[zambz]

I spent an hour comparing my M2 wired with the Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay H6s today

Firstly, the build quality on both is about equal. I prefer the styling on the H6 more but prefer the cup material on the M2s. From a portable standpoint, the M2s are better with their folding design and included case vs the sleeve included with the H6s. They offer a nicer leather sleeve for the H6 at an extra $200 AU which is just stupid lol. The H6 also only offers an iOS cable, no Android, this means no volume control for us Android people.

Comfort on the H6s beats the M2 for me. The cups are bigger and the headphone feels really cozy around the ears while my M2 gets uncomfortable after some time.

In terms of sound, I personally like the H6 much more for audiophile listening. They have no mid bass bump and therefore sound less muffled and they extend really high in the treble with no noticeable roll off. They have a tight bass response which has quite a lot less impact than the M2s. Their soundstage is wider too and everything sounds superb and far more analytical. However, their treble may be fatiguing after a while and the lower bass makes music a little less fun and full sounding.

The H6s are far more neutral and thankfully have present mids and highs. I tried the H8 too for fun and can honestly say they sound like crapola. What were they thinking with those ...

Overall, the M2s are better value but imho are not at the same level in terms of sound. The H6s are basically like a closed AKG K701s.

Oh and the H6s are a bit harder to drive. The M2s were louder at the same volume on my phone.

The Shure SRH-840s sound like a mix of these two. They take the mid-bass bump and more present lows of the M2s (though not quite as present or extended) and take those wonderful mids and treble from the H6 and blend them together.

I still think that the SRH-840s are the best sounding of all of these, but the H6 comes mighty close and has the build quality to match.

For loud listening and travel, the M2s are much better assuming you don't care about the treble roll off.

 

[disambiguated]

I recieved my M2W yesterday.

However, I too have the microphone problem. I recorded myself on my MacBook Pro, and the sound is barely good enough te make myself understandable. It is definitely not good enough to make calls for work, which is a shame for such an expensive pair of headphones.

 

Thanks for testing this - now I know it's not just me, heh.

The mics sound about the same in wired USB DAC mode. It's definitely the mics.

Sigh.

 

[thefitz]

Interesting, I make phone calls on it all the time in all sorts of settings and nobody ever complained. Obviously, I haven't called myself so I can't tell how it actually sounds, haha.

 

[shuto77]

I'm looking for a good closed-back headphone where my usage will be 50/50 music and gaming.

Can anyone confirm if the soundstage and imaging are improved over the Momentum 1.0? I liked that headphone but sold them because I was unhappy with their gaming performance.

I know they won't be as good as my Philips Fidelio X2 regarding soundstage and imaging, but I need something with better isolation.

Thanks.

 

[shuto77]

Yeah, you're right.  The Q701s are also closer to the sound I like also.  Having listened to studio monitors with ribbon tweeters for the last 11 years, I think that I'm really used to that crisp sound signature now and prefer it even for portable listening

There are some closed back portable headphones with a closer sound though.  I think the AKG K551s definitely were more focused on the mid and treble, but I haven't heard tho K545 which also had a little more bass and refinement (apparently).

I'm thinking of checking out the Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay H6 to see what they're like and possibly the AKGs.

If you like a brighter/clearer sound, the Audio Technica MSR7 might be a better match. They're about $200 in the US. Not sure about your area.

 

[thefitz]

I'm looking for a good closed-back headphone where my usage will be 50/50 music and gaming.

Can anyone confirm if the soundstage and imaging are improved over the Momentum 1.0? I liked that headphone but sold them because I was unhappy with their gaming performance.

I know they won't be as good as my Philips Fidelio X2 regarding soundstage and imaging, but I need something with better isolation.

Thanks.

Those didn't strike me as improvements, so I'm going to say not appreciably.

 

[shuto77]

Those didn't strike me as improvements, so I'm going to say not appreciably.

OK, thanks for the information. I'm leaning toward the NAD Viso hp50 then, though I'm not sure if I'll like those oddly shaped earpads.

 

[disambiguated]

Interesting, I make phone calls on it all the time in all sorts of settings and nobody ever complained. Obviously, I haven't called myself so I can't tell how it actually sounds, haha.

 

Use Skype's Test Call, or just record yourself using any of a number of applications. On the iPhone, Voice Memo is enough to judge the quality (or lack thereof).

 

[Yasanaki]

Apologize if this was mentioned. The wireless does not work with PS4.

 

[disambiguated]

It's widely-known that the PS4 doesn't support Bluetooth headphones for gaming.
 
I'm still using an ancient set of Turtle Beach PX5s for surround gaming with my PS4.  Will probably upgrade to Turtle Beach Elite 800s soon due solely to physical deterioration of the soft leather-like trim on the PX5s, I don't want to be stuck without a gaming headset if/when the earcups start wearing away.

 

[disambiguated]

So, I decided to try and use the M2Ws with my iPhone 6 Plus in DAC mode - I took a microUSB OTG adaptor, plugged it into the headphones, then plugged an MFI Lightning cable from the OTG adaptor to the iPhone.
 
No joy.  When I play something from the Apple Music app in this configuration, it plays the audio via the phone's speaker.
 
Given the existence of the Philips M2L, what am I doing wrong?  Is there some 'hello' signal the M2W DAC isn't sending to the iPhone, or . . . ?

 

[n00b2]

  So, I decided to try and use the M2Ws with my iPhone 6 Plus in DAC mode - I took a microUSB OTG adaptor, plugged it into the headphones, then plugged an MFI Lightning cable from the OTG adaptor to the iPhone.
 
No joy.  When I play something from the Apple Music app in this configuration, it plays the audio via the phone's speaker.
 
Given the existence of the Philips M2L, what am I doing wrong?  Is there some 'hello' signal the M2W DAC isn't sending to the iPhone, or . . . ?

 
The Momentum Wireless works quite well on Android phones but OTG doesn't work the way you tried. You can't connect an OTG cable to the headphones. Headphones don't support OTG, phones do. With an Android phone you need to connect the OTG adapter to the phone and then connect a regular data micro usb cable between the OTG adapter and the headphones. I don't know if this will work on iPhone 6 (it did work on iPhone 5) but your best bet would be to get a lightning to usb OTG adapter, something like this, and then connect a regular micro usb cable between the adapter and the headphones. That particular adapter though says it is only compatible up to iPhone 5. Not sure if there are any solutions out there for iPhone 6.

 

[rstark18]

Anyone know of any cybermonday deals on these?

 

[Mathieulh]

I have had 3 Sennheiser Momentum Wireless AEBT so far, the first one was a REV1 it had a few bluetooth issues but nothing worth complaining too much about, I thought it was a keeper until the paint/layer (whatever it is called) on the right cup started peeling out on its own (for no reason, it received no scratch, shock whatsoever), so I tried to get it exchanged but by then there was no more AEBT available, so after a wait of about 2 months I obtained a refund.
 
Eventually the headset showed up in stock again, this time it was a REV2 (with 2015 on the box), no more BT issues at all this time, but when the Noise Cancelling was on (that is everytime the headset was on), there was some fuzzing/statics from the left earcup, it wasn't that noticeable when in a noisy environment with the music on, but it was very noiticeable when used in a silent room with the music off, I thought it would most likely impact on the sound quality and at this price point, I had it replaced.
 
Eventually I got a 3rd headset (still REV2) with no BT issues and no NC issues, so I am finally happy.
 
As to sound quality, the mids are the best I've heard on a headset, short of the HD800, the highs however aren't good enough compared to a few headsets I used and produce a hissing sound when they are too pronounced, I had the problem on all 3 so I would assume this is by design.
 
While these are the best bluetooth sounding headphones I've had and that they are incredibly versatile (they sound great passive and they sport a built-in USB DAC), I find that they do not sound €450 good (they would if the highs and trebble were better, especially the highs, the lows and mids sound incredible though.)
 
I haven't seen a lot of informations regarding the build in DAC, when I use it on Windows it appears to max out at 16bit, but when I used it on Android using UAPP it performs very well with 24bit output without any off the odd artefact that you get while playing 24bit sound in an unsupported DAC, so I would assume that the DAC does handle 24bit (if not higher), but that somehow the Windows driver limits it to 16bit @48khz
It would be great if someone had access to more documentation regarding the DAC.

 

[Mathieulh]

   
The Momentum Wireless works quite well on Android phones but OTG doesn't work the way you tried. You can't connect an OTG cable to the headphones. Headphones don't support OTG, phones do. With an Android phone you need to connect the OTG adapter to the phone and then connect a regular data micro usb cable between the OTG adapter and the headphones. I don't know if this will work on iPhone 6 (it did work on iPhone 5) but your best bet would be to get a lightning to usb OTG adapter, something like this, and then connect a regular micro usb cable between the adapter and the headphones. That particular adapter though says it is only compatible up to iPhone 5. Not sure if there are any solutions out there for iPhone 6.

Don't forget that you need to power on the headphones AFTER it is plugged into the device, no matter if they were turned on before, as plugging them in turns them off and sets them into charge mode (you see the led blinking but it's actually off)
 
Also beware of the bluetooth auto connection, you want to make sure it isn't connected through both usb and bt on the same device.