[kagif]

I'm going to be flying pretty much weekly for six months in the new year, as well as taking trains and buses. I got a set of Etymotics, thinking the passive isolation would be more than enough for traveling. Noticed on a flight earlier this year, however, that quite a bit of engine noise still bleeds through and it's hard to really relax. On top of that, they do often irritate my ears and wires are a pain to deal with when traveling.

When my son decided he was seriously considering the Sony WH-1000XM5, I researched them and had pretty much decided "Fine, I'll get a pair." Had them in the basket, but looked at a few last reviews and started researching the Momentum 4 instead. Once I realized there is not such a huge difference in ANC, but there is supposed to be a big difference in sound quality, I went for them instead.

They arrived yesterday, and I thought since I didn't actually find very much on them in these forums I would write down my thoughts in this thread as I go. This should include everything from my initial impressions to how they stack up against my expectations, on through extended notes of use in different scenarios. Not just a review but an ongoing report, because I should be using them extensively during these six months. I am thinking of focusing especially on how they sound overall and with specific songs, as well as describing the ANC performance in various settings.

People in a similar situation as myself might just even find some of it interesting. By this I mean anyone who:

• Would like to know more about how the headphones sound
• Doesn't like the idea of bluetooth, and would to hear about it from someone who also prefers wired
• Would like to ask questions of another user

I haven't been "in the game" long, maybe a year, so my listening skills are limited and I can only describe what I hear to the best of my ability. I also had zero experience with ANC before this. I'm not interested in publishing a review, so I won't be comparing these cans to others in their price class. I will just compare them to other headphones that I have, especially when it comes to sound.

My impressions after the first 24 hours:

• They really are very comfortable
• ANC is an interesting technology, but they don't block everything.
• The sound is detailed and enjoyable, but sometimes "veiled" and the bass can be muddy.
• Battery charge time: good grief!

Overall initial rating: They're fun, I have high hopes.

 

[kagif]

[ Reserved for future use. ]

 

[PixelSquish]

There is a Momentum 4 Impressions thread here but not much action https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sennheiser-momentum-4-impressions.964669/

I just got mine as well and they are pretty good. They are warmer than I like and it seems that is the market demand right now, but apparently from all the reviews the Senns are one of the least offensive in that category. I EQ mine a little bit boosting the mids and hights.

That ANC will be great on flights and trains for low frequency noises btw, and the battery life is astounding for travel. The issue I'm having is with the on-head detection/smart pause feature turned on. When I have it turned on the double tap for ANC/Transparency does not work. It only works if the auto-head detection feature is off. Have you had any issues?

 

[kagif]

There is a Momentum 4 Impressions thread here but not much action https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sennheiser-momentum-4-impressions.964669/

Yep, saw that while doing the review and again before posting, but that isn't really what I'm setting out to do.

I just got mine as well and they are pretty good. They are warmer than I like and it seems that is the market demand right now, but apparently from all the reviews the Senns are one of the least offensive in that category. I EQ mine a little bit boosting the mids and hights.

Nice. I have listened to a couple dozen songs so far, and already trying to think of how to put what I hear into words. One thing is that it very much depends on the song. The muffling function of the "boomy" bass offends on some, not at all on others, and still other times produces a weird, interesting or even fun/funny effect. The EQ in the app is quite simple. I need to play with it more, but so far it doesn't really do much to change the kinds of things I'm hearing. I have also mainly de-emphasized the bass. As I don't have any of the other headphones in its category, so I'll be comparing it to these:

Sennheiser HD6xx, Etymotic ER4XR, Audio Technica ATH-M40x

Other possibilities:
Galaxy Buds 2, Air Pods 2 also possible for limited testing
HyperX Cloud Alpha for a laugh

That ANC will be great on flights and trains for low frequency noises btw, and the battery life is astounding for travel. The issue I'm having is with the on-head detection/smart pause feature turned on. When I have it turned on the double tap for ANC/Transparency does not work. It only works if the auto-head detection feature is off. Have you had any issues?

My son has them, I'll have to test it later. In a car with a diesel engine, with ANC and no music, I almost couldn't hear the engine rumble; it cut down on the noise of the vents, but I could still hear them pretty clearly. When the car is driving, again the engine is almost gone, but the whoosh of the tires and road are there. That makes me think that I will hear some of the rushing sounds in a plane. I had read that frequencies above a few hundred Hz don't get suppressed that much.

 

[kagif]

The issue I'm having is with the on-head detection/smart pause feature turned on. When I have it turned on the double tap for ANC/Transparency does not work. It only works if the auto-head detection feature is off. Have you had any issues?

Just tested with (a) on-head detection off, (b) on-head detection on and smart pause off and (c) on-head detection and smart pause both on. In all configurations, double tapping activates transparency, pausing music if on, and double tapping again resumes ANC (and music). I hadn't noticed anything before, either. What is the behavior on yours? Is it consistently wrong?

 

[PixelSquish]

Just tested with (a) on-head detection off, (b) on-head detection on and smart pause off and (c) on-head detection and smart pause both on. In all configurations, double tapping activates transparency, pausing music if on, and double tapping again resumes ANC (and music). I hadn't noticed anything before, either. What is the behavior on yours? Is it consistently wrong?

Thanks for checking. Mine are defective. ANC/Transparency taps don't work at all when on-head detection is on. Ever. I started an RMA with Sweetwater. I did two factory resets and nothing helped.

 

[kagif]

Rather than just do a list of "audiophile" songs like Tin Pan Alley, Aphex Twins et al., I want to describe how I hear the Momentum 4 on "normal" songs, compared to my other decent headphones. I guess this will be good excercise for me in developing my listening skills and in describing what I hear. Bear in mind that I'm old enough that my hearing stops somewhere between 14 and 15 kHz, and I have mild tinnitis (high pitch, not unbearably strong, and not connected with any significant hearing loss). Since it was my kids that influenced me back into getting decent equipment that I can listen to music with, I'll start with some songs I like from their genres.

Comparison A/B/C listening:
Sennheiser Momentum 4 (M4 for short)
Sennheiser HD 6XX, high-quality open-backed cans
Etymotic ER4XR, high-quality in-ear monitors

Both of these are driven by the Chord Mojo, connected via USB to a laptop, driven by Tidal on Hifi setting and in exclusive mode. By experience this gives a pretty good signal. The M4s are also connected to Tidal on the laptop with Hifi, exclusive mode, and additionally "passthrough MQA." The ANC stayed on adaptive.

The listening environent today is my office during the day, so quiet. I listened to the song with each headset, then listend again in a different order, and again a third time, writing down my impressions as I went. On the first two listens I tried vaguely by ear (no particular attention to lows/mids/highs) to approximately volume match at a normal listening level. On the third, I cranked each one a little to whatever level I was still comfortable with, without concern for volume matching.

First song: %% (Eung Eung) by Apink
An 80s-esque K-pop song with typically great vocals, a nice hook, busy instruments and varying bass.
https://genius.com/Genius-english-translations-apink-eung-eung-english-translation-lyrics

M4: There is detail on the instrumentation, like the synth and percussive trills. The female vocals come through well, but the song does have a certain mushiness to it, especially when the bass is present. But even in sections without much bass, there is a veiled feeling. I know my description is inaccurate. I mean that they sound more distant—not as in volume, just not as present as the other headphones. This includes the bass, despite its emphasized response. The female vocals stand out less than with the HD 6XX but more than the ER4XR. Maybe I could say the overall balance between frequency registers is lacking in comparison. (I don't mean left-right balance.)

HD 6XX: They have more clarity, especially in the mids, and better overall balance. The bass is not boomy, but this song would clearly benefit from a stronger bass presence than they offer. The vocals sit nicely in the middle of a plush cushion of instruments, as opposed to them standing out more with the M4s. [Edit: I realize this contradicts what I wrote above with the M4s. Leaving the contradiction as is and chalking it up to memory with A/B/C rather than A/B listening. I would just say that they stand out differently on the M4 than on the HD 6XX.]

ER4XR: I can see how the overall frequency response can be called flat. No instrument or voice stands out in particular; nevertheless, I get more of the highs than with the other two. The background oohs, claps, synth and instrumentation are more audible. I also hear the bass more clearly than with the HD 6XX. In this sense they have a more technical balance than the HD 6XX, but the balance of the HD 6XX feels more organic and pleasing.

My bias:
I personally appreciate the warmth and open sound of the HD 6XX. Even though this track would benefit from more, I don't always need a super-strong bass response. The openness and clarity makes it the most enjoyable of these three overall. The vocals are the center of the song, and they are nicely offset by the other sounds. The ER4XR display the most instrumentation, but I didn't enjoy the vocals as much. I get why people say they are more analytical. The M4s are fun for sure, but at the cost of some clarity and the booming and muddiness lulls my ears rather than saying, "Wake up, pay attention!"


I do have to say that the differences with the M4s are not as enormous as I expected, but worse than I had hoped. The A/B listening exposes differences for sure, but the M4s are so comfy to wear that continuing listening to other tracks is a pleasure and the "lacking" sound kind of fades from memory. The boomy, billowing bass remains obvious, of course. I experimented with turning the bass way down in the EQ—Bass -3dB, Mid 2dB, treble 2dB. This makes the bass less strong, but while I can hear more of the other registers, the bass itself is not more detailed.

For fun, I played the song through the KZ ZS10 PRO, which just one year ago I considered a real step up for me. I can't say they sound very balanced across the frequency spectrum. They're tinnier and definitely less present than the others. Kind of enjoyable, but I understand why they quickly left me wondering, "What next?" Also ran the track through the HyperX Cloud Alphas, which are very comfortable to wear. They also have muddy bass but a warmer tone than the KZ ZS10 and ER4XR. My impression is that it feels dark, lacking precision/clarity and decent highs. The vocals were okay, but there was no magic at all in the instruments. I may come back to these two from time to time, but can't take them very seriously. It highlights that you definitely do get something. Finally, the Sennheiser M40x missed out this round, as I left them at work.

 

[kagif]

A note on the effects of ANC in this quiet environment. Here are the sounds I can hear without headphones:

1. There is a small fish tank to my right. The water level is currently low, and the incoming water makes a continual splashing, tinkling sound.
2. The mechanical timer for the fish tank lighting gives a regular shaking/ticking pattern.
3. The laptop fan gives a gentle but audible whoosh.
4. My keyboard makes noise as I type.

The HyperX Cloud Alphas with passive attenuation make 2 disappear, which for me is nice because 1 and 2 can be annoying if I'm having trouble concentrating. (I could also just top up the fish tank.) Nr. 1 is still slightly audible, and 3 and 4 are not very strongly attenuated.
The M4s make 2 disappear. If I listen closely, I can sometimes hear 2. Nr. 3 is almost completely gone, and 4 is still audible, just less loud.

When I have the M4 on adaptive ANC, the app indicates full ANC strength and I hear a hiss. At first I thought this was the laptop fan, then I realized it's the noise cancellation itself. This is not terrible, but present. Changing over to manual ANC with the setting roughly halfway between left and center makes this disappear. With it set like that, I heard a helicopter or airplane in the distance. As an experiment, kicking the bar over to full ANC makes it go away.

With the ANC on, I can hear my tinnitus, as well as my own breathing much more clearly. Also neck and spine creaks and pops, and, if I'm still, even my heartbeat. That's totally zen and all, but I prefer some music.