Sennheiser’s Momentum 5 Look Like Tough Competition for Sony’s WH-1000XM6

Sony’s WH-1000XM6 has been stealing the wireless headphones limelight for all of 2025, but Sennheiser may finally have its own answer. The company’s new Momentum 5 is the first update to its Momentum 4 after four years, and they look like worthy competition to Sony on paper. While Sennheiser has retained the 42mm drivers of the last generation, the Momentum 5 are certified for hi-res audio and come with support for lossless audio streaming through the AptX codec, meaning they deliver “CD quality” sound at 16-bit, 44.1kHz. Only devices with a Qualcomm processor and support for Snapdragon Sound can take advantage of that lossless streaming through AptX, however. The Momentum 5 also come with Dolby Atmos for head-tracking spatial audio, which isn’t my favorite feature in the world on any pair of wireless headphones, but can be fun if you’re watching a movie or something else that isn’t music. One area that the Momentum 5 are pushing the boundary over Sony’s excellent WH-1000XM6 is battery life. Sennheiser’s new wireless headphones get 57 hours of battery life when active noise cancellation (ANC) is on, compared to the WH-1000XM6, which get just 30 hours when ANC is enabled. Listening