About the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2
And STILL... the best-sounding true wireless headphones I've heard
The Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 includes a charging case that banks 21 hours of power to recharge the earbuds.
And STILL... the best-sounding true wireless headphones I've heard
Meet the sequel to the headphones I named "the best-sounding true wireless earbuds of 2019." I spent some quality time with the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 earbuds — and to my ears, Sennheiser still holds the audio-quality championship belt in this category. These headphones feature the same high-grade drivers found in the original Momentums. And this time around, Sennheiser added active noise cancellation and a longer battery life — up to seven hours of music and podcast playback on a single charge.
Music plays wirelessly via Bluetooth version 5.1, the strongest, most reliable Bluetooth yet. I was able to get some serious distance away from my phone without an audio dropout. And there is no connecting cord between the left and right earbud.
Listening impressions: Spacious sound — with plenty of detail
Let's start with the headline feature. The Momentum TW 2 earbuds deliver Sennheiser's signature smooth highs, articulate mids, and satisfying bass. They also have a large, "outside-the-head" soundstage with accurate imaging. It's much more spacious and well-defined than you might expect from a set of in-ears.
The psychedelic funk-soul of Billy Preston's I Wrote a Simple Song album really showed off these headphones' strengths. The title track starts with percussion, piano keys, and vocals dead center, almost right between my ears. Next, George Harrison's Dobro guitar licks pick up off to the right, then the Quincy Jones-led orchestra swarms in from all directions and heights. It builds into a sprawling, funky ballad that felt larger than life through these 'phones.
Improvements over the originals — better fit and touch controls
I only had a few minor beefs with the original Momentum TW earbuds, and Sennheiser addressed each of them. First, the fit. I've learned that in-ears only sound as good as their noise isolation allows. And it was a little tricky for me to get a secure, comfortable fit with the originals.
These ultra-light earbuds come with four sizes of silicone ear tips for finding a secure, comfortable fit.
It couldn't have been easier with the TW 2 earbuds. Sennheiser streamlined the design a bit, and also included four sizes of silicone ear tips. The earbuds slipped right into place and remained stable when I moved my head.
They also turned on automatically when I put them on, and paired up immediately to my phone when it was in Bluetooth mode. This brings me to the second major improvement — the touch controls on each earbud are much less finicky this time around. On the originals, I would adjust the fit on the earbuds and accidentally pause the music or skip tracks. With this new version, the touch pad isn't quite as sensitive and I never changed the volume or activated my Google Assistant unless I truly wanted to.
Strong noise cancellation for earbuds
Tapping the right earbud three times activates Sennheiser's noise-canceling circuitry. In general, active noise cancellation doesn't work as well with in-ear headphones as it does with over-ear headphones. With that said, you get noise isolation just from the fit — and with music playing, these Sennheisers knocked out the sound of my usual work-from-home distractions. (Hi, kids!)
Later, I wore them while cutting the grass, and the engine drone and grinding sounds from my lawnmower were reduced quite a bit. I could listen to podcasts — and understand the hosts — with my phone's volume at only 50%. That's crucial, because I listen to headphones so often for work, I and never want the volume at levels that could blast my eardrums.
But it really hit me just how well these earbuds canceled noise when I removed one of them. The mower sounded so much louder than I realized that it startled me a bit.
Charging case banks hours of power
The ultra light earbuds arrive packed in a compact charging case covered in designer fabric. It feels as pleasant as it looks (my wife thought it was one of the nicer headphone cases she'd seen). The case opens with a satisfying snap to reveal the sparkling silver and black earbuds.
You get about seven hours of listening on a single charge. But the included case banks enough power to recharge the earbuds three times while you're on the move. Plus you can pack it neatly inside a bag or purse — with no worries about pulling out a mess of tangled wires when you're ready to use the earbuds.
Product highlights:
- 100% wire-free headphones
- no connecting cord between left and right earbuds
- active noise cancellation uses internal circuitry to reduces external distractions
- IPX4 splash-resistant
- 7mm dynamic drivers for detailed sound across a wide frequency range
- spacious soundstage with precise imaging
Wireless audio:
- Bluetooth version 5.1 for wireless music listening and phone calls
- aptX® and AAC decoding provides high-quality music streaming from compatible devices
- aptX Low Latency decoding helps sync audio and video on compatible devices
- free Sennheiser Smart Control app for Apple® and Android™ allows you to adjust settings and customize the sound
- Transparent Hearing Mode lets you hear external sounds
Battery and charging info:
- built-in rechargeable batteries offers 7 hours of listening
- fabric-covered carrying case banks up to 21 hours of power to wirelessly recharge headphones
- USB-C cable included for charging case
General info and specs:
- includes 4 sizes of silicone ear tips for a customized, comfortable fit
- touch controls on each earbud let you answer calls and control music
- frequency response: 5-21,000 Hz
- sensitivity: 107 dB
- weight: 0.42 ounces (both earbuds)
- warranty: 2 years
- MFR # 508831
What's in the box:
Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 owner's manual
- Left wireless earbud (M3IETW2 L)
- Right wireless earbud (M3IETW2 R)
- Charging case (M3IETW2 C)
- 4 Pairs of silicone ear tips (1 pair installed)
- 10" USB charging cable (Type A USB on one end and USB-C on other end)
- Quick Guide
- Safety Guide
- Compliance Information
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Customer reviews for Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2
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More details on the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2
Features & specs
| General | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fit Style | True Wireless | |
| Earcup Type | Closed | |
| Earcup Width x Height | 0.882" x 0.737" | |
| Noise-canceling | Yes | |
| Bluetooth | Yes | |
| Bluetooth Version | 5.1 | |
| Single-earbud Operation | Yes | |
| Mic For Taking Calls | Yes | |
| Voice Assistant Access | ||
| Amazon Alexa | No | |
| Google Assistant | Yes | |
| Siri | Yes | |
| Connectors | ||
| 3.5mm | No | |
| 1/4" | No | |
| Lightning | No | |
| 4.4mm balanced | No | |
| XLR4 balanced | No | |
| 2.5mm | No | |
| Other | None | |
| Specs | ||
| Frequency Response | 5-21k Hz | |
| Sensitivity | N/A dB | |
| Impedance | N/A | |
| Weight | 0.5 ounces | |
| Cord Length | N/A | |
| Parts Warranty | 2 Years | |
| Labor Warranty | 2 Years | |
Product Research
Features
Overview: The Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 (M3 IETW2) in-ear headphones are two individual ear buds with no connecting wires. They connect to your smartphone or tablet (and to each other) via Bluetooth. Four pairs of silicone ear tips (XS, S, M, L) are included for a comfortable fit. The True Wireless 2 headphones come with a charging case for storage, and for recharging the batteries.
Drivers: The True Wireless 2 features custom-made 7mm dynamic drivers that reproduce a wide frequency range and unparalleled sound. From the crystal clear highs to the natural midrange and low bass, you can enjoy your favorite music from any genre. You can tailor the sound of the earphones through the equalizer found in the Sennheiser Smart Control app, available for iOS and Android devices.
Bluetooth 5.1: The Momentum True Wireless 2 headphones feature Bluetooth version 5.1 which pairs to your phone or audio device in seconds. You can make and receive phone calls and stream audio wirelessly in a range of up to 33' (10 meters), depending upon environmental conditions. The headphones have a maximum of 10mW of output power, and have the following profiles: Headset Profile (HSP), Hands-Free Profile (HFP), Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP), and Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP). If your audio source supports aptX or AAC, music is automatically played in high audio quality. Otherwise, the headphones will play in standard audio quality (SBC). The right ear bud is the master, and controls the Bluetooth connection to the smartphone and to the left ear bud. This allows you to listen to music or phone calls with the right ear bud only, but not the left one alone.
Voice Assistants: The ear buds are compatible with the voice assistant that is activated to your smartphone, such as Siri or Google Assistant. Tapping the right ear bud once activates the voice assistant for you to make a request or ask a question. You can also activate voice dialing through the voice assistant.
Rechargeable Batteries: The Momentum True Wireless 2 headphones are powered by built-in 3.7VDC Lithium-Ion rechargeable batteries. Each earbud's has a 55-60 mAh battery, while the charging case has a 600mAh battery. The complete charging cycle of the charging case and earphones is approximately 1.5 hours. A 10-minute Quick Charge provides about 1.5 hours of playback time. The battery in the charging case charges via USB-C power (5V, 650 mA) using the supplied cable from a laptop, an AC-powered USB charging port, or a mobile 12-volt USB charging port. Fully-charged batteries in the earbuds provide approximately 7 hours playback. The charging case provides enough stored power to charge the earbuds 3 additional times, to extend the playback time to 28 hours.
Phone/Music Controls: Controls for music playback and phone call functions are located on separate earbuds. Both earbuds are equipped with 5/8" diameter touch control panels. The left earbud controls Volume Down, and music playback functions Play/Pause, Next Track, and Previous Track. The right earbud controls Volume Up, Voice Assistant, Voice Dialing, Active Noise Cancellation, and Transparent Hearing. For phone call functions, you can use either ear bud. Touching both control panels simultaneously lets you pair and connect the earbuds to your Bluetooth mobile device.
Smart Pause: The ear buds automatically detect when they are being worn, or when they are removed from the ear. When you remove one of the earbuds from your ear, the Smart Pause function pauses the music automatically. The music automatically resumes if you reinsert it within a minute. You can turn this feature on or off in the Smart Control app.
Microphones: The True Wireless 2 earbuds are equipped with a beam-forming, noise cancellation, dual microphone system. Multiple microphones distributed between the two earbuds are used for both phone calls and noise cancellation.
Voice Prompts: The earbuds provide a voice prompt to confirm certain functions and conditions. Voice Prompts include subjects such as Power ("Power On", "Power Off"), Bluetooth ("Connected", "Pairing", "Pairing cancelled/successful/failed"), Battery Status ("Battery Status" (percent), "Recharge headset"), Phone Calls ("Call Rejected", "Call Ended"), and Volume ("Volume Minimum", "Volume Maximum"). On the Smart Control app, you can change the language of the prompts (8 languages available), choose between voice prompts and beep sounds, or deactivate the status messages.
Smart Control App: In addition to the on-board controls, the Momentum True Wireless 2 in-ear headphones can be controlled by Sennheiser's Smart Control app for Android and iOS devices. The app lets you personalize and enhance the sound to suit your current mood with the Emotional Equalizer. The Transparent Hearing function lets you adjust how much of your surroundings you can hear while wearing the earbuds. You can shut out your surroundings if you want to concentrate on your music, or allow ambient sounds in if you need to listen for announcements, or carry on a conversation with another person, without having to remove the earbuds. Firmware updates for the earphones are also available through the app. The Smart Control app is compatible with iOS devices running version 12.0 and later, and Android devices with version 7.0 and up.
Specifications:
- Frequency Response: 5Hz - 21kHz
- Transducer Size: 7mm
- Total Harmonic Distortion (THD): <0.08%
- Sound Pressure Level (SPL): 107dB (1 kHz/1mW)
- Ingress Protection: IPX4 (splash proof)
- Microphone:
- Frequency Response: 100Hz - 10kHz
- Pickup Pattern: 2-mic beam-forming array
- Sensitivity: 94dB SPL (at 1 kHz)
- Dimensions:
- Earbuds: 0.882" (w) x 0.737" (h) x 1.047" (d)
- Charging Case: 3.022" (w) x 1.36" (h) x 1.731" (d)
- Weight:
- Earbuds: 0.25 ounces (each); 0.5 ounces (pair)
- Charging Case: 2.05 ounces (2.55 oz with earbuds)
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Customer Q&A
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The details these bring out from music I've listened to for 40 years amazes me. Obviously with a battery they aren't going to deafen you but the sound is very good regardless.
Ian from Glenville, NY