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SONY HAS ALREADY earned its place on the Mount Rushmore of headphone brands. The Japanese company helped define portable music with the Walkman and has spent the past decade making some of the best noise-canceling headphones on the market. But with the new 1000X The Collexion, Sony is making a different bet: What if a flagship pair of headphones felt more like a luxury accessory than another piece of tech? As a style editor, that's an idea I could easily get behind.
Design
The sleek treatment starts with the vegan leather carrying case, which looks more like something from Rimowa than a traditional tech company. The headphones themselves double down on the luxury, with a stainless steel headband that has a cleaner, more continuous look than Sony's foldable headphones. That slimmer profile comes with one tradeoff: They don't fold, so they take up a bit more room in your bag. They come in two styles—platinum or black—and both have a mix of matte and polished finishes that catch the light beautifully, and the soft vegan leather earcups add a stylish punctuation point.
At 11.3 ounces, they're heavier than the older WH-1000XM6, but the weight is distributed so evenly across the headband that they never felt heavy, even after wearing them for hours at a time. They've even replaced my AirPods Max as my go-to over-ear headphones. Sony's slimmer profile and uninterrupted metal frame look cooler than Apple's exposed telescoping arms and mesh canopy. And when two pairs of headphones sound pretty similar, I'll take the one that looks better every time.
Sound Quality
Oh yeah—they sound great, too. Sony swapped its traditional 40mm drivers (the tiny speakers inside each earcup) for new 30mm carbon fiber drivers. While they're physically smaller, they're also stiffer and more responsive, which helps deliver cleaner detail and better instrument separation instead of just cranking up the bass. Case in point: I've been on an LCD Soundsystem kick lately, so I queued up favorites like "Dance Yrself Clean." As the song builds before its iconic bass drop, the headphones never let the low end overpower James Murphy's vocals or the shimmering synths underneath. Instead, every instrument has room to breathe, making the whole track feel bigger and more immersive. Sony tuned these for balance instead of booming bass, and that fits my listening habits perfectly, whether I'm listening to indie rock or NPR podcasts.
Sony's noise canceling is just as impressive. The Collexion shares much of the same ANC hardware as the WH-1000XM6, so you're not trading performance for a sleeker design. On a recent flight to Tokyo, the constant drone of the engines faded into little more than white noise. I could still make out the occasional flight attendant announcement, but I never found myself reaching to crank up the volume just to drown out the cabin. Back at the office, they do an equally good job of tuning out water cooler conversations so I can lock in. That's really all I ask from a great pair of headphones.
Battery Life
Battery life is another area where Sony doesn't reinvent the wheel because it doesn't have to. The Collexion is rated for up to 30 hours of battery life with noise canceling turned on, and in my testing, that estimate felt pretty believable. I use these around 20 hours a week between the office, working from home, the gym, and travel, and I rarely find myself thinking about charging them. And when I do somehow run them down, a quick three-minute charge provides roughly three hours of playback.
Where I Use This
The Collexion has become my go-to pair of over-ear headphones. My AirPods Pro still get the most use for hot summer commutes in New York City, quick walks, and crosstown errands, but whenever I want to really lock in—whether I'm lifting at the gym, clocking in at the office, or unplugging on a long flight—this is the pair I reach for. A big reason is the design. My wardrobe leans classic and preppy, and the Collexion's understated style fits right in. Like a pair of clean white sneakers, they go with just about everything I own.
I still swap back to earbuds for my hour-long StairMaster sessions because I sweat like a maniac. Fortunately, the Collexion's vegan leather is easy to wipe clean after lifting workouts, and the removable ear cushions make the headphones easy to maintain.
Verdict
Let's be honest: Nobody spends $600 on headphones because they have 5 percent better sound quality. Once you're shopping in this price range, flagship headphones from Sony, Bose, and Apple all sound fantastic and offer excellent noise cancellation. If all you care about is getting great audio and top-tier noise cancellation, there are less expensive options—including several we've recommended at Men's Health—that will make you perfectly happy. The Collexion is for someone who appreciates great design just as much as great sound. For me, that's worth paying a premium for.
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