The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 Wireless are noise cancelling (ANC) headphones with quite a few extra features packed into their design. They're the next generation of the Anker Soundcore Life Q35 Wireless but have adaptive ANC instead of three ANC presets, meaning that their noise cancelling system automatically adjusts to your environment. You can switch to manual ANC if you prefer more control over your noise isolation. Like their predecessor, they support LDAC, multi-device pairing, and are also compatible with the Anker Soundcore app, which offers a graphic EQ and presets, among other handy features, to help you get the most out of your headphones.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 aren't the best choice for neutral sound out of the box. They have a pretty v-shaped sound profile with extra thump, rumble, and boom, as well as bright and sparkly sibilants. However, they also have a peak in their high-mid, which makes vocals and instruments sound harsh, while the dip in the low-treble veils their details. Luckily, you can adjust their sound to suit your tastes using their companion app's graphic EQ and presets. They also support LDAC codec if you want to stream hi-res audio.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 are very good for commute and travel. These comfortable and well-built over-ears have a fantastic adaptive ANC system. It can easily cut down annoying noise like the hum of a bus or plane engine as well as ambient voices so that you can focus on your trip. The headphones also have a long continuous battery life, which easily lasts long days on the go, and you can use them wired if necessary. Their carrying case helps protect the headphones from damage, but keep in mind that they're still over-ears and will take up room in your bag.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 aren't the best choice for sports and fitness. They're over-ear headphones and while you can use them wirelessly to avoid snagging something and pulling them off of your head, they're still not the most stable choice and can fall off with moderate head movements.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 are very good for office use. These over-ears have a comfortable fit and have enough battery life to last you through long days at your desk. Thanks to their ANC system, they can also block out a lot of the common noise you'd encounter at the office, like coworkers chatting and the high-pitched hum of AC units. They also don't leak very much audio at high volumes and support multi-device pairing, meaning you can connect them to your computer and smartphone simultaneously.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 are Bluetooth-only headphones. Their latency is likely to be too high for wireless gaming.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 are decent for wired gaming, though this isn't their intended use. Since they come with a TRS cable, you can use them with any console that has an AUX port. However, you'll only receive audio and can't use their mic. If that's not an issue, their excited sound profile delivers extra bass to your gameplay, which can help emphasize sound effects like footsteps. They're also well-built and have a comfortable fit that won't be fatiguing for long gaming marathons.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 are decent for phone calls. They have an integrated mic that does a great job of separating your voice from ambient noise, ensuring you're heard clearly if you're taking calls in a noisy environment. However, the actual recording quality of the mic is mediocre at best, and your voice sounds thin, dark, and lacking depth. On the upside, the headphones have an ANC system that does a fantastic job of isolating you from background sound so that you can focus on your call.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 come in three color variants: 'Black', 'White', and 'Blue'. We tested the 'Black' variant, and you can see our model's label here. There isn't a difference in performance between the color variants.
If you come across another variant of these headphones, please let us know in the discussions, and we'll update our review.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 are the next generation of the Anker Soundcore Life Q35 Wireless. Like others in the Q lineup, like their predecessor and the Anker Soundcore Life Q30 Wireless, they're noise cancelling headphones with a ton of extra features like multi-device pairing and a graphic EQ with presets in their companion app. However, the Q45 stand out from previous models thanks to their adaptive ANC technology, which performs on par with some of the best noise cancelling headphones, like the Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless and the Bose QuietComfort 45/QC45 Wireless.
If you're looking for more headphones, check out our recommendations for the best noise cancelling headphones under $200, and the best closed-back headphones.
The Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless are better over-ears than the Anker Soundcore Space Q45 Wireless. The Sony are more comfortable, better built, and have a more neutral overall sound profile, which some users may prefer. Their ANC system blocks out significantly more ambient noise too.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 Wireless have a slight edge over the Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless. While both headphones are well-built, the Anker are more comfortable, and their ANC can block out significantly more ambient noise. They're also advertised to have a longer continuous battery life than the Sony headphones. However, the Sony have a more neutral sound profile, though it's still pretty bass-heavy, which some users may prefer.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 Wireless are better headphones than the Sony WH-CH720N Wireless. While both headphones are comfortable, the Anker are better built, come with a carrying case to protect the headphones when not in use, and have a significantly better noise isolation performance. However, the Sony headphones have a more neutral overall sound profile, which some users may prefer.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 Wireless are better over-ears than the Sony WH-XB910N Wireless. While both headphones are well-built, the Anker headphones have a more neutral overall sound profile, which some users may prefer, and their ANC can block out significantly more ambient noise. However, the Sony headphones are more comfortable.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 Wireless are the next generation of the Anker Soundcore Life Q35 Wireless. Unlike the previous generation, the Q45 have an adaptive ANC system instead of three ANC presets, and overall, are significantly better at isolating you from ambient noise than their predecessor. Their headband padding is a bit thinner though, and even though they're advertised to last 50 hours continuously, we measured just under 28 hours.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 Wireless are slightly better over-ears than the Anker Soundcore Life Q30 Wireless. The Q45 are better-built, are less prone to inconsistencies in audio delivery, and leak less audio at high volumes. They also have an adaptive ANC system instead of three ANC presets, and it offers a slightly better noise isolation performance.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 look similar to other headphones from Anker's Q lineup, like the Anker Soundcore Life Q35 Wireless. Overall, the design is quite simple, and there's the manufacturer's logo on each of the ear cups. The outward edge of the ear cups is glossier than the rest of the frame, which has a satin finish. They come in three color variants: 'Black', 'White', and 'Blue'.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 are comfortable headphones. They don't clamp very tightly on your head and feel lightweight and airy. The ear cup padding also feels soft on the skin. Unfortunately, the padding on the headband is thinner than that of the Anker Soundcore Life Q35 Wireless and can put pressure on your head over time.
These headphones have a good control scheme. The physical controls are split between both ear cups and are intuitive to use. The buttons are also clicky and easy to press. There are voice prompts for switching between ANC modes, but there aren't any other sound prompts for other commands.
On the left ear cup:
Power button:
NC button:
On the right ear cup:
Play/Pause button:
Volume rocker:
These headphones aren't very portable. Like most over-ears, they have a bulky design and take up a lot of room in your bag. Luckily, the ear cups can swivel to lay mostly flat, and the headphones can fold to help reduce their overall footprint.
The carrying case is good. It's similar to the Anker Soundcore Life Q35 Wireless with an oval design and a fully-closing zipper. There's a cloth-like fabric inside, but unlike the Q35, there isn't a diagram as to how to place the headphones in the case.
The build quality is good. They're mostly made of plastic, but there's less padding on their headband than on the Anker Soundcore Life Q35 Wireless, which is a little disappointing. When storing our unit, we also noticed that the yokes didn't allow the ear cups to lay completely flat on the table. It also seems like pressing them down puts pressure on the yokes, which can mean that this part may get damaged over time if you're constantly folding and unfolding them to store in their carrying case. However, they still feel better-built and sturdier than the Sony WH-CH720N Wireless overall.
These headphones have a v-shaped sound profile that's well-suited for genres like rock and pop. They deliver intense thump, rumble, and boom, while sibilants like cymbals are crisp and bright. However, vocals and instruments sound harsh and lack some detail. Luckily, their companion app supplies a graphic EQ and presets to help you customize their sound to your liking.
Note: These headphones have a high noise floor. It's the noise naturally created by electronic devices, and in most headphones, the noise floor is low enough that you can't hear it. The high noise floor in these headphones is caused by the ANC if it's set to 'Adaptive' or 'Max' once turned on. Over time, the noise becomes less noticeable, but it's still present, which is a bit annoying.
These headphones have decent mid-accuracy. The low-mid is very flat and neutral, so vocals and instruments aren't cluttered or muddied by extra bass. However, there's a significant bump in the mid to high-mid, which makes vocals and instruments sound forward and harsh. In songs like Hey Jude by The Beatles, the bass throughout the mix doesn't compete with vocals. However, Paul McCartney's voice, as well as the piano in the chorus, sound very honky and harsh.
The peaks and dips performance is mediocre. A peak between the mid to high-bass adds extra punch and boom to mixes, while a dip between the high-bass to low-mid thins out vocals and instruments. A large peak in the mid to high-mid makes vocals and instruments harsh, but a very deep dip in the low treble hurts their clarity and detail. Another big peak in the mid-treble makes sibilants like cymbals piercing.
The imaging performance is excellent. Although other headphones from this manufacturer, like the Anker Soundcore Life Q35 Wireless and the Anker Soundcore Life Q30 Wireless, show L/R phase mismatch, which can cause inaccuracies in the stereo image, these over-ears don't display these issues. This may indicate better quality control with this model, but imaging varies between units and can also be related to headphones' ergonomics. That said, our unit's drivers are well-matched, which ensures that sound objects like voices are accurately reproduced in the stereo image.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 Wireless' passive soundstage performance is poor. They're closed-back headphones, so their soundstage doesn't seem as open or spacious as open-back headphones. Their soundstage also seems unnatural, small, and as if sound is coming from inside your head rather than from speakers in the room around you.
The weighted harmonic distortion performance is decent. There are a couple of small peaks in the low treble at moderate and high volumes, but they're very hard to hear, even with real-life content. As a result, most frequencies fall within good limits, which results in relatively clear and pure audio reproduction.
These are the settings used to test these headphones. Our results are only valid when used in this configuration.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45's noise isolation performance is outstanding. Unlike previous headphones from this manufacturer's Q lineup, they have an adaptive ANC system, which the manufacturer advertises to adapt to your surroundings automatically. They can block out slightly more ambient noise than the Anker Soundcore Life Q30 Wireless. If you're on your daily commute or on a noisy flight, they can easily block out the low rumbles of engines. They can also easily reduce ambient chatter and can cut down higher-pitched noise like the hum of computer fans.
The mic's recording quality is mediocre. Your voice sounds thin, dark, and lacking depth. While the recording quality isn't as good as the Anker Soundcore Life Q35 Wireless, your voice will still sound somewhat clear.
The integrated mic's noise-handling performance is great. If you're taking a call in a noisy environment, the mic can keep the background sound low so your voice stays understandable and clear.
These headphones have excellent battery performance. They're advertised to last 50 hours continuously with their ANC on, but we measured significantly less than that. However, their reported battery life may be attributed to the volume at which the Anker tests, which is lower than our test volume. As a result, we plan to retest the battery life using their criteria.
These headphones also have an auto-off timer you can adjust in their companion app. You can use them passively if you run out of battery life via their TRS cable.
The Anker Soundcore app is great, and you can see a video of how it works here. You can toggle between ANC on, 'Normal', and transparency mode as well as switch between adaptive noise cancelling mode and manual ANC, which has five different strength levels. You can also set a volume limit and a safe volume. The app provides an 8-band graphic EQ and presets if you want to adjust their sound.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 have excellent Bluetooth compatibility. They support multi-device pairing, meaning you can connect them with up to two devices at a time, and they also support NFC pairing for quicker pairing. Keep in mind that you can't use multi-device pairing if you're using LDAC. That said, they have high latency on PCs, as well as on Android and iOS devices, so your audio and visuals can fall out of sync while streaming video. Their latency using LDAC is lower, and we measured 120 ms. However, latency can vary depending on the device and app.
These headphones can connect to Bluetooth-enabled PCs with full audio and mic compatibility. If you want to use them wired, you can also use their TRS cable, but you'll only receive audio.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 only support audio via their 1/8" TRS cable plugged into your PS4 or PS5 controller's AUX port.
You can only use these headphones to receive audio when connected via analog to your Xbox console.