Over-Ear Headphones · owner-verdict comparison

Grado SR80x vs Sony WH-1000XM5: what real owners say

Real owners rate these about evenly: 60% of 55 Grado SR80x owners recommend it, vs 60% of 359 for the Sony WH-1000XM5.

Verdicts aggregated from Reddit, enthusiast forums, and YouTube owner comments — affiliate reviews excluded. Sample sizes differ; judge accordingly. How we score

Grado SR80x

60%of 55 owners recommend
60% recommend · 18% neutral · 22% don't
Full owner report →

Sony WH-1000XM5

60%of 359 owners recommend
60% recommend · 15% neutral · 25% don't
Owners praise
  • Class-leading noise cancellation
  • Comfortable and lightweight for long wear
  • Excellent, well-rounded sound quality
Owners complain about
  • Hinges crack or break, often within a year
  • Sound underwhelming or muddy for the price
  • Headband presses painfully on top of head
Full owner report →

What Grado SR80x owners say

“SR80x (120€ new) was my first audiophile headphone over two years ago. They were so good that within a week I returned them to upgrade to SR225x”
— Hunter-97-G on Reddit
“Grado SR80s were my first decent pair of headphones too, and I still love them - still have them and listen to them something like 15 years later.”
— srmd22 on Reddit
“Using chinese components. And a lot of glue... You'd think with all that American Engineering, we could not use Glue, and instead use... maybe screws?”
— KaosC57 on Reddit

What Sony WH-1000XM5 owners say

“I actually love the fact that they won't fold. Folding make them weaker and they rattle a lot.”
— @LLANTALOBOTOMIK on YouTube
“I think not being foldable will eventually be better for durability in the long term”
— @RaedVS on YouTube
“Wow the sound quality sounds just like my phone speakers”
— @Gpinky765 on YouTube