Sennheiser Momentum Over Ear Wireless Review

Technical Details:

Headphones:

Available colors: Ivory, Black

Impedance: (Passive) 28 ohm (Active) 480 ohm

Freq. Response: 16 – 22K Hz

Microphone (Dual omni-directional microphone):

Freq. Response (Wideband): 100 – 8K Hz

Freq. Response (Narrowband): 300 – 3.4K Hz

General Data & Technologies:

Bluetooth Version: Bluetooth 4.0 + EDR

Analog Plug: 3.5 mm, angled

Charging Time: Approx. 3 hrs

Operating Time: 22 hrs

Codecs: apt-x™

Noise Cancellation Tech: NoiseGard™ Hybrid technology with 4 pick-up microphones

 

What’s in the box?

•  MOMENTUM Wireless headphones
• 1.4 m Audio cable / 3.5 mm Low-profile angled plug
•  USB Charging cable
• Inflight adapter
• Manuals
• Carrying case and silk material pouch

Equipment Used:

Music sources (Analog Wired): 

• FIIO X3K with & without a FIIO E11K amp.
• Directly to my phone Samsung A5 with & without a FIIO E11K amp.
• Schiit Audio Modi 2 DAC with Marantz PM6005 amp using JR Media Center 20.

Music sources (Bluetooth): 

• Dell Latitude E7440 laptop with windows 8.1 & JR Media Center 20.
• Samsung Galaxy A5.
• Samsung Tab S.

Other Headphones:

• Sennheiser Momentum (Over Ear) First Gen.
• Shure SE-425 IEMs.

 

Music Used:

• The XX, XX, Basic Space
• Pink Floyd, Animals, Pigs [Three Different Ones]
• Daft Punk, Random Access Memories, Giorgio by Moroder
• Dave Matthews Band, Crash, #41
• Angela Hewitt, French Suits CD2, Prelude in c
• Souad Massi, Raoui, Noir Et Blanc
• Savatage, Dead Winter Dead, Mozart and Madness
• Parov Stelar, The Swing, Spider
• Michel Petrucciani, Concerts – Duo, Oleo

Build Quality and Usability:

The build quality of this headphone is excellent, compared to more expensive cans it both looks and feels very solid and yet comfortable where it matters the most.

Using it is also pretty simple for basic operations, I didn’t need to read the manual or anything to be able to connect to my phone and my laptop at work and I was able to control the volume on my phone.

However after reading the manual which I did weeks after I purchased it I learned that I can do much more than just control the volume! I could answer phone calls and reject them and start and pause music, move forward and back within my playlist! problem is that all of those things are done using one really multifunctional button! and when I was writing this review “a few weeks after reading the manual” I have discovered that I have forgotten how to do most of the available functionalities. But I don’t think that would be a problem if the headphone was used more frequently than I have used it.

 

Pros & Cons:

PROS:

• Beautiful!
• Very high grade build quality.
• Comfortable for its size, wearing it for long hours is something you can get used to.
• Basic functionalities are intuitive and very easy to learn and for devices that are support it you can fully control music, phone functions and volume operations from the headphone, however it could be confusing since one multi directional button is used to perform most of the operations.
• Generous provided accessories and an excellent carrying box and pouch.
• Sound quality using Bluetooth is the best I have personally experienced, and it is very good while wired.
• Noise cancellation is also the best I have personally experienced.
• Can be connected and operates 2 devices.

CONS:

• Expensive!
• After hours of use there is a slight pain at the point of contact between the headphone arch and the top of my head.
• Noise cancellation is always on while Bluetooth is on, it can not be turned off! i don’t understand why is this? they can just assign another function to their multi talented multi directional button to turn on and off noise cancellation!
• A slight sensation of pressure on the ears while noise cancellation or (Noise Compensation) is on. But you do get used to that with time.
• Noise cancellation is somewhat directional! ie, it could perform substantially better depending on the angle you are sitting in or the direction of your head! you will eventually figure out what is the best position but it might not be the most comfortable for you to sit in!

 

Review Methodology & Other Thoughts:

For the sake of this review I have used a few of my own reference songs ranging from high res. formats like 24/96 flacs to normal 320 and even less bitrate mp3s, The point was to test the performance of the headphones against my original Momentums for sound quality and against my Shures for sound isolation, comfort and also sound quality. Not only using high resolution recording but also everyday formats that constitute most of my digital music library and I’m sure most of other people’s libraries as well except maybe for the ultra music enthusiasts.

When I was done with my “testing” I really was not surprised with the results, the funny thing is that I have owned those speakers for a while now and all the testing and reviewing has only confirmed what I have concluded out of experiencing them for some time.

The initial reason I jumped to buy those headphones was that I was completely in love with my original over-ear Momentums, I used them everyday at work for hours on end and for a very long time. And now those are the same brand Momentums but with a wireless features! added to that a promising bigger and “cushion-ier” ear cups which could mean an even more comfortable experience.

This could be the holy grail of headphones that i can use all the time; at work and also to replace my Shures which I used while flying for their passive noise cancellation since the Momentums had active noise cancellation which means they are even better!

True?! .. Well .. No! … Using the wireless Momentums in Bluetooth mood all the time at work is not a very good thing! mainly because I do not necessarily need the sound isolating feature. And also I am pinned to my chair most of the time while listening to music so a wireless feature is not that necessary.

And if i wanted to use the Momentum 2.0 in wired mode then that doesn’t make a lot of sense as well because the original Momentums sound better! “maybe to me because i got used to their sound” and also they are more comfortable. The Momentums 2.0 although having bigger and cushion-ier ear cups are still heavier and as it seems the original momentums had just the perfect size and weight for my head.

As for flying and the actual use of noise cancelation I discovered that I found the Shures also better, neither one is perfect, but as far as noise cancellation goes the Shures did a pretty good job and as far as Sound quality; the Shures sounded better than the Momentums 2.0 in Bluetooth mode. And last but not least a wireless feature is not that important in a plane since you are pinned down in your chair most of the time.

Conclusion:

Do I still think that the Momentum 2.0 Wireless edition is the holy grail of headphone?

No.

Would I recommend them to anyone who had similar reasons to buying them as i had?

No.

Would I have bought them if I knew then what I know now?

No.

Do I regret buying them or am I thinking of selling them?

Definitely NOT those are the most beautiful headphones I ever owned and I love them and I will most likely keep them for the rest of my life!

Ill just use the original Momentums at work and the Shures in the air 🙂