Quick answer:No, Bose does not advertise any water-resistance or dust-proofing for the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones. In fact, the first of its Important Safety Instructions in its user manual is “Do not use this apparatus near water.”
There are many creeds and codes to live by, but the one I believe in with my whole heart and chest is this: Music makes us better. As such, I spend most of my day wearing my headphones or listening to somesweet smart speaker, be it in the shower, in the office, on my couch, or as I sit here at the kitchen table, listening to Critical Role on myBose QuietComfort Ultra Headphonesat midnight while the rest of the house sleeps soundly.
While water resistance or sweatproofing is all but a given on any pair ofdecent wireless earbuds, waterproofing for over-ear headphones is still rather hit-and-miss. There are somegreat headphones for workoutsthat are IPX4 or IPX5 “splashproof,” but nearly all premium over-ear headphones are not designed with weatherproofing in mind — including, unfortunately, the Bose QC Ultra Headphones.
Why Bose didn’t bother with ingress protection
While devices like smartwatches, fitness trackers, and phones can be designed to be dustproof and water-resistant enough to withstand an impromptu dunking or even light swimming, over-ear headphones like the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones need at least some minor venting to help with the acoustic tuning and improve comfort during longer listening sessions. ANC headphones do need a seal around your ears to block noise bleedthrough, but it’s not watertight by any means.
With so many nooks and crannies — to say nothing of the grilles for the drivers inside each ear and vents — waterproofing the Bose QuietComfort Ultra would require material changes and design shifts that would betray its focus as a pair of ultra-premium headphones. Dustproofing or sandproofing would be even harder with all these crannies, especially given the folding and rotating joints which the Ultras use compacting down for storage and travel.
It would be wonderful for these headphones to truly do it all, but if you care about waterproofing, you’re much better off picking up a pair oftrusty workout-friendly earbuds, which will be less exposed to the elements as they sit in your ear — and likely under your umbrella, raincoat, or hat — and easier to sweatproof as they don’t have as many moving parts as headphones do.
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones
Bose’s most premium headphones sound amazing, block out the world with ease, and offer a comfortable fit that won’t wear you out even after a full day of rocking out. That said, these headphones were not made for the gym or sweaty jogging through the drizzly Seattle streets, and thus you’ll want to keep them safe and dry during your commute.
