Customer Ratings & Reviews

As a very satisfied owner of the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds, I was excited to use the new Bose QuietComfort 45 Headphones. I generally prefer over-the-ear headphones to earbuds, especially on noisy aircraft to better block out surrounding noise. Also, because earbuds, no matter how well-designed, eventually fall out, while headphones never do. The only drawback I have found with headphones is when their pressure on my ears causes discomfort over time. I have had that problem with the otherwise excellent SONY WH-1000XM2 headphones, and I was hoping that the Bose QC-45 headphones would be more comfortable. When I opened the Bose QC-45 box, I found that the "instruction manual" consisted of two instructions: 1. Download the Bose Music app, and 2. Slide the Power/Bluetooth switch on the right headphone forward so the app can find the QC-45. It is very common these days for instructions that come with products to do little more than point to digital instructions on the Web, which makes some sense because digital instructions can be updated while printed instructions cannot. Still, I wish companies provided at least a quick start print guide. It is somewhat presumptuous to assume that a customer is going to use headphones with a phone rather than a laptop or other Bluetooth music device. Note that to use the Bose Music app you need to set up an account and sign into it. This means that you need to be connected to the Internet in order to set up an account (and perhaps to use all features of the app; that isn't clear), which could be a problem if you are somewhere without Internet. Like on a plane. Fortunately, I already had the Bose Music app installed on my phone for my Bose earbuds, so it was easy enough to open the app, sign into my account and have it find the QC-45 headphones. In addition to connecting your phone to the headphones, the app explains how to use the buttons on the headphones to pause, play, change volume, and skip forward or back on music tracks. It also explains how to answer, end, and mute phone calls with buttons on the headphone, how to switch between Quiet (noise canceling) and Aware modes with a button, and how to access your phone's voice assistant with a button. All of these feature work superbly. You can also control volume, Quiet/Aware modes, and device source (you can connect the phones to two devices simultaneously) directly from the app. The QC-45 is much more lightweight than the SONY WH-1000XM2 and does not press as hard on the ears. It is therefore much more comfortable. I tested the difference between the noise canceling abilities of the two headphones by listening to a soft Joni Mitchell song with each set of headphones while playing a loud Bruce Springsteen song in the background. The background Springsteen music was only slightly less audible in Quiet mode than Aware mode on the QC-45, while noise cancelling on the SONY WH-1000XM2 almost completely eliminated the background Springsteen music. So there is a tradeoff in comfort and noise cancelling ability. I found connecting to a second device (my Windows 10 laptop) fairly straightforward. I simply asked Windows to scan for new Bluetooth devices and connect to the headphones when they appeared. However, I could not connect until I turned off Bluetooth on my phone; it was if the headphones were not available for additional connections while already connected to my phone. But after I successfully connected to my laptop, I found that the QC-45 headphones were happy to connect to both devices simultaneously, although you can listen to only one device at a time. Of course, the hallmark of Bose is sound quality, and I can't say enough about the beautiful sound from these headphones. Music is crisp, clear, distinct, luscious, and deep. It will be a real pleasure listening to music with these headphones.

The QC45s are a welcome refresh of an already great headphone from Bose. I appreciate the improved ANC over the QC35s, the USB-C charging (finally) and crisp sound. It would not be fair to claim one is outright better than the other - the better question is what do you prefer? It is too difficult to recommend either the QC45 or the Sony XM4s over the other. Since I own both - here are notes/thoughts from my own experience - Sound Quality: Sony have an impressive soundstage with bass-heavy music. Sonys seem to have a greater volume output and maintain a well rounded/uniform sound from low to maximum volume ranges. Sonys are well suited for all music and especially impressive with bass-heavy music. If I want to listen/feel like Im hearing something at a club, Ill go for the Sony. If I want to appreciate vocals or instruments in a song, Ill prefer the Bose. Bose have an impressive soundstage with music that emphasize vocals or live instruments - in my experience you can hear more detail and pick instruments apart from one another with the Bose. The potential downside with such clarity and emphasis on the highs may be that you experience fatigue as volume is increased towards the max. Build Quality/Comfort: Materials are comparable. Bose and Sony use a combo of faux leather and plastic. Sonys have bulkier earcups but the exterior of their headphones feature more premium feeling matte textured plastic. Bose have a slimline feel/look by comparison but have a more simplistic plastic feel to the exterior of their cans. My nod on build quality go to Bose though; the Sonys have already started to creak a bit wen I wear them with slight movements of the head. This slight creaky noise originate where the band connects to each earcup. While Sony might exhibit slightly more premium materials, the build construction and lack of any creaks/rattles or looseness of the Bose and the slinky feel make the QC45s the winner here. Both are equally comfortable - draw on comfort. Noise Cancellation Both are impressive. Imo, I prefer the ANC of the Sony in cases where consistent low frequency noise is apparent. In cases such as flying, the Sony drown out the lower freqs and almost cloak it in a almost imperceptible yet satisfying hiss/white noise. Bose do a great job too with the lower frequencies but have a slight edge fighting against higher pitch/erratic noise such as in a coffee shop. Other Notes: Sony capacitive touch controls can be both convenient and frustrating. I enjoy swiping forward and backward for songs in a playlist (Bose can only skip forward) but changing volume or pausing music is less intuitive or consistent. When I take the headphones off, its nice that the Sony tech knows (80% of the time) to pause the music. EQ Control/App: Sony has a better EQ App offering more adjustability that suits your preferences. Bose have a better phone-call experience and ambient mode gives me greater awareness of how loud I am talking out loud when on a call. TLDR: If you have an older QC35 or older model, this is a worthy upgrade. QC45s feature a crisp, accurate and balanced sound with an impressive soundstage that pales in comparison to the XM4s only when listening to the most bass-heavy music. Vocals (including podcasts) and instrument detail is much more impressive with the Bose compared to the warmer sounding Sonys. Bose win with its simplicity, reliability/build quality and I appreciate the detailed and crisp sound.

Headset has an issue with processing side tone with my other devices, causing an “echo” when I speak. Bose customer service advised me simply to return the QC 45 headset and buy their more expensive model. No thanks.

One of the wrost headphones for this price, microphone activates all the time even if you are not using it

Amazing headphones. I was looking for great noise canceling headphones that were also comfortable. This is the perfect fit and great sound quality. It has the active listening and noise canceling mode in order to either isolate background and hear it or not. I love the fit and comfort. I use them for the gym and I don’t hear any of the loud weights being dropped or anything. Amazing headphones

Very low , my jbl sound louder I’m very disappointed and the headband gets lose when wearing just disappointed over all never again will I purchase these again

Bought this beginning of July for my daughters birthday, she just opened it and they don't work. No lights come on, won't charge etc...

I had to return it because the sound was very metallic, went with Sony XM4 instead.

USELESS to listen to music via android phone-pandora. Tried all the "fixes" prescribed online (known problem). Waste of time, money.

I gave these headphones to my adult son as a Christmas gift and they have stop working after only 2 months.

I bought a pair for myself and love them immediately. Then I bought them for my boyfriend. We both love them so much for work and household chores. To be a fly on the wall when we are trying to get each other’s attention. But seriously, they are comfy, have great sound quality, and the battery charge lasts for a long time! I highly recommend this product.

Sound great won’t charge after 5 months. Hope they will fix or replace them

Very comfortable around ears. Easy to set up Bluetooth connectivity. Life of a single charge is impressive. Audio quality is great. Comes with a nice hard case with a mesh pocket to hold the charging cable.. These headphones are perfect for the plane. They also cut background noise. I love mine!! I’m so happy I bought them and not have to deal with ear buds that kill my ears after about 30-60 minutes.

don´t turn on. i try to reset but it´s imposible. buy new

Had these headphones for about 3 weeks before they started crackling. At this price point, crackling shouldn’t be happening so soon after purchasing. Very disappointed.

Sound quality is not worth the price. Noise canceling is not good enough. I wanted to return this item but I was a day late.

I use a set of QuietComfort 35 headphones most of the time, but am wearing out my second set of earcups. The first thing I noticed when I put these on was how much more comfortable they are than the 35s! On my laptop, the setup was the same as any other Bluetooth device - quick and easy. Within seconds, I was up and running and the sound was just as good as the old ones. On my phone, the Bose Music App took a little longer to get going. I had to reboot my Moto G Stylus after installing the app since it kept dropping right after it connected. Once I restarted, it was nearly trouble-free the rest of the evening. I had a bit of stutter once in a while and am trying to narrow down whether it is the app or something else on my phone causing the interruptions. The laptop had none of that, so I will have to test it on a few other devices to see what is up. It isn't frequent enough to figure out, so it may take a bit of sitting back and listening to tinker with it! I was immediately impressed when I hit the "Action" button and could hear what was going on in the room around me. I LOVE the noise cancelling features of these and the 35s, but there are times when I had to move them off my ears so I could monitor what was going on around me. The sound is very good, with deep lows and clear highs from the ripped-from-cd music I have. I was very happy with the quality as it is such a contrast to some of my older headphones and headsets. I used my old QC 35s for Zoom meetings and am really enjoying using these 45s for that as the ability to switch between noise-cancelling and open sound is really helpful at times. That just adds a big, useful feature for me. I tend to use these in a lot of situations rather than just listening to music and find them very capable in many different settings. I am very happy that Bose decided to come out with another version in the QuietComfort line. I have recommended them for several friends and relatives and everyone has been happy with them. It is sometimes hard to talk people into spending this much when there are so many cheaper options out there, but once you try them on and listen for a few seconds, the price seems much more reasonable! I am looking forward to wearing out the cups on these over the next few years! Thank you Bose for another great product!

Not good for noise canceling. I would not recommend this product if you are looking for noise canceling headphones.

Excellent noise canceling and ambient sound features. Incredibly comfortable, I wore them for over 7 hours on a flight and slept with them on another flight with no disturbance. They lasted throughout my travels, which totaled over 14 hours, and still had about 30% battery left over. Incredible design, comfortable, sleek and stylish. 10/10 reccomend!

Well, one cantscan, pay, then go if the sanner does not work. IPhone 15 pro