Sony WH-1000XM4 vs Sony WH-1000XM4C

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WH-1000XM4 compared with WH-1000XM4C

	SonyWH-1000XM4	SonyWH-1000XM4C
Overview
Released
Released	August 2020	September 2026
Sound
Type
Type	Over-ear	Over-ear
Noise cancelling
Noise cancelling	Yes	Yes
Transparency mode
Transparency mode	Yes	Yes
Driver size
Driver size	40 mm	40 mm
Back
Back	–	Closed
Bluetooth codecs
Bluetooth codecs	SBC, AAC and LDAC	SBC, AAC and LDAC
Lossless over USB-C
Lossless over USB-C	No	–
Chip
Chip	QN1	HD Noise Cancelling Processor QN1
Drivers
Drivers	40 mm dome-type driver with an aluminium-coated LCP diaphragm, CCAW voice coil and neodymium magnet; 4 Hz to 40,000 Hz (JEITA); sensitivity 105 dB/mW switched on, 101 dB/mW switched off; impedance 40 Ω switched on, 16 Ω switched off (1 kHz, wired)	40 mm drivers with liquid crystal polymer diaphragms; powered wired frequency response 4 Hz–40 kHz. Impedance is 40 ohms powered on and 16 ohms off; sensitivity 106 dB/mW on and 101 dB/mW off.
Chip
Chip	HD Noise Cancelling Processor QN1 (with an integrated analogue amplifier) and a Bluetooth Audio SoC	–
Noise cancelling detail
Noise cancelling detail	Dual Noise Sensor technology, with two noise-cancelling microphones on each ear cup (one outside, one inside); Personal NC Optimizer and Atmospheric Pressure Optimising; Ambient Sound Mode with Voice focus; Adaptive Sound Control; Quick Attention Mode; Speak-to-Chat	QN1 and two noise-sensing microphones per earcup; Personal NC Optimizer, Ambient Sound Mode, Quick Attention and Adaptive Sound Control
Audio features
Audio features	LDAC up to 990 kbps (Hi-Res Audio Wireless); High-Resolution Audio over the headphone cable; DSEE Extreme upscaling; 360 Reality Audio certified; equaliser in the app	DSEE Extreme upscaling, 10-band equaliser in Sony Sound Connect and 360 Reality Audio with compatible services; Bluetooth response 20 Hz–20 kHz at 44.1 kHz sampling, or 20 Hz–40 kHz with LDAC at 96 kHz and 990 kbps
Battery
Listening time (maker's claim)
Listening time (maker's claim)	Up to 30 hours	Up to 27 hours
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	Up to 38 hours with noise cancelling off (AAC or SBC); with LDAC, 24 hours with noise cancelling on or 30 hours off; with DSEE Extreme on, 18 hours with noise cancelling on (16 hours with LDAC); Speak-to-Chat shortens battery life by about 30%; talk time up to 24 hours (30 hours with noise cancelling off); standby up to 30 hours with noise cancelling on (200 hours off); up to 22 hours on the headphone cable with noise cancelling on (36 hours off); can't be used while charging	The manual lists AAC/SBC playback up to 27 hours with noise cancelling or 34 hours off; LDAC up to 20 hours on or 27 hours off. DSEE Extreme, Speak-to-Chat and equaliser settings can shorten these figures.
Charging case
Charging case	–	USB-C charging; approximately 3 hours for a full charge; no USB audio playback
Fast charging
Fast charging	10 minutes gives about 5 hours of playback with a 1.5 A or higher USB adaptor; full charge in about 3 hours	3 minutes gives about 1 hour of playback
Design
Weight
Weight	254 g	253 g (better)
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	5.0	6.0
Two devices at once
Two devices at once	Yes	Yes
Headphone cable
Headphone cable	Yes	Yes
Controls
Controls	Touch sensor control panel on the right ear cup (double-tap to play, pause or answer calls; swipe forwards or backwards to skip; swipe up or down for volume; hold for the voice assistant; cover with your hand for Quick Attention Mode); power and CUSTOM buttons; a proximity sensor and two acceleration sensors pause music when the headphones are taken off and switch them off after 15 minutes; NFC one-touch pairing	Touch panel on the right earcup for playback, volume and calls; separate power and noise-cancelling buttons; wear detection, Quick Attention and Speak-to-Chat; app-configurable Quick Access
Microphones
Microphones	Five microphones for calls and Speak-to-Chat (Precise Voice Pickup Technology); MEMS, omnidirectional, 50 Hz to 8,000 Hz	Two noise-sensing microphones per earcup; Precise Voice Pickup for Bluetooth calls
Fit and ear tips
Fit and ear tips	Closed, circumaural; foamed urethane earpads; stepless slider; ear cups swivel and fold inwards for the carrying case	Adjustable headband, swivelling and folding earcups; colour-matched carrying case
Water resistance detail
Water resistance detail	No water resistance rating; Sony says the headphones are not waterproof	The manual states that the headset is not waterproof
Works with
Works with	Sony | Sound Connect app (formerly Headphones Connect) for iOS and Android; multipoint connection to two devices (AAC or SBC only while connected to two); Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa built in; Google Fast Pair; Bluetooth 5.0 Class 1, about 10 m range; A2DP, AVRCP, HFP and HSP	Bluetooth A2DP, AVRCP, HFP and HSP. Multipoint switches music between two devices; SoundGuys and Tom's Hardware report that LDAC is unavailable in that mode. The supplied cable allows passive playback, disables Bluetooth and does not carry the headphone microphone.
Colours
Colours	Black, Platinum Silver; limited-edition Silent White sold in Europe from May 2021	Black, Platinum Silver, Lavender; official press photo shows Lavender folded
In the box
In the box	Headphones, USB-C cable (USB-A to USB-C, about 20 cm), headphone cable (about 1.2 m, gold-plated L-shaped stereo mini plug), plug adaptor for in-flight use, carrying case	UK box includes headphones, carrying case and approximately 1.2 m headphone cable; USB charging cable supplied only with mainland China models