It seems that over the last 6 months there has been a rather large push on wireless technology in headphones and to be honest I was never really too keen on them. Infant versions of wireless headphones had replaceable batteries that would not last too long. The sound quality was never too keen, nor too was the weight. However, recently it appears to have changed! My first experience of a “decent” high quality wireless headphone came from trying the Parrot Zik. These offered great isolation, were not too heavy and exceeded my expectations of sound quality. 6 months later and we have some what of a raft of high quality wireless headphones suitable for just about everyone. I will list my favourites that fit various purposes and will definately suit some peoples needs more than others. All of the headphones offer excellent build quality and all enable you to take phone calls through their built in microphones.
Momentum Wireless Over Ear – £379.99
Momentum Wireless Black Headphones
The Momentum Wireless Over Ear was released at CES 2015 and these are very close to topping my big hitters list of wireless headphones. The comfort from the pads is really exceptional and I am REALLY happy that Sennheiser decided they would very slightly increase the cup size so that people with slightly larger ears would be happy . The original Momentum headphones genuinely began making my ears ache after prolonged listening due to the size of the cup. The quality of sound is nothing that you wouldn’t expect from Sennheiser. Open, detailed with a slight push on the midrange which suits my preference down to the ground. The killer feature for me is the ANC (Active Noise Cancelling), it offers excellent cancelling of surrounding background noise and means that you don’t have to turn up the headphones to drown out background environment noise.
Urbanite XL Wireless Over Ear – £249
Urbanite XL Wireless Headphones
Not wishing to spend quite as much on wireless headphones and substitute the noise cancelling then the Urbanite is a great wireless headphone. Again with the Sennheiser signature house sound the Urbanite offers really good value for money. The pads are not quite as comfortable as the Momentum but prolonged listening is not a problem at all. As with the Momentum wireless the Urbanite has aptX which offers better quality sonic transfer over your bluetooth connection. Unlike the Momentum the Urbanite is only available in Black instead of Black and Ivory.
Parrot Zik 2.0 – £299
Parrot Zik 2.0 Headphones
The Zik 2.0 storms it for me look wise! I think they look stunning and are really comfortable to wear just like the Momentum. Also with active noise cancelling, the Zik also offers touch sensitive buttons and a dedicated Android and iPhone app which can tune the sound to your own liking. This really does have its benefits. Although the Zik is awesome I would still personally prefer the sound signature of the Momentum but everyone’s ears are different. It would be worthwhile booking an appointment to see us so that you can hear the differences yourself.
B&O H8 – £399
B&O H8 Wireless Headphones
Launched slightly later than all of the others this is joint contender for me with the Momentum’s. Sound wise they both compete on a very similar playing field. The B&O offers slightly more detail but misses out on the musicality that the Momentum offers. Again it comes with exactly the same feature set with Active Noise Cancelling and aptX all being included alongside comfortable earpads and a touch sensitive aluminium panel similar to the Zik 2.0. Battery is claimed to be up to 14 hours with Bluetooth 4.0 and its low energy profile.
B&W P5 Wireless – £329
B&W P5 Wireless Headphones
New kid on the block is the B&W P5 Wireless. After the immense success of the original P5 and the P5 Series 2 it was surely only a matter of time before a wireless version popped up. Without a doubt these headphones are excellent. The bluetooth is very stable and the sound is truly very pleasurable. The P5 Wireless sound though is not a neutral headphone but it offers an immensely involving, very musical presentation that you can’t help but to enjoy. The best bit about the headphone is its compact size and it’s stylish looks of leather and metal. The P5 original has sold in its droves and I can bet you bottom dollar that the wireless version will too.
