The Sennheiser Momentum Wireless cost £349 from Currys PC World
Sennheiser are back in the over-ear headphone market and they come with a bang introducing the Momentum Wireless headphones and costing £349 from Currys PC World. So let’s see if they are worth the money?
On the first Inspection, the Momentum Wireless are everything you expect from this type of headphone and when we dig deeper they are so much more.
Design-wise you get a very premium design the cup cushions are very comfortable for listening to music for long periods. They are made from sheepskin leather which adds to the comfort and premium feel. The headphones look really sleek in design and this is shown in the stainless steel headband and sliders that have the Sennheiser logo on each button.
If we take a step back for a second the headphones come with a fabric carry case that gives you accessories such as the USB-C charging cable and also USB-C to USB-A adaptor plus you get the standard 3.5mm cable when you want that wired connection.
Moving back to the headphone design the Momentum wireless has got rid of the power button completely instead all you have to do is take the headphones off and fold the cups into each other and you will see a little red LED light on the right cup and that same LED goes yellow when you put them back on with voice telling you they are on and also when they connect as once you pair once it does it automatically next time you use them. I really like the fact that Sennheiser has made turning these off and pairing so much more simple just remember to fold when not in use of these will stay on.
These headphones are not completely control free thank god you have a multi-function button that allows you to do the following:
Press once: Play/Pause
Press Twice: Next Track
Press Three times: Previous track
You also have the ANC controls and transparent hearing mode which is more of a flick switch at the top of the right cup. Under the multi-function is the button to summon the voice assistant and as am using an iPhone X that is Siri in this case and testing this the Smart assistant button is very responsive which I like as I have found headphones like the Jabra Elite 85H can be a bit slow on that front.
Sennheiser has also taken to linking this headphones with Tile which allows you to find your headphones if you have misplaced them at home or in the office and even to a degree the outdoors but don’t expect a £300+ pair of headphones to be in that cafe if you put them down and walked out leaving them behind. However, the tile technology is great if you have misplaced them at home and want to find them quickly. The only over brand I have seen who use Tile is Skullcandy and the new Crusher headphones which am currently testing.
In terms of features, Sennheiser has introduced the smart pause this is when the headphones are not in use or on your head they will sense that and automatically turn off which is great for saving that battery. You also have the Tile tracker which I have mentioned when talking about the design section so if they are misplaced use the Tile app and click call my headphones and you then will notice the headphones will ring and vibrate and this gets louder the longer you try to find the headphones like your own treasure hunt and it works great as you would expect. I also found pairing these headphones really easy to do when you first put them on they went into pairing automatically and once paired just put them on and they should switch on and pair. In testing these I have noticed this does not happen every time but a quick fold and unfold of the headphones and problem solved.
Sennheiser also has the smart control app which you can control the ANC settings but in testing, I found it very difficult to even get the app to load properly which was a bit disappointing as am unsure it would have added to my experience but did get access to it but only a handful of times.
The main feature of these headphones is the ANC and for those who have listened to a number of different headphone brands, the ANC quality is important. When you travelling to work you want to cut out the outside noise and the ANC with the Sennheisers is really good on the train it cut 95% of all outside noise out and that means you get to enjoy your music without the everyday interruptions. The app when working allows you to change the setting of the ANC and you also have an anti-wind mode meaning it provides less cancellation while blocking out the wind which is great when using the headphones in poor weather. You also have the anti-pressure mode in the app that reduces the discomfort that sometimes ANC can cause and this mode can help the listener.
Finally, you have the transparent hearing mode this allows you to still listen to your music but it allows some of the outside noise in which is ideal when your at a train station and you want to hear the announcements without taking the headphones off and this setting does work better than just turning ANC off. It’s also good so you can hear your surroundings when walking down the street as nobody wants to be hit by a bus.
Moving on to battery life this is where unfortunately Sennheiser falls down the as it only offers 17 hour battery life but when compared to the Jabra Elite 85H (£279) that comes in at 36 hours with ANC on shows the work Sennheiser has to do to bring this on pair with these or even the Sony WH-100XM3( £279) that offers 30 hours which does make you question the price point compared to its rivals. However, 17 hours should still cover you for at least a good week of travelling and using these to work and back.
Moving onto the sound quality which is the most important element of theses headphones and you will not be disappointed Sennheiser have brought their award-winning sound quality in spades. The Momentum headphones support the Qualcomms APtX standard and also the AAC, and SBC standards, as well as aptX Low Latency – this means you shouldn’t experience connection dropouts or any annoying lag when watching videos with these headphones and this helps bring a joyful sound. You get no harshness on the treble and the bass offers fabulous sound punch when you need it and this all helps bring a crystal clear and well-balanced sound.
I use Tidal when listening to music on quality headphones like these The Greatest Show theme tune for the Greatest Showman and the bass comes into its own and creates that epic edge we all want for premium headphones like these. The Momentum wireless when listening to something like Bon Jovi “Living on a Prayer” the sound is rich and the bass frequencies take me to heaven without the sound sounding harsh. What I like the most is the clarity of these headphones you will start to hear elements you have never heard before as until now you never had these headphones.
So overall, The Momentum Wireless are a fantastic pair of overhead headphones that have a premium feel about and above are very comfortable and has some top features and a design that takes you back to these big DJ headphones we all wanted as a kid. I like the fact that they have taken a leaf out of Skullcandy’s book and used Tile inside the headphones which are great when you have misplaced your headphones. I also liked the fact they have taken away the power switch and allow to power them simply by unfolding the headphones and they also pair very quickly. My only real issue and I think these could put people off is the battery life. At only 17 hours it’s well off the likes of the Jabra Elite 86H at 36 hours. So if Sennheiser was to bring out an updated version this is one area that needs to be addressed but if you can look past that and can handle 17 hours of battery.
These are well worth considering as the ANC & Sound quality is really good and it’s a great attempt from Sennheiser that has not brought out an over-head pair of headphones for some time now. One other thing that might put people off is the price at £349 there are others like the Jabra’s or the Sony pair that are just a slight step above on some factors. However, if you want premium sound you have to pay a premium price.
The Sennheiser Momentum Wireless cost £349 from Currys PC World