Remember when Sennheisers were homely-looking headphones that sounded amazing? Yeah, those days are gone. These days, you can proudly wear a pair around your neck and not think twice, especially when it comes to their portable headphones. That’s exactly the case with the Sennheiser PXC 550 Wireless.
Designed for use during travel, it’s a pair of around-the-ear cans that look stylish enough to blend in, whether you’re flying in casual threads or your nicest business suit. It’s not quite audiophile-grade like some of the outfit’s four-figure audio gear, although it should still deliver on the audio quality, knowing the outfit’s penchant for great-sounding gear.
Sennheiser describes the PXC 550 Wireless’ sound as exhibiting “exceptional clarity, balance, and dynamics.” We’ll just take that to mean that the darn thing sounds great, with active noise cancellation quieting even the noisiest environments. Battery life is rated at a whopping 30 hours, so this thing can keep you company through intercontinental trips on a single charge. Like other travel headphones, it folds flat via an integrated collapsible frame, making it easy to tuck away in the included travel case.
Features include a touchpad on the right ear cup for playback control, automated power switching (it turns off when you swivel the ear cups to conserve battery), generous padding for comfortable wear, and a triple-mic array for crystal-clear calls. It comes with an accompanying mobile player app that you can also use to personalize the headphone’s sound profile.
Available now, the Sennheiser PXC 550 is priced at $399.95.