Told myself I wouldn't get the Gen 2, but could not resist at least checking them out. Still quite unsure whether or not to keep and replace my Gen 1. My very quick initial impressions:

• Gen 2 feel slightly softer and with even lower clamping force already straight out of the box (even though I had no complaints on Gen 1). They really are super comfortable (still).

• Gen 2 has noticeably less hiss/white noise during ANC mode. There is some hiss during the first few seconds, but then for me it goes down to an (almost?) imperceptible level.

• ANC I just tested around the house so far and struggled to find any clear differences. They might be there, sure, but at least not immediately apparent.

• With Gen 2 you can now turn ANC on/off and set ANC strength from 1-10

• Sound quality I could not discern any noticeable differences (disregarding the cinematic mode)

• Microphones/call quality I did not test yet

• Gen 2 sand color is gorgeous, but I am quite partial to the darker sandstone tone of Gen 1

• They are really very similar headphones (well, obviously), this is nowhere near the XM5 -> XM6

So absent any call testing (where I am hoping they will have improved), imo the most noticeable upgrades are on ANC customization and the hiss reduction, otherwise not a WOW!-impact upgrade.

EDIT:

• Also, I have not been able to reproduce the thumping/popping sound with stronger movements on Gen 2, but I really wouldn't want to give any guarantees it is fixed. Just did some very brief tests indoors.

After six years, I’ve just upgraded from the XM3s after trying out the XM4,5,6 in store and borrowing a friend’s Ultra Gen 1.

The driftwood sand colour is beautiful, isn’t nearly as pink as I thought it would be based on the photos.

Comfort: I’d say these are the most comfortable I’ve ever worn, slightly beating out the Ultra Gen 1. Noticeably weaker clamping force than all the Sonys. The comfort was night and day between this and the Sony XM6, and this is the biggest reason I went with the Ultra Gen 2.

Sound Quality: didn’t sound perfect out of the box on all songs, I’m no audiophile and am still playing around with the EQ. Sounded great on vocal tracks however EDM and bass heavy pop sounded a bit muddy for my taste. Some tracks sound wonderful and some still need a bit of tweaking. For now I think the sound isn’t clearly better than the Ultra Gen 1 or the XM6. But also not clearly worse. Need more time to test this category. Lossless audio over USC is one of the main reasons I bought these over the XM6 alongside comfort so will be looking forward to testing that.

Looks: Love this colour, case and overall design. The shiny bands look really good in person at least on this sand colour. Feels alright, doesn’t attract as many fingerprints as expected.

ANC: not in depth testing but my initial thoughts were that the ANC is significantly better than my old XM3 which isn’t surprising. Seems to be slightly better than the Ultra Gen 1 and on par with XM6.

Cons: Personally really hoped the Bose app would have 5 band EQ instead of just 3. The controls and buttons are lacking compared to Sony XM6.

Overall, happy with spending $699 AUD on these for my birthday after 6-7 years on the XM3. Let’s hope we get some good reviews on sound quality and ANC from actual audiophiles soon.

Background: My Experience with Gen 1 I'm a huge fan of the Bose QC Ultra headphones Gen 1. I've been using them almost daily for a year now, primarily for their excellent noise cancellation. The comfort is outstanding. I can wear them all day without any discomfort or ear pressure. When you put them on, there's a light hissing sound as the noise cancellation kicks in, effectively blocking out ambient noise.

When I saw Gen 2 was available, I immediately ordered them and received them today. I was excited to experience what I hoped would be an even better version of this already excellent product.

Gen 2: First Impressions The Gen 2 arrived in almost identical packaging. Same box design, same audio and USB-C cables, and same hard case. Visually, I think the new version looks slightly better, and I didn't notice any difference in weight. Setting them up in the Bose app felt familiar, with similar options and settings as Gen 1.

The Problem: Inconsistent Noise Cancelling Here's where things get interesting (and disappointing). When switching from Aware mode to Quiet mode, the Gen 2's noise cancellation is initially significantly better than Gen 1. There's less hissing, and the noise reduction is impressive.

However, something strange happens over the next 30-60 seconds: the noise cancellation effectiveness gradually decreases. After about a minute, I found the noise cancelling actually worse than Gen 1. I tested this repeatedly with consistent background noise (tapping on wood, conversations) and the pattern was always the same. Excellent initial performance that degrades to below-Gen 1 levels. Even the hissing sound fades during this transition.

Every time I switched back to Aware mode and then to Quiet mode again, this cycle repeated: strong initial noise cancellation followed by gradual degradation.

Unexpected Discovery: The "Clap Reset" I discovered something odd: clapping my hands a few times near my face while wearing the Gen 2s seems to "reset" the noise cancellation. The effectiveness immediately improves before gradually declining again. This suggests the adaptive noise cancellation algorithm might be malfunctioning.

Comfort Concerns Unlike the Gen 1s, which I can wear comfortably all day, the Gen 2s create more noticeable ear pressure. This could potentially improve with break-in time, but it was immediately apparent.

Conclusion Despite the Gen 2's potential for superior noise cancellation, the inconsistent performance and reduced comfort made me prefer my Gen 1s. It feels like a software calibration issue that could potentially be fixed with a firmware update.

I've decided to return the Gen 2s for now and stick with my reliable Gen 1s. I'm hoping Bose addresses these issues because the hardware seems promising.

Has anyone else experienced similar issues with the Gen 2s? I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences.