Sony MDR-1A vs Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear: Which Headphones Are Better?

Tested using Methodology v1.4

Updated Aug 07, 2021 12:25 AM

See Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Review

Sennheiser Momentum 2.0/HD1 Over-Ear Picture

TypeOver-ear

EnclosureClosed-Back

Noise CancellingNo

WirelessNo

TransducerDynamic

MicYes

TypeOver-ear

EnclosureClosed-Back

Noise CancellingNo

WirelessNo

TransducerDynamic

MicYes

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.

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)

Review

See Sony MDR-1A Review

Check Price

Android, Black

Momentum 2.0

Black

MDR-1A

Android, Ivory

Momentum 2.0

Silver

MDR-1A

iOS, Black

Momentum 2.0

iOS, Brown

Momentum 2.0

iOS, Ivory

Momentum 2.0

Notice: Two or more of the products being compared have been tested with different test methodologies. Some of the results aren't directly comparable. Learn how our test benches and scoring system work, and read more about the latest changes to our headphones test methodology.

Threshold

0.10

Mixed Usage

6.1

5.8

Comfort

7.0

8.0

Full Comparison

Mixed Usage

6.1

5.8

Neutral Sound

6.9

7.5

Commute/Travel

6.0

5.1

Sports/Fitness

6.1

5.6

Office

6.1

5.6

Wireless Gaming

5.2

Wired Gaming

6.9

7.2

Phone Calls

6.2

6.3

Design

Style

Design Picture 2

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Type

Over-ear

Enclosure

Closed-Back

Wireless

Transducer

Dynamic

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Comfort

7.0

8.0

Comfort Picture

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Weight

0.6 lbs

0.49 lbs

Clamping Force

0.7 lbs

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Controls

7.2

4.9

Controls Picture

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OS Compatibility

iOS

Not OS specific

Ease Of Use

Okay

Decent

Feedback

Good

Okay

Call/Music Control

Yes

Volume Control

Yes

Microphone Control

Channel Mixing

N/A

Noise Cancelling Control

N/A

Talk-Through

N/A

Additional Controls

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Breathability

6.5

6.6

Breathability After Picture

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Avg.Temp.Difference

5.7 °C

5.5 °C

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Portability

6.1

6.0

Portability Picture

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L

4.72"

7.9"

W

6.5"

7.3"

H

2.95"

1.8"

Volume

90.68 in³

104 in³

Transmitter Required

N/A

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Case

7.0

6.5

Case Picture

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Type

Soft case

Pouch

L

6.5"

N/A

W

7.68"

N/A

H

2.36"

N/A

Volume

117.8 in³

N/A

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Build Quality

8.0

7.5

Build Quality Picture

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Stability

6.5

6.0

Stability Picture

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Headshots 1

Angled Picture

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Side Picture

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Headshots 2

Front Picture

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Rear Picture

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Top

Top Picture

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In The Box

In The Box Picture

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Sound

Sound Profile

Frequency Response

Frequency Response

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

Consistency R

Avg. Std. Deviation

0.69 dB

0.44 dB

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Raw Frequency Response

Bass Accuracy

8.0

7.2

Bass

Bass

Std. Err.

2.76 dB

3.87 dB

Low-Frequency Extension

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

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Mid Accuracy

8.5

8.6

Mid

Mid

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

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Treble Accuracy

5.3

7.6

Treble

Treble

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

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Peaks/Dips

7.0

7.4

Peaks/Dips Graph

Peaks/Dips Graph

Peaks

1.85 dB

1.74 dB

Dips

1.87 dB

1.15 dB

Imaging

8.3

7.8

Group Delay

Phase Response

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

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Passive Soundstage

5.0

5.7

PRTF

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

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Virtual Soundstage

0.0

Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling

Speaker Modeling

Room Ambience

Head Tracking

Virtual Surround

No App

Weighted Harmonic Distortion

7.8

8.2

Weighted Harmonic Distortion

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

Isolation Audio

Overall Attenuation

-12.35 dB

-12.3 dB

Noise Cancelling

Bass

0.31 dB

0.09 dB

Mid

-9.28 dB

-7.47 dB

Treble

-28.86 dB

-30.01 dB

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Leakage

7.6

6.7

Leakage

Leakage Audio

Overall Leakage @ 1ft

36.25 dB

41.13 dB

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Microphone

Microphone Style

Integrated

In-Line

Yes

Boom

Detachable Boom

N/A

Mic

Yes

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Recording Quality

7.1

6.9

Microphone Frequency Response

Recorded Speech

LFE

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

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Noise Handling

5.7

6.5

SpNR

Speech + Pink Noise

Speech + Subway Noise

SpNR

8.22 dB

17.13 dB

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Active Features

Battery

0.0

Battery Type

N/A

No Battery

Continuous Battery Life

N/A

Additional Charges

N/A

Total Battery Life

N/A

Charge Time

N/A

Power-Saving Feature

N/A

Audio While Charging

N/A

Passive Playback

N/A

Passive Headphone

Charging Port

N/A

None

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App Support

0.0

App Picture

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App Name

N/A

No App

iOS

N/A

Android

N/A

macOS

N/A

Windows

N/A

Equalizer

N/A

ANC Control

N/A

Mic Control

N/A

Room Effects

N/A

Playback Control

N/A

Button Mapping

N/A

Surround Sound

N/A

Surround Support

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Connectivity

Bluetooth

0.0

Bluetooth Version

N/A

No Bluetooth

Multi-Device Pairing

N/A

NFC Pairing

N/A

Line Of Sight Range

N/A

PC Latency (SBC)

N/A

PC Latency (aptX)

N/A

PC Latency (aptX HD)

N/A

PC Latency (aptX-LL)

N/A

iOS Latency

N/A

Android Latency

N/A

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Non-Bluetooth Wireless

0.0

Non-BT Line Of Sight Range

N/A

Non-BT Latency

N/A

Wired

9.5

Cable Picture

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Analog Audio

Yes

USB Audio

Detachable

Yes

Length

4.49 ft

4 ft

Connection

1/8" TRRS

Wired Latency

0 ms

Analog/USB Audio Latency

0 ms

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PC / PS4 Compatibility

PC/PS4 Analog

Audio + Microphone

PC/PS4 Wired USB

PC/PS4 Non-BT Wireless

Xbox One Compatibility

Xbox One Analog

Audio Only

Audio + Microphone

Xbox One Wired USB

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless

Base/Dock

0.0

Type

N/A

No Base/Dock

USB Input

N/A

Line In

N/A

Line Out

N/A

Optical Input

N/A

RCA Input

N/A

Dock Charging

N/A

Power Supply

N/A

No Base/Dock

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Check Price

Android, Black

Momentum 2.0

Black

MDR-1A

Android, Ivory

Momentum 2.0

Silver

MDR-1A

iOS, Black

Momentum 2.0

iOS, Brown

Momentum 2.0

iOS, Ivory

Momentum 2.0