Sennheiser PXC 550 Wireless  Headphones Review

The Sennheiser PXC 550 have a modern and sleek design that is not too flashy but will still stand out in a crowd. The slightly oval ear cups and wide headband are well padded with premium materials giving these headphones a high-end appeal. They're mid-sized over-ear headphones, but the headband has a relatively low-profile fit, so it won't stick out too much when you have them on your head. They have a very understated color scheme, which might not be for everyone but will definitely work for some.

The PXC 550 are one the more comfortable closed back headphones we've tested. They're incredibly well padded and the earcups are large enough to fit comfortably around most ears. The headband is also heavily cushioned and they're relatively lightweight. They're a bit tighter on the head than the QC 35 but they won't cause any fatigue or soreness even during long listening sessions. Unfortunately, the headband does not extend far enough to accommodate all head sizes and shapes. For a slightly more comfortable pair of headphones, take a look at the Jabra Elite 85h or the Sony WH-1000XM3.

Update 03/06/2020: After comparing more closely to the Sennheiser PXC 550-II Wireless, we raised the "Ease of Use" and "Feedback" scores. The text has been updated.

These headphones have a good, touch-sensitive control scheme that provides track skipping, call/music, and volume controls. There's a multi-purpose button that doubles as a Bluetooth sync and audio preset toggle. They also have a noise cancelling switch that can place the headphones in "Aware" mode to be able to monitor your environment. It's a bit much and isn't the most intuitive design, but it's fairly easy-to-use overall.

The Sennheiser PXC 550 Wireless have a decently breathable design despite being closed back over-ear headphones. They still obstruct quite a bit of airflow so they won't be the ideal headphones to take to the gym or for more intense workouts. On the upside, the shape and size of the ear cups keep the outer ear relatively cooler than similarly designed headphones like the QuietComfort 35 or the WH-1000XM2.

Update 12/03/2019: After reviewing the PXC 550-II Wireless, we noticed that our measurements for the first version were off. We remeasured them and the review has been updated.

The Sennheiser PXC 550 are moderately portable headphones. They're a mid-sized over-ear model with relatively large ear cups that fold but do not tuck-in neatly into the frame. This makes them decently portable but not the easiest to carry around on your person without a bag. The ear cups also lay flat, but that doesn't save much space so they're best transported in their carrying case to avoid damage.

Update 12/22/2021: Our original results indicated that these headphones come with a soft case. While it has some soft fabric near the zipper, the case has a rigid top and bottom cover. We consider it a hard case and have updated our results. There were no changes to the score.

They come with a decent hard case that will protect the headphones from mild water damage and potential scuffs and scratches. Unfortunately, the case will not shield them from hard falls or physical damage.

Although the Sennheiser PXC 550 are lightweight, they feel solid. They have a good build quality that makes us of premium materials in its design. The headband is reinforced by a thin but wide metal frame and the earcups are made out of a dense plastic that's durable enough to withsand a few drops and tumbles without damage. The swiveling mechanism is firm but has a snap to turn on feature which may potentially fail after prolonged use. However, we've had no issues with our unit so far.

These headphones have a stable wireless design that won't easily fall off your head. The firm swivel hinges, combined with the wide headband, and broad ear cups prevent the headphones from swaying too much even during physical activity. They won't be the best choice for exercising or intense sports, although they're one of the best over-ear headphones for working out we've tested, and the stability they provide is decent enough to jog with. The wireless design also removes the chances that the headphones will be yanked off your head because the audio cable got hooked on something.

• Sennheiser PXC 550 headphones
• Audio cable
• Airline adapter
• 1/8' to 1/4' adapter
• Carrying case
• USB charging cable
• Manual

The frequency response consistency is about average. In the bass range, they performed quite consistently on our 5 human subjects, with little deviation between them. However, our one test subject who wears glasses experienced a 3dB drop in bass below 300Hz, and only in one ear. This suggests that under the right circumstances, the seal of these headphones could be broken with hair or glasses, and cause a noticeable drop in bass. In the treble range, the maximum amount of deviation below 10KHz is about 5dB, which is not bad, but is noticeable. This suggests that the treble performance of this headphone is also sensitive to positioning.

The bass is great. Their LFE (low-frequency extension) is at 26Hz, which is very good. However, it's not as low as some other over-ears' like the QuietComfort 35 II, and WH-1000XM2. Low-bass is about 2dB below our target, and mid-bass is underemphasized by 1.8dB. Overall, their bass is quite even and well-balanced, but a tad south of neutral, so fans of heavy-bass may not be completely pleased with them.

The mid-range is very good. Low-mid and mid-mid are flat and within 0.75dB of our target. This ensures a clear and well-balanced reproduction of vocals and lead instruments. The bump in high-mid however, gives a bit of excess intensity and projection to vocals and lead instruments, nudging them towards the front of the mix.

The Sennheiser PXC 550 have a good treble. The response is rather uneven, and overall, a tad north of neutral. The 10dB dip around 4KHz, negatively affects the detail and articulation of vocals and lead instruments, but it is too narrow to be noticeable. The 10dB peak in the sibilance range, however (6KHz-10KHz), makes the S and T sounds sharp and piercing, especially on bright vocals and cymbals.

Update 05/11/2021: Although these headphones were converted to test bench 1.4 using our new methodology, we didn't update the review's text. As a result, the text in this box was inconsistent with the new results. We have updated this box to better improve accuracy.

The stereo imaging of the Sennheiser PXC 550 Wireless is great. The weighted group delay mostly falls below the audibility threshold, resulting in transparent treble. However, some peaks in the bass range may result in a slightly loose bass. That said, the L/R drivers are well-matched in amplitude, frequency, and phase response. This is important for the accurate placement and localization of objects (like voices, instruments, footsteps) in the stereo image. These results are only valid for our unit though, and yours may perform differently.

The Sennheiser PXC 550 have a sub-par soundstage. The PRTF graph shows that the response doesn't follow our reference at all. They have low accuracy, no distance, but above-average size. Therefore, their soundstage will most likely be perceived to be of a decent size, but not speaker-like and in-front. Their closed-back design also makes their soundstage feel less open than that of open-back headphones.

The isolation performance is about average. The ANC (active noise cancellation) on these headphones seem to be adding low-frequency artifacts that could go as high as 60Hz. This rumble could potentially be heard in certain situations. In the bass range, occupied by the rumble of airplane and bus engines, they achieved 4dB of isolation, which is sub-par. In the mid-range, important for cancelling out speech, they achieved more than 16dB of isolation, which is good. In the treble range, occupied by sharp S and T sounds, the Sennheiser PXC 550 achieve 30dB of isolation, which is also good.

The Sennheiser PXC 550 has a decent leakage performance. There is little leakage happening below 1KHz, so it will sound quite thin. The amount of leakage from 1KHz onwards is not too loud either. At 100dB SPL and 1 foot away, the peak is around 55dB SPL, which is the same as the noise floor of most offices. Also, the high-treble leakage seems uncharacteristic of closed-back headphones and could be due to poor seal.

The Sennheiser PXC 550 Wireless have an integrated microphone. Unlike the Sennheiser HD 450BT, they also come with a detachable audio cable that has an in-line microphone.

The recording quality of the integrated microphone is about average. Its LFE (low-frequency extension), is at 293Hz, indicating speech recorded/transmitted with it will sound relatively thin. The HFE (high-frequency extension) of 3.5KHz means that speech will be noticeably muffled and lacking detail. But it will still be decently comprehensible, since speech intelligibility is mostly dependent on the 500Hz-4KHz range.

The microphone is decent at noise handling. In our SpNR test, they achieved a speech-to-noise ratio of 22dB, indicating the Sennheiser PXC 550 would be able to separate speech from background noise in moderately loud environments. But they may struggle in very loud places.

Update 02/14/2020: Due to an issue with the way we tested passive playback on headphones with no dedicated power button, these headphones were incorrectly listed as having passive playback when they don't. This review has been updated to reflect these changes.

The Sennheiser PXC 550 have an excellent battery performance. They last well over a day of continuous, wireless playback and only take about 2 hours to charge. They have an adjustable auto-off timer to save power and can continue charging while playing audio, which is great if you're close to a power outlet, like being at the office.

Update 03/06/2020: We had incorrectly stated there were no EQ settings available. There are indeed a few EQ presets, but no customizable graphic or parametric EQ. The text has been updated.

Update 01/05/2020: These headphones used to use Sennheiser's CapTune app, but Sennheiser has been slowly moving to its newer SmartControl app and CapTune is no longer available. While these headphones should still work with CapTune if you have it installed, we're not sure how long it will be supported, and it can no longer be downloaded. This review has been updated to reflect these changes.

Sennheiser's Smart Control app is alright. You can adjust their ANC and there are a couple EQ presets and room effects. However, the Sennheiser Momentum 3 Wireless also give you access to a parametric EQ, which is lacking with the PXC 550.

The Sennheiser PXC 550 Wireless can pair simultaneously with 2 devices and support NFC. This makes them a rather versatile headphone when using Bluetooth. However, pairing is not as easy as the Bose QuietComfort 35, since you have to switch them off first and hold the power button when turning them on to put them in pairing. It can be a bit tedious when trying to pair to multiple devices but on the upside once paired they will automatically connect to the 2 last synced devices as soon as you switch them on.

Poor latency performance. The Sennheiser PXC 550 Wireless have about 200ms of SBC latency and 171ms when using aptX. It's within the range of most Bluetooth headphones but won't be ideal for watching movies or gaming.

Update 06/11/2021: We have changed USB Audio to 'USB Type A' to reflect the source port instead of the headphones' port. When using their USB cable, the USB-A connector can be connected to any device with a USB-A port. The scoring of this box hasn't changed.

These headphones come with a 1/8" TRRS audio cable with an in-line microphone that's compatible with the Xbox One, PS4, and PCs. You can also use the USB cable for audio over USB when connected to PCs or tablets.

These headphones do not have a base/dock. If you want a versatile headset with a base that you can also use wired check out the SteelSeries Arctis 7 by SteelSeries.