Sony 1000X The ColleXion Lands as Luxury Anniversary Headphones

The new model, officially listed as the WH-1000XX, arrives as the most expensive 1000X headphone Sony has released to date. That places The ColleXion in more direct conversation with premium lifestyle rivals from Apple and Bowers & Wilkins, rather than simply making it a straight successor to Sony’s mainstream noise-cancelling flagship.

Its arrival follows StereoNET’s earlier report that Sony Australia and New Zealand had briefly exposed the 1000X The ColleXion name through on-site SEO and alt-text information. The later spy shots and CAD-style renders also proved broadly accurate, particularly around the revised metal hinge design, premium finish, non-folding construction and higher-than-XM6 positioning.

Rather than replacing the WH-1000XM6, The ColleXion appears to sit above it as a more luxury-focused expression of Sony’s 1000X series. Sony describes the new model around materials, comfort and spatial listening, rather than presenting it simply as the next step in its mainstream noise-cancelling line.

The most obvious change is physical construction. Sony has moved away from the familiar matte-plastic finish of the XM6, using what it describes as premium crafted metal and soft faux leather across the headphone’s design. The result is a more jewellery-like take on the 1000X formula, though with an obvious trade-off in weight. Sony lists The ColleXion at approximately 320g, compared with the WH-1000XM6 at around 254g.

The headphones do not fold, instead using flat-swivelling ear cups in a similar manner to the earlier WH-1000XM5. That confirms one of the more contentious leak details, particularly given the 1000X series’ long association with travel use.

Inside, The ColleXion uses a 30mm driver, supports DSEE Ultimate, and offers a claimed frequency response of 4Hz to 40kHz when used via the supplied cable with the headphones powered on. Over Bluetooth, Sony lists support for SBC, AAC, LDAC and LC3, with the headphones running Bluetooth 6.0.

Battery life is rated at up to 24 hours with noise cancelling switched on, or up to 32 hours with noise cancelling off. That places The ColleXion behind the WH-1000XM6 for ANC-on playback, with the XM6 rated at up to 30 hours.

Sony’s feature set includes adaptive noise cancelling, ambient sound mode, multipoint connection, 360 Upmix for music, cinema and gaming content, and AI-assisted beamforming for voice calls. The company is also pushing comfort as a major part of the product story, with the headband and ear pad design appearing central to the new model’s positioning.

Early international reviews suggest that positioning may prove important. The broad consensus so far is that The ColleXion feels more premium and more comfortable than the regular XM6, but does not necessarily deliver a dramatic leap in sound quality or noise-cancelling performance. Several reviewers have also noted the higher price, shorter ANC battery life and lack of USB-C audio support as potential sticking points.

At A$999.95 | US$650 | £550 | €630, The ColleXion, lands as the most expensive over-ear model in Sony’s current consumer headphone catalogue. In Australia for example, it sits well above the WH-1000XM6 at A$699 and Apple’s AirPods Max 2 at A$899, while still undercutting the Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2 at A$1,299.

That pricing places Sony’s tenth-anniversary model in a more style-conscious and luxury-oriented part of the wireless headphone market, while leaving the WH-1000XM6 as the more practical noise-cancelling flagship for most buyers. 

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