The Sennheiser Momentum headphones are a new release from Sennheiser – a German audio Manufacturer, based in Wedemark, Germany for well over 60 years.
The Sennheiser Momentum headphones are designed for anyone that wants very high quality, and very high sound reproduction quality, with comfort, form, fit and but yet looks fantastic. I am happy to say Sennheiser have struck gold with the Momentum headphones.
These use high quality components, with materials like metal, leather, stainless steel and fibreglass injected plastic for the headphone themselves, and the headband is sweat resistant, and is of a circum-aural design (sit over your ears not on them). Plus high-powered Neodymium magnets (40mm) for high quality sound reproduction, and an impedance of 18 ohms (suitable for iPod’s).
Design and Build Quality
You can see from the design of the Momentum headphones, that they take design cues from other variants of Sennheiser’s headphones, but yet look classy and different, and really stand out unlike a lot of headphones on the market. The brushed metal horseshoe design plus the stitched leather, which is luxurious, really stands out and in part is statement to Sennheiser’s design, which I have never ever seen before, and this is a very sophisticated statement.
The headband is made of real leather stitched around the metal frame and is padded for comfort, plus the silver Sennheiser logo add finesse to the design and function of these headphones. The 3.5 mm headphone jack can go from straight to l-shaped with the click, and the inline microphone and music controls are stainless steel – no plastic on these parts. Add to this the cable can be replaced as well.
The ear pads are also manufactured using leather to make them soft and seal the earphones to hear a lot more audio and sit perfectly, with little audio from the outside world. Isolation on these is fantastic. The 3.5mm adapter is silver (not gold plated). These are a very solid build, but not to the detriment of weight.
Features
- Closed Design – Closed circumaural headphone design isolate against ambient noise.
- Ease of Use – Integrated smart remote with in-line microphone.
- Finely Selected Materials – Luxurious and tough breathable leather headband for optimum sweat and water resistance.
- Built-in High Quality Metal Microphone with iPod / iPhone buttons
- Premium Comfort – Soft and supple finest leather ear pads for excellent wearing comfort.
- Protection – Hard carry case included with zipper and also stitched
Performance
For testing and review purposes I used the Sennheiser Momentum headphones with the latest generation iPod touch 32GB with a FiiO E17 portable amplifier with no EQ settings enabled. This allows me to hear the 320Kbps audio without the restriction of the iPod amplifier, which is low powered. However these can be powered with only an iPod due to their low impedance of 18 ohms. The ear pads are also adjustable via a slider.
I must admit the sound isolation on the Sennheiser Momentum’s is very very impressive due to the oval shaped ear pads, and their comfort and design. As for audio, the sound quality of these is the best I have heard for a long time, they are also very clear, no distortion and the audio is not coloured, bass is not too heavy or light and these can really pump out audio with no issues at all.
I listened to a variety of pop / rock / classical / soundtracks / hip hop / orchestral etc. – and not a single issue – the audio quality remained spot on – no dead spots and nothing abnormal audio wise. The audio is balanced – not too forward or laid back – and the soundstage is very large which gives you that feeling of being at a concert or hall. Plus, no cord noise either. Lows, treble, mids and highs are all spot on. These really make you realise how headphones should sound.
Specifications
- Ear Coupling – Circumaural
- Transducer Principle – Dynamic – closed
- Frequency Response – 16hz – 22,000hz
- Sound Pressure Level (SPL) – 110db
- Impedance – 18 Ohms
- Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) – < 0.5%
- Loading – 200mw
- Weight – 190g
- Price: $449 SRP
Advantages
- Easy to adjust slide controls for left and right earpieces
- Long cable and no cable noise
- Stylish / Modern / Sophisticated
- Metal and Leather construction
- Built-in Metal iPhone / iPod Microphone and Volume Controls
- Removable cable for replacement
- 2 year warranty
- Carrying case
- Change the 3.5mm connector from straight to L-shape
- Powerful drivers
- Replaceable cable – around $158
- Easy to power from an iPod or iPhone
- Replaceable ear pads
Disadvantages
- Leather ear pads change colour when moisture makes contact with them, so their original new colour never returns. The ear pads should really be water resistant.
- 3.5mm headphone jack is not Gold plated.
