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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 Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless

Tested using Methodology v1.5

Updated Oct 05, 2022 05:48 PM

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Tested using Methodology v1.4

Updated Oct 20, 2021 08:14 PM

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Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Picture

Variants

  • QuietComfort 20 (Android, Black)
  • QuietComfort 20 (Android, White)
  • QuietComfort 20 (iOS, Black)
  • QuietComfort 20 (iOS, White)
  • QuietControl 30

Our Verdict

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20

Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless

The Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless are a better option for most uses if you want to go wireless; however, for a wired earbud, the Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 are a good choice. The QC 30 benefit from the greater range of a Bluetooth connection. They also have a bit more control over their noise cancelling feature when compared to the QC 20. On the upside, the QC 20 have no latency, since they are wired. They also have a slightly stronger noise isolation performance than the QC 30. Also, since they have a simple wired design, they are a bit more portable and will easily fit into your pockets, unlike the QC 30.

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Android, Black
QuietComfort 20
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QuietControl 30
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Android, White
QuietComfort 20
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QuietControl 30
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iOS, Black
QuietComfort 20
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Standard
QuietControl 30
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iOS, White
QuietComfort 20
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QuietControl 30
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QuietControl 30
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Notice: Two or more of the products selected have been tested with different test methodologies, so some of the results below aren't directly comparable. Learn how our test benches and scoring system work, and read more about the latest changes to our headphones test methodology.

Main Differences for

Threshold 

0.10

Mixed Usage 

7.3
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
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Design Picture 2

Type  

Earbuds
Earbuds

Enclosure  

Closed-Back
Closed-Back

Wireless  

No
Yes

Transducer  

Dynamic
Dynamic

Show text

Comfort 
 

7.5
7.5

Comfort Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Comfort Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Comfort Picture

Weight  

0.09 lbs
0.14 lbs

Clamping Force 
 

0 lbs
0 lbs

Show text

Controls 
 

7.7
7.5

Controls Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Controls Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Controls Picture

OS Compatibility 
 

iOS
Not OS specific

Ease Of Use  

Great
Good

Feedback  

Decent
Okay

Call/Music Control  

Yes
Yes

Volume Control  

Yes
Yes

Microphone Control  

No
No

Channel Mixing 
 

No
No

Noise Cancelling Control  

On/Off
Adjustable

Talk-Through 
 

On/Off
Adjustable

Additional Controls  

No
No

Show text

Breathability 
 

8.9
8.9

Breathability After Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Breathability After Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Breathability After Picture

Avg.Temp.Difference  

1.1 °C
1.1 °C

Show text

Portability 
 

8.3
7.2

Portability Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Portability Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Portability Picture

 

4.7" (11.9 cm)
5.81"

 

1.6" (4.1 cm)
6.38"

 

1.2" (3.0 cm)
0.8"

Volume  

8.80 in³ (144.21 cm³)
29.65 in³

Transmitter Required  

No
No

Show text

Case 
 

7.0
8.0

Case Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Case Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Case Picture

Type  

Soft case
Hard case

 

5.1" (13.0 cm)
6.38"

 

2.8" (7.1 cm)
6.81"

 

0.8" (2.0 cm)
1.42"

Volume  

11.20 in³ (183.53 cm³)
61.7 in³

Show text

Build Quality 
 

7.5
7.0

Build Quality Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Build Quality Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Build Quality Picture

Show text

Stability 
 

7.5
7.5

Stability Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Stability Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Stability Picture

Show text

Headshots 1  

Angled Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Angled Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Angled Picture

Side Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Side Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Side Picture

Headshots 2  

Front Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Front Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Front Picture

Rear Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Rear Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Rear Picture

Top  

Top Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Top Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Top Picture

In The Box  

In The Box Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 In The Box Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless In The Box Picture

Show text

Sound

Sound Profile 
 

Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Bass Amount 
 

0.27 dB
0.94 dB

Treble Amount 
 

-4.38 dB
-2.4 dB

Frequency Response Consistency 
 

7.8
8.8

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
0.25 dB

Show text

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw FR L  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Raw FR R  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Bass Accuracy 
 

7.5
9.1

Bass  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

3.65 dB
1.21 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

22.45 Hz
10 Hz

Low-Bass 
 

1.58 dB
0.75 dB

Mid-Bass 
 

4.02 dB
0.71 dB

High-Bass 
 

4.8 dB
1.94 dB

Show text

Mid Accuracy 
 

7.7
8.8

Mid  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

3.03 dB
1.58 dB

Low-Mid 
 

3.16 dB
0.12 dB

Mid-Mid 
 

-3.15 dB
-2.3 dB

High-Mid 
 

-0.02 dB
0.08 dB

Show text

Treble Accuracy 
 

8.3
7.2

Treble  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

2.65 dB
3.77 dB

Low-Treble 
 

1.71 dB
-0.16 dB

Mid-Treble 
 

-1.73 dB
-4.3 dB

High-Treble 
 

-20.85 dB
-8.96 dB

Show text

Peaks/Dips 
 

6.3
8.0

Peaks/Dips Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Peaks 
 

2.69 dB
1.21 dB

Dips 
 

1.51 dB
1.33 dB

Imaging 
 

8.6
9.2

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
0.09

Weighted Phase Mismatch 
 

1.92
1.66

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch 
 

0.83
0.41

Weighted Frequency Mismatch 
 

1.63
1.23

Show text

Passive Soundstage 
 

0.5
0.7

PRTF  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 PRTF
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 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
1.9

Acoustic Space Excitation 
 

1.1
0.9

Show text

Virtual Soundstage 
 

0.0
0.0

Virtual Soundstage  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 Virtual Soundstage
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling 
 

No
No

Speaker Modeling 
 

No
No

Room Ambience 
 

No
No

Head Tracking 
 

No
No

Virtual Surround 
 

No App
No

Weighted Harmonic Distortion 
 

7.5
8.3

Weighted Harmonic Distortion  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

WHD @ 90 
 

0.179
0.158

WHD @ 100 
 

0.241
0.090

Test Settings 
 

Firmware 
 

No Firmware
Unknown

Power 
 

On
On

Connection 
 

Wired
Unknown

Codec 
 

PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz
SBC, 16-bit, 48kHz

EQ 
 

No EQ
No EQ

ANC 
 

On
Maximum

Tip/Pad 
 

Silicone (small)
Silicone (small)

Microphone 
 

In-line
In-line
Isolation

Noise Isolation 
 

9.2
8.1

Noise Isolation  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Isolation Audio 
 

Overall Attenuation 
 

-24.42 dB
-21.24 dB

Noise Cancelling  

Yes
Yes

Bass 
 

-23.88 dB
-18.26 dB

Mid 
 

-20.86 dB
-17.58 dB

Treble 
 

-28.06 dB
-27.64 dB

Show text

Leakage 
 

9.1
9.2

Leakage  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Leakage Audio 
 

Overall Leakage @ 1ft 
 

26.86 dB
26.11 dB

Show text

Microphone

Microphone Style 
 

Integrated 
 

No
Yes

In-Line 
 

Yes
No

Boom 
 

No
No

Detachable Boom 
 

No
No

Mic  

Yes
Yes

Recording Quality 
 

7.5
5.6

Microphone Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Recorded Speech 
 

LFE 
 

515.36 Hz
276.97 Hz

FR Std. Dev. 
 

2.46 dB
3.94 dB

HFE 
 

17,984.02 Hz
2,121.83 Hz

Weighted THD 
 

0.955
11.554

Gain 
 

20.19 dB
37.24 dB

Show text

Noise Handling 
 

6.7
6.2

SpNR  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

SpNR 
 

12.18 dB
14.72 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
7.1

Battery Type 
 

Rechargable
Rechargable

Continuous Battery Life 
 

19 hrs
11.4 hrs

Additional Charges 
 

0.0
0.0

Total Battery Life 
 

19 hrs
11.4 hrs

Charge Time 
 

1.8 hrs
2.5 hrs

Power-Saving Feature 
 

No
Auto-Off Timer

Audio While Charging 
 

Yes
No

Passive Playback 
 

Yes
No

Charging Port  

micro-USB
micro-USB

Show text

App Support 
 

0.0
7.0

App Picture  

Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 App Picture
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless App Picture

App Name  

No App
Bose Connect

iOS  

No
Yes

Android  

No
Yes

macOS  

No
No

Windows  

No
No

Equalizer 
 

No
No

ANC Control 
 

No
Adjustable

Mic Control  

No
No

Room Effects 
 

No
No

Playback Control 
 

No
Yes

Button Mapping  

No
No

Surround Support 
 

No
No

Show text

Connectivity

Bluetooth 
 

0.0
8.6

Bluetooth Version 
 

No Bluetooth
4.2

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

No
2 Devices

NFC Pairing 
 

No
Yes

Line Of Sight Range 
 

N/A
120 ft

PC Latency (SBC) 
 

N/A
191 ms

PC Latency (aptX) 
 

N/A
N/A

PC Latency (aptX HD) 
 

N/A
N/A

PC Latency (aptX-LL) 
 

N/A
N/A

iOS Latency 
 

N/A
111 ms

Android Latency 
 

N/A
175 ms

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
Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless Cable Picture

Analog Audio 
 

Yes
No

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Detachable  

No
No

Length  

4.33 ft (1.32 m)
N/A

Connection 
 

1/8" TRRS
No Wired Option

Analog/USB Audio Latency 
 

0 ms
N/A

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
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

Show text

Check Price

Android, Black
QuietComfort 20
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QuietControl 30
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Android, White
QuietComfort 20
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QuietControl 30
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iOS, Black
QuietComfort 20
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Standard
QuietControl 30
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iOS, White
QuietComfort 20
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Standard
QuietControl 30
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Standard
QuietControl 30
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Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20

Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless

Comments

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Bose QuietComfort 20/QC20 vs Bose QuietControl 30/QC30 Wireless: Main Discussion

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