Apple has finally released lossless audio and a new low-latency mode to the AirPods Max with USB-C. I’ve been testing this for a week, and while I’m glad it’s here, I’m not sure if it meaningfully improves AirPods Max into a valuable piece of professional audio gear; there is one caveat for musicians looking to master in Dolby Atmos with head tracking, but I’m not sure if that’s actually a selling feature.
How to get this update if you already own AirPods Max with USB-C
To update the headphones, you must also ensure that your Apple devices are running the latest software. Updating your devices to at least iOS 18.4/macOS 15.4 is easy, but there is no easy way to manually update AirPods. You need to wirelessly connect them to your device, plug them into power and hope for the best.
There was a brief delay in the rollout of this software, so while my phone got iOS 18.4 on March 31, I couldn’t update the headphones until April 4. This might not sound like a big deal, but the first two days of the stall, there was no reporting on it, so I didn’t know it was happening and didn’t use the headphones for two days as I left them plugged in on my desk, hoping an update would mysteriously arrive so I could start testing. This would have all been avoided if Apple had an actual update button for AirPods like it does for Beats on Android.
How does it sound?
After the update, I plugged in the headphones and listened to lossless audio from my phone. It sounded great, but be aware that the noticeable differences in quality are hard to perceive at this level. Even within Apple Music, there are both ‘Lossless’ and ‘High-Resoultion Lossless,’ and hearing the difference between them on AirPods Max is nearly impossible, even when using the highest-resolution files.
The AirPods Max over USB-C have a sharper clarity over a wire compared to Bluetooth, but it’s really hard to notice the difference. I even had to pull out my older set of AirPods Max (Lightning) and bounce back and forth a lot while listening to high-res audio from Bon Iver, the Beach Boys and others.
If you look for it, lossless audio over a wire might have a better chance of raising some goosebumps on your arms, but once you get lost in your music, it sounds pretty good over Bluetooth, too. The AirPods Max have a large soundstage and great tuning, so they feel premium no matter what quality you’re listening to.
Other quirks
You need to go into the Apple Music settings on all your devices to enable high-resolution audio. Beyond this, I’m still a little annoyed that AirPods Max doesn’t use H2 chips, so it can’t do wireless lossless audio. AirPods Pro 2 can provide lossless audio from a Vision Pro, proving that Apple has a wireless lossless audio codec. You can also stream lossless wirelessly while using a OnePlus phone and earbuds.
I’m not saying I want to use AirPods Max with my Vision Pro, but if Apple releases a version of that wireless protocol for Mac or iPhone and I can’t use AirPods Max with it, that’s going to suck. And while using a cable isn’t the end of the world, it does take away from some of the magic of being able to walk around and move between Apple devices seamlessly.
Sometimes, when I plug the cable into my devices, the audio doesn’t move to the headphones instantly, and I need to unplug it, connect it to Bluetooth, and then plug it back in to receive audio over the wire.
There’s no doubt that lossless music sounds great on AirPods Max, but for their price ($779), the fact that you can’t do lossless over a 3.5mm jack or wirelessly makes them feel a little incomplete.
It’s nice that I can now plug in my Max to get low latency when editing video, but due to how uncomfortable I find them, I rarely wear them any longer than I have to when working on audio.
Looking out into the world, I’ve seen people using AirPods Max more as a fashion accessory than as a serious pair of headphones. Don’t get me wrong, they’re great-sounding headphones, but compared to the rest of the Bluetooth over-ear market, they are more expensive and less comfortable than a lot of the competition. Plus, most other Bluetooth sets have had lossless audio via a cable for years.
I’ve had a pair of AirPods Max for years, and while I love regular AirPods for their ease of use on the go, the large size of the Max sort of negates how travel-friendly they are. So, while the Max sounds the best, I find myself using AirPods Pro 2 the most because they’re comfortable.
Overall, there are some nice improvements to the AirPods Max package that make them more useful to creators, but their high cost is likely to continue to be a barrier that pushes people towards more affordable wired headphones for their desk or just regular AirPods.
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