Sennheiser Momentum 4 Headphones Review: Best Battery Life In The Game

I’m not sure how they’ve managed to do it, but Sennheiser has presented a pair of high-end active noise-cancelling headphones that can easily outlast every competitor on the market right now. The promise the reputable German company makes is a total of 60 continuous hours of listening time for the new Sennheiser Momentum 4 headphones; the pitch ain’t far off the mark. These things last a hell of a long time. And put forward an impressive performance while they’re at it. But is everything here as good as the battery life? Read on for our full Sennheiser Momentum 4 review to find out.

The market for truly wireless earbuds may have outpaced that for over-ear headphones over the past few years, yet there’s still plenty of demand for wireless cans – particularly from travellers who use them during flights and fussy audiophiles who prefer the wider soundstage compared to smaller wireless earbuds can’t.

Although, headphones are a bit more of a pain to carry around, whereas earbuds can easily slide into your pocket; the portability helps make the experience of taking your music with you when you’re on the move much more seamless.

Sennheiser hasn’t taken any steps to solve this issue. In fact, the Momentum 4’s are nowhere near the most portable headphones on the market. Instead, the brand has just focused on offering a solid, reliable pair of cans that sound great, last long and are comfortable to wear. While the price tag may be a bit higher than most would like, I’d say Sennheiser has done an excellent job pushing its Momentum series back to the top of this fiercely competitive market.

With features such as transparency mode and ANC, sound zones, bass boost, smart pause and some great gesture controls, the Sennheiser Momentum 4 wireless headphones are amongst the best you can buy right now.

RELATED: Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 Earbuds Review

Sennheiser Momentum 4 Review – Table Of Contents

1. Design
2. Features
3. Sound
4. Battery
5. Verdict & Value
6. Frequently Asked Questions

Design

I actually appreciated the abrasive, slightly steampunk aesthetic that Sennheiser used to separate its Momentum headphones from the pack for the first three generations. Now, with the Momentum 4, the German brand has decided to abandon the distinctive look and go for something a bit more standard. There’s not necessarily anything wrong with that; the mostly plastic construction is still attractive enough, but it’s lost some of that German austerity that stood out.

It’s not as easy on the eyes as the Sony WH-1000XM5 or as polished and seamless as the Bose QuietComfort 45, but Sennheiser has gone a reasonable job redefining how the Momentum series looks. The metal headband that added a bit of heft to the headphones and clamped down hard is now gone, replaced by a plastic bridge that’s padded with a soft material on the inside and woven material on the top. This helps with longer-lasting comfort complemented by warm, gentle ear cups with soft leatherette material.

The button placement is as you’d expect from a pair of headphones in 2022 – intuitive, minimal and textured, with most of the functionality instead relegated to the touch surfaces of each faux-leather ear cup. As for each of those touch-sensitive surfaces, they work as all headphones should now, with fast responses that aren’t so overly sensitive that you’d get tired of giving the wrong commands with an accidental bump.

In the box, the new Sennheiser headphones ship with a 1/16″ to 1/8″ TRS audio cable and a USB-A to USB-C cable for charging. Given there’s been more of a move towards USB-C to USB-C lately I’m not sure this approach is future-proofed, but you could always just get an adapter. Speaking of which, there’s a solid airplane adapter as well that can fit neatly into the hard travel case that doesn’t feel overly bulky like Sennheiser cases used to. This will slide easily into any backpack.

Portability is fine too. You aren’t able to fold these up like some of the other headphones on the market, which could be a deal-breaker for some who prefer the smaller profile of earbuds. Yet the cups can still swivel to flatten the surface area a bit so the pair fits well into smaller spaces.

Features

Sennheiser isn’t falling behind major competitors like Sony, Bose, JBL and Apple when it comes to modern features. There are three major ways people use headphones these days – to listen to music and podcasts; to watch their favourite streaming services; and to cancel environmental noise without listening to music, usually on a flight.

All three use cases as well taken care of. For streamers, the Sennheiser Momentum 4 headphones support the latest aptX Adaptive format which means higher audio quality and lower latency, so you’re unlikely to experience any sync issues when you’re watching content. The new standard Bluetooth 5.2 is used with SBC and AAC audio formats so both Android and Apple users can enjoy a seamless listening experience whether or not they are moving around constantly.

ANC and transparency modes both work quite well, but seem to fall behind the solid shell that Bose is known for. Transparency mode in particular seems to block out too much sound unless you dial it in a bit. Fortunately, the gestures make it easy to adjust.

Sennheiser has included Multipoint so you can connect two devices at the same time and easily switch between the two. This technology has been around for a few years now, but it’s not until recently that brands have found a way to actually make it work smoothly. Much like the new Sony WH-1000XM5, the switch between devices is frictionless and instant.

Touch controls are standard but I really like the way you have instant control over the level of noise-cancelling now. While the noise-cancelling itself isn’t as solid and air-tight as the latest from Bose and Sony, Sennheiser now lets you use a smartphone-esque pink gesture to dial in the exact noise cancelling you want. Pinch and make a gesture as if you’re zooming in on a photo and you’ll be able to turn ambient sound up with noise-cancelling fading. The reverse does the opposite.

There’s a button for activating your phone’s voice assistant which is also the power button when held. Press it five times, however, and you’re able to essentially put the headphones in Flight Mode. In that Bluetooth will turn off but you’re still able to use noise-cancelling. This way you can’t listen to music but you can still use the cans to drown out (most) of the noise on a flight.

The Sennheiser Smart Control app for iOS and Android devices isn’t as comprehensive or intuitive as something like the JBL Headphones app but it’s perfectly fine, with an easy EQ that you can use to control the sound profile. You can also use it to activate Sound Zones, which are pre-set profiles built with specific EQ, ANC and transparency modes. It’s clear Sennheiser has put a lot of thought into these profiles as well, with enough variety out there so one wouldn’t have to waste their time customising the EQ to get the perfect sound quality for their tastes.

Sound

These things sound the business and I’d go as far as to say they are the best Sennheiser headphones the company has produced to date. Audiophiles shouldn’t find much to complain about with the out-of-box sound that’s clean, neutral and balanced. Sennheiser has resisted the temptation of pushing the deep bass forward here – there aren’t party headphones, but rather a pair that should appeal greatly to a wider audience without having to touch the EQ.

Bass is by no means weak here, but it’s restrained just enough to let the mids and highs come through beautifully. Everything from Sam Cooke’s crispy vocals on ‘Cupid’ to the bass patterns on Juvenile’s ‘In My Life’ sound great. Some darker electronic tunes like Rufus’ ‘You Were Right’ are expressed well, with fat, rounded bass and clear, distinctive mids.

Those who want richer, more nuanced bass may be left disappointed here, in which case the Sony XM5’s at the ones to beat. However, Sennheiser deciding to strip away the thickness and go for something more neutral really works here, especially for anyone also using these for podcasts and more dense soundscapes like jazz and classic rock.

Phone calls fare reasonably well. I wouldn’t say the built-in mics work as well as those in the latest Bose headphones, but you’ll come across quite clear to whoever is on the other end. Noise reduction could be a bit weak though, so I wouldn’t use these for any important calls on a busy train.

Battery

I wanted to give special attention to the battery here because while everything else about the Momentum 4’s is excellent, the biggest selling point here is just how long these bad boys last. With ANC turned out, you can expect 60 hours on paper and that’s more or less what you’ll get in real-world use. I’d estimate it more around the 55 hour mark, but even that is heads and tails above what other brands can offer at the moment. If battery life means the most to you, these are the headphones to get.

Verdict & Value

At $549, the Sennheiser Momentum 4 headphones match the Sony WH-1000XM5’s launch price. In my opinion, these are the two best headphones of the year so it comes down to what you’d prefer. The Sony’s have a better design, are lighter and more comfortable, have more reliable noise canceling and produce a better low-end. Battery life though? Around 30 hours.

The Sennheiser Momentum 4’s favor a sound that’s more neutral and lean, which makes the profile more adaptive when you play around with EQ and find the best sound for you. Many detail-oriented audiophiles would much prefer this, plus the insane battery life is a major selling point for travellers who may not have time to charge their headphones each day.

Whether or not they are the best, it’s hard to deny what Sennheiser has done here, completely validating the decision to continue the Momentum brand. Is it for you? Hopefully this Sennheiser Momentum 4 review has given you enough detail for you to decide whether these over-ear headphones suit your lifestyle.

Sennheiser Momentum 4 Review – Frequently Asked Questions