Originally Posted by
PTravel
They don't have the same sound profile of the QC25s when used in wireless mode. Here's a rather simple explanation why:
http://www.cnet.com/news/can-aptx-gi...ver-bluetooth/
The bottom line is this: Bose QC35s are SBC, not aptX. Though the phones themselves may have the same sound profile as the non-Bluetooth QC25, when used wireless, you're listening to significantly degraded audio. If you listen to music from your phone (which is a general purpose device and doesn't deliver HD audio), listening over Bluetooth will degrade the audio but you probably won't notice. On the other, if, like me, you use an HD player (I have a Fiio X5ii), you most certainly will notice the difference between Bluetooth and wired.
Bose phones are only so-so with respect to sound quality, but industry-leading noise cancellation is a worthwhile trade-off (and no other active noise-cancellation phones have better audio quality). However, Bose's implementation of Bluetooth only transforms them from so-so phones to wireless considerably-less-than-so-so phones. This may not matter to many people, but I think everyone should know exactly what it is that they're buying.
We absolutely agree. I am not arguing against the fact that the sound is worse over Bluetooth than over wire in general.
But in practise there are no distinguishable differences in the sound with the QC25 and QC35 and this is pretty much the consensus amongst all reviewers and I also share the same personal experiences.
On the phone you are likely listening to lossless formats and even if using a cable the sound you can get is nowhere near what you can get when plugged into a receiver or an amplifier or a DAC.
Even an SBC Bluetooth audio can transmit 384kb/s of stereo audio which would be more than your typical encoded MP3.
But if you are the sort of person that will carry a DAC with them to listen to music or use an HD player you are probably not the target market for these cans and I can safely assume that 99.999% of the population doesn't carry one with them either.
If you are an audiophile you won't be satisfied with either the QC25 or QC35 and you can find cheaper (and more expensive) headphones with better sound. You get the QCs for their best in class ANC, comfort and their decent enough sound.
I am not an audiophile but I enjoy good quality sound so I own quite a few pairs of headphones at various prices and have a relatively high end audio setup at home. There is no limit to what someone can spend on audio gear.
Again if you plan to carry an HD player, DAC or be plugged in at home listening to lossless formats then don't get the QC35 or the QC25 for that matter.
But I suspect you are an exception in that that's why you carry an HD player with you to start with although I appreciate that you do want the best in class ANC that the Bose offer.
In your case you would probably use the QC35 plugged in for the better audio anyway but me on the other hand I would prefer not having that wire even with the worse sound (which would not be actually distinguishable with how 99.99% of people actually use these headphones) and would not be noticed even by most audiophiles using lossless formats and HD audio equipment on blind tests - but that's another topic and a whole another discussion all together.