Sennheiser PXC 550 Wireless Headphones Review

Sennheiser PXC 550 Pros&Cons

Sennheiser PXC 550 Specs

• Impedance: 46Ω (Passive) / 490Ω (Active)
• Frequency response: 17Hz ~ 23kHz
• SPL: 110dB
• Connectivity: Wired / Bluetooth 4.2
• Charging time: 3 hours
• Playback time: Up to 30 hours
• Weight (w/o cable): 227g

Packaging 

Sennheiser did a pretty good job at creating some attractive packaging for the PXC 550.
The front of the near-all-black box features an image of the PXC 550, along with a few other graphical elements to highlight the collapsible design, noise-cancellation, battery life, 2 years warranty, and wireless functionality.
The left-hand side advertises Sennheiser’s CapTune app, the functionality of the PXC 500’s touch sensitive earcup, as well as the package contents.
The right-hand side showcases various technologies incorporated into the PXC 500, such as Bluetooth 4.2, NFC pairing, AptX CSR, NoiseGard active noise cancellation, enhanced speech, and 30 hours battery life.
The rear of the box lists some features in text form, as well various specifications including frequency response, impedance, SPL, and THD.

What’s in the box?

• Sennheiser PXC 550
• Storage / travel case
• 3.5mm cable
• Micro-USB charging cable
• 1/4” adapter
• Aircraft adapter
• User guide

Read: Sony MDR1000x Noise cancelling bluetooth headphones Review

Accessories 

Not a great deal other than the essentials are included with the PXC 550. The storage case is large enough to house the PXC 550 along with all the included cables and adapters, but doesn’t feature a reassuringly solid construction.

The 1/4” adapter will sort you with a wired connection to higher-end desktop or portable amplifiers, whereas the included aircraft adapter ensures wired compatibility to an aircraft’s entertainment system for your next flight, as a wireless connection will not be possible without the purchase and use of a separate Bluetooth-enabled aircraft adapter.

Design

The overall construction and design of the PXC 550 seems quite good, but nothing premium. The frame is almost entirely made from plastic, although this does make for a reasonably lightweight set of headphones. This lack of weight does mean that the PXC 550 sits quite comfortably on the head. Only 2 areas might hinder comfort. First is that the cushioning of the headband is just a bit too stiff. This may very well improve over time though.
The 2^nd comfort issue arises with the earcups. Whilst the cushioning is reasonably soft and forgiving, their actual size might very well be a problem for some. For me personally, the earcups sit almost perfectly around my own years, but those with larger ears might experience pain or discomfort after prolonged use if the earcups sit on their ear rather than sitting around/over their ears.

Read: Bose QuietComfort 35 Q35 Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphone Review

However, what the PXC 550 lacks in build quality and possibly comfort, it makes up for in functionality. Sennheiser have incorporated some pretty darn neat features into the PXC 550. The inclusion of NFC seems to have been a bit of a saving grace for me. When I initially tried to pair the PXC 550 to my Galaxy S7, the phone kept showing a pop up about an incorrect PIN. I wasn’t going to fuss around with it, so I simply turned on NFC and paired the device to the headphones that way.
It should also be noted that I also could not pair the PXC 550 with the Hidizs AP60 either, and due to a lack of NFC on the AP60, this meant that the PXC 550 could not be tested with the AP60.
In order to use the NFC pairing function, you simply need to tap and hold an NFC-enabled phone to the left earcup’s faceplate.
However, the right earcup is where all the wizardry happens. In fact, the entire right earcup acts as an on/off switch too. In order to turn the PXC 550 on, you simply need to twist the right earcup into the position that it would be on your head. Pretty nifty, right? Well, this also seems to be a bit of a design fault, meaning that this feature does limit how collapsible the PXC 550 is, as the right earcup MUST be in the “flat” position in order for the PXC 550 to be turned off. As such, it’s very likely that someone would wear the PXC 550 around their neck, completely forgetting to rotate the right earcup, only to later find that their headphones have a depleted battery. Of course, the PXC 550 does boast a maximum 30-hour battery life, which may help to postpone such an issue.
The right earcup also hosts the noise-cancellation switch, music effects switch, Bluetooth on/off switch, micro-USB charging port, 2.5mm wired connection jack, as well as the touch control panel on the right faceplate. This touch control feature allows the user to increase/decrease the volume, skip tracks, pause/resume music, and answer/end calls.

Something else that you may not be aware of; something which you have to wonder if Sennheiser simply didn’t see this as a problem, or if they just didnt even consider it…but the PXC 550 cannot be used in wired mode without turning on its on-board electronic goodies too!
Ok, let me clarify this. Technically, when you connect the PXC 550 to a source via its wired connection, the bluetooth functionality does get turned off automatically. However, the analogue audio signal coming from the source MUST travel through the PXC 550’s built-in amplifier section first before going to the actual drivers. This may have been done, in part, because if you want to use the PXC in wired configuration whilst still enjoying the benefits of its noise cancellation capabilities (this is called “active” mode), the PXC 550 would have an impedance of 490Ω, where as it would have an impedance of 46Ω in “passive” mode.
Such a high impedance of 490Ω requires a lot of power, more than what your smartphone would be able to deliver, and as such a built in amplifier is necessary. But, let’s say you’re in a situation where you didn’t need the noise-cancellation or wireless features (passive mode), and to preserve battery-life, you opted for a direct wired connection between your smartphone and the PXC 550. Well, sorry, you can’t do that until the battery is completely depleted. What this means is that if you want to hear what the PXC sounds like on it own in passive mode, the battery must be completely depleted. So there simply is no way for you to save battery life other than to not use the PXC 550 at all. Seems rather silly.

Sound

Test Setup
Source: Hidizs AP60, Samsung Galaxy S7

Of course, as with any headphones, IEMs, or speakers, sound quality is important, and thankfully the PXC 550 does really well in this department. In fact, the PXC 550’s sound quality rivals that of many traditional plain wired headphones, especially in wired mode.

Wired
Usually with these consumer products, one should not expect the ultimate in sound quality or fidelity. The PXC 550, however, does provide a surprisingly decent sound experience.
Instead of the usual “fun” v-curve signature, Sennheiser opted for a flatter and more balanced sound signature for the PXC 550. What you get is a set of headphones that sound more natural and detailed, as opposed to a signature which artificially tries to enhance the sound, as well as a decent amount of instrument separation. This alone scores the PXC 550 some big points in terms of how valuable they are.

Wireless
Although the PXC 550 does feature the latest Bluetooth 4.2 standard, it does not include the Apt-X protocol. As such, it’s sound quality over Bluetooth is very much respectable, but not entirely as good as it could have been if the Apt-X protocol had been employed. Overall the PXC still offers a sound signature very similar to what you get in wired configuration.

Isolation
Of course any set of headphones/IEMs are going to provide some sort of added isolation, with IEMs and over-ear headphones usually providing the most. However, that is passive isolation (i.e no electronic-wizardry involved). But then there is also active isolation (or noise-cancellation) which attempts to “cancel” external noise by recording that external noise, and then playing it back “out-of-phase”. The theory is that when two identical sounds are played completely out-of -phase, the net result is no sound at all. This isn’t so much a theory as a demonstrable scientific fact. But obviously some active noise cancellation systems work better than others, and thankfully the system used in the PXC 550 is of the far better ones. This makes the PXC 550 perfect for commuting by bus, train, or plane.

 

Read: Bose QC35 VS Parrot Zik 3 Noise cancelling wireless Headphones

Value 

At an asking price of $400 the PXC 550 certainly isn’t cheap, but it also isn’t bad when considering all the features you get.
The PXC 550 is a triple-threat, offering a very effective noise-cancellation system, wireless connectivity, as well as the surprisingly good sound quality. Oh, and the really long 30-hour battery life too!
Of course, you could get a great sounding set of headphones for far cheaper than $400, but headphones that sounds respectable, offer wireless connectivity, as well as effective active noise-cancellation is about as common as a bright-purple unicorn. The PXC 550, on the other hand, might not have entirely mastered any one of those features, but it certainly has done a very respectable job of them all nonetheless. As such, the PXC 550 should be high up (if not on top) your shortlist if you are considering buying a set of wireless headphones.

Rating

The TECH MERIT rating system is designed to take as many aspects of the device into account as possible. As such, we have a basic rating, as well as a final rating. The basic rating rates the product purely as a high quality portable audio device, and is generally a good indicator of how it stacks up to its rivals in terms of standard features and specs. The final rating, however, grants bonus points for any extra features and specs that aren’t quite as common, and is a great way to judge the product as a complete package.

Packaging
Look and feel: 7 / 10

Included Accessories
Protective case: YES

Build
Quality control: 9 / 10
Seems durable: YES
Microphonics: 8 / 10
Comfort: 9 / 10

Sound
Relatively balanced signature: YES
Soundstage: 8 / 10
Detail retrieval: 8 / 10
Sibilance: 8 / 10
Instrument separation: 8 / 10
Isolation: 10 / 10
Hiss: 9 / 10

Portability
Small size: 7 / 10
Relatively low power required: 8 / 10
Weight: 9 / 10

Value
Competitive price-point: YES
Relative value: 8 / 10

Basic Rating: 8.3

 

Bonus points
Removable cables: YES
Number of cables included: 1
Premium cables: –
How premium the case looks and feels: 6 / 10
Battery life above 8 hours: YES
Bluetooth: YES
Apt-X: YES
Volume/remote controls: YES
Metal body: –
Premium look and feel: YES
Use of exotic materials:
Bluetooth connection quality: 9 / 10
1/4” adapter included: YES
Cable management: YES
Aircraft adapter: –
Extra earpads: –

Final Rating: 9.2 

 

The Competition:

BOSE QC35 Headphones

Sony MDR1000x Headphones

Parrot Zik 3

Sennheiser momentum wireless 

 

Check All Headphones options