SennheiserMomentum 3 Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones with Alexa, Auto On/Off, Smart Pause Functionality and Smart Control App, Black

The Sennheiser Momentum 3's are above average in most categories, and the best in one (my opinion).Noise canceling is pretty good, though nowhere near the Sony XM4, Bose NC 700 and AirPods Max. They also fall short of the B&W PX7's. However, for me, they do knock out enough of the noise that it is acceptable. It is not adjustable, but you can select a couple different noise canceling modes through the app.Comfort - The ear cups are leather and very comfortable. They do not heat up and I barely notice they are there. The headband, however, is noticeable to me. Not painfully so, but I do have to adjust every so often.Controls - The buttons work pretty well. I wish the center media button was a little more pronounced as I sometimes hit the volume up or down buttons when I mean to do something else. The B&W PX7's and AirPods Max have the better pushbutton controls (love the Max crown), while the Sony X4 and Bose NC 700 use more of the touch controls (this can be good and bad).Transparency Mode - This works really well, though I wish it automatically reduced the audio volume slightly if you have it set to continue playing. You can also set it up in the app to mute the music when you put it into transparency mode, but for some reason it does not pause the music like the MTW2 earbuds do. So you put it into transparency mode, have a conversation, come back to the music and a new song may be playing. Not a big deal but a little annoying. AirPods Max still takes the cake for transparency mode. Sony XM4 ambient mode works well, but it always seems to lose my setting every so often and I have to go into the app and adjust. The Bose NC 700 is really nice with adjustable noise canceling as well as going all the way to transparency mode.Battery - Battery life is not great, but sufficient for my use. I feel like battery life should be at least 20 hours these days, with ANC on. Bose NC 700 and AirPods Max hit it right on. Sony and B&W PX7 blow past it. My use with these headphones tends to be a few hours at a time and mostly in my house, so it is not an issue. However, I certainly hope that the Momentum 4's address this issue whenever they come out.Connections - Pairing between two devices is easy, reliable and it will switch between the sources very quickly.App - The app is just ok. It always seems to take a couple tries to connect when I open it. Sony is more reliable. Bose is even more reliable and faster. I do like the EQ and being able to tweak the sound, though I do tend to listen in Neutral. You can also change noise canceling levels between Max, Anti-Wind and Anti-Pressure. My biggest complaint about this is that I have to go into the app to do it. You can turn off the noise canceling by pushing a button on the headphones, but you cannot switch between modes without opening the app.Call quality - I am told that call quality is pretty good. People can understand me clearly and I can hear them very well. Better than the Sony XM4. Much better than the B&W PX7. Not as good as the Bose NC 700 or the AirPods Max (and Airpods Pro for that matter)As I said, the Momentum 3's do all of the above very well, but there is usually one other headset that can do it better (though not always the same one). What does it do best? Sound. These things sound awesome! I know this is very subjective, but to me, the sound stage is wide, I can hear everything crisply and clearly, and the bass is noticeable but not overwhelming. I am not an audiophile, but I do really enjoy these.

After a bunch of hours of research, I decided to drop the big bucks on the Momentum 3's (M3W) and was left tremendously impressed. Key points as to what I was looking forA: Good seal for travel when I'm on the trainB: Best audio quality possible within a 400$ BudgetC: Minimum of 15 hours battery life. The 7 hours I got used to from my backbeat 3100's (Good audio quality but trash connectivity)D: Does not look objectively uglyE: Ideally metal construction to last longer (Plastic ATH M50's snapped for no reason after 5 years)Optional: Connection to more than 1 DeviceThe M3W's manage to have a super strong band and metal arms, great seal, excellent quality real leather ear cups, ability to connect to multiple devices, app with an equalizer so I can not get slapped by the heavy bass , best sound compared to the alternatives which keeps up with my DT 880 Premium's (In a quiet room cause these are open back) and to top it all off is an average 20 hour battery life and they look fantastic in person. The main reason I chose the M3W's over the Alts is because the alts had a SOLID advantage in noise canceling (Data center and network engineers, keep your eyes on those WH-1000XM3's) but were lost in the sound quality category which was paramount for me since ANC was not a huge deal for my needs. I still came out very happy on the other end because the ANC on these are still VERY solid and I am now able to game in the living room with the AC full blast and be able to hear everything perfectly. Apparently there were issues with software but with the latest firmware available, I had almost zero issues. I'd give these bad boys a 9/10 and a super solid recommendation.NOTE: If you are bass sensitive like me, be ready to lower the bass on these and have an equalization app on windows at the ready but this is more a point of preference and not a determent.Alternative options:Sony WH-1000XM3's - Killer ANC, great sound, full plastic frame which is a negative to me after the arm of my ATH M50's snapped after 5 years. Now I only buy metal framed.Bose QuietComfort 35 II/QC35's - Also a fantastic option but plastic and not a looker in my opinion.Amiron Wireless Copper's - The build quality and alcantara fabric used in the construction are utterly breath taking but beyerdynamic (My fav company after Audio Technica's build quality failed me) messed up one VERY important element. The seal is garbage and severely impacts the sound quality to the point where 1 song and I had to throw them in the box and return em. Maybe next time.