Sennheiser RS 140 Wireless HiFi Headphone with Dynamic Compression System
by Sennheiser
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List Price: Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Sennheiser RS 140 Wireless HiFi Headphone with Dynamic Compression System
Customer Review: Very good so far
Summary: 5 Stars
My first experience with wireless headphones were with the Recoton 900mhz about 10 years ago. Used them mostly while exercising so every so often the ear cups would start to disintegrate. No problem, just called the company and they sent out new ones competely free. The phones finally broke a few months ago, tried to replace with same ones but it appears Recoton doesnt make them anymore.
So I started my search for a replacement. After reading countless reviews on muliple headphones, I narrowed my search down to the Sennheiser RS140. I noticed they went on sale for about 60 dollars less so I ordered from Amazon about a week before Christmas and got it the day after. It was not a gift so I didnt care when it arrived. Shipping box in perfect condition and the product box inside looked like it was right off the manufacturing line. Opened it up, read the directions first, then hooked it up. Takes 15-16 hours to charge the batteries prior to first use. Have them plugged into a Yamaha receiver, which my cable, dvd,cd player and radio hook into, put in a cd to test, made some minor adjustments and they sound pretty good. I would say the sound quality is twice as good as the Recotons. Nice stereo sound for wireless. There are two switches on the front of the base unit, one to change channels and the other one to turn the compression on or off. The headphones have the on/off switch on the left earpiece and volume control, push button tune and balance control on the right earpiece. I did not have to change the channel at all as i did not experience any static. I wanted to test the range so i walked around my small apartment with no static or change in sound quality. Outside now is a different story. I live in an old florida duplex where each wall is either poured concrete or sheetrock. After walking about 50 feet from the base unit it started breaking up. Changing the channels or pressing the tune button didnt make a difference. Watching a movie with special fx sounded great. Can hear the high highs and most of the low lows. Listening to music is a dream. The volume at first didnt seem like it got loud enough but after a couple of minutes at high volume, i have to turn them down a bit. I read some reviewers complain about the sound level and or quality being poor so they returned the units. It would appear those people did not read the instructions first, if they had they would have known about the compression switch. This switch affects the source signal strength and quality going to the headphones. I have listened to cd's and radio,watched tv and movies with these phones and I have not noticed a difference in sound quality so I don't understand why some would say these are no good for tv. However, I have not tried hooking them up directly to my tv. If I did, Im sure that is when I would need to use the compression switch. Although I did play around with the switch to see the difference. When I move the switch to the left, the sound level lowers a bit and sounds just a bit muffled, but when I turned the source volume up a bit, they sounded just fine. Moved it to the right and the sound level increases and needed to turn the source volume down a bit to get rid of any distortion. So read the instructions to get the most out of these good headphones. Anyway, they seem to be made with good quality material and seem rugged enough. I've worn them several hours at a time with no discomfort. Time will tell if they will last as long as Recotons. I did find out you have to buy replacement ear cushions which are $14 a pair including shipping.
After about two weeks of owning these, I love them so much I bought another pair. This time however, it was from Electronica Direct as Amazon raised the price back up to around $199.00. Price was a few dollars less then Amazons sale price but had to pay for shipping which ended up being a few dollars more than Amazons. Everything the same with this second pair except the base unit would turn on all by itself with no signal going to the unit. Followed the return instructions to the letter, I had to pay for return shipping, and they sent out another pair. This time they work great and almost two months later work just fine. This second pair is hooked up to my computer to listen to internet radio and the sound quality is just as good. Am pleased. Hope this helps.
Customer Review: Good transmission, weak bass.
Summary: 4 Stars
Setting Up
Setting up was a breeze. Plugged it in, and I used another pair of precharged 900mAh triple A batteries instead of the provided 600mAh GP batteries. I had all the switches/adapters/cables/whatnot set up earlier because I want to use it with 4 different sources(laptop, CD player, mp3 player, and one free slot for another future source(Ipod or whatever)).
Initial Sound
So I just plugged it into the AV switch, and plugged in the power, and it lives! I was initially quite dissapointed because these headphones sound extremely hollow, due to the horrendous lack of bass and low end compared to the PX100, HD437, HD212 and HD280 I've used. It also doesn't sound as warm and as musical as all the other Sennheiser phones I've used. The mid-high range frequencies were crystal clear at least.
Charging
I don't think I should even elaborate on charging, it's really that easy. Turn the headphones off and hang it up. Don't worry about overcharging, it won't.
Battery Life
I know for a fact that it takes time for the diaphragms to loosen up and provide the extra low end boom, so I ran some bass heavy music through it for 13 hours straight(yes it lasted that long, the batteries didn't even show any sign of fatigue! ). I placed it back on the charging cradle because I was going to bed, and it's been on again since I woke up this morning.
Wear In Time
I don't know if it's just me, or if it's really happening, but the low end seems to be kicking in more and more(it usually takes around 500 hours for the diaphragms to wear in and season, I've used it less than 20hours), and although it's nothing like my often used HD212 basswise, the sound is starting to grow on me.
Compression Feature
The compression feature is amazing. I use it when I'm watching movies on my laptop and it really boosts the vocal frequencies and evens out the rest. Speech becomes incredibly clear without having to crank up the volume. I'm still in awe with this feature.
Transmission
As always, do expect a bit of hisses and pops with wireless headphones, and I knew this the moment I clicked "Add To Cart". It's good though, the hiss becomes lost the moment the sound pours in and is barely audible in the silent parts of the song/movie. The range is pretty darn incredible. I can sit down anywhere in my whole house(upstairs/downstairs) without any interference and noise. Although when I walk/move too fast I can hear a bit of hisses and pops. I guess it's just the receiver adapting to the radio waves as it's position changes rapidly.
Comfort
It's fairly comfortable, it's circumaural so it covers the whole of my ears. As others have complained, it does get a bit humid around the ears inside, but it's fine if you're using it in an air conditioned room. I also wish it had a bit more contact pressure(I find it enhances bass ), but I understand that Sennheiser cannot please everyone, so I'm not complaining. I also like that these headphones are big and sit very comfortably over my head.
Wireless Ease
This is of course the main reason I bought this unit. I thought it'd be okay to sacrifice a little bit of sound for the convenience of being wire-free. I really hate wires because they get all over my neck and mess the place. So yeah, it's definitely worth it, for those who similarly hate being held by this "leash".
Overall
I'd give it an 8/10, because of the lack of bass(although it seems to be wearing in pretty fast). This is my first pair of wireless headphones so I don't really know how to compare it with others. I'm thinking of picking up the RS130, just to compare how the open air version sounds like. A good friend of mine who is a hardcore audiophile(by my standards) recommends me a portable Alien USB DAC. I'll probably pick up one one of these days.
Background
I think it's also important to note that I don't consider myself an audiophile, just a simple user who appreciates reasonably good sound and I'm sort of a basshead, so I like heartwrenching/headshaking thumps and growling lows on my headphones, so I probably expected a bit too much out of these cans basswise. Overall I'm pretty happy.
Customer Review: Great sound, some hiss, some static, good comfort
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought these after reading the other reviews here. I'll try to add my two cents. Some reviews talked of comfort, some of good sound, some of boxy sound and some of static or hiss. I can say, they were all dead on.
Environment: I use these headphones to listen to music at my desk at work. Why? Because I hate wires - nuff said.
Sound quality: For the price, I expected a product that delivered great sound quality. It does, so long as the music is loud - quiet parts are disturbed with very high pitched tones, hissing, and static glitches. When I turn my head, the static comes and goes. And then there's this really high pitched tone (so high it's almost like an old TV warming up) UG! But when the music is booming, the phones deliver deep bases and great trebles and mids. I really enjoy the sound. Boxy sound? Well, sometimes, but not often. Depends on the recording.
Comfort: The RS-140 fits around and over your ears. A soft padding forms around your ears on your head. Comfortable? You bet! Until the sweat begins. In a hot environment (like my cubicle when the heat kicks on) I get a little head sweat where the pads touch my head. I don't consider this a big deal but it's worth mentioning. The top pads are nice but sometimes I get a little ache going and then realize I don't have them positioned properly (too far back on my head). All in all, really comfortable - more so that those darn ear buds or on the ear phones that crush my ears onto my glasses frame.
Quality: They are very well built from what I can tell. They feel sturdy. The base should be heavier but it's OK. I tend to be clumsy and tip it over when putting the phones on the stand to charge.
Charging: 16 hours initial charge?!?!? Wow! Oh well. It totally rocks that all I need to do is drop my phones on the charging stand and they're all charged up for the next day. They auto-shutoff when you put them on the stand so you almost never have to turn them off. Sweet - less button fiddling.
Balance : As my hearing fades in one ear, it'll be nice to be able to adjust the balance to compensate.
Sound bleeding: One morning I noticed my co-worker in the next cube (half height walls - major UG!) look up at my when I had my music blaring (Dream Theater must be loud - it's just a must!). So I asked, was he able to hear the music from my headphones? Sometimes. Mostly some high pitches now and then but not much. Maybe he was just being nice. I don't turn them up to 11 or anything, but I suspect at 9 or 10 others besides me would be able to make out the music. Seriously, they do seem to keep in most of the sound. When the music playing, I can't hear a thing from the outside. Even when it's off, sound from outside the headphones is pretty muffled.
Controls: Easy to use, easy to remember. Up is on and louder, down is off and lower. How easy is that?
Worth it? Well, my wife certainly wasn't happy with me spending over a hundred for headphones, but she doesn't code for 8 hours a day with people all around talking, laughing, etc. If you hate catching the cord and pulling off your wired headphones minute after minute, then wireless is for for too. This is why I went for it. I wanted good sound quality and no wires. It was worth it.
What I really wanted: Head phones with absolute digital clarity. Like when listening to a CD. No hiss, pops, clicks, etc. Can Sennheiser deliver? We'll see. If they do, I'll buy em if they're a good value. The one thing I hate as much as wires is hiss and static in my ears. One out of two ain't bad though.
Customer Review: Automatically corrects problems
Summary: 5 Stars
Six stars would be more like it!
These are amazing. There are automatic adjustments to overcome problems previously endemic to wireless headphones.
1) There is no need of constant fiddling with tuning to get spot on the frequency. The base has a 3 band slide switch. The receiver (phones) has a button which auto tunes to several channels for each of the three bands and it automatically sets the frequency absolutely perfectly matched to the transmitter. So, if it is so automatic then why is the button necessary? Because the system might perfectly tune to a nearby device (neighbor's pager or whatever). If that happens, then another touch of the button will step further through the channels to find the next device, until it locks on to your phones. An annoying problem is thus done away with completely.
2) It senses the level of sound coming into the transmitter from your audio source (e.g. stereo receiver or TV) and shows the exact level you need to set the source to. There is a blinking light which indicates when the source level is perfect for best signal/noise ratio. Problems of hissing, overdrive distortion, momentary interference and so forth are greatly reduced! This is the product's best feature. It uses smart sampling by taking a half minute or so to sample the level in order to get a true overall average before the blinking light indicator changes state.
3) A sensor will shut off the transmitter when the source level is turned off (e.g. you switch off the stereo amplifier). But it is very smart about this: it waits a minute to see if the source is really off or just momentarily quiet (such as in between tracks on the CD or silent spots in a TV movie).
4) Charging happens automatically. Just set the phones on the transmitter rack, the red charging light on the transmitter will turn on when charging starts. There is no need to mate contacts, in fact there are no contacts. Apparently it charges with a magnetic field, wireless charging! The light will blink when charging is complete and the mode changes over to trickle charge.
5) There is an automatic compression feature (I don't use it) with an indicator light. This will prevent fading and blasting audio, but you lose dynamic range. It works very well but hi fi enthusiasts usually resist this tempting feature.
There are L/R balance and volume dials and the tuning button on the phones. Also the on/off switch.
The ear reproducers are very high quality in the model 140 compared to other brands and Sennheiser's lesser grade (models 110 and 120).
The 130 is of similar quality but uses 'open air' earpieces. The 140 is closed on the back for better silencing of ambient noise. However Sennheiser was a pioneer of the brighter sounding open air type of headset and many folks (probably most) will prefer them instead. For one thing humidity evaporates better in a hot humid climate. But I prefer the closed type, hence I bought the 140!
The 110's use cheaper reproducers, manual tune, and no automatic level adjustments. But the charging system is identical. And you could buy 4 of them for the price of the 140.
Customer Review: Outstanding, a boon to hearing impaired and their partners!
Summary: 5 Stars
I originally bought a this wireless unit and headphone set hoping to find a solution for my wife, who over the past few years has suffered significant and progressive hearing loss in both ears. We hoped to use the set both for watching TV and while exercising on our treadmill. We watch a small TV while walking on our treadmill, but the noise of the treadmill and the hearing loss had made this a nightmare for my wife.
We got the set, and within 10 minutes I had it set up and connected using the 3.5 mm adapter into the aux sound output of the 19" digital TV at the treadmill. Manual instructions were clear, setup was a no-brainer. My wife is ecstatic, and has been using it while exercising for over two months or longer now. She can not only hear the TV, and adjust volume and balance to one or the other ear, using simple controls on the headphones right ear piece, the headphones help muffle and protect her from the sound of the treadmill! Take my word for it, this is a fantastic and helpful solution for the hearing impaired. I even use the headphones now while on the treadmill, even though, fortunately, my hearing remains sharp and acute. But I love screening out the noise of the treadmill, as I walk for 1 1.5 hours at a time.
But wait, there is more!
We wanted to also use the set with our TV, a 42" LG. At first, we could not figure out how to use it, because there is no 3.5 mm outlet on the TV. Then I figured out you just locate the aux output, and find one video and two sound outputs, all three classic RCA connector types outlets. They may be red and black for sound instead of red and white, the classic coding, but you just plug red and white sound RCA plugs from the headphones into the red and black outputs on the TV, and presto, you have sound to the earphones.
Two weeks ago I ordered a second wireless set with headphones, AND an additional third headset. We can now watch TV together without one or the other being able to either NOT hear it, or being DEAFENED by the volume. Best of all, when she watches something like Top Model or Project Runway, I am able to stay in the room and read without having to listen to it. That alone is worth the price of admission!!
If we both use the earphones, we simply mute the TV with the remote, and each control our sound volume and balance with our headsets. Or, my wife uses the headset, and I just use the remote control and no head set. Be aware the only problem then is that if you have the TV un-muted and too loud, at some point, the person with the headset will become aware of the echo sound of the TV as an external sound conflicting with the headset sound.
This unit has been not just all we hoped for, but more. I cannot recommend it highly enough if you are faced with the needs we were able to solve with this equipment.