Apple AirPods Max 2 review: ‘Everything from its predecessor dialed up to 11’

We’ve waited six years for the new Apple AirPods Max 2, but after testing them for myself over the last two weeks, I’m no longer mad about it. The AirPods Max 2 are some of the best headphones I’ve ever had the pleasure of using.

Everything has been turned up to 11 — the sound quality is industry-leading, the ANC has improved massively, and the call quality is now professional-meeting-suitable. They still offer a feeble 20-hour battery life and a somewhat burdensome 13.6-ounce weight, but these issues don't detract from how excellent the AirPods Max 2 are overall.

I’ve tested tons of the best over-ear headphones, but none thus far have sounded quite this good. Sure, the Sony WH-1000XM6 are detailed and clean, and the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones 2 are bassy, but the AirPods Max 2 are the best of all worlds. Rich, bassy, detailed, expansive, and clean.

Apple AirPods Max 2 review: Cheat sheet

• What is it? Apple’s newest flagship headphones, replacing the AirPods Max
• What does it cost? $549 / £499
• What do we like? They are the best-sounding Bluetooth headphones (at this price point) ever
• What don’t we like? Issues from the previous model have been ignored — still just 20 hours of battery life, still very heavy

Apple AirPods Max 2 review: Specs

Apple AirPods Max 2 review: Price & availability

The Apple AirPods Max 2 are $549 from Apple U.S. In the U.K., they’re £499 from Apple U.K. In Australia, you’re looking at AU$999 from Apple. This is the same launch price as the previous model, in keeping with the precedent set by the AirPods Pro 3, which matched the Pro 2.

As you might expect, the AirPods Max 2 are considerably pricier than their flagship rivals: The Sony WH-1000XM6 have a $459 MSRP and the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Gen 2 regularly retail for $449. This isn’t to say the AirPods Max 2 are the most expensive wireless headphones on the market — you could also spend nearly a grand on the $799 Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2, or break the 4-figure ceiling with the $1,199 Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H95.

Apple AirPods Max 2 review: Design

• Easy Digital Crown and ANC controls
• Still heavy, but comfortable nonetheless
• Fantastic smart features

If you’ve seen the original AirPods Max, you might be looking at the AirPods Max 2 and thinking, “Hmm. These look awfully familiar. Are you sure you didn’t just mix up your AirPods Max OG and AirPods Max 2 in the photos?”

I am quite sure. The AirPods Max and Max 2 are identical. You’ll see the same anodized aluminum ear cups; the same removable cushions; the same metal-and-mesh headband that tries its very best to alleviate skull pressure. At release, the headphones come in most of the same colors as the OGs — Midnight, Starlight, blue (pictured), orange, and purple. Unfortunately, it appears the green shade is no more.

This also means you have the same "bra" case seen on the AirPods Max OG. Some customers might be incredibly disappointed to see this make a return — it doesn't protect the headband or adjustment areas like other brands' carry cases. Although the case has a smaller footprint in your bag, you might not want to throw it carelessly into a particularly messy or chaotic backpack.

The controls are also the same: you’ve got a Digital Crown and ANC button on the right ear cup. You can adjust all these controls directly in your phone settings (if you have an iPhone).

I’m glad Apple hasn’t swapped the physical, tactile buttons in favor of the ‘touch area’ trend that seems to be sweeping through audio brands. The Bose QC Ultra Gen 2 and Sony WH-1000XM6 both suffer from this aberration, with ‘touch areas’ instead of buttons, so you need to stroke your headphones to change volume or skip tracks. These controls are especially egregious on the QC Ultra — I found myself trying to find the multi-purpose button, but accidentally turned the volume to max multiple times.

One of the primary complaints regarding the original AirPods Max was weight. The new AirPods Max 2 are the same weight, 13.6 ounces, making them almost double that of the Bose QC Ultra and Sony XM6 (8.8 ounces). Even so, the mesh headband does a lot of heavy lifting during wear. I didn’t often feel the need to remove or readjust the headphones.

While the Bose and Sony flagships are a lot lighter, they also look cheaper. Personally, I would much rather the uber-sleek, uber-premium AirPods Max 2.

Features

As you might expect from flagship cans, the AirPods Max 2 have are chock-full of features. The AirPods Max 2 are like AirPods Pro 3 in over-ear form: Apple has treated us to seamless Siri assistance, Camera Remote, Live Translation, Head Gestures, Conversation Awareness, and Personalized Volume.

I like that you can choose which features you want to activate. For example, I always turn off Conversation Awareness as it means I can’t (terribly) sing along to my favorite songs — my headphones turn on Transparency after assuming I’m talking to someone instead of warbling tunelessly to myself.

If you want to use Live Translation, however, you’ll need to pre-download the language packs. I tried this out with Korean, and it had about a 3-4 second delay, which is pretty much exactly how it works on the AirPods Pro 3. Perhaps good in a pinch, but wouldn’t be up to scratch for important meetings.

Unfortunately, like the previous model, there’s no IP rating, so I wouldn’t recommend taking these out in the rain. While disappointing, this isn’t a surprise for over-ears — neither the Sony XM6 nor the Bose QC Ultra have an IP rating. I’d recommend one of the best earbuds for that, like the AirPods Pro 3, or the Nothing Headphone (a), which are IP52.

As expected, the AirPods Max 2 integrate seamlessly with any Apple product. I only had to take my AirPods Max 2 out of the box, and my iPhone 16 Pro instantly lit up with a ‘Connect’ request. I didn’t have to manually connect to my MacBook Pro or iPad — the headphones just knew. When switching between devices, the Max 2 followed my output source.

Connectivity

Despite all these highs, I’ll end on a slightly disappointing note: the AirPods Max 2 run on Bluetooth 5.3. This Bluetooth version was released in 2021, so it’s frustrating to see Apple using it now. Samsung launched its new Galaxy Buds 4 series with Bluetooth 6.1. As you might expect, 6.1 provides a longer range (780-980 feet, respectively) and a more reliable connection.

I was able to get a decent distance from my phone — out of my apartment, up the stairs, onto the next floor — before the headphones disconnected, but I’d still like the best-of-the-best on Apple’s most premium offering, especially on what are intended to be the best wireless headphones.

They do, however, have native USB-C hi-res playback, which sounds utterly divine. Keep scrolling and you can read all about it.

Apple AirPods Max 2 review: Sound quality

• Rich, detailed, wide, clear, sonorous — all the adjectives
• Terrific clarity across the entire frequency range
• Most importantly, fun to listen to

I’ll give you some spoilers straight away: the AirPods Max 2 are my favorite headphones to date. The sound quality is sublime. They have an exceptionally wide soundscape with enviable instrument separation. I tested using Apple Music and Spotify, via USB-C wired playback and Bluetooth — in every genre I listened to, I could make out every instrument, every harmony, every beat.

The low-end is rich yet balanced, with propulsive, deep sub-bass and a detailed, clarified upper-bass. Mids are also handled deftly; the soundscape is effusive and complex, with no overpowering frequencies, even in heavy genres. This builds a fantastic foundation for the treble, which is clear and bright. Hi-hats and cymbals clattered over the top of gnarly, crunchy bass, and didn’t overpower even stylistically pushed-back vocals.

When I played ‘Micro Cuts’ by Muse, a cluttered, almost invasive, high-octane track, the Max 2 dealt with the subtle guitar elements and heady falsetto vocals without breaking a sweat. The bass and percussion rounded out the frenetic guitar section, keeping the layers separated yet complementary.

I switched to electronic and played ‘925’ by Sammy Virji. The U.K. Garage beat pounded through the Max 2, sharing the space with the vocals. The bassline cut through the track like a snake racing through the jungle, barely making an impression on the undergrowth but letting everyone know it’s there. I was so impressed.

I then listened to some bluegrass-inspired singer-songwriter tracks. I played ‘Cheers’ by Faye Webster, a southern-blues-meets-modern-pop combo. Webster’s soft vocals were placed at the front of ‘Cheers,’ with the dynamic bass and rolling, bluesy guitar enriching the background.

To test out its video sound, I watched ‘How To Train Your Dragon’ and ‘Twilight’ on Apple TV with Dolby Atmos. The AirPods Max 2 handled both dialogue, action, and soundtrack fantastically. The wide soundscape enabled me to hear off-screen events as if they were truly behind me.

I tested the AirPods Max 2 with a lot more than I had space to include here. You can listen along to this review with my AirPods Max 2 testing playlist:

Apple AirPods Max 2 review: ANC

• 3 ANC modes: Transparency, Adaptive, and Noise Cancellation
• Better than original AirPods
• But still not Bose-beating or Sony-meeting

There are many, many things I love about the OG AirPods Max. The premium feel, the sound quality, the cushioned earcups, the controls, the mesh headband. But I don’t love the ANC.

I am pleased to report that the AirPods Max 2’s ANC is excellent. Sure, it’s not Bose-beating or Sony XM6-meeting, but it’s considerably better than Apple's OG over-ear headphones. Now, the AirPods Max 2 could be some of the best noise-cancelling headphones.

The AirPods Max 2 still allow some high-frequency sounds in: When I was testing ANC in the city, I couldn’t hear buses or motorbikes, but I caught some laughter from passers-by.

In general, the ANC deals with lower frequencies much better than higher frequencies, but this is all you need for day-to-day usage. I’m impressed with the upgraded ANC on the AirPods Max 2.

Apple AirPods Max 2 review: App

• Native customization for iOS users
• Nothing for Android, as expected

If you’re an iPhone user, you’ll be able to access tons of settings controls directly from your settings app. You can configure the Digital Crown and ANC button modes, including switching the orientation of the Digital Crown’s spin, activating Camera Remote, customizing Head Gestures, and more. Take a look at this screenshot so you can see for yourself.

Unfortunately, Android users get nothing. This is nothing new, but it’s still disappointing. You're basically stuck with default controls and none of the aforementioned features.

While unfortunate, this is the current state of play. Samsung’s newest audio products — the utterly fantastic Galaxy Buds 4 Pro ($249) — did not offer an iOS companion app.

Apple AirPods Max 2 review: Call quality

• Voice Isolation has come to the Max series
• Fantastic environmental noise reduction
• Sometimes emphasizes surrounding voices, though

To test call quality of the AirPods Max 2, I used them for personal calls and work meetings. When I called my boyfriend, he said that my voice was perfectly clear and was notably better than that of other headphones I’ve tested recently — AirPods Max Gen 1 and Nothing Headphone (a) ($199).

He couldn’t hear any of the environmental noise around me, not the loud buses or roaring motorbikes, but some passing voices made it through the ambient noise reduction filters. So, while the AirPods Max 2 isolated my voice from traffic noise well, some voices still managed to sneak through.

On work calls, my colleagues reported that my voice was clear, and I “sounded the same as AirPods Pro 2 or 3.” However, one colleague reported that I sounded a little clipped.

I think you could use the AirPods Max 2 on work calls, personal calls, and anything in between. I’d happily use them as my primary call headset from now on.

Apple AirPods Max 2 review: Battery

• 20 hours
• No, that’s not a typo
• Just 20 hours

Unfortunately, the AirPods Max 2 have a meager battery life of just 20 hours. This is the same as the previous model, and, if you couldn’t tell, is my primary issue with the headphones. In 2026, there’s very little excuse for a 20-hour battery.

Other models in this price class — Sony WH-1000XM6, Bose QuietComfort Ultra, Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2 — last for 30 hours. While still not great, especially considering the new Nothing Headphone (a) last for 135 hours (75 with ANC), 30 hours is considerably more impressive.

I tested the AirPods Max 2 for seven days and had to charge them twice. I listened for around 25 hours overall, mostly via Bluetooth.

Apple AirPods Max 2 review: Verdict

I’m glad we waited six years for the AirPods Max 2, because this is an upgrade done right. If you like how AirPods Pro or AirPods Max Gen 1 sound, you are in for a treat with the AirPods Max 2. Apple has taken everything from its predecessor and dialed it up to 11.

Additional features like Personalized Spatial Audio, Siri integration, Live Translation, and Head Gestures are useful, but if the sound was mediocre, smart functions wouldn’t be enough to make me recommend spending $549 on headphones. (I suggest waiting for the first discount if that price feels a bit too steep in this current economic climate.)

But because the sound quality is so excellent, I genuinely would recommend buying the new AirPods Max 2. Yes, the battery life is still as feeble as a Victorian chimney sweep and the cans are still almost twice the weight of Sony and Bose’s flagships, but the flawless, studio-quality sound more than makes up for it. For me, this is a near-perfect audio product.