Sennheiser MOMENTUM

General Information

The MOMENTUM headphones makes the famous Sennheiser sound quality tangible. It is reflected in the material selection of these refined headphones – the use of supple, breathable leather for the headband and earcups, displays our commitment to style. Reflecting its technical excellence is the use of high-performance neodymium magnets for extraordinarily rich and detailed stereo sound. Also, the circumaural capsules ensures perfect listening enjoyment without ambient noise.
For excellent connectivity, the headphones are fitted with a 3.5 mm stereo jack and with nominal impedance reduced for mobile players. An additional cable with an integrated smart remote and microphone is included for easy management of tracks and calls.

Features:

Closed design – Closed circumaural headphone design isolate against ambient noise
Ease of use – Integrated smart remote with in-line microphone for ease of use
Finely selected materials – Luxurious and tough breathable leather headband for optimum sweat and water resistance
Premium comfort – Soft and supple finest leather earpads for excellent wearing comfort
Maximum durability – Metal-constructed earcup slider for maximum durability and custom fit
Convenience at its best – Hard carrying case for maximum portability
2 year warranty

Latest reviews

PinkyPowers

Reviewer: The Headphone List
Pros: Raw, spacious, carefree sound. Excellent build and materials. Beautiful design.
Cons: Microphonic. Lacks sonic refinement. Hardwired for Single-ended cables.
SennheiserMomentumDIY.jpg

Sometimes there’s this manic impulse that takes hold and makes me buy stuff at the drop of a hat. I wrestle with it all the time. A horrible need reveals itself for that missing piece of your system, and suddenly you can’t sleep until you place that order.

I can’t give you a logically compelling narrative as to why I bought these headphones. I’m just glad I did.

Most of my listening is done at the office, where I sit at a bench all day working with my hands on electronics, testing, repairing, etc… Most of the time it doesn’t take a great deal of thinking. For the first nine months at this job, I was alone with naught but my thoughts, day after day, as my hands toiled. There are no words to describe how darkly weird and kinky it is inside the rickety confines of my psyche. So it became necessary to always, always, ALWAYS have a means by which to distract the villain who governs my subconscious. There would likely have been global ramifications had I not decided to put something in my ears to help the days pass.

M2AK120ii.jpg

Slowly, I’ve upgraded, piece by piece, to Summit-fi territory, and currently use the JH Audio Angie for most of my work/mobile listening. At home, hooked up to my fully balanced desktop rig, are the Audeze LCD-2.2 Fazor, and the Sennheiser HD600.

As diverse as they may seem, these headphones share a lot in common. They are all capable of warmth, without ever losing their air, detail, and imaging. This is the signature I look for in all of my equipment. I am neither a bass nor treble-head. I want everything in balance, with a nice rich timbre tying it all together. The mids are primarily where I find this happens. So perhaps I’m a mid-head?

At times I simply don’t want to put something in my ear. Maybe I’m not up to messing with fit and seal, or there’s earwax I just don’t feel like dealing with. Or maybe I’ve just had Angie in for too long. She never grows painful, but after four or five hours your ears do get tired. The point is there are plenty of reasons I desire a portable over-ear solution. On-ear was never an option. No matter how soft the padding, that constant pressure inevitably turns to white-hot agony after about an hour.

For a time I thought the B&W P7 was the headphone for me. Certainly, the Oppo PM-3 has a strong allure. Indeed, I’ll most probably get the Oppo eventually. As I researched the matter, the Sennheiser Momentum 2 kept calling to me. Worshiping as I do at the altar of the HD600, I can’t imagine where this attraction came from. Also, that retro aesthetic is killer.

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What clinched the deal was when the price suddenly dropped all across the internet, from $349 down to $249. On top of that, I had accrued $50 worth of Amazon credit. So from a certain perspective, I got a set of phones, which I was willing to spend full retail price on, for only $200. That’s half what those other two choices are going for.

Upon first laying hands on them, I was filled with wroth and dismay, for I was certain they had sent me the On-Ears by mistake. These things are just so small! Then I tried them on, and my ears fit perfectly within the circumference of the pads. The Momentum 2.0 is comfortable. They have a luxurious feel. Genuine Leather, stainless steel, highly sturdy construction. I never fear accidently breaking these. Is it possible? Probably. But a normal fall shouldn’t do it, and you’d have to really work at it to snap off the cups or destroy the headband. Again, stainless steel.

I must admit, at first the M2 sounded underpowered playing from my Astell & Kern AK120II. Not that it couldn’t be driven loud enough. By 90/120, the SPL was already where I like it. No, it merely seemed hollow to my ears. Angie presents a fuller sound, as does my backup IEM, the ATH-IM03. The LCD-2 and HD600 are powered by the beefy Audio-GD NFB-28, so they too are driven to their fullest. The Momentum felt like it had untapped potential from a DAP. Yet the whole bloody point of this purchase was to use it with my AK! As you might guess, I was distraught.

It took a few days before I grew accustomed to its sound. Call it hardware burn-in or brain burn-in, but I eventually discovered a lust for the Momentum’s sound. On my desktop amp the music is meatier through the Senns. What I hear from a DAP is a lesser M2. Nonetheless, there’s still that sparkle, engaging bass, and glorious timbre. In other words, the Sennheiser sound is intact.

The Sennheiser Momentum 2.0 renders an almost loose, sort of raw, easy-going sound. It’s the Jefferson Airplane of headphones. It would take very little to make this signature awful. For these Senns, though, it’s all brought together with that sweet character as the fabric of this tapestry. I can understand why someone wouldn’t like these. They’re not tight or controlled, or all that smooth. They aren’t dark or bright. They’re just a little warm, reckless and wild. If you’re akin to me in any way, that fun, effortless sound that never fatigues is surprisingly welcome.

On the Shanling M2, which I have here for testing, they lose some of their vibrancy while growing warmer and somewhat creamy. The combination is lovely.

SennShanling.jpg

You may find this rather predictable, but no less than three of my co-workers own Beats. Solos, I believe. I gave two of them a little time with the Senns. They know nothing about them, probably never even heard of Sennheiser, and I told them only that I wanted to hear their impressions on how they stacked up. The first co-worker said the M2 sounded clearer. He thought it must be because his Solo was a few years old now. I merely smiled. The other man said it sounded pretty good if you don’t mind sacrificing bass. I nodded knowingly, thanked him for his impressions, and took the Sennheiser back.

I don’t have extensive experience with Beats, though I do try them out every time I find myself at BestBuy or MicroCenter. The M2’s bass is more textured, and though not as exaggerated, quite fun and heavy in its own right. The mids are clearer by a large margin, with a degree of detail and personality Beats can’t match. Neither is great with treble. Where the M2 really dominates Dr. Dre is in tonality, which is Sennheiser’s specialty. Both the HD600 and M2 possess this natural, earthy quality other manufacturers would kill to achieve.

The Sennheiser Momentum 2.0, like Beats, is great for mobility. The carry case fits inside my messenger bag, along with two IEMs and my AK120II, and all the non-audio boring stuff. I take these cans whilst walking or jogging. Often I’ll wear them on my long drive home from work, instead of using the car stereo. When I’m out shopping or doing errands, you may see a hairy man with cream-colored cans bound to his head. They even sound surprisingly capable and bass-y from my Galaxy S6.

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Yes, I’m awfully fond of these babies. They’ve proven to be everything I needed, filling that over-ear void in my arsenal of portable gear. To pull me away from IEMs like Angie, they have to be comfortable as hell and sound really ********* good. And while Angie sounds better in a lot of ways, the Momentum 2.0 holds its own, and offers that singular full-size over-ear flavor that IEMs can’t match.

I still desire to try the Oppo PM-3, or maybe something bigger and better yet. We’ll see. Right now, this niche is met, and by the sexiest of the lot.

Postscript:
You’ll see that custom cable goes through some changes in these photos. I was honing my DIY craft and figured this was a fine headphone to experiment on.

-~::Pinky_Powers::~-

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Sennheiser
Sennheiser
PinkyPowers
PinkyPowers
In the first week of owning the Momentums, a co-worker stopped me and said, "You look cool," pointing to the headphones upon my dome. He said it in a mocking way, but I noted he never commented on all the Beats floating around the office. The Momentums really stood out.

He stopped me again today, inquiring about these stylish beauties. I let him listen for a bit. Then he asked about the price, and cringed. Then he asked how much he might be able to find them for used.

heavyarms

New Head-Fier
Pros: controlled mids and bass
Cons: not true over ears for large ears, costlier
I got the pair 6 months ago and I am loving it.  It's my portable pair and even though it doesn't fold you hang them around the neck (only good thing about the small ear cups)
 
Design & Aesthetics:
Build quality is top-notch.  They feel sturdy on head and I thew them in my backpack several times.
I would like to label them modern with a subtle Retro touch.  Looks great on head.  Isn't bulky at all.  The cable is also thin and won't cause discomfort.  The bundled case is hardshell type covered with suede type material.
 
Comfort:  When I got them I didn't find them comfortable for long listening sessions.  The ear cups weren't big enough to be truly called over ears.  However after using for couple of weeks the clamping force reduced (I did use force to reduce strain on the headband - Steel bands rock) and the leather pads helped a lot.  Now I can use them for long hours - 4+ hours comfortably.  
p.s I do wear glasses.
 
Usage:  They are easy to drive and hence I use them without amp.  I tried with FIIO E07K DAC/AMP but wasn't worth to carry around additional bulk for a tad increase in performance.  
 
Summary:  I am not going to talk too much over the sound quality as there are quite a few reviews with detailed analysis on same.  I would recommend these pair of headphones to anyone who would want a stylish, portable, all-rounder headphones and with a budget of $200-$220

zambz

100+ Head-Fier
Pros: Incredible bass, neutral mids, amazing quality build, excellent accessories
Cons: Lacks sparkle in the treble region, can be a bit uncomfortable after a while on bigger ears
I recently bought myself the Momentum 2.0 over-ears and have a lot of good things and a few bad to say about them.
 
I really love their build quality, the feel of the buttons on the provided cable and the excellent case provided.  The leather pads smell and feel wonderful to the touch and it's clear that Sennheiser have not held back on the best quality materials here.  I feel comfortable travelling with these and listening to them everywhere I go including the train, work and walking.  The ear cups are still a little small for me and slightly touch my ears which gets uncomfortable after an hour or so.  I do usually have to give my ears a rest to let the discomfort go away.  They also clamp a pinch on the tight side which I presume may loosen over time, but mine hasn't yet.
 
Overall, I personally feel that these headphones shine with electronic genres and a lot of modern pop which has a lot of electronic elements.  The bass response is extremely solid and just the perfect amount for EDM without being over the top.  I just enjoy listening to dance music with these headphones, they have this wonderful punch and extend extremely low such that you feel the rumble of any sub bass.  I really love the mids too, they are really neutral and not recessed so vocals and instruments are represented very clearly.
 
My biggest gripe with their sound signature is the treble.  It's really laid back and rolled off such that you really lose clarity.  I find that this is most important for genres that use a lot of acoustic instruments and real drums such as country.  I can't say that this headphone would be my first choice if you're primarily listening to such material.
 
The soundstage of these headphones is good but not great.  I have heard closed cans (SRH-840, BeoPlay H6) with wider soundstages, but the Momentums do have a decent width which works really well for music such as EDM where you are mostly focused on the centered kick drum and sub bass in the tune.
 
Overall, I recommend this headphone with a few caveats; do they fit your ears comfortably?  are you OK with a rolled off treble and slightly more narrow soundstage?
 
For a good comparison of a headphone that has a more open and sparkly but less punchy sound to these, check out the BeoPlay H6s which are much more mid and treble focused with a less present but tight bass.
PinkyPowers
PinkyPowers
What's your source? On a decent DAP I find them extremely clear and detailed. I've used mine with the X5 Classic and the AK120ii, and both deliver a very clear, clean and open sound.
zambz
zambz
Hello PinkyPowers, I incorrectly posted my review on the Momentum instead of the Momentum 2.0 page.  I have tried various sources, but ultimately they are unamped.  I have tried via my iPad, HTC One M8 and MacBook Pro.
 
This may be relative to other brighter cans that I find these a bit dull.  Perhaps try to compare them against the Shure SRH-840s or the BeoPlay H6s to see what I mean :)

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