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Sennheiser CX6.00BT Bluetooth Earphone Review

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Sennheiser CX6.00BT Bluetooth Earbud Review

READ MORE: Headphones Buying Guides

We remember a time when a wireless Bluetooth earphone was a novelty item, but now they’re become de rigueur. It’s an easy conclusion to draw when they’re coming through as sleek and polished-looking as the CX6.00BT.

Pros:

  • Can be paired with two devices
  • Smart and well manufactured
  • Competent sound

Cons:

  • Included case is a bit impractical
  • Eartips may be hit or miss

Sennheiser CX6.00BT

Design and Appearance

As already touched upon, the Sennheiser CX6.00BT is as dapper and chic as we’d expect from that esteemed company. Taking its capsule design cues from the Momentum in-ear models, the CX6.00BT is planned to continue the.. er, impetus that the popular Momentum series achieved.

The asking price gets some fine-looking bluetooth earphones but accessories are spartan; with a selection of tips, a so-so carry case and the required USB charge cable. I think we can call this fair (since our money is saved) but the case could have done with a bit more thought. It’s made of a brittle plastic which may get cracked, and it doesn’t hold together all that well.

The CX6.00BT has a nice trick, as it can pair up with two devices at the same time. If you’re enjoying listening to music from your dedicated music player or DAP and a call comes through on your phone, you have the option to answer. Smart!

Durability and Build Quality

The earphones themselves are among the most competently made wireless models I’ve seen at this price; they show off Sennheiser’s design acumen rather well. Having said that, this reviewer had to go looking for eartips which fitted better than the supplied eartips; which were a bit thin and didn’t hold the CX6.00BT in the ear particularly securely. Admittedly, a shallow fit is preferred here however.

Controls are easy to find and operate when the CX6.00BT is in action, and we find the in-ear commentary to be quite bearable; a female voice with a North American twang announces ‘power on’ and ‘power off’ whilst the female voice which says ‘connected’ sounds like it’s from Essex here in the UK. So there you have it, the CX6.00BT includes your very own Essex girl!

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READ MORE: Best Earphones Buying Guide – Wired and Wireless

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Comfort

Provided you can get a good fit with the supplied eartips, the CX6.00BT can be more or less forgotten. During exhaustive testing including motorcycle rides and supermarket trips, this reviewer was left with only music to enjoy and no fiddling about was required.

Sound Characteristics

The sound of the Sennheiser CX6.00BT will be no surprise if you are familiar with the sound of other Sennheiser earphones such as the Momentum (HD1) in-ear model. The CX6.00BT is warm sounding, with a bit of muted sparkle up top to keep things lively but comfortable. Throughout, the sound is cohesive with no obvious peaks or troughs in the frequency levels.

  • Bass

Bass is fairly strong with good subbass; it’s not up to basshead levels, but is sure to please most people with a decent amount of weight underpinning proceedings. It has good manners, and whilst it could be a bit tighter it hits the spot and allows the midrange to come through very well.

  • Mids

Midrange is clear and fairly detailed for a wireless model; atmospheric effects such as reverb are not lost, and vocals are clean. There’s a decent amount of warm cuddliness within the midrange too, for a fun and involving presentation.

  • Treble

There’s a decent amount of presence up at the top, but it’s gentle on the ear. Cymbals and suchlike make themselves known, but will not dictate listening levels unless you have a particular sensitivity here. Fine details are hampered by the wireless nature of these earphones, but it makes them quite versatile and forgiving with less than perfect recordings.

  • Soundstage and Separation

Soundstage is OK for a wireless in-ear model; you won’t be transported to the Royal opera House it’s quite acceptable. Similarly, imaging and separation are good enough for portable uses where the user’s mind will often not be concentrating on the finer points.

Music genres good for and why

The CX6.00BT is particularly good for modern pop and similarly produced genres, but it can handle anything thrown at it.

Summary

There’s plenty of choice out there with bluetooth earphones these days, but Sennheiser seems determined to corner this market with a few great releases over the past couple of years. The CX6.00BT is certainly a contender, especially for the £89.99 asking price.

Sennheiser RS175 – Review

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Sennheiser RS175 -Review


Pros

  • Very comfortable
  • Easy to operate when worn
  • Optical or analogue input
  • Great sound and soundstage
  • Bass boost and 2 virtual settings
  • Includes rechargeable AAA batteries

Cons

  • Can get slightly cluttered in midrange
  • Some may prefer velour earpads

Verdict

Even while being used to the excellent forerunner, the RS170, the Sennheiser RS175 impresses. Time marches on of course, and Sennheiser has marched along with some even more amazing wireless headphones which have left a right impression with everyone here. We feel that to parade around the house with these headphones would be an ideal use for them. We know the drill!


Intro

Following the popular RS170 closed-back model, Sennheiser have had their work cut out. However they’ve improved functionality and have added some useful features too.

Key Features

Flawless and lossless wireless transfer allows for uninterrupted and interference-free enjoyment of TV and music. Buttons on the headphones alter volume, enable bass boost and control virtual surround. Also, switching the headphones on or off will issue the same instruction to the transmitter, for convenient operation anywhere within the transmission range. The included AAA batteries can be recharged within the headphones while sitting on the transmitter which doubles as a stylish headphone stand.

Both analogue an optical cables can be connected; a switch on the back of the transmitter selects the input source. Working on a 2.4GHz frequency, they are free of interference; even when being used with Wi-Fi signals in close proximity, for instance wireless internet routers.

First Impressions

Once out of the box, the headphones feel lighter than they appear to be, and once on the head they are very comfortable – even when glasses are also worn. The ears are fully enclosed; there’s a generous amount of space within the earcups.

The positions of the buttons are intuitively placed; altering volume and enabling bass boost/virtual surround is a doddle. The Sennheiser RS175 promises to give hours of comfortable and trouble-free operation, allowing the user to concentate on the audio.

Sound Quality

The audio quality itself is certainly comparable to many similarly priced wired headphones; with the standard unaltered settings, bass is well controlled and has plenty of impact. Midrange is more prominent than the older RS170 model, improving speech intelligability with video and harmonics with music. There is a slight danger of clutter here if a lot is going on within the audio however. Treble is crisp and clear, but without getting overbearing. Soundstage is fantastic and separation is as good as any closed back at this price level.

Bass boost is more subtle than the name of the feature implies; it gives a gentle lift to the lower end of the bass without causing any bloating or muddying. It is just as well controlled, allowing the midrange and treble space through without being overpowered.

Virtual surround is a big improvement over the older RS170 model; audio which belongs in the centre of the soundstage stays there, while instruments/voices panned towards the left/right move further out. There are two levels of virtual surround and on the higher setting the presentation is truly immersive! Perfect for TV and films.


Summary

The new Sennheiser RS175 is a far cry from the image of the crackly and noisy wireless headphones of years ago. Sennheiser have hit the right spot with the RS175, and the new range of wireless models, the RS165, RS175, RS185 and RS195 promises to dominate the high quality TV headphones market for some time to come.

Score 9/10

Sennheiser Headphones – UK market leader?

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We are a big fan of Sennheiser headphones here at HiFi Headphones. Sennheiser are the without doubt the headphone & earphone company with the largest market share. Their range covers everything from humble ear buds that replace the standard issue Apple earphones, to sports headphones for jogging and cycling, right through to high end full size Hi-Fi models. With a headphone business that includes supplying specialist headphones to helicopter and jet pilots, they really do have it all covered. If you read Sennheiser’s marketing blurb they are quite partial to the term ‘electroacoustics’ to explain what they do.

So, Sennheiser are market leaders, but are their headphones and earphones any good? Well, yes! In our experience Sennheiser’s headphones and earphone are always well made and the sound quality if often excellent, even with the cheaper models. It was once said in the IT industry that you could never be fired for buying IBM computer equipment, well we think that phrase fits well for Sennheiser. If your job depended on it you couldn’t go wrong with a Sennheiser headphone purchase!

One word of warning. Beware of cheap fake Sennheiser headphones! We have seen (and have even been offered) very cheap Sennheiser headphones. These are always fake. Often these rip-off headphones are of the lower end (e.g. CX300 ear bud headphones) and are offered at bargain prices.  These are not genuine Sennheiser’s and the quality is very poor.  They can look almost identical to the real thing, but it’s not until you actually plug these headphones in and hear how bad the sound quality is that you will realise they are fake.  As always you don’t get something for nothing!

For a wide selection of competitively priced genuine Sennheiser Headphones take a look at the HiFi Headphones store.

Sennhesier HD 465 Full Size Hifi Headphones

Sennheiser Headphones

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Sennheiser headphones invariably offer excellent audio quality, good looks and are generally designed to last.  The HiFi Headphones store holds a large inventory of Sennheiser headphones as well as many other high quality brands.

Sennheiser are one of the biggest and well known headphone manufacturers with a massive range covering all categories, including wireless headphones, noise cancelling headphones, full size headphones and ever popular in ear sound isolating headphones.

Sennheiser have a long history in the audio industry making headphones and microphones, but more recently have also become involved in making aircraft systems and telecom’s equipment.

This blog entry provides a brief summary of some of the best Sennheiser headphones on offer from each of the major headphone types.

The HiFi Headphones store stock a broad range of Sennheiser headphones.

Sennheiser Full Size Headphones

Sennheiser HD650 – One of the most highly regarded consumer headphones available at an affordable price is the super smooth sounding Sennheiser HD650. The Sennheiser HD650’s are superbly balanced and are perfect for listening to high quality audio sources at home. The open back design and relatively large size means it’s not really practical to use the HD650’s on the move, but we have heard of HD650’s being used mobile with an iPod!

Sennheiser HD650

Sennheiser In Ear Headphones

Sennheiser CX300 – The Sennheiser CX300 is an excellent first step into the area of sound isolating ear canal headphones. Ear canal headphones generally seal inside the ear canal to keep out external noises, meaning you hear the audio better and can listen at safer volumes.

The CX300’s do not push completely into the ear canal like more expensive models (such as the Ultimate Ears Super.fi 3 Studio or Shure SE110), but do seal over the entrance to the the inner ear. This makes fitting the CX300 a little easier than the real deal.

Sennheiser CX300

Sennheiser Wireless Headphones

Sennheiser RS130 – The Sennheiser RS130 wireless headphones are currently one of the best sounding wireless headsets under £100. The Sennheiser RS140’s are more expensive, and come with closed back earcups to keep noise out and prevent sound leakage. The RS140’s closed back earcups can be handy if you don’t want to annoy people nearby, but the earcups add their own problems with sound reflections.

The Sennheiser RS130 headset is definitely the best of the Sennheiser wireless RS range and definitely worth the extra money over the RS120’s. The RS130 feels slightly better constructed than the RS120, has ‘over the ear pads’ which are more comfortable and also have an easy to use auto tune feature (the RS120’s have to be tuned manually).

It is truly liberating to be able to listen to your music without wires, it has to be said that audio quality is not as good as an equivalent wired headphone. For example you may notice a background hiss during quiet passages of music. So while it’s not possible to claim any of the RS range are audiophile quality sound, but the convenience more than makes up for it!


Sennheiser RS130 Headphones