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- Table of Contents
- Top
- Main Differences
- Design
- Sound
- Isolation
- Microphone
- Active Features
- Connectivity
- Comments
Apple AirPods Max vs Superlux HD 681
Side-by-Side Comparison
Products
Apple AirPods Max
Superlux HD 681
Tested using Methodology v1.8
Updated Feb 10, 2025 03:32 PM
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comTested using Methodology v1.8
Updated Dec 09, 2024 07:16 PM
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Amazon.com
TypeOver-ear
Noise CancellingYes
EnclosureClosed-Back
WirelessYes
TransducerDynamic
MicYes
TypeOver-ear
Noise CancellingNo
EnclosureSemi-Open
WirelessNo
TransducerDynamic
MicNo
Variants
- AirPods Max (USB-C) (Blue)
- AirPods Max (Lightning) (Green)
- AirPods Max (USB-C) (Midnight)
- AirPods Max (USB-C) (Orange)
- AirPods Max (Lightning) (Pink)
- AirPods Max (USB-C) (Purple)
- AirPods Max (Lightning) (Silver)
- AirPods Max (Lightning) (Sky Blue)
- AirPods Max (Lightning) (Space Gray)
- AirPods Max (USB-C) (Starlight)
- HD 681
Our Verdict
Apple AirPods Max
Superlux HD 681
Full comparison details regarding individual product score sets can be found in the section below
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Blue
AirPods Max (USB-C)
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HD 681
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Amazon.comGreen
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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HD 681
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Amazon.comMidnight
AirPods Max (USB-C)
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AirPods Max (USB-C)
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AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Finding storePurple
AirPods Max (USB-C)
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Finding storeSilver
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Finding storeSky Blue
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Finding storeSpace Gray
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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AirPods Max (USB-C)
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Finding storeMain Differences for
Threshold
Neutral Sound
7.5
7.9
Passive Soundstage
4.1
7.8
Bass Profile: Target Compliance
9.6
7.4
Treble Profile: Target Compliance
4.9
6.9
Full Comparison
Design
Style
Design Picture 2
Type
Over-ear
Over-ear
Enclosure
Closed-Back
Semi-Open
Wireless
Yes
No
Transducer
Dynamic
Dynamic
Comfort
7.0
7.5
Comfort Picture
Weight
0.85 lbs
0.5 lbs
Clamping Force
1.2 lbs
0.9 lbs
Controls
7.9
0.0
Controls Picture
OS Compatibility
iOS
No Controls
Ease Of Use
Great
No Controls
Feedback
Good
No Controls
Call/Music Control
Yes
No
Volume Control
Yes
No
Microphone Control
No
No
Channel Mixing
No
No
Noise Cancelling Control
On/Off
No
Talk-Through
On/Off
No
Additional Controls
Voice Assistant
No
Breathability
6.1
6.8
Breathability After Picture
Avg.Temp.Difference
6.7 °C
4.8 °C
Portability
6.0
5.4
Portability Picture
L
7.8" (19.8 cm)
8.0" (20.3 cm)
W
7.5" (19.1 cm)
7.2" (18.3 cm)
H
1.7" (4.3 cm)
3.5" (8.9 cm)
Volume
99.00 in³ (1,622.31 cm³)
201.00 in³ (3,293.79 cm³)
Transmitter Required
No
No
Case
6.0
5.5
Case Picture
Type
Soft case
No case
L
7.9" (20.1 cm)
N/A
W
8.5" (21.6 cm)
N/A
H
1.7" (4.3 cm)
N/A
Volume
114.00 in³ (1,868.12 cm³)
N/A
Build Quality
8.0
5.5
Build Quality Picture
Stability
6.5
6.0
Stability Picture
Headshots 1
Angled Picture
Side Picture
Headshots 2
Front Picture
Rear Picture
Top
Top Picture
In The Box
In The Box Picture
Sound
Sound Profile
Sound Profile
Normalization Frequency
400 Hz
1,500 Hz
Bass Amount
1.5 dB
-4.2 dB
Treble Amount
-4.4 dB
1.6 dB
Frequency Response Consistency
7.1
7.8
Consistency L
Consistency R
Avg. Std. Deviation
0.6 dB
0.44 dB
Raw Frequency Response
Bass Profile: Target Compliance
9.6
7.4
Bass Profile: Target Compliance
RMS Deviation From Target
1.5 dB
5.5 dB
Low-Frequency Extension
20 Hz
27.29 Hz
Low Bass
1.72 dB
-7.23 dB
Mid Bass
1.15 dB
-2.34 dB
High Bass
1.49 dB
-1.53 dB
Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance
8.7
9.1
Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance
RMS Deviation From Target
1.3 dB
1.01 dB
Low Mid
0.49 dB
-1.12 dB
Mid-Mid
0.2 dB
-0.96 dB
High Mid
-1.34 dB
0.38 dB
Treble Profile: Target Compliance
4.9
6.9
Treble Profile: Target Compliance
RMS Deviation From Target
5.14 dB
3.39 dB
Low Treble
-4.28 dB
-0.24 dB
Mid Treble
-4.58 dB
4.05 dB
High Treble
-3.65 dB
-1.81 dB
Peaks/Dips
7.9
7.7
Peaks/Dips Graph
Peaks
1.01 dB
1.1 dB
Dips
2.31 dB
2.39 dB
Imaging
7.7
8.1
Phase Response Mismatch
Weighted Group Delay
0.12
0.26
Weighted Phase Mismatch
2.91
12.02
Weighted Amplitude Mismatch
2.33
0.76
Weighted Frequency Mismatch
2.86
1.71
Passive Soundstage
4.1
7.8
PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.)
4.28 dB
1.58 dB
PRTF Size (Avg.)
6.81 dB
6.36 dB
PRTF Distance
5.22 dB
11.68 dB
Openness
1.7
9.2
Acoustic Space Excitation
3.3
6.7
Virtual Soundstage
2.9
0.0
Virtual Soundstage
Head Modeling
No
No
Speaker Modeling
On/Off
No
Room Ambience
No
No
Head Tracking
On/Off
No
Virtual Surround
Spatial Audio
No App
Weighted Harmonic Distortion
7.7
7.6
Weighted Harmonic Distortion
WHD @ 90
0.337
0.145
WHD @ 100
0.125
0.313
Test Settings
Firmware
3B71
No Firmware
Power
On
Passive
Connection
Bluetooth 5.0
Wired
Codec
SBC, 16-bit, 48kHz
PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz
Test Instrument
TP-Link BE9300 BT 5.4
Audio Precision APx517B
EQ
Adaptive EQ
No EQ
ANC
On
No ANC
Tip/Pad
Default
Default
Microphone
Integrated
No Microphone
Isolation
Noise Isolation - Full Range
9.4
2.6
Noise Isolation - Full Range Graph
Noise Cancelling
Yes
No
Overall Attenuation
-26.06 dB
-5.95 dB
Bass
-19.54 dB
0.18 dB
Mid
-30.62 dB
-0.14 dB
Treble
-28.95 dB
-19.85 dB
Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios
9.0
2.8
Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios Graph
Airplane Noise Attenuation
-21.85 dB
-5.04 dB
Airplane Noise Isolation Audio
Office Noise Attenuation
-19.98 dB
-5.31 dB
Office Noise Isolation Audio
Street Noise Attenuation
-21.92 dB
-5.59 dB
Street Noise Isolation Audio
Noise Isolation - Voice Handling
Female Voice 1
Male Voice 1
Female Voice 2
Male Voice 2
Leakage
7.1
4.3
Leakage Audio
Overall Leakage @ 1ft
38.88 dB
52.9 dB
Microphone
Microphone Style
Integrated
Yes
No
In-Line
No
No
Boom
No
No
Detachable Boom
No
No
Mic
Yes
No
Recording Quality
6.6
0.0
Microphone Frequency Response
Recorded Speech
N/A
LFE
273 Hz
N/A
FR Std. Dev.
2.77 dB
N/A
HFE
3,466.89 Hz
N/A
Weighted THD
3.025
N/A
Gain
15.85 dB
N/A
Noise Handling
5.0
0.0
SpNR
9.61 dB
N/A
Noise Gate
No
No
Speech + Pink Noise Handling
5.0
N/A
Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample
N/A
Speech + Subway Noise Handling
5.0
N/A
Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample
N/A
Active Features
Battery
8.3
0.0
Battery Type
Rechargable
No Battery
Continuous Battery Life
21.6 hrs
N/A
Additional Charges
0.0
N/A
Total Battery Life
21.6 hrs
N/A
Charge Time
1.5 hrs
N/A
Power-Saving Feature
Standby mode
No
Audio While Charging
Yes
No
Passive Playback
No
Passive Headphone
Charging Port
Lightning
None
App Support
6.0
0.0
App Picture
App Name
iOS Interface
No App
iOS
Yes
No
Android
No
No
macOS
Yes
No
Windows
No
No
Equalizer
No
No
ANC Control
On/Off
No
Mic Control
No
No
Room Effects
No
No
Playback Control
No
No
Button Mapping
No
No
Surround Support
Yes
No
Connectivity
Wired Connection
9.3
9.1
Cable Picture
Analog Audio
Yes
Yes
USB Audio
No
No
Detachable
Yes
No
Length
N/A
8.00 ft (2.44 m)
Connector
Lightning
1/8" TRS
Latency - Analog
1.7 ms
0.2 ms
Latency - USB
N/A
N/A
Recorded Latency
Recorded Latency Connection
Analog
Analog
Bluetooth Connection
7.9
0.0
Bluetooth Version
5.0+H1 chip
No Bluetooth
Multi-Device Pairing
No
No
Quick Pair (Android)
No
No
Quick Pair (iOS)
Yes
No
Line Of Sight Range
328.00 ft (99.97 m)
N/A
Latency - SBC
185 ms
N/A
Latency - aptX
N/A
N/A
Latency - aptX Adaptive (High Quality)
N/A
N/A
Latency - aptX Adaptive (Low Latency)
N/A
N/A
Latency - LDAC
N/A
N/A
Recorded Latency
N/A
Recorded Latency Codec
SBC
No Bluetooth Audio
AAC Support
Yes
No
Wireless Connection (Dongle)
0.0
0.0
Line Of Sight Range
N/A
N/A
Latency - Dongle
N/A
N/A
Recorded Latency
N/A
N/A
PC Compatibility
Analog
No
Audio Only
Wired USB
No
No
Non-BT Wireless
No
No
PlayStation Compatibility
PS4 Analog
No
Audio Only
PS4 Wired USB
No
No
PS4 Non-BT Wireless
No
No
PS5 Analog
No
Audio Only
PS5 Wired USB
No
No
PS5 Non-BT Wireless
No
No
Xbox Compatibility
Xbox One Analog
No
Audio Only
Xbox One Wired USB
No
No
Xbox One Non-BT Wireless
No
No
Xbox Series X|S Analog
No
Audio Only
Xbox Series X|S Wired USB
No
No
Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless
No
No
Base/Dock
0.0
0.0
Type
No Base/Dock
No Base/Dock
USB Input
No
No
Line In
No
No
Line Out
No
No
Optical Input
No
No
RCA Input
No
No
Dock Charging
No
No
Power Supply
No Base/Dock
No Base/Dock
Check Price
Blue
AirPods Max (USB-C)
Searching
Finding storeStandard
HD 681
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comGreen
AirPods Max (Lightning)
Searching
Finding storeStandard
HD 681
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comMidnight
AirPods Max (USB-C)
Searching
Finding storeOrange
AirPods Max (USB-C)
Searching
Finding storePink
AirPods Max (Lightning)
Searching
Finding storePurple
AirPods Max (USB-C)
Searching
Finding storeSilver
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Finding storeSky Blue
AirPods Max (Lightning)
Searching
Finding storeSpace Gray
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Finding storeStarlight
AirPods Max (USB-C)
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Finding store
Apple AirPods Max
Superlux HD 681
Comments
Apple AirPods Max vs Superlux HD 681: Main Discussion
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