Sony unveils its new flagship noise-canceling headphones at IFA 2016

“Quick Attention” mode assures listeners will not miss a word that is spoken while enjoying music or a movie. A number of advancements have been put into these headphones to make them industry-leading, such as the signal processing to pursue the best noise cancelling performance with upgraded filtering process, optimized dual noise sensor technology, and newly developed ear pads. The headphones include a personal noise cancellation optimizer that analyzes the shape of your head and other factors like hair style and whether or not you’re wearing glasses. So, if you’re waiting for a bus or train, or someone’s trying to talk to you (refer to Twitter for topical tips on this sort of thing), you can listen without having to take off the headphones.

It has up to 20 hours of battery life in wireless mode with noise cancelling on.

The devices can handle any music file from high-resolution sound to MP3 files. A new Signature Series flagship line of headphones and Walkman also debuted, complete with gold design and high price.

You can also tap the “Ambient Sound Mode” setting which cleverly cuts out background noise but still lets you hear particular sounds such as voices. This technology provides an individualized experience for every single sound, including music and ambient sound, tailored to each user’s preferences. However, Sony has not yet provided the pricing details for the product.

Sony has priced the MDR-1000Xs at $400, putting them in competition with both Bose and Beats, and they’ll be available starting in October in either black or beige. Sony teamed with Kimber Kable to engineer the MDR-Z1R’s cable, as well as the internal wiring in the NW-WM1Z Walkman. It also supports balanced connections if you have the right set of headphones.

Sony has built the ideal complement to your Apple Watch Edition: a $3,200 Walkman that’s plated in gold. Internally, the Walkman’s analog circuitry is supposed to be separated from its primarily digital circuitry to reduce noise even further.

Sony says it worked with one of its best mastering engineers at Sony Music Battery Studios to ideal the sound of its high-end MDR-Z1R headphones ($2300). Lower-resolution files can be up-sampled, and Sony’s DSD Remastering Engine will convert PCM sources to DSD 11.2MHz.

The MDR-Z1R have 70mm magnesium dome drivers that Sony says can deliver frequency response up to an astounding 120kHz.