, front localization, adaptation to the individual ear, immersion, realism—these are all characteristics that ULTRASONE has been known for over many years.
On the one hand, it is positive that natural spatial listening is receiving more attention, because it is crucial for an enjoyable listening experience.
On the other hand, the Bose solution is technically so complex that it has practical drawbacks. When used fully, it reduces the already limited 24-hour battery life to around 18 hours, and the headphones cannot simply be used with a cable without electronics active. To be honest, that feels somewhat impractical and not entirely focused on the user.
It reminds me of classic “rebound engineering”—where a development is presented as revolutionary even though the principle existed before. And the idea of “personalizing perfect sound” can sometimes undervalue the work of the sound engineer who originally created the mix.
From a marketing perspective, it is certainly well presented.
But if you look at it soberly, it feels a bit like saying:
“The newest innovation in cars has finally arrived—round wheels for better driving performance.”
So is it much ado about nothing?
The best answer is simple: try it, compare it, and judge for yourself. 🎧
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