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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 Profile: Target Compliance
    5. Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance
    6. Treble Profile: Target Compliance
    7. Peaks/Dips
    8. Imaging
    9. Passive Soundstage
    10. Virtual Soundstage
    11. Weighted Harmonic Distortion
    12. Test Settings
  6. Isolation
    1. Noise Isolation - Full Range
    2. Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios
    3. Noise Isolation - Voice Handling
    4. ANC Wind Handling
    5. Leakage
  7. Microphone
    1. Microphone Style
    2. Recording Quality
    3. Noise Handling
  8. Active Features
    1. Battery
    2. App Support
  9. Connectivity
    1. Wired Connection
    2. Bluetooth Connection
    3. Wireless Connection (Dongle)
    4. PC Compatibility
    5. PlayStation Compatibility
    6. Xbox Compatibility
    7. Base/Dock
  10. Comments

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless vs JBL Tune 520BT

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless
JBL Tune 520BT

Tested using Methodology v1.5

Updated Jan 03, 2025 05:38 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v1.8

Updated Jan 29, 2025 07:04 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Picture
  1. Recommended in 2 articles:
  2. On-Ear
  3. JBL

Variants

  • WH-CH520 (Beige)
  • WH-CH520 (Black)
  • WH-CH520 (Blue)
  • WH-CH520 (White)
  • Tune 520BT (Black)
  • Tune 520BT (Blue)
  • Tune 520BT (Purple)
  • Tune 520BT (White)

Our Verdict

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless

JBL Tune 520BT

The Sony WH-CH520 Wireless and the JBL Tune 520BT Wireless share more than the number '520'. Both headphones are lightweight and fit on-ears with app support and multi-device pairing despite being budget-tier. Overall, the Sony are slightly better than the JBL, but it's close enough that prices can easily decide which pair is better. The Sony include the brand's virtual soundstage, which requires a compatible streaming service like TIDAL, and their mic sounds better. They're also slightly better made. The JBL don't have any virtual soundstage compatibility. However, they have a longer battery life and shorter latency with video mode, but latency depends quite a bit on devices, so your experience may vary. Their sound is a bit boomier by default.

0 

Check Price

Black
WH-CH520
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
Tune 520BT
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Blue
Tune 520BT
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
White
WH-CH520
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
White
Tune 520BT
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Beige
WH-CH520
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Purple
Tune 520BT
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Read more

Main Differences for
Neutral Sound

Threshold 

0.10

Neutral Sound 

7.4
7.7

Passive Soundstage 
 

3.5
5.7

Treble Accuracy 
 

6.5
7.4

Bass Accuracy 
 

8.8
8.4

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Design Picture 2  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Design Picture 2
JBL Tune 520BT Design Picture 2

Type  

On-ear
On-ear

Enclosure  

Closed-Back
Closed-Back

Wireless  

Yes
Yes

Transducer  

Dynamic
Dynamic
Show text

Comfort 
 

7.0
6.5

Comfort Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Comfort Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Comfort Picture

Weight  

0.32 lbs
0.35 lbs

Clamping Force 
 

0.6 lbs
0.7 lbs
Show text

Controls 
 

6.8
7.1

Controls Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Controls Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Controls Picture

OS Compatibility 
 

Not OS specific
Not OS specific

Ease Of Use  

Good
Good

Feedback  

Good
Good

Call/Music Control  

Yes
Yes

Volume Control  

Yes
Yes

Microphone Control  

No
Mute/Unmute

Channel Mixing 
 

No
No

Noise Cancelling Control  

No
No

Talk-Through 
 

No
No

Additional Controls  

Voice Assistant
Voice Assistant
Show text

Breathability 
 

Breathability After Picture  

Avg.Temp.Difference  

Portability 
 

6.4
7.0

Portability Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Portability Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Portability Picture

 

7.1" (18.0 cm)
3.9" (9.8 cm)

 

6.7" (17.0 cm)
7.0" (17.8 cm)

 

1.6" (4.0 cm)
1.3" (3.4 cm)

Volume  

70.23 in³ (1,150.80 cm³)
36.19 in³ (593.00 cm³)

Transmitter Required  

No
No
Show text

Case 
 

0.0
0.0

Case Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Case Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Case Picture

Type  

No case
No case

 

N/A
N/A

 

N/A
N/A

 

N/A
N/A

Volume  

N/A
N/A

Build Quality 
 

6.5
6.0

Build Quality Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Build Quality Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Build Quality Picture
Show text

Stability 
 

6.5
5.5

Stability Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Stability Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Stability Picture
Show text

Headshots 1  

Angled Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Angled Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Angled Picture

Side Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Side Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Side Picture

Headshots 2  

Front Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Front Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Front Picture

Rear Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Rear Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Rear Picture

Top  

Top Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Top Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Top Picture

In The Box  

In The Box Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless In The Box Picture
JBL Tune 520BT In The Box Picture
Show text
Sound

Sound Profile 
 

Sound Profile  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Normalization Frequency 
 

1,000 Hz

Bass Amount 
 

-0.53 dB
-1.6 dB

Treble Amount 
 

-2.53 dB
-2.0 dB
Show text

Frequency Response Consistency 
 

7.2
6.9

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 
 

0.57 dB
0.63 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 Profile: Target Compliance 
 

8.8
8.4

Bass Profile: Target Compliance  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

RMS Deviation From Target 
 

1.52 dB
3.6 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

31.29 Hz
23.79 Hz

Low Bass 
 

-2.02 dB
-4.09 dB

Mid Bass 
 

1.37 dB
1.04 dB

High Bass 
 

1.01 dB
-0.22 dB
Show text

Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance 
 

9.1
8.9

Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

RMS Deviation From Target 
 

1.2 dB
1.16 dB

Low Mid 
 

0.1 dB
-0.52 dB

Mid-Mid 
 

0.3 dB
-0.13 dB

High Mid 
 

-0.48 dB
-1.39 dB
Show text

Treble Profile: Target Compliance 
 

6.5
7.4

Treble Profile: Target Compliance  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

RMS Deviation From Target 
 

5.16 dB
2.94 dB

Low Treble 
 

-1.69 dB
-1.19 dB

Mid Treble 
 

-3.57 dB
-2.98 dB

High Treble 
 

-6.97 dB
-7.55 dB
Show text

Peaks/Dips 
 

7.7
7.5

Peaks/Dips Graph 
 

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Peaks 
 

1.38 dB
1.43 dB

Dips 
 

1.53 dB
1.66 dB
Show text

Imaging 
 

8.3
7.2

Group Delay  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Phase Response Mismatch  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Weighted Group Delay 
 

0.3
0.31

Weighted Phase Mismatch 
 

6.4
9.38

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch 
 

0.47
2.9

Weighted Frequency Mismatch 
 

2.61
1.84
Show text

Passive Soundstage 
 

3.5
5.7

PRTF  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.) 
 

5.11 dB
5.11 dB

PRTF Size (Avg.) 
 

1.46 dB
4.72 dB

PRTF Distance 
 

-0.01 dB
12.46 dB

Openness 
 

7.0
6.1

Acoustic Space Excitation 
 

3.2
2.9
Show text

Virtual Soundstage 
 

4.1
0.0

Virtual Soundstage  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Virtual Soundstage
JBL Tune 520BT Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling 
 

On/Off
No

Speaker Modeling 
 

On/Off
No

Room Ambience 
 

No
No

Head Tracking 
 

No
No

Virtual Surround 
 

360 Reality Audio
No
Show text

Weighted Harmonic Distortion 
 

6.4
7.2

Weighted Harmonic Distortion  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

WHD @ 90 
 

0.961
0.337

WHD @ 100 
 

0.337
0.273
Show text

Test Settings 
 

Firmware 
 

1.0.1
3.5.0

Power 
 

On
On

Connection 
 

Bluetooth 5.0
Bluetooth

Codec 
 

PCM, 16-bit, 44.1kHz
SBC, 16-bit, 48kHz

Test Instrument  

Audio Precision APx517B

EQ 
 

No EQ
No EQ

ANC 
 

No ANC
No ANC

Tip/Pad 
 

Default
Default

Microphone 
 

Integrated
Integrated
Show text
Isolation

Noise Isolation - Full Range 
 

3.3
3.8

Noise Isolation - Full Range Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Noise Cancelling  

No
No

Overall Attenuation 
 

-9.24 dB
-9.03 dB

Isolation Audio 
 

Bass 
 

0.01 dB
1.23 dB

Mid 
 

-4.69 dB
-6.56 dB

Treble 
 

-23.27 dB
-23.78 dB
Show text

Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios 
 

3.8

Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios Graph  

See details on graph tool

Airplane Noise Attenuation 
 

-7.71 dB

Airplane Noise Isolation Audio 
 

Office Noise Attenuation 
 

-8.26 dB

Office Noise Isolation Audio 
 

Street Noise Attenuation 
 

-8.84 dB

Street Noise Isolation Audio 
 

Show text

Noise Isolation - Voice Handling 
 

Female Voice 1 
 

Male Voice 1 
 

Female Voice 2 
 

Male Voice 2 
 

ANC Wind Handling 
 

ANC Wind Handling Graph  

JBL Tune 520BT ANC Wind Handling Graph

ANC Wind Noise 
 

N/A

Leakage 
 

7.2
7.5

Leakage  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Leakage Audio 
 

Overall Leakage @ 1ft 
 

38.66 dB
36.8 dB
Show text
Microphone

Microphone Style 
 

Integrated 
 

Yes
Yes

In-Line 
 

No
No

Boom 
 

No
No

Detachable Boom 
 

No
No

Mic  

Yes
Yes

Recording Quality 
 

7.7
6.8

Microphone Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Recorded Speech 
 

LFE 
 

261.43 Hz
310.89 Hz

FR Std. Dev. 
 

2.43 dB
2.39 dB

HFE 
 

6,358.31 Hz
4,974.24 Hz

Weighted THD 
 

0.119
5.458

Gain 
 

6 dB
13.27 dB
Show text

Noise Handling 
 

6.9
6.3

SpNR  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

SpNR 
 

16.46 dB
13.44 dB

Noise Gate 
 

Always On
No

Speech + Pink Noise Handling 
 

7.5
6.5

Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample  

Speech + Subway Noise Handling 
 

6.0
6.0

Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample  

Show text
Active Features

Battery 
 

8.2
8.6

Battery Type 
 

Rechargable
Rechargable

Continuous Battery Life 
 

52.8 hrs
65.2 hrs

Additional Charges 
 

0.0
0.0

Total Battery Life 
 

52.8 hrs
65.2 hrs

Charge Time 
 

1.9 hrs
1.9 hrs

Power-Saving Feature 
 

Standby mode
Auto-Off Timer

Audio While Charging 
 

No
No

Passive Playback 
 

No
No

Charging Port  

USB-C
USB-C
Show text

App Support 
 

7.5
7.5

App Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless App Picture
JBL Tune 520BT App Picture

App Name  

Sony| Headphones Connect
JBL Headphones

iOS  

Yes
Yes

Android  

Yes
Yes

macOS  

No
No

Windows  

No
No

Equalizer 
 

Graphic + Presets
Parametric + Presets

ANC Control 
 

No
No

Mic Control  

No
Mute/Unmute

Room Effects 
 

No
No

Playback Control 
 

Yes
No

Button Mapping  

No
No

Surround Support 
 

Yes
No
Show text
Connectivity

Wired Connection 
 

0.0
0.0

Cable Picture  

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Cable Picture
JBL Tune 520BT Cable Picture

Analog Audio 
 

No
No

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Detachable 
 

No
No

Length 
 

N/A
N/A

Connector 
 

No Wired Option
No Wired Option

Latency - Analog 
 

N/A

Latency - USB 
 

N/A
N/A

Recorded Latency 
 

N/A

Recorded Latency Connection  

No Wired Audio
Show text

Bluetooth Connection 
 

8.3
8.4

Bluetooth Version 
 

5.2
5.3

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

2 Devices
2 Devices

NFC Pairing 
 

No

Quick Pair (Android) 
 

Yes

Quick Pair (iOS) 
 

No

Line Of Sight Range 
 

334.65 ft (102.00 m)
334.65 ft (102.00 m)

Latency - SBC 
 

312 ms
119 ms

Latency - aptX 
 

N/A
N/A

Latency - aptX Adaptive (High Quality) 
 

N/A

Latency - aptX Adaptive (Low Latency) 
 

N/A

Latency - LDAC 
 

N/A

Recorded Latency 
 

Recorded Latency Codec  

SBC

AAC Support 
 

No

PC Latency (aptX HD) 
 

N/A

PC Latency (aptX-LL) 
 

N/A

iOS Latency 
 

137 ms

Android Latency 
 

135 ms
Show text

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

PC Compatibility 
 

Analog 
 

No
No

Wired USB 
 

No
No

Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No
Show text

PlayStation Compatibility 
 

PS4 Analog 
 

No
No

PS4 Wired USB 
 

No
No

PS4 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

PS5 Analog 
 

No
No

PS5 Wired USB 
 

No
No

PS5 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Xbox Compatibility 
 

Xbox One Analog 
 

No
No

Xbox One Wired USB 
 

No
No

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Xbox Series X|S Analog 
 

No
No

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

Black
WH-CH520
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
Tune 520BT
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Blue
Tune 520BT
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
White
WH-CH520
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
White
Tune 520BT
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Beige
WH-CH520
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Purple
Tune 520BT
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless

JBL Tune 520BT

Comments

  1. Comparison

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless vs JBL Tune 520BT: Main Discussion

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