The JBL Live 660NC Wireless are over-ear headphones with active noise cancelling (ANC). Out-of-the-box, they have a slightly bass-heavy sound profile, but if you prefer a different sound, their companion app offers a parametric EQ and presets to help you tweak their sound to your liking. However, while their ANC performance is decent overall, it struggles to block out the rumbles of bus or plane engines, and it performs very similarly to their passive noise isolation capabilities in the mid to treble range. They’re advertised to last around 40 hours with their ANC, but we measured just under 26 hours. That said, they offer a decently well-rounded and versatile performance and even have voice assistant support that you can activate using their app.
The JBL Live 660NC are decent for neutral sound. Out-of-the-box, they have a slightly bass-heavy sound profile with a touch of extra thump and punch. That said, you can customize their sound using their companion app's parametric EQ or presets if you prefer a more neutral sound. However, their passive soundstage doesn't feel very immersive, and they're somewhat prone to inconsistent audio delivery. It's important to take time to ensure the correct fit each time you use them.
The JBL Live 660NC are decent for commute and travel. They're well-built, have a decently comfortable fit, and have a long-lasting battery life to help you make it through your journey without pausing to recharge them. Unfortunately, they have a somewhat bulky design, and their ANC struggles to cut down the rumble of bus or plane engines.
The JBL Live 660NC are decent for neutral sound. They have a decently comfortable fit and are stable enough for moderate physical exercise without falling off your head. However, they lack an IP rating for water resistance, although we don't currently test for it, and they aren't very portable. They could also make you sweat a bit more as their ear cups can trap in some heat.
The JBL Live 660NC are satisfactory for office use. These well-built headphones have a decently comfortable fit, and their under 26-hour battery life should easily last you through long days at work. Thanks to their ANC, they can also block out ambient chatter around you. Their ear cups can trap in some heat over time, though.
You can use the JBL 660NC with a Bluetooth-enabled PC, but their latency is likely too high for gaming. They aren't compatible with PS4, PS5, or Xbox consoles.
The JBL Live 660NC are decent for wired gaming. They come with a 1/8" TRS to TRRS cable, so you can only receive audio using this connection and can't use their mic. That said, they have a slightly bass-heavy sound profile, which can help bring out sound effects in gameplay, and they have a decently comfortable fit.
The JBL Live 660NC are alright for phone calls. Their integrated mic does an alright job of recording your voice, but it sounds a bit thin and slightly muffled. The mic also struggles to separate your voice from ambient noise around you, so you may want to take calls from a quieter location to be heard more clearly. On the upside, they have a decent ANC to help cut down background sounds.
The JBL 660NC come in four color variants: 'Black', 'Blue', 'White', and 'Pink'. We tested the 'Black' variant, and you can see their label here. We expect all color variants to perform similarly to our model.
If you come across another variant, please let us know in the discussions, and we'll update our review.
The JBL 660NC are over-ear headphones with an active noise cancelling (ANC) feature. Like the JBL Live 650 BTNC Wireless, this feature offers decent overall performance, although it still struggles to block out bass range noise like bus or plane engine rumbles. They also have voice assistant support that you can set up using their companion app and are advertised to have Google Fast Pair, which lets you seamlessly pair with your Android device. However, we don't currently test for this.
Check out our recommendations for the best noise cancelling headphones, the best over-ear headphones, and the best wireless Bluetooth headphones.
The JBL Live 660NC Wireless and the Sony WH-XB910N Wireless are similarly performing headphones with different strengths. While both headphones are well-built and support multi-device pairing, the JBL have a more neutral sound profile out of the box, which some users may prefer, and can reproduce sound more consistently. However, the Sony are more comfortable, and their ANC offers a better noise isolation performance. They also have longer continuous battery life.
The JBL Live 460NC Wireless and the JBL Live 660NC Wireless are very similarly performing headphones, and you may prefer either model. While both headphones are decently comfortable and well-built, the biggest difference is that the Live 460NC are on-ear headphones with more consistent audio delivery. In contrast, the Live 660NC are over-ear headphones with a somewhat better noise isolation performance and leak less audio.
The JBL Live 660NC Wireless are slightly better headphones than the Skullcandy Crusher Evo Wireless. While both headphones are comfortable and well-built, the JBL have a more neutral sound profile out-of-the-box and have a decent ANC, which can help block out some ambient noise around you. Their companion app also has a parametric EQ and presets so that you can adjust their sound. However, some users may prefer the Skullcandy's haptic bass slider.
The JBL Live 660NC Wireless are slightly better over-ear headphones than the JBL Live 650 BTNC Wireless. The Live 660NC have a more neutral default sound profile, which some users may prefer, their ANC does a slightly better job of cutting down bass-range noise like bus or plane engine rumbles, and they have a better battery performance. However, the Live 650 BTNC are more comfortable and come with a 1/8" TRRS cable, so you can use the mic and receive audio when using the headphones wired.
The JBL Live 660NC Wireless and the JBL Tour One Wireless are similarly performing over-ear headphones. The Tour One are more comfortable and have a better battery performance. However, the Live have a better noise isolation performance and can deliver audio more consistently.
The Bose QuietComfort 35 II/QC35 II Wireless 2018 are better headphones than the JBL Live 660NC Wireless. The Bose are more comfortable, have a more neutral default sound profile, which some users may prefer, and their ANC does a significantly better job of cutting down noise around you. However, the JBL have a somewhat better battery performance, and their companion app has a parametric EQ and presets to adjust their sound.
The JBL Live 660NC Wireless are slightly better headphones than the Beats Solo Pro Wireless. The JBL are over-ear headphones that are more comfortable and have a better battery performance. Their companion app also offers a parametric EQ and presets so that you can tweak their sound, and you can pair them with up to two devices at a time. However, the Beats are on-ears that are better-built and have a better noise isolation performance. They also have an H1 chip so that you can seamlessly pair them with your Apple devices.
The Razer Opus Wireless 2020 are better over-ear headphones than the JBL Live 660NC Wireless. The Razer are more comfortable, better-built, and have a more neutral sound profile out-of-the-box, which some users may prefer. They also have a better-performing ANC, which does an outstanding job of cutting down ambient noise around you. However, the JBL's companion app offers a parametric EQ, which some users may prefer, and you can pair them with up to two devices at a time.
The JBL Live 660NC Wireless are better over-ear headphones than the JBL Quantum 800 Wireless. The 660NC are better-built, more stable, and have a more neutral sound profile out-of-the-box, which some users may prefer. They also have a better battery performance, and their companion app offers a parametric EQ and presets. However, the Quantum 800 have a better performing ANC.
The JBL Live 660NC have a simple over-ear design that's very similar to the JBL Live 650 BTNC Wireless. They have large plastic ear cups with the manufacturer's logo in the center. The headband, in contrast, has a mesh fabric coating, but it also has the manufacturer's logo on the top-facing side. They come in four colors to better suit your style: black, blue, white, and pink.
The JBL 660NC have good controls. They're located on both ear cups and are easy to use. The volume up and down buttons allow you to skip a track forward or backward by pressing and holding the respective buttons. The middle button lets you play or pause audio as well as answer or end calls. You can also decline calls by holding this button. You can touch the JBL logo on the left ear cup for two seconds to activate Google Assitant or Amazon Alexa voice assistant. If you use a different voice assistant, you can activate Siri or another voice assistant by holding the middle button for two seconds. You can also click the ANC button once to two this feature on, off, or activate 'Ambient Aware', which allows you to hear background sounds while still listening to audio. You can also press this button twice for talk-through, so you can chat with people without removing the headphones from your head.
Overall, the buttons are clicky and are easily distinguishable. They chime when powered on or pairing the headphones. There are also chimes for min or max volume.
The JBL Live 660NC have mediocre portability. The ear cups can swivel inwards to help reduce their footprint, making them easier to place in a bag. They also come with a soft drawstring pouch to help protect them when you're on the go.
The JBL Live 660NC come with a soft pouch that only protects the headphones from light scratches and dust. It also has a drawstring closure. The material doesn't seem water-resistant either, and the fabric won't guard your headphones against physical damage like falls.
These headphones have a slightly bass-heavy sound profile that delivers a touch of extra thump and punch to your mixes. They're still well-balanced enough for a variety of audio content, though. If you prefer a different sound, their companion app has a parametric EQ and presets, so you can customize their sound.
The JBL Live 660NC have decent frequency response consistency. They're prone to inconsistent bass delivery, and you may especially notice a drop in bass if you have thick hair or glasses. There's also some deviation in the treble range. That said, if you take the time to adjust their fit and seal on your head, you should get a more consistent sound each time you use them.
The JBL Live 660NC's bass accuracy is excellent. There's an overemphasis in the low and mid-bass, which results in a touch of extra thump, rumble, and punch. However, the slight dip in the high-bass can weaken their boominess.
The JBL Live 660NC's peaks and dips performance is good. There's a peak in the low to mid-bass, which adds extra thump and punch. A dip in the high-bass lessens the boom in your mix. Another peak between the mid to high-mid makes vocals and lead instruments a bit boxy and intense. The left and right drivers then diverge in the low-treble, so the dip in the left driver veils the upper harmonics of vocals and lead instruments while the right driver makes them sound harsh. The peak in the mid-treble makes sibilants like cymbals piercing.
The imaging performance is great. The weighted group mostly falls under the audibility threshold, but small peaks indicate a slightly loose bass. The treble is fairly transparent. The left and right drivers are also well-matched in amplitude and frequency, which is important for the accurate placement and localization of objects (like voices or footsteps) in the stereo image. While there's some mismatch in frequency, it's fairly slight, although there may be holes in the stereo image. These results are only valid for our unit, though, and yours may perform differently.
The JBL 660NC have a poor passive soundstage. Their soundstage doesn't feel particularly large or natural. It also feels like sound is coming from inside your head, rather than coming from speakers placed around you. The soundstage also doesn't feel as open or spacious as that created by open-back headphones.
The JBL 660NC have a good weighted harmonic distortion performance. While there are a couple of peaks of normal listening volumes in the treble range, this can be hard to hear with real-life content. Most frequencies fall within good limits, which results in mostly clear and pure audio reproduction.
These are the settings used to test these headphones. Our results are only valid when using this configuration.
These headphones also have a smart audio mode which is advertised to improve your audio latency based on what you're doing. We tested our model using the 'Audio Mode', but we don't know how the other modes perform.
The JBL Live 660NC have a decent noise isolation performance. They have active noise cancelling (ANC), but it struggles to cut down bass-range noise like bus or plane engines. It does a better job of cutting down mid-range sounds like ambient chatter, as well as high-pitched noise like the hum of an AC unit. However, their ANC doesn't offer much better performance than their passive capabilities in this regard.
The JBL Live 660NC's leakage performance is good. Most of the leakage is concentrated in the mid to treble range, which should sound mostly thin. If you're listening to audio at high volumes in a moderately noisy environment, the leakage shouldn't be too noticeable.
Update 10/28/2021: These headphones have been updated to test bench 1.5. In this update, we made changes to the way we test noise handling. We now use a subjective evaluation of our audio clips. This new method has resulted in different results than what we had reported in our previous test bench. As a result, the scoring of this box has changed, and we have updated our results.
The microphone's noise handling performance is mediocre. It struggles to separate your voice from moderate noise, so you may need to take calls from a more quiet environment.
The JBL Live 660NC have a great battery performance. Although they're advertised to last around 40 hours with their ANC, we only measured just under 26 hours. That said, battery life can vary according to your usage, so your real-life results may vary. On the upside, they charge in under two hours and have an auto-off timer to help conserve battery life when not in use. You can also use them passively with their audio cable if you run out of battery life.
The JBL Live 660NC are compatible with the JBL Headphones app. They have a parametric EQ and presets so that you can customize their sound to your liking. You can also turn 'Ambient Sound' on or off and switch between ANC on, 'Ambient Aware', ANC off, and talk-through. You can turn auto-pause on or off, adjust the auto-off timer, see the battery life, and set up either Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa voice assistant.
There's a smart audio mode advertised to improve your audio latency based on what you're doing. There are three settings: 'Video Mode', 'Audio Mode', and 'Normal'. We tested our model using the 'Audio Mode', but we don't know how the other modes perform.
Update 10/28/2021: These headphones were updated to Test Bench 1.5 and their latency values have changed. Our previous Test Bench 1.4 measurements reported 'iOS Latency' at 94 ms and 'Android Latency' at 121 ms. However, our new test bench uses an average of three measurements instead of one, resulting in 'iOS Latency' at 164 ms and 'Android Latency' at 204 ms. As a result, we have updated our text to better reflect test bench 1.5 measurements.
The JBL Live 660NC have great Bluetooth compatibility. They can connect with up to two devices at once, which is nice if you like to stay connected to your phone and laptop. They also support Google Fast Pair for seamless pairing with your Android device, although we don't currently test for this. However, their latency on PCs as well as iOS and Android devices is somewhat high, and you may experience delays between your audio and visuals. That said, they also have a dedicated 'Video Mode', which can help reduce latency. Using this mode, they have 22 ms of latency on Android, 45 ms on iOS, and 177 ms on PC. However, some apps and devices compensate for latency differently, so your results may vary.
You can plug the JBL Live 660NC into your Xbox One or Xbox Series X controller. However, you can only receive audio and can't use their mic.