We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
Updated: 2026-09-22 · 7 min read · Independent comparison
If you want one pair of headphones to do everything on the move — wireless, active noise cancelling, touch controls, up to 25 hours of battery — choose Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT; if you need maximum wired sound quality per dollar and don't mind a cable and an open, leaky design, choose HIFIMAN HE400se.
• Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT — biggest strength: a true all-rounder: Bluetooth 4.1 wireless, QuietPoint active noise cancelling with a four-microphone multi-feedback system, touch/swipe earcup controls, and up to 25 hours of playback per charge.
• Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT — biggest trade-off: it's Bluetooth 4.1 (older than current standards), and its 40 mm dynamic drivers target fidelity and convenience rather than the resolution a wired planar headphone delivers.
• HIFIMAN HE400se — biggest strength: a planar magnetic driver with Stealth Magnet technology, a low 25 ohm impedance and 91 dB sensitivity — a genuinely wired, high-fidelity listen that's easy to drive from a phone or dongle.
• HIFIMAN HE400se — biggest trade-off: it's wired only, with no Bluetooth and no active noise cancelling; the 385–390 g weight and open-back-style isolation mean it's a stay-put headphone, not a commute one.
• Pick Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT if you want one headphone for trains, planes, offices and calls.
• Pick HIFIMAN HE400se if you want the best wired sound you can get from a low-impedance planar at this level, and you listen mostly in one quiet place.
The ATH-ANC700BT is built around one idea: remove the friction from listening on the move. QuietPoint active noise cancelling uses a proprietary four-microphone multi-feedback system, which is a more elaborate setup than the single-mic designs common at entry level — the point of multiple mics feeding back into the correction loop is to catch noise from more than one direction, which matters on a bus or a plane where the noise isn't coming from one angle. Around that sits Bluetooth 4.1 with a 10 metre range, plus touch and swipe controls built into the earcup for answering and ending calls, controlling music and video playback, and adjusting volume. No reaching for your phone.
Then there's the flexibility. You get up to 25 hours of continuous use with Bluetooth and noise cancelling running together, and up to 1,000 hours on standby — and a 25 hour charge time. That standby figure is the interesting one: it means you can leave these in a bag for weeks and not find them dead when you need them. If the battery does run down, or if you simply want the highest-quality signal path, the included 1.2 m cable with a 3.5 mm mini-plug turns them into a passive wired headphone. Audio-Technica explicitly frames that cable as the route for Hi-Res audio listening, and with 40 mm dynamic drivers and a 20 Hz–20 kHz range, that's the mode where they're at their most faithful. The foldable design and included protective pouch are travel gestures you'll actually use.
Who should buy it: commuters, remote workers who take calls, frequent flyers, and anyone who wants one headphone instead of two. Who should skip it: people who mostly listen at a desk in a quiet room and want the last word in resolution — you'd be paying for wireless and noise cancelling you won't use. Note the 35 ohm impedance and 250 g weight, which are both friendly for long sessions.
The HE400se takes the opposite approach. There's no battery, no Bluetooth, no noise cancelling — just a planar magnetic driver with Stealth Magnet technology and a wired connection. That driver type is the whole story here. A planar magnetic driver moves a thin diaphragm with a printed conductor across a grid of magnets, which in principle spreads the driving force evenly across the surface instead of pushing from a single voice coil. HIFIMAN's Stealth Magnet design is aimed at reducing the interference that the magnet structure itself can create in the sound path. Whether or not you buy into the theory, the practical result is a headphone with a very different character from a 40 mm dynamic driver.
The numbers make it unusually approachable. At 25 ohms and 91 dB sensitivity, the HE400se is deliberately easy to drive — the marketing line about being a "mobile companion" isn't empty, because low impedance and high efficiency mean a phone, laptop or cheap dongle can get real volume out of it. Frequency response is 20 Hz–20 kHz, the same quoted range as the Audio-Technica.
Around the driver, HIFIMAN has focused on comfort and serviceability. The bevelled ear pads are described as providing noise isolation and temperature compensation, which is a passive kind of isolation — it blocks some outside sound and, just as importantly, keeps your ears from cooking during long sessions. The optimised headband is lighter than earlier versions in the line. And the cable is replaceable, which matters: a broken cable on a wired headphone is normally a death sentence, but here it's a five-minute fix. You get a 3.5 mm jack with a 6.35 mm adapter included, so it plugs into both portable gear and a desktop amp. Enclosure material is leather, colour is silver, and the weight is around 385 g.
Who should buy it: desk listeners, home-office workers, gamers and anyone who wants wired sound quality without buying an amp. Who should skip it: anyone who needs wireless, call controls, or serious noise cancelling on a commute — the HE400se offers none of those.
• Best for commuting and flights → Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT. Active noise cancelling is the entire point, and the HE400se can't compete here — it only has passive pad isolation.
• Best for wireless freedom → Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT. Bluetooth 4.1 with 10 m range versus a fixed cable.
• Best for sound quality per dollar on a wired signal → HIFIMAN HE400se. Planar magnetic drivers with Stealth Magnet technology, and a replaceable cable, are the more audiophile-oriented package.
• Best for battery life → Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT. Up to 25 hours of playback and 1,000 hours of standby; the HE400se has no battery at all.
• Best for long listening sessions at a desk → HIFIMAN HE400se. Bevelled pads for isolation and temperature compensation, versus the ANC700BT's memory foam and fabric build.
• Best for travel and packing → Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT. It folds and comes with a protective pouch.
• Best for easy driving from a phone → HIFIMAN HE400se. 25 ohms and 91 dB sensitivity make it unusually undemanding; the ANC700BT also runs wired at 35 ohms if you want that option.
• Best for calls and touch control → Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT. Touch and swipe earcup controls handle calls, playback and volume; the HE400se has no microphone or controls.
If I had to buy one, I'd buy the Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT. Not because it sounds better — in my opinion the HIFIMAN HE400se is the more interesting headphone for pure listening — but because it does more of the things most people actually need from a single pair: wireless, noise cancelling, call controls, a 25-hour battery, a foldable body and a wired fallback for Hi-Res. The HE400se is the better choice if you already know you listen in one quiet place and want a wired planar driver you can drive from anything. Buy the HE400se for the sound; buy the ANC700BT for the life you actually live.
For travel, calls and wireless use, yes — it has Bluetooth, active noise cancelling and touch controls the HE400se simply doesn't have. For pure wired listening, the HE400se's planar magnetic driver is the more specialised design. They're built for different jobs.
No. It relies on sound isolation from its bevelled ear pads, which is passive. If you need to block engine noise or office chatter, the ATH-ANC700BT's active system is the one you want.
Yes. It ships with a 1.2 m cable with a 3.5 mm mini-plug, which Audio-Technica recommends for Hi-Res audio or when the battery is low. The HIFIMAN HE400se is wired only, with a 3.5 mm jack and a 6.35 mm adapter included.
The HIFIMAN HE400se, at 25 ohms and 91 dB sensitivity, is designed to run from mobile gear without an amp. The ATH-ANC700BT's 35 ohm impedance is also undemanding in wired mode, but its wireless mode is what most buyers will use.
Write down where you listen most. If it's trains, planes, offices or anywhere noisy, take the Audio Technica ATH-ANC700BT. If it's a quiet desk and you want a wired planar driver, take the HIFIMAN HE400se. Then check the current price on Amazon before you commit.
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