Sennheiser AMBEO Smart Review: The Funnest Earphones IIve ever used
Published 25/07/18
This device was provided by Sennheiser for review.
It's 2018 and the 3.5mm headphone jack is enduring a slow death, kickstarted by Apple's controversial decision to remove the port from its iPhone 7 last year. Even Android manufacturers such as Google and Huawei have waved goodbye to the ancient port. But Bluetooth earphones aren't for everyone, sound quality suffers and your device's battery takes a hit. Thankfully, manufacturers such as Sennheiser are providing alternatives for iPhone users that do not wish to embrace Bluetooth just yet. Sennheiser's AMBEO Smart Headset makes use of the iPhone's Lightning connector, the same one we use to charge the device, to deliver audio to your ears.
However, it doesn't end there, because this headset is very unique. The headset boasts the ability to record "3D" audio by making clever use of omnidirectional microphones. When I first played back this "3D" audio, I was blown away by its ability to record sound in the same way that our ears do. Sennheiser has clearly flexed its innovative muscles here, and I see this binaural audio becoming incredibly useful for augmented and virtual reality applications which require situational awareness for a good experience.
However, it doesn't end there, because this headset is very unique. The headset boasts the ability to record "3D" audio by making clever use of omnidirectional microphones. When I first played back this "3D" audio, I was blown away by its ability to record sound in the same way that our ears do. Sennheiser has clearly flexed its innovative muscles here, and I see this binaural audio becoming incredibly useful for augmented and virtual reality applications which require situational awareness for a good experience.
Design: Quality meets comfort
The AMBEO Smart's use of an ear-hook design made me a little bit worried upon first look, from past experience, some of these ear-hook designs can be cumbersome to use on a daily basis. That wasn't the case here, this headset is pretty simple to mount on your ear, and to remove. The key advantage that the ear-hook design provides is improved steadiness and stability in your ear. This is especially great for those who use this while exercising, they probably won't fall out. The design also minimises the horrible noise produced when earphones come into contact with your clothing.
As I mentioned before, this headset connects to the Lightning port of iPhones and iPads, sorry Android fans. For many, including myself, this is a huge drawback. Thankfully, it looks like Sennheiser will be launching a USB-C variant for us Android users later this year. A large control unit occupies the splitting point of the two wires. In my opinion, this unit should be smaller. It does feature buttons such as volume and playback control, a button for active noise cancellation and an LED indicator. The headset is entirely white, matching Apple's signature design, and plastic. Don't let that fool you, this is a well-built headset that should withstand the test of time with ease. But for a headset that costs over €200, I would have liked to see some fabric or something like that.
Sennheiser bundles a nice travel pouch for the headset and a set of spare rubber earbuds. Those earbuds are comfortable, just don't expect to listen to music for hours on end with them, your ears will ache after a while. Of course, the unique selling point of this headset is the ability to record "3D" audio. Each earphone features an omnidirectional microphone beneath a metal grille, which acts a deterrent to wind. These omnidirectional microphones essentially mimic the operation of ears, processing sound from our environment based open the direction it was produced and its intensity.
The "3D" audio can then be experienced using any pair of earphones, not just the AMBEO Smart. The wizardry doesn't end there, Sennheiser has included active noise cancellation and transparent hearing. For anyone that has used noise cancellation on larger headphones, you already know how transformative it is to the audio experience. It's impressive that Sennheiser has managed to achieve noise cancellation on such a small headset. This combination of noise cancellation and transparent hearing allows the headset to deliver situational awareness. At its most basic level, it allows voices from the outside world to pass through the headset and into years if you desire.
As I mentioned before, this headset connects to the Lightning port of iPhones and iPads, sorry Android fans. For many, including myself, this is a huge drawback. Thankfully, it looks like Sennheiser will be launching a USB-C variant for us Android users later this year. A large control unit occupies the splitting point of the two wires. In my opinion, this unit should be smaller. It does feature buttons such as volume and playback control, a button for active noise cancellation and an LED indicator. The headset is entirely white, matching Apple's signature design, and plastic. Don't let that fool you, this is a well-built headset that should withstand the test of time with ease. But for a headset that costs over €200, I would have liked to see some fabric or something like that.
Sennheiser bundles a nice travel pouch for the headset and a set of spare rubber earbuds. Those earbuds are comfortable, just don't expect to listen to music for hours on end with them, your ears will ache after a while. Of course, the unique selling point of this headset is the ability to record "3D" audio. Each earphone features an omnidirectional microphone beneath a metal grille, which acts a deterrent to wind. These omnidirectional microphones essentially mimic the operation of ears, processing sound from our environment based open the direction it was produced and its intensity.
The "3D" audio can then be experienced using any pair of earphones, not just the AMBEO Smart. The wizardry doesn't end there, Sennheiser has included active noise cancellation and transparent hearing. For anyone that has used noise cancellation on larger headphones, you already know how transformative it is to the audio experience. It's impressive that Sennheiser has managed to achieve noise cancellation on such a small headset. This combination of noise cancellation and transparent hearing allows the headset to deliver situational awareness. At its most basic level, it allows voices from the outside world to pass through the headset and into years if you desire.
Audio Performance: Breaking new Ground
First of all, the situational awareness feature with this headset works, better than I expected. When set to maximise transparent hearing, the headset amplifies voices while muting background noises. It's an odd sensation that made me feel like I had some form of sonic hearing. Using the active noise cancellation was brilliant, and it worked almost as well as it did with larger headphones, that's a huge achievement for such a small headset.
Now on to the feature that you want to know about most, the 3D recording. It's amazing, Sennheiser has really got something good with this. The sheer ability of the headset to mimic sounds in the same way that our ears detect is so refreshing, coming from the microphones on our phones. It's like those 360-degree cameras that Samsung has been pushing, but with audio. Do you ever remember being blown away by the surround sound in cinemas, this amplifies that enjoyment to another level. The accuracy of the recording blew me away, I could hear the exact location of people talking, cars passing by, and birds signing in the trees.
Launch the camera app on your iPhone and begin shooting video while the headset is connected to record the "3D" audio, a red light will illuminate on the control unit. The same applies when using the Voice Memo app. Sennheiser has designed an app for this headset, and it will please those who love to get nitty gritty with their audio playback. The app allows you to tweak settings for features such as noise cancellation and the situational awareness.
The audio produced by this headset, whether you are enjoying a Spotify playlist or listening to your favourite podcast, is very good. To my ear, and with Spotify's streaming quality set to "extreme quality", the headset sounded great with all genres. There is good separation of instruments in songs and a good balance of bass and trebles. Don't choose this headset if you're someone who loves a lot of bass with low trebles. For making calls, the headset performed as one would expect, nothing abnormal to report here. In short, I think there will be very few people who will be disappointed by the audio produced by this headset.
Now on to the feature that you want to know about most, the 3D recording. It's amazing, Sennheiser has really got something good with this. The sheer ability of the headset to mimic sounds in the same way that our ears detect is so refreshing, coming from the microphones on our phones. It's like those 360-degree cameras that Samsung has been pushing, but with audio. Do you ever remember being blown away by the surround sound in cinemas, this amplifies that enjoyment to another level. The accuracy of the recording blew me away, I could hear the exact location of people talking, cars passing by, and birds signing in the trees.
Launch the camera app on your iPhone and begin shooting video while the headset is connected to record the "3D" audio, a red light will illuminate on the control unit. The same applies when using the Voice Memo app. Sennheiser has designed an app for this headset, and it will please those who love to get nitty gritty with their audio playback. The app allows you to tweak settings for features such as noise cancellation and the situational awareness.
The audio produced by this headset, whether you are enjoying a Spotify playlist or listening to your favourite podcast, is very good. To my ear, and with Spotify's streaming quality set to "extreme quality", the headset sounded great with all genres. There is good separation of instruments in songs and a good balance of bass and trebles. Don't choose this headset if you're someone who loves a lot of bass with low trebles. For making calls, the headset performed as one would expect, nothing abnormal to report here. In short, I think there will be very few people who will be disappointed by the audio produced by this headset.
Verdict: An Excellent Headset
The Sennheiser AMBEO Smart is an excellent headset in almost every measurable way. They work as advertised and the "3D" audio recording feature is truly innovative, I hope the feature appears in more products in the future. That same hope extends to the superb noise cancellation, which is phenomenal for a headset of this size, and the transparent hearing which is such a useful feature that foregoes the need to remove the headset when we need to connect to the outside world.
Coming in at over €200, this is an expensive headset. Furthermore, the fact that the headset is limited to iPhone owners means the potential market for buyers will be relatively small until a USB-C variant arrives. Whether the unique features justify the price will depend on your particular usage. If you're someone who likes to record a lot of video with your iPhone or is willing to pay for noise cancellation on a headset of this size, you won't be disappointed. I would have liked to see a more exciting design. At the end of the day, even with all the brilliant features, this is still a headset, and the audio produced is outright super.
Coming in at over €200, this is an expensive headset. Furthermore, the fact that the headset is limited to iPhone owners means the potential market for buyers will be relatively small until a USB-C variant arrives. Whether the unique features justify the price will depend on your particular usage. If you're someone who likes to record a lot of video with your iPhone or is willing to pay for noise cancellation on a headset of this size, you won't be disappointed. I would have liked to see a more exciting design. At the end of the day, even with all the brilliant features, this is still a headset, and the audio produced is outright super.
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