Sennheiser's Momentum Wireless Review: Feature-rich, if not sonic

It has been about four years since Sennheiser has updated its Momentum Wireless noise-canceling headphones, and a lot has changed since then. Voice assistants have become an essential feature of helmets. The industry has switched to USB-C technology for charging. Many versions of Bluetooth have been provided in the meantime, each providing additional improvements in connectivity and sound quality.

So, the arrival of the third generation Sennheiser Momentum Wireless headset (which I will call Momentum 3 from now on) is a big problem in terms of headphones. The new headphones are still a premium set of $ 400 (£ 349) cans, but they're packed with new features and technology that would not have been possible four years ago. All these new additions combine to create a feature-rich headset that's comfortable to wear and just as stylish as previous Sennheiser models. The only drawback, which I will come back to in a moment, is that you can find headphones that sound better at this higher price level.

Headphones have changed a lot in the last four years. Let's start by listing some of the ways in which these third generation helmets have had to catch up. There is a new activation button for the voice assistant (Google Assistant and Alexa are both supported on Android, while Apple users are limited to Siri), a proximity sensor that starts and stops automatically your music depending on whether you wear the headset or not and the headphones. use a USB-C port to charge. Fortunately, Sennheiser has opted for a traditional three – button layout to control volume and playback rather than switching to gesture controls like many other helmet manufacturers have done. The buttons were reliable and easy to use during my tests.

The integration of Tile support, which allows you to use the Tile app to search for your headphones if you lose them at home, is particularly interesting. It's not an entirely new feature (we've already seen Bose add it to his SoundSport headset, for example), but it's still something that's not common on most wireless headsets . It works like any other mosaic device, that is, it works well to locate your headphones if you misplace them.

Another less unique tip of Momentum 3 is to automate certain actions when you wear the helmet or have stored it safely. They have wear detection (similar to other headphones like the Bowers & Wilkins PX Wireless) and turn off automatically when you fold them. In fact, folding headphones in this way is the only way to disable them, as they do not have a traditional on / off button. Without the proper power button, there is no way to wear them around your neck without having them in sleep mode, which means I forgot they were turned on and connected to my phone repeatedly. A little annoying.

I should mention that you can disable the "Smart Pause" setting in the app, which will prevent headphones from automatically playing music when they feel you're wearing them. You can also use this app to adjust the headphone EQ, as well as other settings. Using this app, you automatically share the usage data, but you also have the option to unsubscribe in the privacy section of the app. There is no mention of Sennheiser's collection of your information for marketing purposes, as stated in a complaint that Bose made.

All the features of the world do not matter if the Momentum 3 does not sound good when you listen to them. Fortunately, they sound good – really good – and they are certainly in the same situation as the latest headphones from Sony or Bowers & Wilkins. But the problem is that these headphones cost $ 400 and if you're ready to spend so much money, then I think you can technically get better sound elsewhere if that's your top priority.

That's not to say that Sennheiser's latest headphones have nothing to envy. They support Qualcomm's AptX standard, their bass is punchy, there is no hardness or hissing to the highs and, across the entire audio spectrum, their sound is clear and balanced. Listen to a piece where a lot of things happen, like "Leviathan" by the Japanese jazz band Mouse on the Keys, you will not lose any element of the song, even if the drums and the two pianos combine to form a barely coherent melody.

However, headphones never achieve the same refinement as the Bowers & Wilkins Powers Wireless, which sounds slightly heavier and within easy reach. They are just more accurate in the way they deliver their sound. The overall acoustic separation offered by Bowers & Wilkins noise earmuffs is also better than the width of a hair, which helps to broaden the sound stage. Listen to "Knights of Cydonia" of Muse on the Sennheiser Moments, and something about it does not have the epic advantage that you hoped to get from the song.

That said, the latest Sennheiser headphones are much more comfortable to wear, with well padded earbuds, which means they put virtually no pressure on my ears, even when I wear them. It's something the Bowers & Wilkins helmet sometimes has a hard time adjusting to. Despite the big cushions, the Sennheiser headphones did not end up feeling too big and were folded into a compact body.

I also think that this is a great pair of headphones, although for my money, Sennheiser headphones are always more beautiful in cream than the black models that the company offers for these headphones. Sennheiser says his new helmet will be available in "white sand" from November.

The cancellation of the noise of the helmet also resists very well. I used them a lot during my travels in London underground network and sometimes hissing. They did a good job with both, even though they could not completely cut the sound. When I tried them on a flight, they were able to completely eliminate the din of the aircraft engines and dramatically reduce the high-pitched sounds around me. That does not mean that I was able to enjoy complete silence during my flight, but it was really enough to allow me to listen to podcasts and music without having to turn up the volume louder than usual . You can technically get a slightly better noise reduction from Sony or Bose, but the Sennheiser offer is more than enough.

This is a minor point, but it was also nice to discover that the Sennheiser Momentum Wireless are very attentive with the removal of noise off. Some headphones, such as the AKG N60 NC or Sennheiser's own HD1, do not allow you to disable noise suppression, while other sound quality, like the Bowers & Wilkins Powers Wireless, has collapsed at every time. If you're a bit like me, 90% of your listening is turned on with noise suppression turned on, but it's nice to have the option to turn it off when you wander through the busy streets of the city.

The headphones also have an audio audio feature that turns off your music and uses the earpiece microphones to amplify background sounds, in case you want to quickly listen to external sounds, such as travel announcements. The feature works well, but it's a little harder to use than on the latest Sony headsets. Sony headphones simply allow you to activate the crossing function, while Sennheiser relies on the fact that you operate a small switch, which can be more difficult to do quickly when you want to take a train ad. I also found myself turning off noise suppression when I just wanted to turn off the ambient broadcast mode.

Unfortunately, the battery life assessed by Sennheiser for the third generation, Momentum Wireless, has dropped slightly compared to its latest generation headphones. The company says you should get 16 hours of playback of its latest headset, compared to the 22 hours cited for previous models. However, I did not think it was a big problem during my time with headphones. I discovered that I had to load them twice during the two weeks of use, during which I used them for many trips and for other journeys. In comparison, Bowers & Wilkins announces that you will get 22 hours of using the PX Wireless, Sony indicates that its WH-1000XM3 has 30 and that Bose quotes 20 hours for its QC 35 II.

Aside from the lack of physical activation / deactivation button, the only other problem I have with headphones is that they use a 2.5mm connector when you want to plug in a physical cable. It may be a personal matter, but I've always found that 3.5mm cables are more widely available in a jiffy, like when you show up at the airport and you've forgotten the cable you need to plug your headphones into the in-flight entertainment system.

The Sennheiser Momentum Wireless 3 is an essential and essential upgrade to Sennheiser's high-end wireless headphones. I love their retro-inspired design a lot, and they are nice to wear. It's also nice to see Sennheiser experiment with new features, even if they do not fit all. The mosaic support is an interesting addition, for example, but I would have really liked seeing a traditional on / off button in addition to being able to disable them by reducing them. If you have hesitated to buy the current Sennheiser Moments because of their slightly outdated specifications, the new headphones are an excellent update.

However, I will not stop recommending these headphones to everyone, especially if you are looking for the best sound quality available. A $ 400 price point puts these headphones firmly in premium territory. For that money, if you're looking for the absolute best sound quality, I'd rather point you to the Bowers & Wilkins PX Wireless, while those looking to optimize noise suppression would do well to check out the latest information from Sony or Bose.

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