--- title: "Can You Update Sony Headphone Firmware on a Mac?" description: "No. Sony headphone firmware updates come through Sony | Sound Connect on a phone. How it works for each 1000X model, and how to check your version on a Mac." url: https://opensoundconnect.app/guides/sony-headphone-firmware-mac language: en --- # Firmware updates and your Mac Sony headphones get new firmware from time to time. A Mac can play through them and show which version they run, but the update itself comes from your phone. Applies to: [MDR-1000X](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/mdr-1000x), [WH-1000XM2](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xm2), [WH-1000XM3](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xm3), [WH-1000XM4](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xm4), [WH-1000XM5](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xm5), [WH-1000XM6](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xm6), [WH-1000XX](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xx) · Updated 2026-11-03 ## Short answer No, you can't update Sony headphone firmware from a Mac. Sony delivers firmware updates through its phone app, **Sony | Sound Connect** (formerly Sony | Headphones Connect), on iPhone or Android. We haven't found a Sony firmware updater for macOS, and Sony's guides describe only the phone app. - **To update:** install Sony | Sound Connect on a phone, connect the headphones to it and follow the app. - **To check your version on a Mac:** Open Sound Connect shows it under **My Device → About These Headphones**. It doesn't update firmware. ## How Sony firmware updates work The phone app downloads the new firmware and sends it to the headphones over Bluetooth. Sony makes the app for iPhone and Android only; the App Store lists it for iPhone, with no Mac version. So even if you mostly use your headphones with a MacBook, you need a phone for updates. ## By model ### MDR-1000X The [MDR-1000X](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/mdr-1000x) isn't supported by Sony's phone app, and we found no update route for it. ### WH-1000XM2 and WH-1000XM3 Sony's guides for the [XM2](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xm2) and [XM3](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xm3) list updating the headphones' software among the phone app's features. ### WH-1000XM4 and WH-1000XM5 On the [XM4](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xm4) and [XM5](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xm5), the app downloads the update to your phone and then transfers it to the headphones. Keep them connected to the phone and close by until the app says it's done. ### WH-1000XM6 and WH-1000XX The [XM6](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xm6) and [WH-1000XX](https://opensoundconnect.app/headphones/wh-1000xx) update through Sound Connect, which can also install updates automatically. With automatic updates on, the headphones install a downloaded update by themselves, around night time, when they're switched off and have more than 20% battery. ## Check your firmware version on a Mac 1. Connect your headphones to the Mac and open Open Sound Connect. 2. Open **My Device** (⌘1) and scroll to **About These Headphones**. 3. Read **Firmware**. Choose **Refresh**, or press ⌘R, to read it again after an update. The **Activity** page (⌘7) also lists what the headphones reported, which is useful when you [report an issue](https://github.com/rolottr/open-sound-connect/issues). ## Updating without your own phone If you only use the headphones with a Mac, you can borrow an iPhone or Android phone for the update: 1. Install Sony | Sound Connect on the phone. 2. Pair the headphones with it. They remember up to eight devices, so your Mac stays paired. 3. Run the update in the app and wait for it to finish. 4. Connect the headphones to your Mac again from **System Settings → Bluetooth** or Control Center. If they won't reconnect, [pair them again](https://opensoundconnect.app/guides/connect-sony-headphones-to-mac). ## App updates are something else Updating Open Sound Connect updates the app on your Mac, not the headphones. From version 2.2.0, the direct download updates itself: once a day it looks for a new version, and **Open Sound Connect → Check for Updates…** checks on demand; it shows what's new, then downloads, verifies and installs the update and restarts. Versions 2.1.0 and older open the [download page](https://opensoundconnect.app/download) instead. The Mac App Store version, coming soon, will update through the App Store. What changed in each version is in the [changelog](https://opensoundconnect.app/changelog). ## After a firmware update Open Sound Connect reads the headphones' list of settings each time it connects, so it shows the options the headphones report after the update, as far as the app knows them. If the app doesn't find the headphones afterwards, see [headphones connected but not detected](https://opensoundconnect.app/support/headphones-not-detected). [How Sony headphone control works on a Mac](https://opensoundconnect.app/guides/how-sony-headphone-control-works-mac) explains what the app reads. ## Common questions ### Can I run Sony | Sound Connect on my Mac? Not as a Mac app. The App Store lists it for iPhone only, and Sony hasn't announced a Mac version. ### Can the MDR-1000X be updated at all? We found no way. Sony's phone app doesn't support it, and a reply in Sony's community forum says there are no firmware updates for it, though Sony hasn't said so on its own pages. ### Does Open Sound Connect need a particular firmware version? No minimum is set. The app reads what the headphones report when it connects and shows only the settings they list. ## Where to next - [How headphone control works](https://opensoundconnect.app/guides/how-sony-headphone-control-works-mac): The audio connection, the separate control channel, what the app sends and what stays local. - [Headphones connected but not detected](https://opensoundconnect.app/support/headphones-not-detected): Audio works, but the app shows no headphones: permission, the control connection and what each screen means. --- Open Sound Connect is independent software. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by Sony. Sony, DSEE, DSEE Extreme and LDAC are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sony Group Corporation or its affiliates. Apple, Mac, macOS, Finder, Safari, Xcode and App Store are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries and regions. The Bluetooth® word mark is owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. Other names are trademarks of their respective owners.