It is no secret that I am a fan of Sennheiser headphones, and when I heard the news about the MOMENTUM 5 Wireless, I was eager to give them a try. On the surface, the Sennheiser MOMENTUM 5 Wireless feels very much like a minor refresh that keeps the line’s familiar travel-friendly shape and easygoing sound, but adds better noise cancellation, longer battery life and a few quality-of-life tweaks that make it feel more complete than the previous model. The result is a pair of premium wireless headphones that get a lot right, even if its tuning still requires a little adjustment to suit every listener. They have quickly become my go-to travel companion.
When you first unbox and set up the MOMENTUM 5 Wireless, you will see that the new offering does not stray far from the family look. The headphones use an over-ear design with a compact folding frame, a travel case and a clean, understated finish that avoids the busier styling some rivals lean on.
Sennheiser boasts that the MOMENTUM 5 Wireless features 42 mm dynamic drivers and weighs about 290 g, which helps explain why the headphones feel fairly light in day-to-day use. The fit is generally comfortable over long listening sessions, though the ear cups are still not especially large, so listeners with bigger ears may notice the padding more than they would on roomier designs. However, I had no issues wearing them for a full five-hour flight from Toronto to Los Angeles without much discomfort.
The practical design touches matter here, and Sennheiser has delivered headphones that feel solid while remaining portable. The Sennheiser MOMENTUM 5 Wireless headphones fold flat for travel, the carrying case is smaller and easier to manage than before, and the battery is user-replaceable, which is still rare in this class. That makes the MOMENTUM 5 Wireless feel more usable over time, not just better out of the box. It also gives the headphones a more future-proof feel, especially for people who plan to keep them for years rather than treat them as a short-term upgrade. When headphones are this pricey, I love to see a brand make an effort to ensure they last.
For this year’s offering, Sennheiser gives the MOMENTUM 5 Wireless a modern feature set. Bluetooth 5.4, aptX Adaptive, aptX Lossless, aptX HD, AAC, SBC and Snapdragon Sound all appear on the spec sheet, along with support for the Sennheiser Smart Control Plus app on iOS and Android. The headphones also support active noise cancellation, transparency mode and Dolby Atmos playback, with spatial audio aimed at providing a more immersive listening experience. The battery is rated for up to 57 hours with Bluetooth and active noise cancellation enabled, and a quick charge can add hours of playback with a short top-up.
Sennheiser has opted for a hybrid control design, offering a selection of physical buttons and touch-sensitive controls that provide plenty of options while listening to music. The right ear cup uses touch controls for playback and volume, while the app handles EQ and other settings. That said, the EQ is still fairly limited compared with what some power users might want, because it relies on a fixed graphic equalizer rather than deep parametric tuning. For most people, that will not be a deal-breaker. For listeners who like to fine-tune every detail, it may feel restrictive.
If you are picking up something from the MOMENTUM range, you are most likely looking for strong noise cancellation, and it is great to see Sennheiser making major strides with this latest iteration. The MOMENTUM 5 Wireless features four microphones on each side for beamforming and adaptive ANC, and the improvement is easy to notice in everyday use. The headphones do a much better job handling constant background noise than the previous generation, which makes them easier to use on planes, in offices or during busy commutes. Transparency mode is also cleaner and more natural than before, making quick conversations less awkward without causing the outside world to sound overly processed.
“The Sennheiser MOMENTUM 5 Wireless headphones fold flat for travel, the carrying case is smaller and easier to manage than before, and the battery is user-replaceable, which is still rare in this class.”
Wind handling is another useful touch that honestly worked better than I expected going into this review. The app includes an anti-wind option, and that matters more than you might expect for travel headphones. In practice, the MOMENTUM 5 Wireless feels better suited to real-world use than many wireless headphones that look good on paper but stumble once the environment gets noisy. It is not perfect, but it is strong enough that ANC no longer feels like a compromise here.
The sound is where the MOMENTUM 5 Wireless feels most recognizably Sennheiser, with a little more low-end weight that makes the audio feel full without becoming overpowering. The tuning leans warm, with fuller bass than the older model and enough detail in the mids and highs to keep things from turning muddy. That gives music a lively, consumer-friendly character that works well across genres. It is not a neutral, monitor-style pair of headphones, but it is also not so heavy on bass that everything else gets buried. If you are used to Beats audio, this has a more natural sound, but it leans further in that direction than past MOMENTUM offerings.
For most people, this will be good, but there is a catch: not everything sounds amazing with the way the headphones are tuned out of the box. The low end can feel a bit much on some tracks, and listeners who prefer a tighter, more controlled bass response may want to use the app’s EQ to pull it back, something I had to do when trying to hear all the nuance in some Ghost songs.
Thankfully, the headphones respond well to adjustments, so the default tuning is more of a starting point than a finished statement. Once dialled in, the MOMENTUM 5 Wireless can sound open, clean and roomy, with enough separation to make layered recordings easy to follow. It is a sound that is easy to like, even if some users will want to trim the bass a little.
Battery life is one area where the MOMENTUM 5 Wireless delivers a hands-down win compared with some of the competition on the market. At up to 57 hours with ANC enabled, the MOMENTUM 5 Wireless outlasts much of its premium wireless competition and makes charging less of a daily habit. That matters more than flashy specs because it changes how the headphones fit into your routine. You do not need to worry about plugging them in every night, and quick-charge support adds another layer of convenience for travel.
Daily use also benefits from the lighter build and fold-flat design, which make the headphones easy to drop into a backpack or messenger bag. The compact case also helps them feel less cumbersome on the move. That is exactly the kind of detail that turns a good pair of headphones into one people actually keep using. The MOMENTUM 5 Wireless is built for that kind of life, and it shows.
At the end of the day, I really like the Sennheiser MOMENTUM 5 Wireless, and they have become my headphones of choice for travel. They are not trying to be the most aggressive or technically complex headphones on the shelf. Instead, they aim for a mix of good sound, strong ANC, long battery life and practical design, and that balance works in their favour. While the ear cups may be a little small for some listeners and the default bass can be a little heavy, the EQ makes it easy enough to address most of my concerns.
In all honesty, I am looking for nitpicks rather than identifying fundamental issues with an otherwise fantastic pair of headphones, and none of them take away from a phenomenal effort by Sennheiser. While they are not cheap at $399.95, the Sennheiser MOMENTUM 5 Wireless headphones deliver a fantastic portable audio experience and feel good while they do so.
As a whole, the Sennheiser MOMENTUM 5 Wireless is a polished, easy-to-live-with pair of headphones that gets the important things right. It sounds good, blocks noise well, lasts a long time and adds small but useful improvements that make it easier to recommend than its predecessor. It may not be flawless, but it feels like a very solid step forward.
- Signature Sennheiser Sound, Refined: Experience brilliant, emotionally rich audio with a high fidelity 42mm HD 600 inspired driver, meticulously tuned to deliver exceptional clarity, detail, and natural balance at any volume.
- Reference Grade Wireless Audio: Advanced Bluetooth codecs including aptX Lossless, aptX Adaptive, and AAC preserve every detail, so music, movies, and games sound immersive, dynamic, and true to the source.
