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AnusDingus t1_is4pmvh wrote

Reply to comment by Rilandaras in Most discriminating audio reviewer by SnooStories7223

There's been a battery drain issue going on with the xm4's where the right earbud drains within 1hr as compared to the 6 hours of the left one. Its a firmware issue from version 1.4.2 that has yet to be patched.

IIRC only newly purchased earbuds have the new 1.5.0 firmware that kinda addresses the unintended drain.

Those who have the issue have no choice but to send it for repairs/replacement, meaning those who bought it at launch are shit out of luck cuz of expired warranty.

You can look it up for more info im just going off memory. Oh and you cant rollback the firmware without a 3rd party tool, well for the xm3's at least not sure about the xm4.

Edit: Pinned thread on r/sonyheadphones

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o0Spoonman0o t1_is4uiqp wrote

Those that have the issue can escalate with Sony and they will replace them with a new pair that has a 90 day warranty.

I know this because I and others have done it. Not that I'm defending Sony as when my new ones arrive I'm selling them. They way they've handled this is dogshit, expecting customers to fit the bill for their shit defective batteries. I loathe companies that force you to fight with them for proper service. I'll be selling my xm4's unopened when they show up.

Sony has lost me as a customer for awhile. I don't appreciate being advised to send out a flagship product, just outside of "warranty" because it's got a defective battery or they fucked their firmware up or w/e. Lithium ion battery that dies in just over a year = defective.

There's nothing a customer can do within reason to kill these batteries that quickly.

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AnusDingus t1_is4wdkn wrote

I kinda empathise with you because I've had the same shit to deal with from topping. My xm3's are also going bonkers out of nowhere due to the software updates. I almost bought the xm4 but luckily i decided to google about xm4 problems. Even the cheaper WF-C500 has hissing noise issues from the get go. Im staying away from sony for now.

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o0Spoonman0o t1_is4z9hp wrote

Honestly I think it was a bit of a blessing, I'll sell the Sony's when they show up. I replaced them with some (unbelievably cheap) Liberty 3 pro's; which are really not bad sonically and have a better fit/control scheme (though I do miss the hold to listen function of the Sony's at times). Really impressed with these little things for what I paid.

I'm going back to wired IEM's for my serious listening. I only tried the TWS market out because my workhorse Shure's died and I figured why not-well I now know the answer to why not.

I forgot how great proper wired IEM's can sound; I think my shure's were dying for awhile and I had become really accustomed to their signature which is really dark (the IEM hobby was very different 15+ years ago).

Currently demo'ing the 7hz timeless with some s12's on the way, the value that exists in the wired IEM world with the explosion of ChiFi is unreal.

I'm a happy fella and these headphones with batteries can fuck off :)

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Rilandaras t1_is4q6ez wrote

Well, I've only had the headphones for about 4 months but they've NEVER done that. Version is 1.4.2, I just checked. The right one does seem to drain just a tiny bit quicker (like 10-15 minutes less battery life) but I think that's because I remove the left ear bud from time to time.

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o0Spoonman0o t1_is4umza wrote

Tiny bit is normal. You'll know if this affects you because one of your buds will die in about an hour.

If this does happen earlier than 3-4 years of use fight with Sony. The battery should last 2000+ charges, you're not pulling that shit off in a couple years

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AnusDingus t1_is4vgjm wrote

Well you're probably lucky then, I'd still be monitoring the batteries if i were you. Theres a pinned thread on r/sonyheadphones about it

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