Sennheiser Momentum 5 review: great sound, incredible battery life and few compromises

There are plenty of $300-$400 headphones on the market right now, and most of them blend together. I’ve spent the last few weeks with the Sennheiser Momentum 5 to determine whether this pair actually stands out, testing everything from sound quality and noise cancellation to comfort and battery life.

At $399.99, the Momentum 5 sits right in the middle of the premium earphone market. This pits them against the more expensive Sony WH-1000XM6 and Apple AirPods Max 2, while providing a more affordable option for anyone looking for premium headphones.

Starting with the sound, vocals sound natural and bass is strong without overpowering. Headphones allow you to start noticing little things in music, like a background harmony or guitar string, that cheaper headphones often tend to miss. If I had to describe the sound in one word, it would be balanced.

The headphones support Dolby Atmos, which basically means music or movies sound like they’re coming from all around you instead of just left to right.

With this generation, Sennheiser has doubled the number of microphones to eight to improve active noise cancellation (ANC). Nearby voices and chatter, which are generally the kind of sounds that can cut through a weaker ANC, are noticeably quieter. Sennheiser claims this pair is up to three times more effective than the previous generation at blocking this type of noise.

Sure, it’s not quite at the level of blocking everything out like an airplane engine, but it gets the job done efficiently without giving your ears a weird feeling of pressure like can be the case with some ANC headphones.

When it comes to comfort, the headphones aren’t as premium as Apple or Sony headphones I’ve tried in the past, but given that the Momentum 5 costs less than its competitors, it’s a trade-off that’s hard to complain about.

The battery life is truly impressive. It’s rated for up to 57 hours, and that figure held up during my testing. For context, that’s about twice the battery life of the Sony WH-1000XM6 and almost three times that of the AirPods Max 2.

And when the battery runs out, a 10-minute charge gets you up to seven hours of playback, while a full charge takes around two hours.

One notable difference the Momentum 5 offers over its competitors is a user-replaceable cell, meaning you can replace the battery once it goes bad instead of having to buy a whole new pair.

What I didn’t expect, but found surprisingly useful, was how slim the carrying case was. I’ve never really managed to fit a pair of headphones into my medium-sized purse, but the Momentum 5 fit just fine. This is also a big plus when traveling, since the suitcase does not take up much space in your luggage.

With the headset’s companion app, Smart Control Plus, you can adjust many different settings. There’s an 8-band EQ that lets you adjust the sound yourself or choose from one of Sennheiser’s presets. The app also lets you adjust the ANC level rather than just turning it on or off, and you can also access an anti-wind mode. The “Sound Personalization” feature guides you through a listening test and creates a sound profile tailored to your hearing preferences.

The app gives you decent control over the Momentum 5, and I found navigation quite easy as most settings are quite simple.

Overall, the Sennheiser Momentum 5 is a solid option at this price. They offer great sound, the battery life is excellent, and the downsides are pretty minor. They’re heavier than the Sony WH-1000XM6 and aren’t as comfortable as some Sony or Apple options, but at $399.99 they’re cheaper than both while still delivering where it counts.