The AKG N60NC Wireless are closed-back on-ear headphones that are versatile for everyday use. They have a sound profile better suited for bass-heavy genres, and their ANC feature blocks an impressive amount of background noise, great for commuting. They're fairly comfortable, but since they rest on your ears, some may prefer over-ear designs. Also, they won’t be ideal for sports as they wobble when you move too much. On the upside, they have a decent battery life that will last you a full workday.
Our Verdict
The AKG N60NC are alright for mixed usage. They're fairly comfortable, well-made, and have above-average sound quality to let you enjoy your favorite tracks accurately. Their ANC feature isolates a decent amount of noise, which can be good for commuting or office. Although they are comfortable and lightweight, they aren’t stable enough for physical activity. Their latency might be a bit high for watching video content and gaming, but they come with an audio cable to get rid of it that has a better performing in-line mic.
- Above-average audio reproduction.
- Great isolation performance.
- A bit harsh on already bright tracks.
- Unusual control scheme layout.
The AKG N60NC are fair for neutral sound. They have an extended and powerful bass, a very good and fairly even mid-range, and a very good treble. However, their bass is a bit boomy, and the overemphasis continues in the mid-range, making vocals and leads sound thick and cluttered. Also, their treble is uneven, and S and T sounds might be a bit sharp for some people. Overall, these headphones will be suitable for bass-heavy genres and won’t be ideal for vocal-centric music. Unfortunately, they don’t have any customization options.
The AKG N60NC are decent for commuting and traveling. These ANC headphones isolate a good amount of low-frequency sounds like engine rumble and will be a good option for bus rides and flights, especially if you play music. The AKG N60NC will be more portable than over-ears but are still slightly bulky and harder to keep on you at all times, unlike in-ears and earbuds.
The AKG N60NC are decent for sports. While you can enjoy your tracks with decent audio reproduction, these headphones aren’t the most stable on the head. They will move around if you run with them, and they might fall off your head easily. Thankfully, their wireless design gets rid of the cable, and since they are on-ear, they’ll be more breathable than over-ears. They could be used at the gym for weightlifting but will more than likely fall off if you jog on the treadmill.
The AKG N60NC are decent for the office. Their battery life will last you more than a full workday, but some may not find them comfortable enough to wear for hours. On the upside, their ANC feature isolates a good amount of ambient chatter, so you can focus on your tasks. They also support multi-device pairing, convenient if you want to switch between your phone and office computer.
The AKG N60NC are sub-par for gaming. Their latency is too high to be suitable for gaming. Their integrated microphone won’t be ideal, but they come with an audio cable that gets rid of the latency issues, and you also get a better-performing in-line microphone. However, they aren’t customizable like other gaming headsets.
Changelog
- Updated Mar 26, 2020: Converted to Test Bench 1.4.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.1.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.
- Updated Feb 14, 2019: Review published.
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Popular Headphones Comparisons
The AKG N60NC are on-ear headphones with a great ANC feature that blocks ambient noise. They have a well-balanced sound profile, but there are similar on-ears that are better for neutral sound.
If you’re looking for the best picks, see our recommendations for the best on-ear headphones and the best wireless headphones.
If sound quality and comfort are the most important criteria for you, the Marshall MID ANC Wireless are better headphones than the AKG N60NC. The Marshall have great audio reproduction, and their control scheme offers great feedback and is easy to use. The Marshall are slightly better built and feel like more premium headphones than the AKGs. On the other hand, the AKGs have better noise cancelling performance and can also connect to two devices simultaneously.
The Bose QuietComfort 35/QC35 Wireless 2016 are better headphones than the AKG N60NC. The Bose are over-ear and are one of the most comfortable headphones we've tested. They have a more neutral-sounding audio reproduction and are well-built. The Bose isolation performance is better suited for loud environments, and you'll get a few more hours of continuous playback. On the other hand, the AKGs have better wireless range and trap less heat inside your ears after long periods of time. You'll also be able to use the AKG's microphone when wired to PCs and consoles, which the Bose can't do.
The Beats Solo3 2018 are better-sounding and better-built headphones than the AKG N60NC. However, the AKG isolate more ambient noise due to their ANC feature, which makes them a bit more versatile, especially for commuting and for the office. They can also connect to two devices simultaneously, which is convenient. On the other hand, the Beats have an amazing 42-hour battery life, which is about three times longer than the AKG's.
The Bose SoundLink On-Ear Wireless would be better headphones than the AKG N60NC if you care about comfort and sound quality the most. The Bose have a more neutral sounding audio reproduction, the earcups feel more lightweight, and the padding is softer. The Bose also have a great 21-hour battery life and can connect to two devices, similar to the AKGs. The AKG have the edge in the isolation performance and will block more ambient noise, making them a better choice if you're looking for headphones to use while commuting every day.
The AKG N60NC are better on-ear headphones than the Sony WH-XB700 Wireless. The AKG are noise cancelling on-ears and have a better audio reproduction than the Sony headphones. The AKG also feel better built, can connect simultaneously to two devices, and their latency is noticeably lower. On the other hand, you get a better battery life with the Sony, although they do take longer to charge. The Sony also have a decent app, which the AKG lack.
The Beats Solo Pro are slightly better headphones than the AKG N60NC. The Beats feel noticeably better-built and have a better control scheme. Their ANC features are both great, but the sound profile of the Beats is a bit more neutral while the AKG can sound a bit sharper.
The AKG N60NC are more versatile wireless on-ears than the Status Audio BT One Wireless. The AKG offer full microphone compatibility when you use them with their included 1/8" TRRS audio cable. Thanks to their ANC system, they block out far more ambient noise. However, the Status Audio have a slightly better integrated mic, last much longer off of a single charge, and provide a more neutral listening experience, not to mention they support aptX-LL codec.
We've upgraded our Headphones Test Bench to 2.0! This update brings several key changes to our tests and usages, making it easier than ever to interpret our sound results based on your personal preferences. You'll also find a brand-new interactive graph tool featuring multiple targets (including our own!) for you to explore and compare.
For a full breakdown, check out our changelog, which includes detailed commentary from our test designer explaining the rationale behind our update.
We'd also love to hear your thoughts: your feedback helps us keep improving, so join us in the comments!
Test Results
The AKG N60NC Wireless have a similar look to the AKG K490-NC, but their larger design makes them look more dense and durable. Their ear cups have polished metal rings and thick padding. Their headband is fully padded, which is slightly different from the K490 and doesn’t have big apparent screws where the cups fold. They are fairly low-profile but look quite good.
The AKG N60NC are fairly lightweight, and their on-ear design is decently comfortable. You can wear these for a few hours, but they might get uncomfortable after a while since they put pressure directly on your ears. On the upside, the padding is thick and comfortable, and the headband is more padded than the AKG K490-NC. The cups are also larger and cover more ear surface, which some may prefer.
The AKG N60NC's control scheme is simple and easy to use. However, the layout is a bit different from most headphones. There's a power switch for turning the headphones on/off, but you also use it for their pairing procedure. There's another switch for track skipping that you can also press to play/pause music or answer/end calls. The volume controls are in an unusual but distinctive spot on the top of the right ear cup. The feedback of the physical buttons is decent, and they feel clicky, but the sliding switches aren’t the best. You don’t get any audio cues other than when powering the headphones on and off and when they connect to your device.
The AKG N60NC Wireless are breathable headphones thanks to their on-ear design. They trap less heat than over-ear headphones but might still make you sweat a bit more after a while, especially during physical activity. You might feel a slight difference in temperature while wearing them for long periods.
The AKG N60NC are decently portable due to their foldable cups. You can slide them easily inside a bag, and you can protect them with the included pouch. The cups also rotate to lay flat.
They come with a pouch that will protect the headphones against scratches and very minor water exposure but won’t help prevent damage taken from falls.
The AKG N60NC are decently well-built headphones. They have a similar design to the AKG K490-NC, but the materials used seem denser and sturdier. The headband is metal, which is an upgrade over the K490 and is also fully padded. The cups are also larger and seem to be able to survive a few accidental drops without too much damage. However, since the cups rotate and fold, there are a few moving parts that could be susceptible to break after a while. If you are looking for a better-built option, check out the more robust Beats Solo Pro Wireless.
These headphones aren't the most stable. The cups are heavier than those of the AKG K490-NC Wireless, and they wobble around a lot if you move your head sideways. The headphones can slide fairly easily off your ears by simply tilting your head forward. It shouldn't be a problem for casual listening sessions, but they won't be usable for physical activity. Their wireless design eliminates the risk of having a cable that could get hooked on something, which would yank the headphones off your head.
- AKG N60NC headphones
- 1/8" TRRS audio cable
- Micro-USB charging cable
- Airplane adapter
- Carrying pouch
- Manuals
The AKG N60NC Wireless have a good frequency response consistency. In the bass range, they seem to be using their ANC to verify the seal and ensuring proper bass delivery. In the treble range (below 10KHz), the maximum amount of deviation is about 6dB, which is good, but the positioning of the headphones on the head can affect their perceived brightness.
The AKG N60NC's bass accuracy is decent. The LFE (low-frequency extension) of 14Hz is excellent. Low-bass is flat and follows our target curve well, meaning these headphones will produce the right amount of thump and rumble. Mid-bass, responsible for the body of bass guitars and punch of the kick drums, is well-balanced but slightly overemphasized by 2dB. Also, high-bass is overemphasized by more than 3dB, which adds a bit of boominess to the sound.
The mid-range performance is good. The range is fairly even and flat, but there’s a 7dB tilt favoring lower frequencies, making vocals and lead instruments sound slightly thick and cluttered.
Their treble accuracy is good. The response is rather uneven but well-balanced across the whole range. On the other hand, the small peaks in the range could make some S and T sounds a bit sharp on already bright tracks.
The imaging performance is excellent. The weighted group delay is at 0.15, which is very low. The GD graph also shows that the entire group delay response is below the audibility threshold. It ensures a tight bass and a transparent treble reproduction. Also, the L/R drivers of our test unit were very well-matched, which is important for the accurate placement and localization of objects (instruments, voices, footsteps) in the stereo image. However, these results are only valid for our unit, and yours may perform differently.
Their passive soundstage performance is bad. The PRTF graph shows little amount of ear activation and interaction, and it's not very accurate. Also, there's no 10KHz notch present either. This and the closed-back design result in a soundstage that's perceived to be inside the listener's head.
The AKG N60NC have an impressive noise isolation performance. In the bass range, where engine rumble sits, they provide about 15dB of isolation, which is good. In the mid-range, important for canceling out ambient speech, they achieved 17dB of isolation, which is also good. They do well in the treble range, occupied by sharp sounds like S and Ts and fan noises like A/C systems, and isolate by about 34dB.
Their leakage performance is good. A significant portion of leakage sits between 2KHz and 5KHz, which is a narrow range. The overall level of leakage is quite low. With the music at 100dB SPL, their leakage averages at 36dB SPL but peaks at 58dB SPL, which is about the noise floor of an average office.
The integrated mic has a mediocre recording quality. The LFE of 289Hz results in a recorded/transmitted speech that is relatively thin. The HFE of 2.8KHz is poor and suggests speech that is muffled and lacks detail. Overall, the understandability of speech on this microphone will still be decent in quiet environments.
The integrated microphone is mediocre at noise handling. In our SpNR test, the AKG N60NC achieved a speech-to-noise ratio of 14dB, indicating that the microphone performs best in quiet environments and may struggle in moderately loud environments.
The AKG N60NC have about 13 hours of continuous playback, which should last you a normal workday without any problem. However, it's slightly under the advertised 15 hours. Also, if you use them wired with ANC on, you’ll double that number according to the AKG specs sheet, but we don't test for that. Unfortunately, the headphones don’t turn off automatically or enter a standby mode to save battery life, but you can use them passively with the included 1/8" TRRS audio cable, even if the battery is dead. If you're looking for Bluetooth on-ear headphones with longer battery life, consider the Status Audio BT One Wireless, which last close to 23 hours on a single charge.
The AKG N60NC aren't compatible with the AKG Headphone mobile app like the AKG N700NC Wireless. If you want on-ears that have an app for customization options, take a look at the Sony WH-XB700 Wireless.
The AKG N60NC Wireless support an older Bluetooth version, but this shouldn’t be an issue. On the upside, they can connect to two devices simultaneously, which means you can switch between your phone and work computer. You can easily switch between the two devices thanks to the connection slider directly on the headphones.
Their latency with PCs and Android devices is quite low, but it's much higher with iOS devices. They also support the aptX codec, which slightly reduces their latency when connected to PCs. Also, certain apps and devices seem to compensate for latency, so you might not even notice the delay at all.
You can use these wireless headphones with the included 1/8” TRRS audio cable on consoles. You'll get audio and microphone support on all consoles and PCs, which makes them very versatile.
The AKG N60NC don't have a base/dock. If you want a versatile headset with a base that you can also use wired, check out the SteelSeries Arctis 7 Wireless 2017 or the Astro A50 Gen 3 Wireless 2017.