Bose QuietComfort Ultra 2

Is this a step backwards for the audio pioneers?

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Two years ago, Bose launched its QuietComfort Ultra headphones and they were excellent, their active noise-cancelling (ANC) tech hugely impressing critics and customers alike.

Now we have a second-generation version. There are tweaks, revisions and upgrades here, but having tested the new cans against the old version, there's one thing that stands out: Bose has taken a noise-cancelling step backwards.

This is a rare thing to put in a review, but the 2025 QC Ultras can't quite match the originals for their ANC performance. They're still among the best headphones out there, though, given they sound great - but is that enough?