Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 Review

Sound 

Popping the Momentum True Wireless 2 into your ears for the first time, the first thing you notice is an ever so slight noise-floor. It’s almost imperceptible, but it’s there. However, play any kind of audio and it’s honestly not a problem at all. 

Next, fire-up some tunes and playback something well-recorded that you’re familiar with. And herein lies the piece de resistance of the Momentum True Wireless 2: they sound bloody fantastic. In terms of their overall tuning, they’re warm, relaxed, and mildly V-shaped. It’s a consumer-friendly tuning in terms of delivering a friendly mid-bass emphasis with plenty of impact and body, but it’s packaged in an entirely refined and classy presentation that delivers just enough detail while maintaining absolute smoothness and coherency right across the spectrum.

Daft Punk’s ‘Touch’ reveals that the Momentum True Wireless 2 delivers bass-notes in a round, bouncy and juicy kinda way. It’s not exactly tight, but it’s hugely enjoyable and there’s not a hint of distortion. 

Dynamics and slam are good, and there’s a nice visceral impact from the percussion in ‘Rusalka, Rusalka/Wild Rushes’, from The Decemberists, however, there’s also a somewhat slow, sloppy and muted decay from bass-notes and snares that can give the Momentum True Wireless 2 an occasionally ‘boxy’-sounding timbre at times. 

From here, the Momentum has a very silky and linear transition into the lower midrange with extremely pleasant, natural-sounding instrument tone and texture. Tame Impala’s ‘Lost in Yesterday’ reveals that beyond 2-3kHz, the upper mid-range and treble takes a back-seat for an overall rather laid-back top-end presentation. 

However, the Momentum True Wireless 2 has just enough sparkle to remind you that they’re reasonably detailed and resolving, it’s just not force-fed. Whereas ‘Rie’s Wagon’ from Gomez sounds big, airy, and sparkly on a more revealing and wider-staging pair of IEMs or headphones, on the Momentum, it’s a more intimate, smokier and restrained affair. Overall, it’s an easy-to-like sound that’s velvet-smooth, refined, and listenable in an all-day kinda way – fatiguing these are not. Comparing them to the ‘OG’ Momentum True Wireless, the 2’s are near indistinguishable to the point where I couldn’t pick any discernible audible difference between the two.

Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2

‘High-End Sound Tuning’

I’m making an update to this review in October 2020, with the inclusion of a new DSP feature for the TW2 built into the Sennheiser Smart Control app called ‘High-End Sound Tuning. Sennheiser explains that this feature has been included to help tweak the sound of the TW2 more towards that of an ‘audiophile heapdhone’, via a switchable setting in their companion app. Engaging this mode does have a subtle, yet welcome effect on the sound of the TW2, adding to their sense of clarity and openness, and also helping them transition from bass>mids, and mids>treble with a little more nimbleness for an overall more natural tone. It’s not a night-and-day difference, but it makes for a positive improvement on the TW2’s already great tone and technicalities.

Conclusions

My review time with the Momentum True Wireless 2 coincided with a little global phenomenon known as COVID-19, meaning I was spending a LOT of time at home on work calls, watching video content, and of course – listening to music. I expected them to be convenient and competent sounding, but I didn’t expect to be as surprised as I was with how addictive they are. They feel a bit like lying on a warm pillow of sound, and one that you can take, well, anywhere with you. The Momentum became an invaluable work productivity and entertainment companion, and soon enough a go-to music source in their own right.  

Are they as technically proficient as wired IEMs fed from high-end source gear? Of course not, but their addictive tone and stupidly-good convenience-factor more makes them a more than acceptable alternative – they’re a genuine proposition for the audiophile who prefers a warmer sound signature and wants the added bonus of being able to multitask and enjoy multimedia. The UI and app aren’t perfect, so here’s hoping for a firmware update or two down the track to help make their user experience feel as inviting as their rich, cozy sound. The first iteration of the Momentum True Wireless rightly earnt their accolades as the best-sounding wireless earbud-form IEMs on the market, and the added performance and features of the Momentum True Wireless 2 makes them an even surer bet.