I love my QC Ultra 2, but the Bose app drives me crazy it wont let you fine tune or make headphones louder, or control call volume. Its slow, it wants an account, and even sometimes when headphones is clearly connected it still shows unconnected.

So I made Earshot with claude fable, open-source Android app that talks to the headphones directly over Bluetooth. No account and no cloud. It doesn’t even have the internet permission. It has all the daily controls plus a 10-band EQ, call volume boost, a codec panel, a Quick Settings tile and automations. Also it has technical controls for people are tech savvy like me and like to fiddle with their gadgets ;) IYKYK. Also it should work with any QC released recently.

It’s Android only and only tested on the QC Ultra 2 on my Samsung so far. Not affiliated with Bose. Firmware updates still need the Bose app(why? DMCA blah blah). Feel free to do whatever(fork it, rework it) with the code. ill maintain it and improve it (once my claude usage resets lol)

GitHub: https://github.com/HellzYeahh/earshot

Let me know what breaks and what would like to change!

Today I got my Bose Noise Cancelling Wired Earbuds which I bought specifically to use with my MacBook Pro. I thought I'd write a quick mini-review.

I own two other pairs of headphones: Sony MDR-M1 wired studio monitors for video editing and Soundcore AeroFit 2s for running outside. Both are great but when I'm traveling or working on the go I don't have a good way to block out noise. I'm also a big fan of wired headphones for anything outside of fitness. There's no battery to worry about and if you take care of them they can last a long time.

Sound quality

Let's start with the biggest concern: sound quality.

These sound great. Plugged directly into my MacBook they sound pretty flat, similar to my Sonys. I use an EQ in Apple Music with the Sonys because, while they're great for editing, I don't particularly enjoy their sound signature for music.

These Bose earbuds are no different which is actually a good thing for me. I get a sound profile that works for editing on the go and I can use the exact same EQ preset I use with my Sonys for music. I might tweak it a little, but having one preset that works for both is much easier.

For anyone who isn't enjoying the sound, I've included the EQ I use along with my MacBook's audio settings. I was worried I'd be disappointed by the sound after seeing reviews mentioning issues with Apple devices. But with the EQ applied, these are definitely great. Honestly I prefer tuning the sound myself rather than sticking with a default sound signature.

All I have besides my MacBook is an older iPhone with Lightning so unfortunately I can only test these with my MacBook for now. I'm not sure whether Android devices recognize the earbuds and automatically apply some kind of EQ, as some reviews mention that they sound great out of the box on Android.

I also haven't had any volume issues. There's plenty of headroom and I usually have them around 50% to 60%.

Comfort

This surprised me quite a bit. These are really comfortable. I can't feel any hard plastic pressing against my ears and both the tips and wings fit me well. They also feel secure.

ANC

No disappointment here. With music playing, I can't hear my fans or furnace.

A while back I had a pair of Soundcore Q20i headphones and in my experience the ANC on these Bose earbuds is on an entirely different level.

I also haven't noticed any significant hiss which I remember seeing mentioned in some reviews. I did notice a slight pressure sensation from the ANC at first but I got used to it pretty quickly.

Microphone quality

Not great, lol. They're good enough for calls but my MacBook's built-in microphone sounds noticeably better.

Final thoughts

I'd easily give these a 9/10. If the microphone were better, they'd be a 10/10 for me.

So far I'm really happy with them.

Surprised he doesn't prefer the more expensive Ultra

Why mic is not good? Do Apple wired earphones have a special mic for iPhone?

I just got my Bose QC gen 1s on Amazon prime day for $170. And I heard about the Bluetooth connections issues and thought how bad could it be? Well for me it was horrible it would only stay connected for maybe a minute then disconnect for 5 and rinse and repeat.

So I went on bose.com and registered my product and saw it was under warranty and looked at my options. I could either have them repaired or replaced and my replacement options were with the same Gen 1s or a free upgrade to the QC gen 2s.. I'm not sure if they were only offering this because its a known issue or what but anyway, I sent them off and theyre sending over the new Gen 2s.

Thought this might be helpful for anyone having issues with their new qcs.

Also I LOVE the sound quality of the 1st gen QC. Havent heard much about the Gen 2s but the gen 1s were unusable so hopefully theyre just as good

$12.99 but couldn’t believe these are still going for $175 used on amazon!

cleaned it up, few scuffs but still looking good. might be old to some but new tech for me :-)

looking for a replacement charger now! used my keyboard’s microusb cord to boot it up. still functions and tells me its low on battery lol

if anyone had one of these would love to hear what you liked/disliked or any helpful tips to maximize use of this bad boy!

Minus the shipping )

Of course the seller doesn't know if it works but I was always looking for another for parts or back up since I have my current one. Which I had refurbished just bc at BOSE just 2 years ago.

In this economy.

Hey everyone,

Picked up a pair of QC Ultras directly from the official website (boseindia.com) about a week ago, and after using them for a few days, two mechanical quirks are driving me nuts:

Left slider resistance: The right slider is butter smooth, but the left one has noticeable friction and resistance when extending/retracting. It almost feels like the internal tension clip or track is misaligned or gritty.

Headband creaking: Whenever I flex the headband to put them on or take them off, there’s an audible plastic creak/pop coming from the bridge assembly.

For a flagship pair of headphones at this price point, the build tolerances feel surprisingly cheap compared to older QC models.

Steps I’ve taken so far:

Kept all original packaging, cables, and docs intact.

Because it’s the weekend and phone lines are shut, I sent a formal replacement/DOA request email today to official support

Planning to call their support line first thing tomorrow morning to push for an RMA / brand-new replacement unit.

Questions for the sub:

Has anyone else dealt with this specific slider stiffness or headband creak? Did it ever "break in" or loosen up with regular use, or did you have to swap it?

If you went through an RMA/replacement, did your replacement unit actually arrive completely silent and smooth, or is this just the Ultra QC lottery?

Also, if anyone here has recent experience with Bose India / Servify replacement turnaround times, how long did the swap usually take?

Appreciate any insight before I talk to customer service tomorrow!

Bass +3

Midrange -1

Treble +2

Immersive sound ON (Still or Motion, doesn’t really matter)

Works like a charm for me, wondering if anyone uses something like this EQ for hip hop (for non-rap, I find that 0 0 0 works best, just the default)

I'm getting the headphones for around 300 usd. Is it a good deal or should I wait for the black friday sale?

I found a really good deal pleasz are they legit or fake

I've used QC Buds 1 2 and 3 (ultra 5 times) lost 2 ones, 1 second and 2 3rd....

Got a Nothing Ear (still have it, never lost, amazing find bud feature), but got screwed by the one bud dying to 15% on minutes issue.

Finally dished out 306 Euros in Italy, and based on previous Bose experience, three away the cover immediately thinking will be amazing.

Wtf did I do.... These freaking suck at staying in ear, sound is great, but need adjusting every 5 minutes, only ok when lying still in bed....

Wtf were they thinking. And phone calls are a joke. Other person hears my voice coming from across an empty concert hall. Fml. $345 !!

F uBose.

TL;DR: After owning five pairs across Bose’s QC generations, I trusted Bose enough to spend €306 (~$345) on the Ultra Open 2nd Gen and immediately threw the packaging. Big mistake. Great sound, but they slip constantly, need adjusting every five minutes, and only stay put when I’m lying still. Calls make me sound like I’m across an empty concert hall. My Nothing Ear were excellent until one bud’s battery started dying within minutes. At this price, Bose, wtf?

Not sure if this can be fixed in some sort of update but my Switch 2 is not detecting the new wired ANC headphones as a headset. Just keeps playing from the system speakers as if nothing is plugged in. Very disappointing.

I recently got the new Bose Noise Cancelling Wired Earbuds, and I’ve noticed a constant white noise/hissing sound whenever ANC is enabled (both Quiet and Aware modes).

In a quiet room, the hiss is clearly noticeable. It disappears completely when ANC is turned off. During music playback, it’s barely noticeable unless I specifically listen for it.

I’m not sure if it was this noticeable on the first day or if something changed. I’ve tested different devices, and the result is the same.

For comparison, my Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen) don’t have this constant hiss.

Anyone else with the new Wired Earbuds experiencing this? Is it normal ANC background noise, or could my pair be defective?

Anyone had any luck finding these in the store. If so where should I start.

I just bought a pair of QuietComfort headphones (1st gen) after my 5yo QC45s finally conked out.

Upon putting them on the headband feels very firm and quite uncomfortable. If I feel the headband of the 45s it feels so incredibly soft compared to the new ones.

However, I had been wearing them for a good portion of each day for 5 years, so I don't know if they only got that soft over time.

Can I expect that the headband on the QuietComforts will soften over time, or is it actually just a lot firmer than the headband on the QC45s?

Thank you

Can anyone review their experience of the new Bose wired anc earphones please? I would like to know your guys’s experience with them and specifically whether their anc is good and strong enough for the average user.

Thanks in advance!

Hey there,

I just got the Bose noise cancelling wired earbuds and they are not being recognized by my Oppo Find X9 Ultra.

Things done:

-Made sure to enable the OTG Connection in the Settings.

-Made sure the Disable USB audio Routing setting was disabled under the Developer Options.

-Connected them to my Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra and they worked fine.

-Restarted my phone a few times now.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

The plastic bit around the hinge on my charging case broke. I need to either to replace it entirely or find a way to fix it. I am curious about what tips the community might have about the best way to move forward.

The default price on bose.ca is $130 for a new case. which is unreasonable for defective plastic.
( I used the earbuds for work I work from home so no rough treatment from my part. )
Talked to bose support, I am a year out of warranty and they don't have any courtesy discount to offer.

My initial plan is to go chinese ( aliexpress have a few case ) or fix it myself with sudru or something.
What do you think ?

In light of recent news of bose's new wired ANC headphones... which despite all the excitement don't actually work on plane entertainment systems

Pictured : QC 20s with a $3 adapter & some tape

I need help please I cannot fix this, also people that I spoke with tend to say that my microphone also sounds robotic. If anyone can find a fix that would be great.

I also have a problem that when I open my headphones microphone the sound quality worsens, but I am not sure if its fixable. 🙌thanks!

Just got my first Bose headphone from Amazon today (If I know the Feb firmware problem, I won't order it)

Lucky, I got a old one, it has the one-click switch between connected devices function😀

But when connected to macOS, it shows me the version is 5.0.15, I can't find this version from the official site (5.0.20 is the "Start of production): https://support.bose.com/article/quietcomfort-ultra-headphones-2nd-gen-updating-your-headphones

Any one the same?

I'm hoping someone here has experienced a similar problem and found a reliable solution. I've been troubleshooting this issue for quite some time, and I'm running out of ideas.

My equipment:

• Soundbar: Bose Smart Soundbar (2024), model 439269, part number 892079-1100
• Television: LG OLED65C8PUA (2018 C8 OLED)
• Streaming device: Apple TV 4K, 2nd generation, model A2169
• Remote: Apple TV Siri Remote, used to control the entire system

HDMI connections:

• Apple TV 4K → LG TV HDMI 1
• LG TV HDMI 2 (ARC) → Bose Smart Soundbar

The problem:

I want to use only my Apple TV remote to turn everything on and off. When everything works correctly, it's a great setup.

Unfortunately, approximately half of the time, the Bose soundbar fails to power on when I turn on the system using the Apple TV remote.

The Apple TV and LG television turn on normally, but the Bose soundbar doesn't respond. Sometimes the television switches to its internal speakers instead of the Bose.

To restore sound, I often have to shut everything down, turn on the Bose separately, and then turn the system back on.

This is an intermittent problem. Everything can work several times perfectly in a row, then suddenly fail again without any changes to the settings.

Settings and troubleshooting I've tried:

1. Enabled LG SIMPLINK (HDMI-CEC).
2. Set LG Sound Out to HDMI ARC.
3. Enabled Apple TV's "Control TVs and Receivers" setting.
4. Experimented with several Bose HDMI Power and Audio (CEC) settings, including Options 3, 4, and 7.
5. Option 3 seemed to work approximately two-thirds of the time, but the problem persists.
6. Tried different startup sequences and power cycling the equipment.

None of these changes has provided a consistent solution.

Questions for other Bose owners:

1. Has anyone experienced this problem with the 2024 Bose Smart Soundbar, particularly when connected to an LG OLED and Apple TV 4K?
2. Which Bose HDMI-CEC setting has worked most reliably for your setup?
3. Could this be an HDMI-ARC handshake or timing issue between the three devices?
4. Has replacing the HDMI cable (I'm using the cable that came with the Bose), changing a particular setting, or updating firmware solved the problem?
5. Could the soundbar's Wi-Fi connection or Wi-Fi band contribute to this, or is Wi-Fi unrelated to HDMI-CEC power control?
6. Is there a known compatibility issue between the 2024 Bose Smart Soundbar and older LG OLED televisions?

My goal is simple: Turn on the Apple TV with its remote and have the television and Bose soundbar turn on reliably every time.

I'd particularly appreciate hearing from anyone who has successfully resolved this issue without switching to an optical connection or using multiple remotes.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!