Sennheiser Accentum Plus review: Major positives

The Sennheiser Accentum Plus were announced at CES 2024 as an unexpected upgrade to the Sennheiser Accentum, which received a five-star rating and our Recommended badge a few months ago.

Improvements are plentiful, with features like adaptive noise cancellation, touch controls and auto-pausing bolstering what was already a very capable package. These additions mean you’ll be paying more for the Plus than their predecessor, but as our new favourite mid-range over-ear headphones, they’re well worth the extra outlay.

Sennheiser Accentum Plus review: What do you get for the money?

The Accentum Plus have a list price of £200 and sit between the Momentum 4 Wireless (£270) and the Accentum (£160) in Sennheiser’s wireless headphones lineup.

They sport a very similar design to the Accentum, use the same 37mm drivers and are available in the same two colourways: black and white. Despite looking near-identical to their stablemates, they’re 5g heavier at 227g, though still extremely lightweight.

Like their cheaper siblings, the Accentum Plus operate wirelessly over Bluetooth 5.2 and support multipoint pairing with two devices. Codec compatibility has been extended, however, and now includes aptX Adaptive in addition to SBC, AAC, aptX and aptX HD. Comprehensive codec support is complemented by the addition of a 3.5mm port, enabling users to enjoy audio from a range of sources that don’t support Bluetooth.

Elsewhere, physical controls are supplemented by touch controls on the outer surfaces of the oval earcups and hybrid active noise cancellation has been switched out for hybrid adaptive noise cancellation, which adjusts attenuation automatically based on the level of external noise.

Battery life remains unchanged at an impressive 50 hours (with ANC on and at 50% volume), while a full charge of the battery takes roughly three and a half hours. If you’re in a pinch, 10 minutes on charge using the included USB-C cable will net you five hours of audio playback. Included in the box with the headphones and charging cable are a 2.5mm to 3.5mm audio cable and a soft-shell carrying case.

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Sennheiser Accentum Plus review: What do we like?

The Accentum Plus exhibit the level of craftsmanship I’ve come to expect from Sennheiser. The stylish headband elongates smoothly, while the angled yokes allow for easy, 180-degree rotation and suitable swivel. The earcups don’t fold inwards but the soft-shell case – not available with the regular Accentum – makes them easy enough to transport and keeps them protected while in transit.

The padding on the inside of the earcups and underside of the headband is relatively thin but very supple and this, combined with the lightweight frame, ensures the Plus are supremely comfortable when worn for extended periods. A fairly strong clamping force keeps the headphones secure during movement and creates a cosy seal that aids noise cancellation.

The ANC effectively blocks out surrounding kerfuffle, making office conversations and street-level sounds like traffic, and even wind noise, far less intrusive. I could still hear conversations near me when I didn’t have music playing but everything else was significantly quieter with noise cancellation engaged. When I needed to chat, the transparency mode enhanced voices effectively, making communicating without removing the headphones easy.

The new touch controls work very nicely, simplifying the execution of ANC and playback commands, and are complemented by physical buttons for hailing your voice assistant, pairing over Bluetooth and powering the Plus on and off.

In terms of audio quality, the Accentum Plus are balanced and analytical. Caroline Polachek and Weyes Blood’s Butterfly Net showcased the whole frequency range well, with their quivering vocals sounding rich with true-to-life timbre, while elements of the staccato soundtrack were easily identifiable across the sound signature.

On bass-heavy tracks like TSVI’s Jinn, the Accentum Plus offered up sufficiently thumpy lows without compromising on colour in the mid-range. No section felt overblown and the imaging of various instrumental lines was precisely articulated – especially on tracks with intricate production like DJ Fucci’s club-ready MXN. The soundstage within which action takes place is spacious and song dynamics and left-right patterning were handled with poise across all codecs and connection types.

Handily, the Smart Control app tells you which Bluetooth codec you are using and also provides access to a five-band equaliser, seven presets and two “Special EQ preset” toggles to boost bass or enhance speech clarity. The settings didn’t always act as I expected, which I’ll discuss in more detail later, but at least they’re there to allow you to tweak how the Accentum Plus sound to a certain extent.

The Sound Zones feature is also available via the app and can be used to automatically switch noise cancellation and EQ settings when you move between locations you’ve registered via GPS. It worked well during testing and is joined in the app by a Sidetone option that lets you adjust how loudly you hear your own voice when on calls. Also tucked away in the app are toggles for wear detection, auto-power off and voice prompts/tones. All of this amounts to a level of customisation superior to the majority of the Plus’ rivals.

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Sennheiser Accentum Plus review: What could be better?

The Accentum Plus’ neutral presentation is great for critical listening but I found it a little uninspiring during periods when I required something energising. Some may find it lacks the excitement they demand right off the bat and those accustomed to booming bass or high-end sparkle may find themselves pining for greater expressiveness.

A little extra oomph on dance tracks wouldn’t go amiss then, but changing the default tuning isn’t particularly intuitive and there are some weird kinks with the equaliser controls. Bass Boost mode emphasises low frequencies but only by lowering the volume of all other frequencies. The same happens when you raise any of the five equaliser bands and this impacts the overall volume of what you’re listening to.

A workable arrangement can be achieved by structuring the equaliser bands across the whole 12dB range and then adjusting the volume as necessary. The process is fiddly but is unfortunately your best bet for creating an alternative tuning as the EQ presets aren’t that impactful. Fortunately, I was happy enough with the default sound signature but those who aren’t enamoured with it will find themselves fiddling with the banded equaliser for longer than they might like.

There are a few other minor niggles to report. The adaptive noise cancellation is accompanied by very faint white noise; it wasn’t egregious to me but may bother those who are sensitive to it. There’s no way to turn ANC off entirely either, if you want it disengaged, you’re forced to switch to the Transparency mode.

Finally, there’s room for improvement when it comes to microphone quality. It’s not bad – others could comprehend what I was saying when on calls and I was intelligible on recordings – but the Edifier WH950NB (£180) did a better job of articulating my voice crisply.

Sennheiser Accentum Plus review: Should you buy them?

Besides those small ills, there’s not that much to criticise the Sennheiser Accentum Plus about. Articulate sound and effective noise cancellation are backed up by strong battery life and a comfortable fit, while useful features like touch controls and Sound Zones round out a compelling mid-range package.

Their near-flat tuning and the difficulties altering it will give some people reason to pause – those wanting a more energetic sound should check out the LDAC-compatible Edifier WH950NB instead. But if you’re a fan of audio neutrality, you’ll love the Accentum Plus. They’re definitely worth paying the extra cash for ahead of the original Accentum (£160) and are the best over-ear wireless headphones we’ve tested in their price bracket to date.