Hands-on: Sennheiser Cans of the Dallas Mavs
If only the Dallas Mavericks wore these while on the court.
For frequent travelers, the noise cancelling headphones are a prized companion accessory. I personally find flying a much nicer experience when I can listen to my music or movie with as little of that cabin drone as possible.
Sennheiser is rolling out a new high-end headphone option for those who love sound, hate outside noises, and prefer to go wireless. Last month the microphone and headphone manufacturer announced a partnership with the Dallas Mavericks NBA team to make the upcoming MM 550 headphones the official traveling headset of the team.
Having the headset being attached to the Mavs won't increase your vertical (at least it did nothing for mine), but we decided to check out what aural qualities the MM 550 has at a recent pre-CES event.
First of all, it support wireless Bluetooth A2DP, so you don't need to deal with cords if you have a music player that supports the standard. If you're out of juice from all the wireless and noise cancelling use (which we're told lasts 12 hours), the headset also supports a cord for the old fashioned method.
We tested the noise cancelling feature in the busy and noisy room we were in and found the cancellation effective, though we'd have to take it on planes, trains and automobiles before we can say if it bests other competing offerings.
What we found particularly innovative was a technology called TalkThrough, which eliminates the need to remove the headset from your head if you need to hear someone talking to you. A quick press of the button activates a feature that pipes the audio from the outside world into the headphones. Amazingly, this feature works at the same time as noise cancellation. We tested this feature at the booth as well, and were able to clearly hear the Sennheiser representative talk amidst all the ambient noise.
The Dallas Mavericks have these now, but for the rest of us, these are set to ship in the second half of November for $499.95.
- Google Employee Offering Cash for Kinect Apps
- Netflix on Select Android Phones in Early 2011
- Deals for November 15: The Deals are Back!
- Gay Couple Uses Skype to Legally Marry in Texas
- One Googler Gets No Cash or Raise; Gets Fired
- CERN's LHC Recreates Big Bang
- The T-Shirt that Plays its own Music
- Mega Hurtz: Part Gun, Part Machine, All Cop
- Facebook to Build New $240 Million Data Center
- Google Serving Gingerbread Soon Says Schmidt
- Autodesk: You'll Be Making Movies on iPad Soon
- The Remote Control Throw-Pillow
- Facebook to Give Users @Facebook Email Address
- The Electric Rickshaw for Neo-Tokyo
- 3D Printers Will Construct Future Space Stations
- The My Little Pony that Took up Shop Class
- The Ultimate Guitar for Star Wars Geeks
- Making Trees Perfect for the Red-Light District
- Circuit Watch is the Timepiece for Tron Nerds
When it comes to headphones I would have to hear them in person before I buy them. Even though you guys say they sound good, it boils down to personal taste. Higher the price tag, and I believe 499 counts as thus, does not always mean higher sound quality.
Example: Beats by Dr.Dre. They retail at my local best buy for 279.99, and they had a sample booth with them. I listened to them before I saw the price and was like "Holy cow these things sound like s****, why is it all bass with NO highs or mids? Couldnt be more then fifty bu-......." Needless to say I was flabberghasted at the price....
I dont think I would buy these cans if I had that kind of money, I would sooner buy one from their audiophile series or maybe Shures.
I am kind of bothered by the fact that these players are millionairs and were all probably given these $500 headphones just as a PR/Advertising stunt. Why do companies always give free stuff to the rich and famous, are there really that many sheep out there in our society? I think they would be best served to give them away to the average joe to creat good PR. Just my 2 cents.
Boy do I love my 80 dollar Grado SR-60's....
Yea they leak, yea they don't look "all that" but damn they sound good.
Hey I love the mavericks! I'm going to buy these!
to thecheif73,
why should they give headphones to "more deserving" people? how will that benefit the company from a business stand point? they spend how ever much money giving the headphones to a nationally or perhaps internationally known sports entity and that will save them a lot of money on useless ads that no one will be persuaded by. why do you care so much how they carry out their marketing? because you don't get free stuff? lol
Nice, but using bluetooth (and other radio transmissions) is generally prohibited on airplanes.
@Albyint
it largely comes down to what's 'popular and accepted' when in an area like that..
in this case.. excess, overemphasized bass is the norm. it doesnt have to sound 'good', it just has to be whats expected by many. and simply to see how much attention can be drawn in a populated place.
at any rate.. if it sells, thats all that matters to them.
Got a pair of HD650, best darn headphones there is at that price class,both amazing sound and great build quality. Sennheiser have earned my respect to say the least ofcorse they aren't the cheapest but the same goes for most quality products.
i'm still waiting for the sequel to hd650... been a while since their new top of the line 800 came out, when will we see HD700 or 750? That's when i'll upgrade.
Am I the only one who dislikes the concept of a bluetooth wireless headset? After all, Bluetooth suffers from bandwith limitations, leading to compression being required, and the range isn't that great either.
RF headsets are typically superior and usually aren't any more expensive and often even cheaper than comparable bluetooth headphones.
"Mavs won't increase your vertical (at least it did nothing for mine)"
this begs an interesting question... what is your vertical marcus?
I have to say I've been a fan of Sennheiser since 2004 when I bought my first pair of PX-100's.
I also own a pair of HD 595 and they are just as awesome.
I would say I would be very interested in these.
"Mavs won't increase your vertical (at least it did nothing for mine)"this begs an interesting question... what is your vertical marcus?
Not high enough to even touch the rim.
I have been using HD450 noise canceling for a year whenever I fly... believe me, 24 hours across the globe, you are fresher with this than without...
Plus, having your own airplane compatible earphones gives you that extra 30 mins of watching and hearing inflight movies...
However, the talkthrough is confusing to the stewardess... they think I can't hear them... all the time...
Quality aside, who the hell is willing to pay $500 for a pair of freaking headphones?
For that price you can find a decent amp and pair it with a set of Sennheiser HD595. Sure, it's not as good as a set of HD600 or 650's but it'll sound a hell of a lot better than these.
Just my opinion, for the $$$ I'd rather have audio quality over convenience.
Seems they are primarily marketed as noise canceling headphones, where Bose QC15 is currently the king. I would like to see a comparison between the two (I myself love QC15's and have 2 pairs of them).
Seems they are primarily marketed as noise canceling headphones, where Bose QC15 is currently the king. I would like to see a comparison between the two (I myself love QC15's and have 2 pairs of them).
I too have a pair of the QC15's. I think they're a bit overpriced, but I do really appreciate them when I fly. What I don't like is that you can't use them at all without the noise cancelling mode on though.
Sound quality ability perceive/hear by normal people is logarithmic.
Frankly at 100 bucks you get pretty good headphones at 150 you get good ones that maybe feels a bit sturdier and doesn't suffer from noise from the cords. At 200 you should get as much as you possibly need in terms of performance after that it's all just luxury sort of like a diamond studded phone. All the diamonds do is increase your ego.
at 500 bucks my brain better believe my ears are getting the best sound quality.
Sound quality ability perceive/hear by normal people is logarithmic.Frankly at 100 bucks you get pretty good headphones at 150 you get good ones that maybe feels a bit sturdier and doesn't suffer from noise from the cords. At 200 you should get as much as you possibly need in terms of performance after that it's all just luxury sort of like a diamond studded phone. All the diamonds do is increase your ego.
I disagree as long as that extra money is spent on the sound producing materials and not the estetics. Even with normal hearing the details in the music is better with a good pair than a medicree pair as long as you have the proper equipment to actually take advantage of the extra definition.Forget Mp3 and the rest of the lossy compressed material since the micro details in the sound its the first to go.
If you got a good headphone amp + good music source (cd or better) you will notice the difference with normal hearing above that pricetag if its a real headphone company that uses that extra money on the product and not the branding/finish.
When it comes to headphones I would have to hear them in person before I buy them. Even though you guys say they sound good, it boils down to personal taste. Higher the price tag, and I believe 499 counts as thus, does not always mean higher sound quality. Example: Beats by Dr.Dre. They retail at my local best buy for 279.99, and they had a sample booth with them. I listened to them before I saw the price and was like "Holy cow these things sound like s****, why is it all bass with NO highs or mids? Couldnt be more then fifty bu-......." Needless to say I was flabberghasted at the price....I dont think I would buy these cans if I had that kind of money, I would sooner buy one from their audiophile series or maybe Shures.
All too true. I sprang $450 for the amazingly reviewed Sennheiser 650 model, only to find that I don't like them at all. And I have a long history of happy listening with Sennheisers. Much depends on personal preference and even hearing. Try before you buy.
I'll stick with my Burlesque Edition earbuds from Sony.