Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 Review: Decent Sound but Clunky Build

Sennheiser recently unveiled their flagship buds, the Momentum True Wireless 4, at CES. It costs $300; you can tell how much they’re worth when you look at their premium-looking case and buds. I wish they designed it smarter, and they weren’t as clunky-looking. Because of this, it’s not as lightweight as you’d like your everyday pair of buds to be. I listened to a lot of music on these and thoroughly enjoyed everything. I could have given it a slightly higher score. If the ANC were better, that would have made it on par with the best headphones we’ve tested this year. 

Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 Design

An unwieldy size

Everything from the case to the buds is clunky. The first thing I thought of when I saw the charging case was how big of a bulge it would make in your pocket. It is 1.4 inches thick and weighs 72.4 grams. Compare this to the dimensions and weight of the Apple AirPods Pro 2—0.85 inches and 50.8 grams—and you’ll understand how clunky the Momentum 4 buds are.

I didn’t even get to tuck the case in my track pants properly (women aren’t blessed with the big, deep pocket that men get on their pants), and I was constantly worrying about it plopping out. Even if I did get to tuck it in, I wouldn’t enjoy going out with a humungous case ruining my outfit.

I would’ve preferred the buds to be much less clunky, too. We’re living in the era of small, streamlined tech. Everything from earbuds to projectors is getting as inconspicuous and portable as possible. Sennheiser could have done the same. It’s about time they say goodbye to their buds’ long-standing bulky design. In terms of aesthetics, they’re pretty impressive, though. You can tell they’re worth $300 thanks to the premium metal the buds generously feature.

I don’t have the patience for slow controls and need my music to pause as soon as I tap my bud. I don’t get that on many buds, but thankfully, the Momentum 4 offers them. It was nice not having to wait a second or two every time I performed an action on it.

I wish the buds had a more relaxed and easy fit. I felt considerable ear fatigue after wearing them for less than an hour. It could be due to its bulky and unwieldy design, which is also to blame for how heavy the buds are.

Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 Sound and ANC 

Above-average sound, below-average ANC

These buds handle low-end as well as high-end. The treble is crisp and clean, with a lot of detail. The bass is deep but not deep enough to come off as muddy. It retained its punch throughout. I listened to everything from House to Qawwali on these and felt as if the buds are suitable for whatever genre you throw at it. The synthesizer riffs came through in Fred Again’s ‘We’ve Lost Dancing’ without overpowering The Blessed Madonna’s vocals.

I believe the noise cancelation could have been a lot better, though. I live next to a very noisy preschool, and I’ve always used that to test ANC. I’ve had earbuds completely cancel all their screaming, but the Momentum 4 buds just slightly turned their volume down. I could still hear the constant chatter and the teachers pleading for them not to break the queue. I switched between ANC and ambient modes several times to notice the difference, and it sounded as if the ANC mode was just a lower-intensity ambient mode.

Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 Battery and Mic

Battery life is just okay.

Unlike the $300 Bose Ultra Open that doesn’t feature wireless charging (which is a kind of a shame), the Momentum 4 works with Qi wireless chargers. Bose promises an hour of playback with just eight minutes of charging. While I didn’t test this exact spec out, I believe it’s a claim since I got the buds from 0% to 100% in just 20 minutes. This is helpful when you’re heading out and realize you forgot to charge your buds. However, the 30-hour battery life is not as long as that of other competitor buds offering the same price. M&D’s latest, MW09, lasts 48 hours on a full charge. Sony’s flagship buds, the WF-1000XM5s, offer 36 hours with the case.

I called my mom and asked her for feedback on how I sounded and whether she could tell I was doing the dishes as we spoke. She said she could hear me fine but didn’t have much to say when I asked her to comment on the sharpness and clarity of my voice. The sound of the tap water was considerably muted, though.

Should You Buy the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4

Honestly, for a price as high as $300, there are much better options you could go for. If you don’t want to compromise on battery life, you wouldn’t want to sign up for buds that last 30 hours when Master and Dynamic’s flagship buds cost the same and offer 48 hours on a full charge. If powerful ANC is your biggest priority, Sony’s WF-1000XM5s feature pretty good cancelation. And if you’re looking for a nice, subtle design, I haven’t seen any recent buds as stylish as the Bose Ultra Open. The Momentum 4 sounds nice, but so do its competitor buds.

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