Is XM5's noise canceling really that bad?

Just got my XM5. I've tried XM4 at the store and the NC was amazing. My boyfriend was speaking right next to me and I couldn't hear a thing.

Now I set up my XM5, turned them on... and it sucks. Sounds are muffled but I can hear the TV, my cats eating, people talking. I could have worn any pair of overhead headphones and the results would be the same.

Please, tell me I am doing something wrong. Tell me there is a way to fix it because they were too expensive to be this bad. Heck, my friend once let me try his AirPods Pro and they were incomparably better than this.