Sennheiser RS 130 Wireless Surround Sound Headphones
by Sennheiser
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Our Price: $205.00 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Sennheiser RS 130 Wireless Surround Sound Headphones
Customer Review: Best wireless heaphones I have found
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought these headphones primarily to watch TV. I am not an audiophile but I don't have a tin ear and enjoy good quality sound. I think these headphones great. I have tried the RS110 and I think the RS130 is more comfortable because they are circum-aural (sit over the ear) rather than supra-aural (sit on the ear.) I have worn them for several hours and have not found them to be hot to wear. The main difference between the RS130 and the RS120 is that the RS120 is supra-aural and does not have auto tuning or the SRS surround mode like the RS130. The RS120 is significantly cheaper but I like the auto tuning (no dial to accidentally bump and over the ear comfort. The charging stand is a very slick design. Never a problem with making proper contact. I use these several times a week for a couple of hours (after the kids are asleep) and I never have a problem with not having a charge.
Like the RS110 and RS120, the RS130 is an "open" headphone design meaning that there is no isolation from outside sound. You can hear people talking and other ambient noise while wearing them. Also, people sitting next to you will also be able to hear some sound from your headphones. If you want sound isolation you will need to get the RS140.
A few reviews have complained that the auto level adjustment caused the volume to go up and down a lot. I have not experienced this and I have tried to listen to sources that had both low and high volume segments.
As others have mentioned the controls are on the back of the headphone enclosure and if you lay against something you can bump the controls. I was able to tilt the headphone forward a bit and now that doesn't bother me.
A few have complained about the SRS mode not sounding good but I like it. Many times I thought I was hearing things from the other room but they were just background sounds from the soundtrack. I don't find it tinny or full of echoes.
As with any wireless system it is possible to experience dropouts in certain positions, even when close to the transmitter. I think the receiver has a single antenna and so the dropouts at close range seem to be a multipath issue. They only happen for me at specific locations and a slight change clears them up. I have also noticed that there is much less background hiss as long as I keep the volume from the source high enough. It is better to have the volume up on the TV/stereo output and the headphone volume low.
I have seen the prices on these headphone fluctuate between $100 and $160 (even from different vendors on Amazon) so it pays to shop around.
Overall I think these are a solid product and I am really happy with them.
Customer Review: I'm happy with the RS 130
Summary: 4 Stars
PROS:
-VERY comfortable. My experience with other headphones is somewhat limited, but I did purchase the Sennheiser HD-280P a few months ago and found it far less comfortable than the RS-130's. I've worn these for 5-6 hours straight and they were still feeling comfortable.
-Sound seems great. I'm no audiophile, but these sound noticeably better than cheaper ~$30 'phones I've used before. They're about on the level of the HD280P's I've used before. As with all headphones, the sound quality is affected by the source and equalizer settings so to be honest it is hard for me to compare.
-Wireless Range. I'm able to walk around my apartment and still get reception, although you will get some hisses and quiet pops if you are moving around.
-Open ears are not too loud to outsiders. I was worried when ordering these that the "open" style would be too loud to others around me. This is luckily not the case. At a moderate volume (to the wearer), people in the same room ~5 foot away from you wont hear anything. At a loud volume (to the wearer), other people will hear a little bit, but the sound definitely won't travel out of the room. I purchased these to use when I couldn't use my speakers and they fill this role nicely.
CONS:
-Volume control is too easy to hit accidentally. It is located on the back of the right ear piece in the form of an easily moved dial. I've already accidentally brushed it and turned the sound down, and accidentally brushed it up against other things when leaning my head back.
-Bass is not all that impressive, but is adequate.
-Range is more like 75-100 feet (but it does go through concrete, underground, etc).
-Base station really needs to be up high (on a high shelf or wall mounted at about 6 or 7 feet) to get the best results. I have it sitting about a foot below eye level when sitting and get "pops" that are only noticeable during low volume, but once you hear them they'll bug you. When I move the base station above my head these disappear.
-Headphones beep and then power off if there is no sound input for a set amount of time...which is set far to short. I'd guess about 2-3 minutes. I'd rather just manually turn them off (which you can do if you want, but still--the beeps are annoying)
Overall:
I'm happy with the performance and I believe I will be keeping them. The RS-130's are great for working late at night when you want some quality sound but don't want to bother other people in the next room. The wireless is great and, though you may hear some hisses and pops if moving around a lot, it is still comparable to the wired headphones like the Senn 280P's.
Customer Review: Excellent Headphone Set
Summary: 5 Stars
Before telling you the good points, let me express one thing to watch. When I first connected the base unit, after charging for 24 hours, I had a lot of static on every channel. It was so bad I could not use them. I went to move the base, and pulled the cord loose from the wall. After reattaching the cord to the outlet, I checked the cord at the base, and discovered it was only partially plugged in. When I pushed it in all the way, the static went away. It takes a little force to get the power connection all the way into the plug on the base unit, but if you don't plug it in all the way, you will have an unshielded area that will cause static.
So, for the Review:
Use: I use these on my home theater system, so I can watch a different channel in the living room, while my wife watches TV, with speakers, in the den. As she watches TV programs, and I am usually watching a movie with lots of guns, explosions, and other noise, this works well. I don't believe that these were designed with music in mind.
Range: Anywhere in my 2500 square foot house, regardless of appliances or electronics.
Interference: Absolutely none. My 802.11b/g/n wireless network is on frequencies so much higher that it does not interfere. The same applies to my new cordless phone. The headphones operate in a much lower frequency range than most common household wireless devices.
System Volume: I have the headphone base connected to the headphone jack on a Sony Dream System Surround Sound, and I set the Surround Sound volume to 30, and use the volume control in the headset to raise and lower. Works perfectly.
Surround Sound: Adds quality to the sound, though with most TV programs it does not matter. Will help some with DVD's.
Use Time: With a 22 hour use time, I never have them go dead. After using for several hours over several days, I just hang them on the magnitized holder to charge, and they are ready when I want them.
Outside Sounds: Mostly when I am listening to movies I can hear enough outside sounds to know if the dog is barking or if my wife comes up and say something to me. She will have to speak a little louder as I like the volume high for action movies, etc.
Sound Escape: Not enough sound can be heard by others from the headsets to matter.
The only down side to this set is that my neighbors probably think I am crazy, because they can hear me sitting in a quite house, laughing my head off...they can't hear Jeff Dunham when he is on my headset!
Customer Review: Great entry level wireless headset
Summary: 5 Stars
I've been looking for a wireless headset for the last few months in preparation for having our first baby. I was looking for something I could use to watch TV or listen to music while still being able to move around and not make too much noise. I read a CNET review which had the RS130s on a list of top headphones. It seems that these headphones fluctuate in price quite a bit from retailer to retailer and I wasn't satisfied by the $180 charged on amazon so I kept looking. Eventually, I recently managed to purchase these headphones online for $140Cdn from a local computer store so I ordered them and had them shipped. All I can say is that the design and sound of these headphones at that price point is fantastic. The headphones are lightweight and very comfortable and sound great. I wouldn't call myself an audiophile yet but the headphones provide ample bass and have great sound. They come with NiMH rechargeable batteries but they are not proprietary so you can use any NiMH batteries and the unit will recharge them. It also means that when the batteries die out, you can easily replace them. I've found too many rechargeable devices these days require proprietary batteries which are costly or non existent. To charge them, you simply have to hang them on the transmitter unit. The unit has an easily accessible volume dial. I saw other reviews which said that it was too close to the Tune button but I haven't had any problems with that. They are open design headphones which means that sound can leak out and leak in but that's perfect for me so that I can hear the baby cry and tend to her. Sennheiser also makes the RS140 which is a closed design.
One con is that occasionally I get static but it's only from time to time and doesn't bother me too much. When I'm sitting still watching a movie or listening to music I usually don't hear the static, it's only when I'm moving things or myself around. The second con is that the ear pieces collect dust. It's not that bad yet, but I'll probably try using something like painters tape to remove the dust.
Also, one of the other complaints I saw was the annoying beeping when there's no source but you can disable that by holding the tune button for at least 5 seconds while the headset it on.
I also bought a second set so that my wife and I can watch movies together and they can both receive signals from the same transmitter. The headset also has a SRS surround option but I usually have it turned off.
Customer Review: Sennheiser RS 130 best but not perfect
Summary: 4 Stars
i'm no expert in audio equipment. just layman. but i did buy the most expensive Sony wireless headphones & neither the high price nor the calibre of the company turned out to equate quality. it never really worked. normally one can't jump to conclusions & give up on an entire category or industry with a single lousy experience, but hey, Sony?! how could one not be discouraged after using the supposedly ultimate company?!
2 years later, now, i bought my 2nd wireless headphones: Sennheiser RS 130. they are definitely much better. but there's still a little hissing noise. it's an excuse by manufacturers, that that would never disappear fully, as nowadays one has too many wireless products in the house i.e. cell phone, wireless internet router, wireless phones, wireless this or that, so that most have a chance of interfering with each other due to similar or equal frequencies. well, enough b.s. from all manufacturers - the international consortiums should gather together and finally stop using clients to sort their mess out, they should all decide who gets what frequency range for each category of product.
the human race can fly to planet mars, fight wars with just buttons or no physical contact, photograph a license plate # from outer space, but we're supposed to believe there's no way to product a functional wireless headset?! shame on our human race brains!
Sennheiser is the best there is currently, but it's still not good enough. if you call supposedly the ultimate expert in audio, Bose, they tell you they still do not have a wireless set, as the technology is still not up there, good enough, to have hissing-free sound etc.
no perfect headphones exist yet, not even a near-perfect one, since perfection doesn't exist anywhere.
sony for all its power & experience, should be ashamed to not only expose the public to mediocrity but charge for it on top of it like no one else. actually, all such firms should be punished by law. amazing how the FDA & other such governmental organizations pretend to defend the good of the people, when they accept too much mediocrity. it's even worse for the pharma industry, as they even accept deadly medicine to enter the public realm, though that's another story. the point is, we people, have to inform ourselves on products.
do i recommend this headphone? yes, just because it's the best out there, but not exactly out there ; )