Finding the right pair of headphones for travel and commuting is serious business. Over-ears might be the most comfortable and effective for noise cancellation, but they also won’t work for people who are trying to travel light, or just spent a lot of time on their hair. The Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 headphones are a great premium option for people who have cash to splash.
At $499, they’re one of the most expensive pairs of true wireless earbuds on the market, but the audio experience firmly justifies this price, even if there are other reasons to be wary.
Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 review
First impressions
My first impression of the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 was that I had to double-check they hadn’t sent me the True Wireless 3 model by mistake. They look so similar.
This means that you get the signature fabric-covered plastic case, but you also have the same shaped buds, which can be polarising for fit. If you’ve had a good/bad time with the fit of previous generations, then you’re likely going to have the exact same time here. I had been hoping that they would improve the fit in the new generation, but life is full of little disappointments.
Other than that, they look sleek, elegant and expensive (because they are).
Momentum True Wireless 4 specifications
| Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.4 compliant, class 1, 10 mW (max); Bluetooth Classic and Bluetooth LE Audio supported |
| Transmission frequency / modulation | 2,402 MHz to 2,480 MHz; GFSK, π/4 DQPSK / 8DPSK |
| Supported Profiles | A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, TMAP, PBP |
| Supported codecs | SBC, AAC, aptX , aptX Adaptive/Lossless, LC3 |
| Speaker type/size | TrueResponse dynamic, 7mm diameter |
| Weather resistance | IP54, dust and splash-resistant (earbuds only) |
| Battery lifespan | Up to 7.5 hrs music playtime with earbuds (ANC off); Up to 7.0 hrs music playtime with earbuds (ANC on) Up to 30 hrs overall music playtime with charging case |
| Price (RRP) | $499.95 |
| Warranty | Two years |
| Official website | Sennheiser Australia |
This is all pretty much what you’d expect from Sennheiser buds in 2024. There’s nothing here to make you go “ooh” and nothing that’s really missing. That said, I do like the new design on the ear tips that stops the headphones from getting full of ear gunk. It’s disgusting, yet important to consider. I appreciate that Sennheiser has been thoughtful about that, because not all companies are.
Fit
The trend of ‘tiny bit that goes in your ear, big bulb that hangs off your ear’ is not great for most people to get an easy fit. It’s why a lot of brands are moving away from this style of true wireless shape. The way the bigger bit is weighted means that I find I’m always trying to adjust them (and thus triggering the touch controls) if I wear them while walking. Using them while seated I get a slightly better seal, but sometimes you want to wear headphones while walking or, god forbid, running.
Other brands have found ways to do this better. I hope Sennheiser soon learns from them.
Noise cancellation
If you’re paying $500 for headphones, you want good noise cancelling. Or, at least, you should, because it is available on many pairs of headphones. I wore these headphones on several flights, both international and domestic, and I’m somewhat surprised that Sennheiser has put mid-range noise cancelling in a high-end product.
I could still hear conversations happening around me, albeit muted, but I found the Apple AirPods Pro 2nd generation noise cancelling to be better and they’re not perfect either. Given there’s already so much passive noise isolation in this style of true wireless headphones, it shouldn’t have been too difficult to get better noise cancelling than this.
That said, I did not get a perfect fit on these headphones because of the design. If you get a better fit than I did, you will probably have a better time. Also, I was impressed with the anti-wind settings.
Audio quality
Here, Sennheiser has moved to favour lower and richer tones, and I really enjoy it. They’re not going to be ideal for all genres of music (few headphones are), for example, I wouldn’t be listening to delicate classical music. But deeper vocals, acoustic guitars, brass bands, metal, rock, and everything in between sounds excellent.
I found myself getting particularly lost in Sleater-Kinney’s latest album Hell. The raw emotion of “Say It Like You Mean It” always punches me in the guts, but it comes across particularly well on the Momentum True Wireless 4s. It’s such a rich song with so much depth, and it’s conveyed so well here.
A more delicate song like “Your Hands Are Cold” by Dario Marianelli is missing some of the magic in the higher registers, confirming my suspicions that these aren’t for classical music.
Still, a more electronic song like “To Be Yours” by Odesza comes across so beautifully. The yearning, and the spine of the song dance in the way I think it was intended.
I only complain about the other aspects of these headphones because they sound so good, and I want the rest of the package to live up to its potential.
Who is the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 for?
These are for Sennheiser fans with cash to splash. I could point you in the direction of better headphones – Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra buds are a bit cheaper and have better noise cancelling. Apple’s 2nd-gen AirPods Pro have a better transparency mode.
But the tuning and drivers on the Momentum True Wireless 4s sound different to other headphones on the market, not necessarily better than other headphones in this bracket (though certainly no worse), just different. I absolutely love their audio quality, they suit what I want to listen to.
For people who already enjoy their older Sennheiser headphones, these would be a great buy to upgrade. If the previous generations fit you and you liked what they were doing, then you’ll love these.
The post Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 review: just really good appeared first on GadgetGuy.
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