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  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Style
    2. Comfort
    3. Controls
    4. Breathability
    5. Portability
    6. Case
    7. Build Quality
    8. Stability
    9. Headshots 1
    10. Headshots 2
    11. Top
    12. In The Box
  5. Sound
    1. Sound Profile
    2. Frequency Response Consistency
    3. Raw Frequency Response
    4. Bass Accuracy
    5. Mid Accuracy
    6. Treble Accuracy
    7. Peaks/Dips
    8. Imaging
    9. Passive Soundstage
    10. Virtual Soundstage
    11. Weighted Harmonic Distortion
    12. Test Settings
  6. Isolation
    1. Noise Isolation
    2. Leakage
  7. Microphone
    1. Microphone Style
    2. Recording Quality
    3. Noise Handling
  8. Active Features
    1. Battery
    2. App Support
  9. Connectivity
    1. Bluetooth
    2. Non-Bluetooth Wireless
    3. Wired
    4. PC / PS4 Compatibility
    5. Xbox One Compatibility
    6. Base/Dock
  10. Comments

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear vs Sony MDR-1A

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear
Sony MDR-1A

Tested using Methodology v1.3.1

Updated Aug 07, 2021 12:27 AM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v1.4

Updated Aug 07, 2021 12:25 AM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Picture
Sony MDR-1A Picture

Variants

  • Momentum 2.0 (Android, Black)
  • Momentum 2.0 (Android, Ivory)
  • Momentum 2.0 (iOS, Black)
  • Momentum 2.0 (iOS, Brown)
  • Momentum 2.0 (iOS, Ivory)
  • MDR-1A (Black)
  • MDR-1A (Silver)

Our Verdict

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear

Sony MDR-1A

The Sony MDR-1A are a slightly better headphone than the Sennheiser Momentum 2.0. The Sonys have a much more comfortable over-ear fit than the Sennheisers. They're also a bit better built with durable materials that are a lot lighter than the Sennheisers' build quality. They also have a better sound quality that's more balanced with the higher frequencies and does not sound as dark. On the upside, the Sennheisers leak a lot less which make them a bit more suitable for noise sensitive environments like the office.

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Android, Black
Momentum 2.0
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Android, Ivory
Momentum 2.0
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iOS, Black
Momentum 2.0
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iOS, Brown
Momentum 2.0
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iOS, Ivory
Momentum 2.0
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Main Differences for
Mixed Usage

Threshold 

0.10

Mixed Usage 

6.1
5.8

Comfort 
 

7.0
8.0

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Design Picture 2  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Design Picture 2
Sony MDR-1A Design Picture 2

Type  

Over-ear
Over-ear

Enclosure  

Closed-Back
Closed-Back

Wireless  

No
No

Transducer  

Dynamic
Dynamic
Show text

Comfort 
 

7.0
8.0

Comfort Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Comfort Picture
Sony MDR-1A Comfort Picture

Weight  

0.6 lbs
0.49 lbs

Clamping Force 
 

0.7 lbs
0.7 lbs
Show text

Controls 
 

7.2
4.9

Controls Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Controls Picture
Sony MDR-1A Controls Picture

OS Compatibility 
 

iOS
Not OS specific

Ease Of Use  

Okay
Decent

Feedback  

Good
Okay

Call/Music Control  

Yes
Yes

Volume Control  

Yes
No

Microphone Control  

No
No

Channel Mixing 
 

N/A
No

Noise Cancelling Control  

N/A
No

Talk-Through 
 

N/A
No

Additional Controls  

No
No
Show text

Breathability 
 

6.5
6.6

Breathability After Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Breathability After Picture
Sony MDR-1A Breathability After Picture

Avg.Temp.Difference  

5.7 °C
5.5 °C
Show text

Portability 
 

6.1
6.0

Portability Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Portability Picture
Sony MDR-1A Portability Picture

 

4.72"
7.9"

 

6.5"
7.3"

 

2.95"
1.8"

Volume  

90.68 in³
104 in³

Transmitter Required  

N/A
No
Show text

Case 
 

7.0
6.5

Case Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Case Picture
Sony MDR-1A Case Picture

Type  

Soft case
Pouch

 

6.5"
N/A

 

7.68"
N/A

 

2.36"
N/A

Volume  

117.8 in³
N/A
Show text

Build Quality 
 

8.0
7.5

Build Quality Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Build Quality Picture
Sony MDR-1A Build Quality Picture
Show text

Stability 
 

6.5
6.0

Stability Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Stability Picture
Sony MDR-1A Stability Picture
Show text

Headshots 1  

Angled Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Angled Picture
Sony MDR-1A Angled Picture

Side Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Side Picture
Sony MDR-1A Side Picture

Headshots 2  

Front Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Front Picture
Sony MDR-1A Front Picture

Rear Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Rear Picture
Sony MDR-1A Rear Picture

Top  

Top Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Top Picture
Sony MDR-1A Top Picture

In The Box  

In The Box Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear In The Box Picture
Sony MDR-1A In The Box Picture
Show text
Sound

Sound Profile 
 

Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool

Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool

Bass Amount 
 

0.68 dB
1.55 dB

Treble Amount 
 

-5.55 dB
-1.47 dB

Frequency Response Consistency 
 

6.7
7.8

Consistency L  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Consistency R  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Avg. Std. Deviation 
 

0.69 dB
0.44 dB
Show text

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw FR L  

See details on graph tool

Raw FR L  

See details on graph tool

Raw FR R  

See details on graph tool

Raw FR R  

See details on graph tool

Bass Accuracy 
 

8.0
7.2

Bass  

See details on graph tool

Bass  

See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

2.76 dB
3.87 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

10 Hz
10 Hz

Low-Bass 
 

3.5 dB
3.28 dB

Mid-Bass 
 

3.21 dB
4.55 dB

High-Bass 
 

2.23 dB
4.46 dB
Show text

Mid Accuracy 
 

8.5
8.6

Mid  

See details on graph tool

Mid  

See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

2.06 dB
1.88 dB

Low-Mid 
 

1.51 dB
0.5 dB

Mid-Mid 
 

2.45 dB
1.24 dB

High-Mid 
 

1.61 dB
2.51 dB
Show text

Treble Accuracy 
 

5.3
7.6

Treble  

See details on graph tool

Treble  

See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

5.62 dB
3.18 dB

Low-Treble 
 

-3.13 dB
0.12 dB

Mid-Treble 
 

-6.01 dB
2.22 dB

High-Treble 
 

-6.53 dB
-6.23 dB
Show text

Peaks/Dips 
 

7.0
7.4

Peaks/Dips Graph  

See details on graph tool

Peaks/Dips Graph  

See details on graph tool

Peaks 
 

1.85 dB
1.74 dB

Dips 
 

1.87 dB
1.15 dB

Imaging 
 

8.3
7.8

Group Delay  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Phase Response  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Weighted Group Delay 
 

0.18
0.27

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch 
 

1.26
1.6

Weighted Frequency Mismatch 
 

2.2
2.61

Weighted Phase Mismatch 
 

4.36
6.15
Show text

Passive Soundstage 
 

5.0
5.7

PRTF  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.) 
 

3.89 dB
2.04 dB

PRTF Size (Avg.) 
 

-0.79 dB
4.34 dB

PRTF Distance 
 

16.32 dB
8 dB

Openness 
 

4.8
5.2

Acoustic Space Excitation 
 

3.0
3.7
Show text

Virtual Soundstage 
 

0.0

Virtual Soundstage  

Sony MDR-1A Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling 
 

No

Speaker Modeling 
 

No

Room Ambience 
 

No

Head Tracking 
 

No

Virtual Surround 
 

No App

Weighted Harmonic Distortion 
 

7.8
8.2

Weighted Harmonic Distortion  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

WHD @ 90 
 

0.149
0.110

WHD @ 100 
 

0.177
0.144

Test Settings 
 

Firmware 
 

No Firmware

Power 
 

Passive

Connection 
 

Wired

Codec 
 

PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz

EQ 
 

No EQ

ANC 
 

No ANC

Tip/Pad 
 

Default

Microphone 
 

In-line
Isolation

Noise Isolation 
 

5.0
4.7

Noise Isolation  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Isolation Audio 
 

Overall Attenuation 
 

-12.35 dB
-12.3 dB

Noise Cancelling  

No
No

Bass 
 

0.31 dB
0.09 dB

Mid 
 

-9.28 dB
-7.47 dB

Treble 
 

-28.86 dB
-30.01 dB
Show text

Leakage 
 

7.6
6.7

Leakage  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Leakage Audio 
 

Overall Leakage @ 1ft 
 

36.25 dB
41.13 dB
Show text
Microphone

Microphone Style 
 

Integrated 
 

No
No

In-Line 
 

Yes
Yes

Boom 
 

No
No

Detachable Boom 
 

N/A
No

Mic  

Yes
Yes
Show text

Recording Quality 
 

7.1
6.9

Microphone Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Recorded Speech 
 

LFE 
 

479.46 Hz
479.46 Hz

FR Std. Dev. 
 

3.82 dB
1.56 dB

HFE 
 

19,611.72 Hz
4,122.85 Hz

Weighted THD 
 

2.193
0.126

Gain 
 

23.44 dB
17.32 dB
Show text

Noise Handling 
 

5.7
6.5

SpNR  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Speech + Pink Noise  

Speech + Subway Noise  

SpNR 
 

8.22 dB
17.13 dB
Show text
Active Features

Battery 
 

0.0
0.0

Battery Type 
 

N/A
No Battery

Continuous Battery Life 
 

N/A
N/A

Additional Charges 
 

N/A
N/A

Total Battery Life 
 

N/A
N/A

Charge Time 
 

N/A
N/A

Power-Saving Feature 
 

N/A
No

Audio While Charging 
 

N/A
No

Passive Playback 
 

N/A
Passive Headphone

Charging Port  

N/A
None
Show text

App Support 
 

0.0
0.0

App Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear App Picture
Sony MDR-1A App Picture

App Name  

N/A
No App

iOS  

N/A
No

Android  

N/A
No

macOS  

N/A
No

Windows  

N/A
No

Equalizer 
 

N/A
No

ANC Control 
 

N/A
No

Mic Control  

N/A
No

Room Effects 
 

N/A
No

Playback Control 
 

N/A
No

Button Mapping  

N/A
No

Surround Sound  

N/A

Surround Support 
 

No
Show text
Connectivity

Bluetooth 
 

0.0
0.0

Bluetooth Version 
 

N/A
No Bluetooth

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

N/A
No

NFC Pairing 
 

N/A
No

Line Of Sight Range 
 

N/A
N/A

PC Latency (SBC) 
 

N/A
N/A

PC Latency (aptX) 
 

N/A
N/A

PC Latency (aptX HD) 
 

N/A

PC Latency (aptX-LL) 
 

N/A
N/A

iOS Latency 
 

N/A

Android Latency 
 

N/A
Show text

Non-Bluetooth Wireless 
 

0.0
0.0

Non-BT Line Of Sight Range 
 

N/A
N/A

Non-BT Latency 
 

N/A
N/A

Wired 
 

9.5
9.5

Cable Picture  

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Cable Picture
Sony MDR-1A Cable Picture

Analog Audio 
 

Yes
Yes

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Detachable  

Yes
Yes

Length  

4.49 ft
4 ft

Connection  

1/8" TRRS
1/8" TRRS

Wired Latency 
 

0 ms

Analog/USB Audio Latency 
 

0 ms
Show text

PC / PS4 Compatibility 
 

PC/PS4 Analog 
 

Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone

PC/PS4 Wired USB 
 

No
No

PC/PS4 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Xbox One Compatibility 
 

Xbox One Analog 
 

Audio Only
Audio + Microphone

Xbox One Wired USB 
 

No
No

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Base/Dock 
 

0.0
0.0

Type 
 

N/A
No Base/Dock

USB Input 
 

N/A
No

Line In 
 

N/A
No

Line Out 
 

N/A
No

Optical Input 
 

N/A
No

RCA Input 
 

N/A
No

Dock Charging 
 

N/A
No

Power Supply 
 

N/A
No Base/Dock
Show text

Check Price

Android, Black
Momentum 2.0
Searching
Finding store
Android, Ivory
Momentum 2.0
Searching
Finding store
iOS, Black
Momentum 2.0
Searching
Finding store
 
iOS, Brown
Momentum 2.0
Searching
Finding store
 
iOS, Ivory
Momentum 2.0
Searching
Finding store
 

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear

Sony MDR-1A

Comments

  1. Comparison

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear vs Sony MDR-1A: Main Discussion

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