Sennheiser has just dropped their latest flagship wireless headphones, the Momentum 5, and they look like a seriously solid upgrade.
On the inside, they are sticking with the same 42mm transducers they used in the previous Momentum 4 model, manufactured over at Sennheiser’s Tullamore factory in Ireland. These drivers actually take inspiration from the units found in the legendary HD 600-series headphones, tuned to deliver a rich, full sound with plenty of punchy, dynamic bass.
If you are a bit of an audiophile, you will be pleased to know they are certified for Hi-Res Audio playback from premium streaming platforms like Qobuz and Tidal. This high-fidelity goodness comes courtesy of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Sound technology, with a Bluetooth chipset that supports almost every codec under the sun, including SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD, aptX Lossless, and aptX Adaptive.
Out of the box, the Momentum 5 Wireless will run on Bluetooth 5.4, but Sennheiser have promised that a future firmware release will upgrade the headphones to the latest Bluetooth 6.0 standard. You will also be able to custom-tune your listening experience via the Sennheiser Smart Control Plus app, which features an eight-band graphic equaliser, custom presets, and an intelligent sound personalisation engine.
When it comes to blocking out the world, Sennheiser claims these headphones are three times better at cutting out mid-range noise like background chatter. This is thanks to a new active noise-cancelling (ANC) system boasting double the microphones of the previous generation, resulting in massive improvements to both ANC and transparency modes.
There are now four microphones packed into each ear cup to filter out low-frequency drones like airplane engines or traffic, and they have been fine-tuned to ensure your voice sounds perfectly natural during calls.
The design team also notes that these headphones are built to get better over time. Regular firmware updates to the digital signal processor and wireless engine will unlock new features down the line. In fact, early adopters can already look forward to an immediate update that unlocks Dolby Atmos spatial sound, complete with head-tracking capability for a fully immersive listening experience.
Battery life is another massive win, offering up to 57 hours of playtime on a single charge with ANC switched on. Even better, Sennheiser has made the 700mAh battery easily user-replaceable. If it ever starts to degrade, you can swap it out yourself with nothing more than a small Phillips-head screwdriver, and the brand assures users that the replaceable cell will not affect audio performance.
The storage case is also smaller than the previous version, and plastic-free materials were used to reduce environmental impact during shipping. The case also includes a USB Type-C charging cable and a 3.5mm audio cable for connection to a variety of devices.
The Sennheiser Momentum 5 Wireless headphones are launching globally in three distinct colourways, Black, Denim, and White, with a price tag of USD399.99 (~RM1,586).
They are officially headed to Malaysia as well, though local pricing and exact availability dates are still under wraps for now.