Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 Review
Sennheiser's finest true wireless yet
Verdict
The Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 are one of the best all-round true wireless, up there with the likes of Sony and Bose as the best premium options. The fit is comfortable, they sound great, the noise-cancellation impresses and the app is packed with features to customise and personalise the performance how you want it. They’re Sennheiser’s finest true wireless yet.
Pros
- Rich, clear and detailed performance
- Comfortable fit
- Feature-laden customisable app
- Impressive noise-cancellation
- Excellent wireless performance
Cons
- Not the best ANC
- Call quality could be better
Key Features
- Snapdragon SoundCompatible with aptX Lossless Bluetooth streaming
- IP ratingImproved water resistance with IP54 rating
- Auracast supportSupports Auracast streaming and LE Audio
Introduction
Though on the surface not much looks to have changed with the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4, there’s plenty that’s changed under the hood.
Design, Bluetooth connectivity, and sound quality are all aspects that Sennheiser has put under the microscope for the fourth iteration of its flagship true wireless earphones.
When I first heard them at CES 2024, I wondered whether they were more of the same or an upgrade on what came before. Now I can answer that thought with more confidence. These are one of the best true wireless earbuds.
Design
- Visually the same
- Tougher water resistance
- Responsive controls
There’s not much aesthetical difference between the Momentum True Wireless 4 and the predecessor, with Sennheiser appearing content with the form factor. Visually the only noticeable point of distinction is there’s a new copper colourway to go with the white and black versions.
Like the Momentum True Wireless 3, it’s a compact form factor with a twist and lock design to fit into the ear. I’ve experienced no problems in terms of comfort, the earphones slip in with no fuss and stay put (a run down the stairs of London Bridge station didn’t loosen the fit much). There’s a choice of soft silicone adapters and silicone fits to find the best fit.
The focus for this latest iteration has been on changing the internals rather than the external, but the shifting of the internals (the microphones in particular) has bumped the water resistance up to IP54, which protects the earphones from dust and sprays of water. It’s stronger than the IPX4 non-ftness wireless earbuds often have.
Touch controls are responsive, and the charging cradle the headphones come in is virtually the same compact version with its fabric covering. Sennheiser has nailed the design brief by resisting the urge to change for the sake of it.
Features
- aptX Lossless support
- Hybrid Adaptive ANC/transparency
- Auracast compatibility
There’s a new Qualcomm chipset inside with the Momentum True Wireless 4’s Bluetooth specs bumped to version 5.4. You can stream in SBC, AAC, aptX, and aptX Adaptive as well as aptX Lossless. That last one is only available with smartphones that are compatible with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Sound platform.
I found the wireless connection on the Momentum 3 excellent, and the Momentum True Wireless 4 are just as good if not even better. There were no signal drops when walking through the labyrinth of Gatwick Airport, and not even a flicker walking through Waterloo and Victoria train stations at peak times. The wireless performance is fantastic – there’s not been a single breakup throughout testing.
You’ve also got LE Audio support, which is a more efficient and higher quality Bluetooth codec than SBC. Auracast is also supported and this won’t offer anything yet, it could have a big effect in the coming years.
Noise cancellation is excellent. The seal of the earphones is great in the first place, and on top of that the Momentum 4 True Wireless give people’s voices the cold shoulder – the amount of noise it suppresses is genuinely impressive. It’s not to the point where you’re walking around in eerie silence but it’s not far away from being the case. It even dealt with the loudest parts of the Victoria line well, which is not a guarantee even for full-sized headphones.
When I take them out and am taken off guard by how loud things are, I find that’s always a good example of how much the design and ANC are suppressing external sounds.
It’s not, however, as good as Bose or Sony’s flagship true wireless. The Bose suppresses people’s voices better and deals with persistent noises with a little more assertiveness – when on a plane I could hear more of the cabin noise with the Sennheiser than I could with the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II, a pair of earphones I still consider to be the benchmark for ANC.
There is some slight wind noise in blustery conditions, but Sennheiser’s Anti-Wind mode gets rid of it completely. However, it is at the expense of a stronger noise-cancelling performance, letting in a little more noise but it’s a useful feature to employ from time to time.
The improved transparency mode sounded very clear and natural, as if I didn’t have any earphones in my ears. I don’t think you can achieve much better than that.
A two hour battery drain saw the charge drop to 70%, which was the same as the previous model. Fast charging provides an hour’s boost from an 8-minute charge. A full charge is completed in 90-minutes.
Call quality is an area for improvement. While the person on the other end said they couldn’t hear any background information, a sign that the Sennheisers were cancelling noise well – they sound my voice sounded mumbly and they couldn’t always make out the words I was saying, which suggests the earphones’ voice pick up isn’t the greatest in busy areas.
You’ve also got the Smart Control app to customise the performance of the earphones, everything from the noise-cancellation to the side-tone for calls, to carrying out an Ear Fit test. There are plenty of ways to tailor the performance the way you like, as well as enabling automation with the Sound Zones that automatically switch up the performance when you enter into a certain geo-location.
Sound Quality
- Rich, expressive sound
- Good midrange clarity
- Slightly more depth to bass
The Sennheisers aren’t short of competition. You have Sony, Bose, Jabra to name a few mingling at this price point, but Sennheiser has always been a force to be reckoned with when it comes to true wireless sound.
The sound is very much a continuation of the Momentum True Wireless 3, a rich but still detailed and clear sound that Sennheiser has derived from its 7mm TrueReponse transducer. There’s not much of a difference between the two headphones listening to GoGo Penguin’s Erased by Sunlight or Justice’s D.A.N.C.E aside from the new model offering more richness and depth to the low end.
The Sennheiser’s feel for detail is terrific, they sift through all detail in a track and retrieve it with clarity and sharpness in a manner that elevates them above a pair such as the Jabra Elite 10.
They’re astute with slower-paced tracks (Badbutnotgood’s Time Moves Slow) or communicating the verve and energy of David Bowie’s Modern Love. Whatever type of track you feed the Sennheisers, they’re happy to lap what’s there and serve it to your ears with a lovely sense of fidelity.
They have a good sense of timing and convey a fine sense of rhythmic ability – a song such as Kamasi Washington’s Street Fighter Mas has a lovely sense of flow and expression with the Sennheisers, the richness of brass instruments sounds very appealing and engaging.
Give it a faster tempo in Makaya McCraven’s Half Steppin’ and the Sennheisers don’t falter in conveying the speedy percussive/timpani beats. You might hanker for an increased sense of definition and clarity but I think that’d pitch the Momentum True Wireless 4 more towards an analytical-sounding pair and reduce some of the entertainment that these earphones serve.
Vocals sound natural with a hint of richness, perhaps lacking an overt sense of small scale dynamism with Celeste’s Stop This Flame but it’s a small nitpick in what’s a vibrant, expressive, and musical performance.
Highs are rendered in clear and sharp if not necessarily bright terms, the Sennheisers avoid being peaky with the treble, which makes for a smooth engaging listen. And despite the richness and depth to the low end I mentioned before, they don’t post as much depth as the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds Ultra with Kingdom’s Bank Head but voices are described with more clarity and detail than they are on the Bose, bringing them further forward to give the soundstage an increased sense of depth.
Arguably this iteration of Sennheiser’s Momentum True Wireless series isn’t a big step forward in terms of sound – but if you have an aptX Lossless compatible smartphone, you may be able to enjoy even higher levels of detail and fidelity over a wireless connection.
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Should you buy it?
For the rich, detailed sound
Perhaps not as insightful as the Sony WF-1000XM5, the Sennheisers still cast an engaging spell with rich but clear and detailed performance
They’re bested for noise-cancelling
Bose and Sony are still better options for noise-cancelling if that’s your main priority
Final Thoughts
While on paper the Momentum True Wireless 4 would look as if it offers significant gains over the previous model, in truth they’re a refinement and an evolution over the older model. And that’s no bad thing when the quality is this high.
The wireless performance is fantastic, the noise-cancellation is impressive although not quite at the class-leading levels of Bose or as good as the Sony WF-1000XM5. The sound is rich, detailed, and engaging – the kind of musical performance that keeps you searching for more music to listen to through the Sennheisers.
They’re stuffed with forward-facing features such as Auracast, and the aptX Lossless support will likely be a benefit for those who have compatible smartphones to take advantage of it. The call quality is not as good as it ought to be but nonetheless that’s a frequent problem with true wireless earbuds anyway.
The sound, fit, customisation, and noise-cancellation all combine to make the Momentum True Wireless 4 the finest earbuds Sennheiser has created.
How we test
We test every pair of headphones we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We use industry-standard tests to compare features properly. We’ll always tell you what we find. We never, ever, accept money to review a product.
Find out more about how we test in our ethics policy.
Tested across three months
Tested with real world use
Battery drain carried out
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FAQs
They’re not fully waterproof like the Jabra Elite 8 Active but these earphones are rated to IP54, which protects them from sprays of water and ingress of dust.
Full specs
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Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
