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  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Style
    2. Comfort
    3. Controls
    4. Breathability
    5. Portability
    6. Case
    7. Build Quality
    8. Stability
    9. Headshots 1
    10. Headshots 2
    11. Top
    12. In The Box
  5. Sound
    1. Sound Profile
    2. Frequency Response Consistency
    3. Raw Frequency Response
    4. Bass Accuracy
    5. Mid Accuracy
    6. Treble Accuracy
    7. Peaks/Dips
    8. Imaging
    9. Passive Soundstage
    10. Virtual Soundstage
    11. Weighted Harmonic Distortion
    12. Test Settings
  6. Isolation
    1. Noise Isolation
    2. Leakage
  7. Microphone
    1. Microphone Style
    2. Recording Quality
    3. Noise Handling
  8. Active Features
    1. Battery
    2. App Support
  9. Connectivity
    1. Bluetooth
    2. Non-Bluetooth Wireless
    3. Wired
    4. PC Compatibility
    5. PC / PS4 Compatibility
    6. PlayStation Compatibility
    7. Xbox Compatibility
    8. Base/Dock
  10. Comments

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 vs Jaybird X3 Wireless

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20
Jaybird X3 Wireless

Tested using Methodology v1.5

Updated Oct 05, 2022 05:48 PM

Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v1.3.1

Updated Dec 03, 2021 10:44 PM

SEE PRICE
B&H
Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Picture

Variants

  • QuietComfort 20 (Android, Black)
  • QuietComfort 20 (Android, White)
  • QuietComfort 20 (iOS, Black)
  • QuietComfort 20 (iOS, White)
  • X3 (Alpha Green)
  • X3 (Blackout)
  • X3 (Red)
  • X3 (Sparta White)

Our Verdict

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20

Jaybird X3 Wireless

The Jaybird X3 Wireless are a slightly better and more versatile in-ear/earbud than the Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20. The Bose have excellent isolation which makes them a far better choice for commute and travel than the Jaybirds. They also have a more comfortable earbud fit that you can wear for longer than the Jaybird. On the other hand, the Jaybird are better and more convenient sports headphone thanks to their wireless design. They also have a better default sound quality and come with an EQ so you can customize them to sound the way you like, unlike the Bose.

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QuietComfort 20
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QuietComfort 20
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QuietComfort 20
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Main Differences for
Mixed Usage

Threshold 

0.10

Mixed Usage 

7.1
No major differences between these headphones for mixed usage. See full list of tests below.

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Design Picture 2  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Design Picture 2
Jaybird X3 Wireless Design Picture 2

Type  

Earbuds
In-ear

Enclosure  

Closed-Back
Closed-Back

Wireless  

No
Yes

Transducer  

Dynamic
Dynamic
Show Text 

Comfort 
 

7.5
6.5

Comfort Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Comfort Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Comfort Picture

Weight  

0.09 lbs
0.04 lbs

Clamping Force 
 

0 lbs
0 lbs
Show Text 

Controls 
 

7.7
7.4

Controls Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Controls Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Controls Picture

OS Compatibility 
 

iOS
N/A

Ease Of Use  

Great
Good

Feedback  

Decent
Decent

Call/Music Control  

Yes
Yes

Volume Control  

Yes
Yes

Microphone Control  

No
No

Channel Mixing 
 

No
N/A

Noise Cancelling Control  

On/Off
N/A

Talk-Through 
 

On/Off
N/A

Additional Controls  

No
No
Show Text 

Breathability 
 

8.9
9.3

Breathability After Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Breathability After Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Breathability After Picture

Avg.Temp.Difference  

1.1 °C
0.7 °C
Show Text 

Portability 
 

8.3
8.5

Portability Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Portability Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Portability Picture

 

4.7" (11.9 cm)
3"

 

1.6" (4.1 cm)
3"

 

1.2" (3.0 cm)
0.8"

Volume  

8.80 in³ (144.21 cm³)
7 in³

Transmitter Required  

No
N/A
Show Text 

Case 
 

7.0
6.0

Case Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Case Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Case Picture

Type  

Soft case
Pouch

 

5.1" (13.0 cm)
N/A

 

2.8" (7.1 cm)
N/A

 

0.8" (2.0 cm)
N/A

Volume  

11.20 in³ (183.53 cm³)
N/A
Show Text 

Build Quality 
 

7.5
7.5

Build Quality Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Build Quality Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Build Quality Picture
Show Text 

Stability 
 

7.5
8.0

Stability Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Stability Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Stability Picture
Show Text 

Headshots 1  

Angled Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Angled Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Angled Picture

Side Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Side Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Side Picture

Headshots 2  

Front Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Front Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Front Picture

Rear Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Rear Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Rear Picture

Top  

Top Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Top Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Top Picture

In The Box  

In The Box Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 In The Box Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless In The Box Picture
Show Text 
Sound

Sound Profile 
 

Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool

Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool

Bass Amount 
 

0.27 dB
1.51 dB

Treble Amount 
 

-4.38 dB
-2.84 dB

Frequency Response Consistency 
 

7.8
9.5

Consistency L  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Consistency R  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Avg. Std. Deviation 
 

0.43 dB
0.11 dB
Show Text 

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw FR L  

See details on graph tool

Raw FR L  

See details on graph tool

Raw FR R  

See details on graph tool

Raw FR R  

See details on graph tool

Bass Accuracy 
 

7.5
8.3

Bass  

See details on graph tool

Bass  

See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

3.65 dB
2.4 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

22.45 Hz
10 Hz

Low-Bass 
 

1.58 dB
1.69 dB

Mid-Bass 
 

4.02 dB
1.84 dB

High-Bass 
 

4.8 dB
3.77 dB
Show Text 

Mid Accuracy 
 

7.7
8.7

Mid  

See details on graph tool

Mid  

See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

3.03 dB
1.78 dB

Low-Mid 
 

3.16 dB
1.56 dB

Mid-Mid 
 

-3.15 dB
-2 dB

High-Mid 
 

-0.02 dB
0.65 dB
Show Text 

Treble Accuracy 
 

8.3
6.9

Treble  

See details on graph tool

Treble  

See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

2.65 dB
4.42 dB

Low-Treble 
 

1.71 dB
-0.75 dB

Mid-Treble 
 

-1.73 dB
0.29 dB

High-Treble 
 

-20.85 dB
-7.98 dB
Show Text 

Peaks/Dips 
 

6.3
6.4

Peaks/Dips Graph  

See details on graph tool

Peaks/Dips Graph  

See details on graph tool

Peaks 
 

2.69 dB
2.47 dB

Dips 
 

1.51 dB
1.57 dB

Imaging 
 

8.6
8.1

Group Delay  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Phase Response  

See details on graph tool

Phase Response Mismatch  

See details on graph tool

Weighted Group Delay 
 

0.36
0.13

Weighted Phase Mismatch 
 

1.92
20

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch 
 

0.83
0.64

Weighted Frequency Mismatch 
 

1.63
1.28
Show Text 

Passive Soundstage 
 

0.5
0.5

PRTF  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 PRTF
Jaybird X3 Wireless PRTF

PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.) 
 

N/A
N/A

PRTF Size (Avg.) 
 

N/A
N/A

PRTF Distance 
 

N/A
N/A

Openness 
 

0.8
2.3

Acoustic Space Excitation 
 

1.1
0.2
Show Text 

Virtual Soundstage 
 

0.0

Virtual Soundstage  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling 
 

No

Speaker Modeling 
 

No

Room Ambience 
 

No

Head Tracking 
 

No

Virtual Surround 
 

No App

Weighted Harmonic Distortion 
 

7.5
7.2

Weighted Harmonic Distortion  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

WHD @ 90 
 

0.179
0.219

WHD @ 100 
 

0.241
0.376

Test Settings 
 

Firmware 
 

No Firmware

Power 
 

On

Connection 
 

Wired

Codec 
 

PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz

EQ 
 

No EQ

ANC 
 

On

Tip/Pad 
 

Silicone (small)

Microphone 
 

In-line
Isolation

Noise Isolation 
 

9.2
7.7

Noise Isolation  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Isolation Audio 
 

Overall Attenuation 
 

-24.42 dB
-23.51 dB

Noise Cancelling  

Yes
No

Bass 
 

-23.88 dB
-8.28 dB

Mid 
 

-20.86 dB
-20.12 dB

Treble 
 

-28.06 dB
-43.12 dB
Show Text 

Leakage 
 

9.1
9.9

Leakage  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Leakage Audio 
 

Overall Leakage @ 1ft 
 

26.86 dB
21.83 dB
Show Text 
Microphone

Microphone Style 
 

Integrated 
 

No
Yes

In-Line 
 

Yes
No

Boom 
 

No
No

Detachable Boom 
 

No
N/A

Mic  

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Recording Quality 
 

7.5
6.0

Microphone Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Recorded Speech 
 

LFE 
 

515.36 Hz
486.43 Hz

FR Std. Dev. 
 

2.46 dB
2.33 dB

HFE 
 

17,984.02 Hz
3,466.89 Hz

Weighted THD 
 

0.955
3.452

Gain 
 

20.19 dB
38.52 dB
Show Text 

Noise Handling 
 

6.7
6.2

SpNR  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

SpNR 
 

12.18 dB
14.23 dB

Noise Gate 
 

No

Speech + Pink Noise Handling 
 

6.5

Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample  

Speech + Subway Noise Handling 
 

7.0

Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample  

Show Text 
Active Features

Battery 
 

7.9
6.1

Battery Type 
 

Rechargable
Rechargable

Continuous Battery Life 
 

19 hrs
7.1 hrs

Additional Charges 
 

0.0
0

Total Battery Life 
 

19 hrs
7.1 hrs

Charge Time 
 

1.8 hrs
1.7 hrs

Power-Saving Feature 
 

No
Standby mode

Audio While Charging 
 

Yes
No

Passive Playback 
 

Yes
No

Charging Port  

micro-USB
micro-USB
Show Text 

App Support 
 

0.0
8.0

App Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 App Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless App Picture

App Name  

No App
Jaybird MySound

iOS  

No
Yes

Android  

No
Yes

macOS  

No
N/A

Windows  

No
N/A

Equalizer 
 

No
Parametric + Presets

ANC Control 
 

No
N/A

Mic Control  

No
N/A

Room Effects 
 

No
No

Playback Control 
 

No
No

Button Mapping  

No
N/A

Surround Sound  

N/A

Surround Support 
 

No
Show Text 
Connectivity

Bluetooth 
 

0.0
8.5

Bluetooth Version 
 

No Bluetooth
4.1

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

No
2 Devices

NFC Pairing 
 

No
No

Line Of Sight Range 
 

N/A
191 ft

PC Latency (SBC) 
 

N/A
180 ms

PC Latency (aptX) 
 

N/A
N/A

PC Latency (aptX HD) 
 

N/A

PC Latency (aptX-LL) 
 

N/A
N/A

iOS Latency 
 

N/A

Android Latency 
 

N/A
Show Text 

Non-Bluetooth Wireless 
 

0.0
0.0

Non-BT Line Of Sight Range 
 

N/A
N/A

Non-BT Latency 
 

N/A
N/A

Wired 
 

9.0
0.0

Cable Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Cable Picture
Jaybird X3 Wireless Cable Picture

Analog Audio 
 

Yes
N/A

USB Audio 
 

No
N/A

Detachable  

No
No

Length  

4.33 ft (1.32 m)
N/A

Connection 
 

1/8" TRRS
N/A

Wired Latency 
 

N/A

Analog/USB Audio Latency 
 

0 ms
Show Text 

PC Compatibility 
 

Analog 
 

Audio Only

Wired USB 
 

No

Non-BT Wireless 
 

No

PC / PS4 Compatibility 
 

PC / PS4 Analog 
 

Audio Only
No

PC / PS4 Wired USB 
 

No
No

PC / PS4 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

PlayStation Compatibility 
 

PS4 Analog 
 

Audio Only
No

PS4 Wired USB 
 

No
No

PS4 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

PS5 Analog 
 

Audio + Microphone

PS5 Wired USB 
 

No

PS5 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No

Xbox Compatibility 
 

Xbox One Analog 
 

Audio Only
No

Xbox One Wired USB 
 

No
No

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Xbox Series X|S Analog 
 

Audio Only

Xbox Series X|S Wired USB 
 

No

Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless 
 

No

Base/Dock 
 

0.0
0.0

Type 
 

No Base/Dock
N/A

USB Input 
 

No
N/A

Line In 
 

No
N/A

Line Out 
 

No
N/A

Optical Input 
 

No
N/A

RCA Input 
 

No
N/A

Dock Charging 
 

No
N/A

Power Supply 
 

No Base/Dock
N/A
Show Text 

Check Price

Android, Black
QuietComfort 20
Searching
Finding store
Android, White
QuietComfort 20
Searching
Finding store
iOS, Black
QuietComfort 20
Searching
Finding store
iOS, White
QuietComfort 20
Searching
Finding store

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20

Jaybird X3 Wireless

Comments

  1. Comparison

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 vs Jaybird X3 Wireless: Main Discussion

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