When Sennheiser introduced the discharge of a pair of mid-range wi-fi over-ears that will hit the hole available in the market between the likes of the super-affordable Sony WH-CH520 and extra premium fashions such because the Bose QuietComfort Extremely Headphones or Sony WH-1000XM5, we have been intrigued.
That stated, so-called “mid-range” merchandise can typically go one in every of two methods. They’ll nail that candy spot of affordability and efficiency, offering nice worth within the course of, or else can find yourself compromised and somewhat stitched collectively of their makes an attempt to emulate extra high-end performers whereas holding prices to a minimal.
With out giving the sport away, the Sennheiser Accentum Wi-fi are disappointingly extra of the latter than they’re the previous, feeling extra like a compromised pair of cans versus a craftily conceived discount set to please all comers. Regardless of an affordable effort, they may not trigger an excessive amount of bother to the Sony fashions at present threatening to make the world of wi-fi headphones into one thing of a one-team league.
Worth
Sennheiser’s new over-ears with lively noise-cancelling (ANC) will value you £160 / $180 / AU$300, a determine that locations them in a pleasant center grown – it’s beneath the premium five-star Sennheiser Momentum 4 (£300 / $350 / $AU550), however significantly above the lately launched and newly 2023 Award-winning Sony WH-CH720N (£99 / $129 / AU$259).
For those who have been after a very finances pair of Sennheiser over-ears, the earlier Award-winning Sennheiser HD 250BT would have set you again round £50 / $60 / AU$120. This now-discontinued mannequin (though you’ll be able to nonetheless discover some inventory on-line) did not function ANC, nevertheless, so the brand new Accentum mannequin goals to fill within the gaps.
Consolation & Construct
Whereas they hardly set the world alight with a design that screams “creative tour de pressure”, the Accentum are a cushty, reasonably-made pair of headphones which have the reassuringly strong construct high quality we’ve come to count on from Sennheiser.
Examine the Accentum Wi-fi with the cheaper Sony CH720N, and it’s clear the place that extra cash has been spent. The Accentum’s headband feels sturdier and extra lavishly appointed with padding, whereas the earpads themselves are way more strong than the marginally insubstantial cups supplied by their Sony rivals. Sennheiser has promised “all-day consolation” from its cheap new over-ears, and whereas we’d really feel comfortable sporting the Accentum for a stretch, we did expertise some ear-warming throughout extra prolonged intervals of sporting.
Sennheiser Accentum Wi-fi tech specs
Bluetooth 5.2
Codec Assist SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD
Noise-cancelling? Sure
Battery Life As much as 50 hours
Finishes x2 (Black, White)
Weight 222g
Whereas the Accentum’s common construct high quality is befitting of a pair of mid-range headphones, there’s little when it comes to design or aesthetic prospers to make us really feel really spoiled. The earcups don’t fold up and away as is the case for the Sony WH-1000XM4, however they do swivel horizontally by way of a hinge that seems as if it may carry out this similar rotation many hundreds of occasions earlier than it gave up the ghost.
Controls, in the meantime, are fairly typical for a pair of headphones at this stage. On the suitable ear cup are the usual quantity controls, in addition to an on/off button which hovers simply above the cans’ USB-C charging port. They’re moderately practical plastic buttons, reflecting Sennheiser’s need to place usability earlier than aesthetics with the Accentum Wi-fi.
What you don’t obtain, although, is a case or perhaps a cloth pouch for carrying your headphones round in, one thing we had tentatively anticipated given the mannequin’s mid-range price ticket. Even when a correct, heavy-duty case was an excessive amount of to ask for, wouldn’t it have been unattainable to stretch to a pouch to a minimum of preserve the mud and parts at bay?
Options
By way of options, a hefty 50-hour battery life is the true standout right here, with that quantity rivalling extra premium fashions such because the Sony WH-1000XM5 and the Bose QuietComfort 45. It’s not fairly the 60 hours supplied by the Sennheiser Momentum 4, however these specific over-ears retailed at £300 / $350 after they first arrived. 50 hours, then, is greater than sufficient right here.
Noise cancelling, too, is spectacular. The expertise right here feels complete and warranted, with the Accentum offering a strong, even-handed efficiency throughout the sonic spectrum. The screech of practice tracks, the hum of a busy highway, even the twitter of birds; it’s all dampened successfully, if not eradicated completely, by these mid-range hopefuls.
We’re even handled to these helpful little extras that you just don’t all the time discover round this worth. Bluetooth Multipoint’s continuous ascent is mirrored in its inclusion with the Accentum, whereas clearer voice calls are promised courtesy of two built-in mics with wind-reduction capabilities. That promise is delivered upon, too, and an out of doors chat on a blustery October afternoon positively advantages from the added vocal pickup the Sennheisers effortlessly present.
Sound
Let’s begin with the positives, utilizing Large Assault’s Teardrop and the opening motion to Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture as our entry factors. What we detect instantly is how well-organised and balanced the Accentum Wi-fi are, noticing their aptitude for putting devices in the suitable positions with out muddle or sonic bleeding. There’s no trace of extreme dominance or harshness, and the irritations of sure devices taking centre stage once you desperately don’t need them to are smoothed over properly by what’s a measured, even-handed sonic type.
It’s all pretty detailed, too. Devices principally sound true to their authentic types, and there’s by no means a way of being starved of nuance or intricacy. That measured, inoffensive soundscape definitely permits for a lot of the physique and scale of devices to be revealed with out harshness, extreme color or over-richness.
And but, there’s one thing lacking from these new Sennheisers which turns into obvious the extra you hear. Strong and weighty they could be, however the Accentum lack spark and rhythmic drive, stopping them from actually digging into the soul and spirit of your favorite musical treats. It’s as if the Accentum are a matronly schoolteacher, responsible of stifling and suppressing the inventive pleasure and aptitude of its most gifted livewire college students in favour of holding a common veneer of order and restraint.
Nick Cave’s Music For Bob needs to be an emotional gut-punch, however the affect is restricted by the Accentum’s reserved method, as broad, meaty strings lose important timbre and tone as a part of the headphones’ moderately flat, sometimes listless sonic profile. The flittering excessive hats and heavy drum kick pulses which characterise Gorillaz’s Sorry really feel smoothed over and dynamically compressed, neutering the monitor’s percussive underpinning and depriving the music of its snappy, forward-moving character. Listening to the identical monitor, the extra sonically participating (and significantly cheaper) Sony WH-CH720N reveals a world of distinction, with the latter offering the power, substance and easy vitality that felt missing from Sennheiser’s personal effort.
Take heed to De La Soul’s Eye Know with the Accemtum, and also you’ll get an extra sense of what we imply. There’s bass aplenty, however the flabbiness of that decrease register, mixed with a barely hole, insubstantial midrange, robs the monitor of its carefree, head-bopping spirit. With out eager to make the plain gag, the Accentum take away the “Soul” from De La Soul with a presentation that, whereas it doesn’t lack for weight, finally ends up feeling a contact bland to our ears.
Sadly, throughout our weeks-long stint with the Sennheisers, there was hardly ever a time throughout our assessments whereby we felt compelled to dig out limitless check tracks in anticipation of how the Accentum may convey them. Sonically, the Accentum Wi-fi soften songs to such an extent that they’ll generally really feel as if they’re draining the life and color from the music itself. For those who need dynamism and drive from a pair of headphones, regardless of the worth, we advise you to look elsewhere.
Verdict
The Sennheiser Accentum Wi-fi do a suitable job of fulfilling their temporary, offering a well-furnished, comfy and stable-sounding pair of over-ears for the patron who isn’t eager on forking out £200 or extra on wi-fi headphones.
That stated, we are able to’t assist however really feel that the Accentum’s considerably neutered, non-committal sonic type makes them exhausting to advocate wholeheartedly, particularly when you would benefit from the punch and verve of cheaper fashions just like the Sony WH-CH720N as an alternative.
SCORES
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Learn our evaluate of the Sony WH-CH720N
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