Tech-N-Things

So if you are going to do something, you do it before others. This is the rule of business. Companies compete all the time against one another, each racing to get out in front. Sennheiser and others are facing an EU demand to make their products accessible to users who want to self-repair them. Sennheiser just became the first to produce their earphones with this mandate in mind. Others will be made to follow, so don’t get scared that your favorite brand won’t do this too. They will if they want to sell in Europe, and they won’t be wasting money creating a different design for the U.S. and another for Europe. 2027 is the year that companies will be made to follow these standards, so kudos to Sennheiser for doing it first. The new Sennheisers come with the tool to help you pry open the earphones, although you are still responsible for the tool. So now with that out of the way, how is the actual product?

First, I want to give thanks to Best Buy for being there for me on things like this that I need to return after my review. I was shocked that they had them available today to get and test. Unfortunately, these will have to be returned after this review, but I get to at least help everyone out with what I think. First, I would say that a lot of people have said things ranging from touch controls being bad to sound not being any better than the previous model, and even failures with sound pickup outside on higher codecs, per CNET. But let me just say, I had none of this happen to me.

The touch controls were spot on, and amongst the very best I’ve tested, the sound never dropped on any of my walks around the neighborhood, and the sound is actually way better than people are reporting. Now, yes, they have the same drivers, but the tuning is better, and it has a more expansive EQ on the app for these earphones versus the old one, which gave the 4’s very limited EQ adjustment. But ultimately, the bass and mid-range, I think, is the biggest praise I can give for the sound. It is truly nice and powerful but not in a messy way. If you love the Sennheiser sound, these will not disappoint. The EQ options really allow for a more refined sound quality and it’s easily better than the previous version of the MTW 4’s, even though they have the same drivers.

But after that, I think my next favorite thing is the fit and look of the unit and case. I mean, it’s really a sophisticated-looking device. Sennheiser really did a nice job here. They remind me of the Sony XM6s, but smaller and sleeker. Thank goodness the fit uses the tips more than the casing for stability because of the sleeker case. They go in and disappear and, above all that, seem to have very good venting. I wore them for 3 hours straight and had no head pressure. Best of all, the earphones aren’t really registering anything inside my ears. My mind doesn’t know they are there while the music is playing, and that’s so important. The case itself has a really fine texture on it that really makes it look expensive and high-class and feels great in your hands.

I love the battery life bump also on the new unit compared to the old one. Now we get up to 12 hours, up from 7 with the old one. We also get 40 hours on the case, which is amazing. This is better than the Sonys or AirPods, of course. The case fits into your pocket easily and has standard wireless charging and quick charging. So all the basics from that point are there. You get the same app with just a little bit better EQ. This makes things better, of course, for the unit. They even have plenty of colors to really boost your independence.

The Less pleasing things that Sennheiser should work on :

So with all that said, are these things perfect? No. They still have limits. The ANC is great, but not as great as AirPods Pro and Sony XM6’s. And the hear-through could be at Apple’s level, but honestly it’s almost there. Their phone call quality is great inside but not outside with noise. Multipoint is also not as good as the Sonys or AirPods for auto-switching. You also won’t get text messages read to you like with the Sonys. You won’t activate Gemini by your voice, or have voice commands like the Samsung Buds 4 Pro, nor have the ability, like Apple, to translate or take your heartbeat. Basically, Sennheisers remain pretty much basic and are absent of features or gimmicks that the other brands have. But I can’t really knock them for this because they never promised to.

Now I would count this against Sennheiser a little more if my Sony xm6’s didn’t have problems always accessing these features accurately or if the features weren’t accessible ONLY at the cost of other features. Sometimes Google Voice listens …other times it doesn’t. Also can’t use voice commands or change the button layout unless I give up some other features.

Now, this may not mean anything to you, or it could be what stops you from getting them.

The Sennheisers’ claim to fame here will be the sound, battery life, fit, look, hear-through, very nice ANC(even if short of Sony’s), and the longevity option of changing out the battery. These things are basically are all most people look for anyway, but among a list of other earphones in the world that are similarly priced and might have more features, it might be a tough sell for some who already have better experiences in ANC, phone call quality, and features, and are already happy with the sound on their earphones. But for Sennheiser fanboys, there really isn’t much not to love about this. This is a proper step up from Sennheiser. The looks, battery life, sound, and fit are just outstanding, and that’s before the battery replacement option is put on the table.

At the end of the day, I believe the most direct competitors to these are the Sony Xm6’s. I knew this at the beginning of the year. These two were going to define the earphones of the year for overall abilities. And as I stand here listening to these, it really does prove that I was right.

The Sony XM6’s wins: Soundstage, Vocals, treble extension (more detailed, ANC superiority, more accessible LDAC, reads text messages, has voice commands, had Google Voice activation by words.

The Sennheiser MTW 5 wins: Bass extension and quality, mid-range smoothness and treble smoothness, fit/comfort perfection, 40 hours of total battery life, replacement of battery, very good ANC 2nd to the Sonys, amazing hear-through that is better than Sony’s, just doesn’t beat Apple. And finally, good call quality in good, ideal situations only.

At the end of the day, I think by far, this is the battle of the year. It truly will come down to your preference for the brand. But I think because the Sennheisers are the new hotness on the market, most will side with them if not for nothing other than the hype around replaceable batteries. But I give it to them for better sound overall, better fit, better hear-through, a better-looking case and earphones, replaceable batteries(not as much as others weigh on it, though), and finally a better price.