[jthomp72]

Well I guess it’s that time again…anytime a new true wireless set of cans come out I’m like a month to the flames…here we go. For the record I’m directly comparing to the B&W PX7 S2’s sitting next to me and the XM5’s and AirPod max’s of which I also own at this moment

Design: meh. They’re fine. Not gonna stand out. Nothing to set them apart. Like? Fine. I don’t love it but it doesn’t make me convulse in horror. 7/10

Comfort: yeah buddy these are super nice on the ears. The fake leather is nice and mostly breathable but whatever voodoo magic they use to distribute the weight is really nice. Much more comfortable than I expected. 9/10

Sound: You know what you’re getting lol. But, oddly enough I think there’s some more clarity to these than the 3’s or anything save the B&W’s. You can crank that bass if you want and it’s still clean. Personally I dial it back a bit. Mids are there but not in your face. Highs are sparkly and pretty. Great clarity. Comparing it to the B&W it’s less warm but more detailed. Soundstage is miles above the B&W which surprised me. Best set I’ve got now sadly. 9.5/10

Overall: yeah I know the redesign isn’t popular, but they’re fine. For the price and features? Best sounding pair on the market right now short of the Mark Levinson 5909 and those are a grand.

 

[msing539]

Nice, what kind of battery life are you getting with ANC on at moderate volume levels?

And how's the sound wired vs. over Bluetooth?

 

[jthomp72]

Nice, what kind of battery life are you getting with ANC on at moderate volume levels?

And how's the sound wired vs. over Bluetooth?

They claim 60 hours. Idk that I will ever get to a point where I can accurately test that. I wore them all weekend (probably 10-15 hours total) listening to movies and music at 60% volume roughly and I was at 72% as of this morning when I plugged them in at work.

There is not a ton of a difference between wired and not wired. It's noticeable, but I'd estimate a 10-15% bump in quality. It's not life changing tho.

 

[raymanh]

Could this be the wireless upgrade to my M40x that I've been waiting for for almost a year?????

 

[ishmaelk]

What about noise cancelling performance? Having all those models to compare...
I'm guessing the noise cancelling in the Momentum 4 isn't as good as the XM5, but is the difference big or not so much?
How would you rate the noise cancelling in all those models?
Cheers.

 

[ishmaelk]

Ok, here's my brief impression of the Momentum 4, compared to the XM5 and... the Jabra Elite 85H.
Brief impression because I decided very very early not to keep the Momentum 4:

• For sound, they beat all the ANC headphones I've tried (Bowers PX7, XM4, Momentum 3, XM5, Anker Q35, Bose 700, Master & Dynamic MW65...). They beat the Jabra 85H for a narrow margin (I love the tuning of the Jabra 85H).
• For ANC, the XM5 is better and not by just a little. The difference is massive in any context. Even the Jabra 85H beats them depending on the moment. The adaptive ANC of the M4 is very inconsistent and sometimes it beats the 85H but in many other occasions it is left behind, specially in the midrange. I have seen the measurements of the noise cancelling of the 85H in Soundguys and those must have been taken before some firmware upgrade.
  I don't think there's been a huge improvement in noise cancelling compared to the Momentum 3. Most of it could be due to the better passive isolation, I don't know. The thing is, I thought the Momentum 3 were worse in this than the Jabra 85H and the Momentum 4 still can't beat them consistently. So there you go.
• For comfort, the XM5 beats the M4. No contest here, either. The M4 are ok, but nothing I'd have on for hours. This is a very subjective area and I won't extend. But...
• Creaking! The M4 creak like I couldn't believe it. Despite the mediocre ANC I was considering keeping them just for the sound, until I noticed the creaking the first time I went outside with them. I'm sorry, I don't see how a new pair of headphones can creak like that. The XM5 I've had for two months now and are still light, comfortable and silent. Sennheiser may be marketing these as premium materials. I can't argue that, they feel nice. Until you go out on a walk and hear the creaking. The Momentum 3 never ever creaked and I used them non-stop for a year, I took them with me everywhere. And they cost less than these.
• Battery life: well, yes, with sound, the other field where they are supposed to excel.

And these are my impressions. I would understand why people may love the M4. But the mediocre ANC and the creaking put them behind the Jabra 85H (if the headband fits you), so there is no reason to consider them an improvement in my opinion.
But, hey, this is just my opinion.

 

[jthomp72]

Ok, here's my brief impression of the Momentum 4, compared to the XM5 and... the Jabra Elite 85H.
Brief impression because I decided very very early not to keep the Momentum 4:

• For sound, they beat all the ANC headphones I've tried (Bowers PX7, XM4, Momentum 3, XM5, Anker Q35, Bose 700, Master & Dynamic MW65...). They beat the Jabra 85H for a narrow margin (I love the tuning of the Jabra 85H).
• For ANC, the XM5 is better and not by just a little. The difference is massive in any context. Even the Jabra 85H beats them depending on the moment. The adaptive ANC of the M4 is very inconsistent and sometimes it beats the 85H but in many other occasions it is left behind, specially in the midrange. I have seen the measurements of the noise cancelling of the 85H in Soundguys and those must have been taken before some firmware upgrade.
  I don't think there's been a huge improvement in noise cancelling compared to the Momentum 3. Most of it could be due to the better passive isolation, I don't know. The thing is, I thought the Momentum 3 were worse in this than the Jabra 85H and the Momentum 4 still can't beat them consistently. So there you go.
• For comfort, the XM5 beats the M4. No contest here, either. The M4 are ok, but nothing I'd have on for hours. This is a very subjective area and I won't extend. But...
• Creaking! The M4 creak like I couldn't believe it. Despite the mediocre ANC I was considering keeping them just for the sound, until I noticed the creaking the first time I went outside with them. I'm sorry, I don't see how a new pair of headphones can creak like that. The XM5 I've had for two months now and are still light, comfortable and silent. Sennheiser may be marketing these as premium materials. I can't argue that, they feel nice. Until you go out on a walk and hear the creaking. The Momentum 3 never ever creaked and I used them non-stop for a year, I took them with me everywhere. And they cost less than these.
• Battery life: well, yes, with sound, the other field where they are supposed to excel.

And these are my impressions. I would understand why people may love the M4. But the mediocre ANC and the creaking put them behind the Jabra 85H (if the headband fits you), so there is no reason to consider them an improvement in my opinion.
But, hey, this is just my opinion.

I’ll be honest, you must just have a busted pair… Or an especially creaky one because I have not a single bit of creek in my pair…so interesting. I also never understand the ANC argument, because these seem to be fine. I’ve come to the conclusion it’s because I live in a medium sized city without hugely constant noise so…could be easier to drown out what’s here.

 

[ishmaelk]

I’ll be honest, you must just have a busted pair… Or an especially creaky one because I have not a single bit of creek in my pair…so interesting. I also never understand the ANC argument, because these seem to be fine. I’ve come to the conclusion it’s because I live in a medium sized city without hugely constant noise so…could be easier to drown out what’s here.

After some more testing, I found the ANC more competent than I thought at first. The adaptive system takes some time to kick in depending on the environment, and after a few minutes it can lower more the sound around you. Still behind the XM5, specially in chatter suppression, but not too much. It wouldn't be a dealbreaker, really.
The creaking is definitely there, I don't think my pair is busted, it is just that the design of the hinges is prone to noise. Not a lot, maybe. But I use ANC specially to be able to listen to classical music outside, and with recordings with wide dynamic range and very quiet passages, the creaking is more obvious. If I listen to metal, I don't notice it as much. But the change in the design of the headband makes those creaking sounds inevitable in my opinion. Just move the cups in their hinges, the plastic makes a sound. When you're out walking, and you have a quiet passage, that sound is audible.
If you turn your head, from left to right, right to left, the hinges that hold the cups make a noise too.
Mind you, it's not something that makes me crazy, but it is unusual in a Sennheiser product of this price.
That never happened with the M3, because the way it was designed it was not possible.
They have a lot to love, though. At first I thought they had eliminated the possibility of using the USB-C port as a USB dac, but I am glad they kept that feature.
I haven't spent much time comparing the aptx to the LDAC with the Fiio BTA-30 Pro. My first impression was that the XM5 gains more with LDAC than the M4 with aptx.

 

[jthomp72]

After some more testing, I found the ANC more competent than I thought at first. The adaptive system takes some time to kick in depending on the environment, and after a few minutes it can lower more the sound around you. Still behind the XM5, specially in chatter suppression, but not too much. It wouldn't be a dealbreaker, really.
The creaking is definitely there, I don't think my pair is busted, it is just that the design of the hinges is prone to noise. Not a lot, maybe. But I use ANC specially to be able to listen to classical music outside, and with recordings with wide dynamic range and very quiet passages, the creaking is more obvious. If I listen to metal, I don't notice it as much. But the change in the design of the headband makes those creaking sounds inevitable in my opinion. Just move the cups in their hinges, the plastic makes a sound. When you're out walking, and you have a quiet passage, that sound is audible.
If you turn your head, from left to right, right to left, the hinges that hold the cups make a noise too.
Mind you, it's not something that makes me crazy, but it is unusual in a Sennheiser product of this price.
That never happened with the M3, because the way it was designed it was not possible.
They have a lot to love, though. At first I thought they had eliminated the possibility of using the USB-C port as a USB dac, but I am glad they kept that feature.
I haven't spent much time comparing the aptx to the LDAC with the Fiio BTA-30 Pro. My first impression was that the XM5 gains more with LDAC than the M4 with aptx.

I specifically turn off the adaptive system so that I get the maximum noise cancellation at all time… I just don’t trust the system to determine when there’s enough noise or not, which is a personal preference

 

[ishmaelk]

I specifically turn off the adaptive system so that I get the maximum noise cancellation at all time… I just don’t trust the system to determine when there’s enough noise or not, which is a personal preference

I have tried them switching it off too. It still takes some time to adapt, processing the sound profile of the place you're in. Regardless if you have ANC max all the time or not, the processor still will have a better performance suppressing noise if it has some more time with a constant noise profile. It may be seconds (XM5 takes a couple of seconds generally), or a bit more (like the Jabra 85H, which may take up to 30 seconds to adapt and improve the noise cancellation). The M4 in my experience is more or less like the 85H, maybe a bit slower. After a few minutes it gets even better. The most noticeable change happens in a few seconds, although it's difficult to really know how long it takes. I have no way of measuring it and my impressions could be deceiving. My brain could, after all, be adapting to the noise, too.

 

[ishmaelk]

About the creaking:
https://www.reddit.com/r/sennheiser/comments/x2pfie/momentum_4_creaking/

 

[posnera]

Is there a value in the M3 now that the M4 is out? The battery life sounds impressive, but I generally use headphones for only 2-3 hours at a time and will have no problem keeping them charged. I like the look of the M3 but that really isn't a big deal. Buttons are better than touch controls for me. Is the sound of the M4 that much better? Obviously that's pretty subjective. I mainly listen to rock, hate overly bass-heavy headphones.

 

[jthomp72]

Is there a value in the M3 now that the M4 is out? The battery life sounds impressive, but I generally use headphones for only 2-3 hours at a time and will have no problem keeping them charged. I like the look of the M3 but that really isn't a big deal. Buttons are better than touch controls for me. Is the sound of the M4 that much better? Obviously that's pretty subjective. I mainly listen to rock, hate overly bass-heavy headphones.

I think the sound is a huge upgrade, but you know as well as I do that's a personal thing. Only way to find out is to test it for yourself.

 

[posnera]

I think the sound is a huge upgrade, but you know as well as I do that's a personal thing. Only way to find out is to test it for yourself.

Yeah. I see some Amazon refurbished M3 for $199. Probably order that, the M4 and maybe Shure Aonic 50. Test them out and keep one.

 

[PixelSquish]

I'm having an issue with my new pair that when I turn on the auto-detection head/smart pause function, double tap to turn on transparent mode/ANC does not work. It works fine when the auto-detection turned off. I have read on other forums issues with the auto-detection feature. Anyone else?