One of my biggest gripes of 2019 was that I didn’t get a chance to review the original Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless earbuds due to some unforeseen circumstances. It was the German audio giant’s first flagship Truly Wireless product with a focus on uncompromised sound quality. And, that’s not surprising considering the brand is known for its audiophile-grade products. Thankfully, Sennheiser sent across the Momentum True Wireless 2 for review.
Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2
Rs 24,999
What Is Good?
- Best TWS sound yet
- Lovely fabric design
- Excellent fit
- Good battery life
- ANC is a good add-on feature
What Is Bad?
- Expensive
- High latency is an issue
These are obviously upgraded now to offer a smaller shell, better, more comfortable fit, better battery life, and most importantly – active noise cancellation. I have been using the Momentum True Wireless 2 for a month now and I think everyone, who has the money, should buy only the Momentum True Wireless 2 over any other option out there.
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Momentum True Wireless 2: Design and comfort
Tech wrapped in fabric is my jam! The Momentum True Wireless 2’s case is the best example of that. It is not any different from the first generation one, but still looks fantastic and feels premium too. The fabric wrapped around plastic soft to touch, the case easy to open, and it has a satisfying soft thumping sound when you close it. Unfortunately, the only problem with fabric is that it will inevitably get dirty over a period of time. And, while there is IPX4 splash protection it is only limited to the buds and not the case. So, you can’t even wash it.
On the rear, you have your standard Type-C port for charging and a reset button. Once you open the case, the earbuds sit snugly inside the grooves carved out specifically for them. And, they are held inside by very strong magnets and didn’t fall out despite all my vigorous attempts to yank it out of the case.
The earbuds are also made of soft plastic and the outer shell encasing the driver is smaller now. And, I am supremely glad that it fit wonderfully in my ears. I had absolutely no discomfort even after six hours of continuous listening. I am pretty certain that, once you find the right seal, these won’t fall out of your ears. Plus these are ideal for exercising as well considering you get the IPX4 rating, like I mentioned before. Seriously, I have absolutely no gripes with the design and the comfort of the Momentum True Wireless 2.
Momentum True Wireless 2: Controls and battery
The earbud shells have a flat surface on the outside with a touch panel for controls. I found it very easy to invoke commands and the touch sensitivity has been tuned perfectly. Despite that, I am not a fan of triple tapping or double tapping on the earbuds because it definitely causes a mid interruption when listening to music as the earbuds move inside your ears.
Anyway, you can easily customise the controls directly from the Sennheiser app. Apart from this, you also get Wear Detection and I found it a little iffy. I faced a nagging problem where the music refused to play back when I put the earbuds back into my ear. This could be an isolated problem with my unit, though.
The biggest upgrade to Sennheiser’s flagship TWS earbuds is the battery life. Sennheiser claims seven hours of battery life on the earbuds. I got around 6 hrs and 30 mins in my testing at 80% volume, which is great. You can also charge the earbuds at least twice if not thrice using the case. So, that’s pretty good too.
Momentum True Wireless 2: Sound signature and ANC
Before I talk about the sound quality, let me get one thing out of the way – the Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) here is not as effective as the AirPods Pro or the Sony WH-1000XM3. So, if you are looking exclusively for a pair of ANC TWS buds, the Momentum True Wireless 2 will not be the best option.
But, it is not bad or anything. It can do a fairly decent job of cutting out constant low frequency sounds but anything with a more uneven frequency curve struggles. That’s where the WH-1000XM3 shines. The ANC works well as a good add on feature and not as the key USP or anything. And, that’s not necessarily a bad deal for most folks. The transparency mode works well too. No complaints there.
Also read: Shanling MTW100 True Wireless Earphones Review
On the flipside, the Momentum True Wireless 2 excels with its phenomenal sound signature. The earbuds have 7mm dynamic drivers each, and most spec nerds will scoff at that puny number. Which is why I keep saying, numbers don’t matter. What matters is the quality of those drivers and how it is tuned. The best analogy that I can think of is – a 48MP custom sensor on the Mi 10 Ultra can be more resolving and effective than the 108MP large sensors on the Samsung Note 20 Ultra.
Anyway, the sound from the Momentum True Wireless 2 is very refined, fairly punchy, and offers a wide soundstage. You get a fair bit of horizontal depth. In the beautifully mastered Roundabout by Yes, you can clearly distinguish a backing string instrument placed at the lower left corner of your head. Plus, at around the 1:26 minute mark when the backing vocals kick in you can distinctly place them at the bottom right. In Scene Seven: I. The Dance of Eternity by Dream Theatre the excellent imaging comes to the fore, where the drums, percussions, and the piano don’t crowd each other and you can hear every single instrument distinctly. The dynamism and tonality is unmatched yet on TWS earbuds.
But, I know most folks only want to know about the bass and I am happy to report that the aptX codec audio transmitted wireless to your ears is not going to disappoint you. The mid-bass is punchy and has absolutely incredible timing too. It is fast and offers the kind of attack that brings a song like Mirza to Nucleya to life. However, that’s mostly the mid-bass response but even the grating low grind of the sub-bass frequencies in Limit to Your Love by James Blake is super exciting.
The mids are also pretty clean and make a place for themselves despite the eager bass. Now, I’ll say this, I really wish the highs were slightly brighter and present to round off the excellent sound signature. Regardless, that’s just a minor niggle and not necessarily a big deal if you ask me.
Overall, these are the best sounding truly wireless earbuds out there, no two ways about it. Yes, the Sony WH-1000XM3 does come close but it goes for a more musical sound over Sennheiser’s more balanced approach. But, for those expecting a loud sound will definitely be disappointed because these don’t extend beyond a certain decibel threshold. It was sufficient for me but your mileage could vary. Oh, the bluetooth connectivity was also rock solid during my testing period.
Momentum True Wireless 2: Call quality and latency
As for the mic quality, I found that it managed to cancel a fair bit of the environmental sounds and focus on my voice. However, it did so at the loss of fidelity and my voice sounds thin. Regardless, it is better than the WH-1000XM3 and worse than the AirPods Pro, if that gives you some context.
The biggest letdown for the Momentum True Wireless 2 has to be its latency. It wasn’t the best with gaming and the audio-video lag was pretty evident. That said, it was fairly alright for video watching.
Also read: Realme Buds Air Review
Should you buy the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2?
Now that you know I am besotted with the Momentum True Wireless 2, time to yank myself (and you) back to reality. These things cost a cool Rs 24,990. While that is a price you are expected to pay for quality, the Sony WH-1000XM3 is considerably cheaper for around Rs 18,000, and could be a more viable option for most folks. And, it legitimately sounds almost as good as the WH-1000XM3.
In fact, the price drop on the original Momentum True Wireless placing it at around the Rs 13k mark isn’t good news for the new variant either. Yes, there are legit upgrades in part deux, especially with the far more comfortable fit and the battery life, I am not convinced it is almost worth double the price.
For those who think even that is expensive, there is the Lypertek Tevi. The Tevi’s sound quality defies all logic when you look at the Rs 7,000 price tag. I mean, you get very similar fidelity as the Momentum True Wireless 2 for less than a third of its price. Yes, you don’t get ANC but you actually get way better battery life on the Tevi. Beat that. The law of diminishing returns strikes so hard, some might even consider the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 unfairly priced.
But…but…there’s no denying that it offers the absolute best sound quality. So, if you want the absolute best, then no one can stop you.
