A weekend with the AirPods Max 2: Quiet TTC rides

I spent the weekend using the Apple AirPods Max 2, the latest generation of Apple’s premier headphones, and I had a really good time.

I’ve never used the original AirPods Max, so I’ll be talking about my overall experience using the headphones over the weekend and comparing them with other headsets I’ve used in the past, instead of comparing them to their predecessor.

Iconic Design 

In contrast to other headphones, the AirPods Max 2 have an interesting design and have become pretty iconic, so that alone was exciting for me. I had never even held AirPods Max before, so I was interested to learn about the knit mesh canopy, which feels pretty light on your head, as the knit mesh distributes the headphones’ weight and is breathable. I thought this design would be perfect for the gym, but the AirPods Max 2 lack an IP rating, so I was worried about sweating with them on.

Further, the headphones don’t bend or fold like some other brands, making it more difficult to fit them in my sports bag. It also uses a Smart Case that’s slim, soft, and causes the headphones to go into an ‘ultra-low-power’ state to conserve battery. However, because the Smart Case is soft and only covers the aluminum cups, I was concerned about the exposed parts of the headphones, like the canopy, getting damaged.

Improved Noise Cancellation

While I didn’t bring them to the gym, I brought the AirPods Max 2 pretty much everywhere else with me over the weekend, which included my badminton league, improv class and my cousin’s place in Brampton. Apple says that its Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) is more immersive than its predecessor by up to 1.5x more. I don’t know about the previous model, but what I can say is that the noise cancellation is really impressive on the Max 2. Whether on the subway or streetcars, I can’t hear anything. And on my Uber home, I fell asleep very nicely as I couldn’t hear the driver’s groovy 70’s tunes.

For comparison, I’ve tried the third-gen AirPods Pro, Galaxy Buds Pro 4, the Nothing Headphones (1), and the Bose QuietComfort 70, which all offer their own form of ANC and can drown out noise very well; however, what surprised me about the AirPods Max 2 was how well the noise cancellation worked without any audio playing. When I first wore the AirPods Max 2, I was waiting for my iPhone to download the latest update, so the headphones were on, but no audio was playing. I could still hear the world around me, but it was incredibly subdued.

The Max 2 uses Apple’s H2 chip and an 8-mic array for a better immersive ANC experience. The microphones continually tune the microphone input to optimize ANC, no matter where you are. I think this was most noticeable on the subway — no matter how busy it was or how many times the person over the speaker made announcements, the ANC offered a delightful experience. Now I can’t wait to take the AirPods Max 2 on a plane.

The AirPods Max 2 also feature ‘Adaptive Audio,’ ‘Conversation Awareness,’ and a ‘Transparency’ mode. Transparency mode lets you hear sounds around, as if you’re not wearing headphones, and offers ‘Loud Sound Reduction’ to help reduce exposure to loud noises, like a jackhammer. Conversation Awareness detects when you’re talking to someone nearby and automatically lowers the volume so you can more easily converse with people around, and it will turn the headphones volume up. Adaptive Audio blends ANC with Transparency, which automatically adjusts to what you need to hear. I haven’t used this or Transparency mode yet and look forward to talking about the experience in a separate article. I enjoy not being able to hear the world around me. Conversation Awareness works well, lowering the volume when you start speaking; the issue here is that I sing a lot when I’m listening to music around the house, so Conversation Awareness lowers my volume a lot.

Rich sound

The AirPods Max 2 sound dope, I enjoy its rich bass; it’s not overwhelming, but still sounds great. I listened to the songs Middle Child by J.Cole, Another One Bites The Dust by Queen, and She’s My Collar by Gorillaz, three songs that offer bass in different genres of music, and it sounded equally great among the songs. Voices are clear and precise, allowing you to hear harmonies that you didn’t know were there. I noticed this in the song Take My Hand by The Cab; there was this harmony I had never heard before, which felt crazy because I used to play this song on repeat. Middle Child by J.Cole was another great example of clear voices, where you can hear how crazy well J.Cole enunciated each and every word – you can also listen to Humble by Kendrick Lamar.

And when you pump up the volume to its loudest, which I wouldn’t suggest while listening to the Tonight by Fun, the music itself is still clear and doesn’t get distorted. Instrumentals sound great in classic songs, and Mariah Carey’s voice gets crazy high without peaking. With Dolby Atmos, you’re able to hear sounds coming from different directions. I haven’t had the AirPods Max 2 for very long, so I’m still putting the headphones through their paces, but so far, the sound is rich and detailed. The headphones also offer Personalized Volume, which learns your preferences over time, and will automatically adjust your media volume to suit your personal taste and environment; however, I don’t think I’ve been using this long enough for it to turn on.

I also used the AirPods Max 2 to watch an episode of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters with my Apple TV 4K, and it sounded insane with Dolby Atmos and Personalized Spatial Audio, which seriously gave the TV show a theatre-like experience, especially when a MUTO, like Kong, was on the screen.

Apple’s website says the AirPods Max 2 have 20 hours of battery life. I’ve used the headphones quite a bit over the weekend, but I haven’t been able to kill the battery yet, which is pretty impressive. The Smart Case’s ultra-low power state comes into play here, which preserves battery life when not in use, but also means you never have to power off the AirPods Max 2 as they’re ready as soon as they’re out of the case.

More to explore

I still have to try a lot of the AirPods Max 2 since I haven’t been using them for too long. It’d be great to go hands-on with Live Translation and to kill the battery. Look forward to a separate article discussing my thoughts on these features and more. But for now, I can easily say that the AirPods Max 2 are the best headphones I’ve used (although I’m not typically a guy who tests headphones). The headset sounds amazing, and its active noise-cancelling is top-notch.

The AirPods Max 2 cost $799, which seems like a lot for headphones, but without being an audiophile, it’s hard to say whether the headset is worth this price. And headsets come in varying price ranges. Sony’s WH-1000XM6 is $600, but the Bang & Olufsen Beoplay is $849. I can’t tell you to spend your money on this headset, but as someone who likes listening to music with headphones, blocking out the world, and having things work seamlessly with my other devices, the AirPods Max 2 is so far a stellar headset.