Reviewed by Chris Noel Hidalgo
The difference between just another music track and a great aural experience is proper gear. Take any lossless music file and pair it with something you bought off the sidewalk and you’ll miss out on the intricacies that artists pour into their work. In contrast, getting something decent will likely cause your brain and face to melt in audio bliss. The new Sennheiser HD 451 promises to do the latter. We see below whether it can deliver.
Specifications:
Type: Closed-back over-ear headphones
Frequency Response: 20 to 20,000 Hz
Impedance: 32 ohm
Sound pressure level: 108 dB
Total harmonic distortion: <0.1 percent
Cable Length: 1.2 m
Weight: 180 g
Design: 4/5
The Sennheiser HD 451’s design is very minimalistic and you’ll either loathe its simplicity or fall head over heels for its clean look. Our review unit had its headband and cups in matte black, while the Sennheiser marques are in a glossier finish. The only thing spicing up the otherwise vanilla aesthetics is the cup’s 3D ripple design encircled with a neon-colored band, which in our case was blue.
To conform to different head shapes and sizes, the HD 451 features a slider which retracts into the band, as well as swiveling and tilting ear cups. For comfort, there’s a foam piece for your noggin’ and foam ear cups for your ears, both covered in velour. Meanwhile, the left-side cable is your run of the mill rubberized one, terminating in an L-shaped, gold-plated, 3.5mm jack.
Hardware: 3.5/5
You should forget about fancy-schmancy leatherette or soft touch rubber as this baby’s made entirely out of plastic. Edges are pretty keen, though thankfully, the whole set feels sturdy. I bent the head band to and fro and it held without snapping. Sadly, the same can’t be said for the cable, which feels like it would easily break off if something unfortunate happens. Overall, the build feels like they were trying to cut costs. On the plus side, it’s super light.
Moving on to the driver, the HD 451 features neodymium magnets that promises clear stereo outputs while providing a frequency response range of 20 to 20,000 Hz. Impedance is at a healthy 32 ohm, sound pressure level is at 108 dB, and total harmonic distortion is at <0.1 percent (1 KHz, 100 dB). The on paper gibberish will mean little for most people (including me) though, so let’s dance.
User Experience: 4/5
I’ll start this off by saying that I can wear the Sennheiser HD 451 for hours on end without ever adjusting how it’s seated on my head. Sometimes, I even forget that I’m wearing it. It’s just that comfortable. The ear foams are large enough to completely cover my ears and tight enough to provide an ample seal, but not too tight that it began to hurt. They also didn’t cause me to profusely sweat, unlike leather or pseudo-leather pads that stick to skin even with the slightest perspiration. And did I mention that they’re really light? I have a Razer Kraken Pro as my personal driver at home and the weight difference is night and day.
Moving on to audio quality, these cans performed as advertised, with bass frequencies getting the thumping priority they deserve, whether they came from a guitar or from a drum. Even through all this power, vocals, trebles, percussions, and other low-frequency sounds were still clear and distinct—characteristic of Sennheiser’s balanced signature sound. Sound leakage also wasn’t problematic, and your ear will likely be bleeding way before any volume distortion occurs.
While overall music performance was great, synthetic tests revealed a flaw that may worry seasoned audiophiles: there’s a slight rattle in the lower bass spectrum when playing an isolated low frequency hum. If you’re planning on listening to monotonous drones, then it’s going to be a concern. For the rest of us, it’s easily forgivable since you won’t really hear the rattle when you’re listening to a proper music track.
Value: 4.5/5
The Sennheiser HD 451 should retail for around PHP 3,000, give or take a few hundred Pesos. Though it does not look like a premium driver, it’s more than worth the cost of admission. It’s also backed by a two-year warranty for your peace of mind. If you’re looking to take a step up from your sub-PHP 1,000 headset, you can’t go wrong with the HD 451.
What’s Hot:
- Understated look
- Great audio quality for the price
- Comfortable to wear
What’s Not:
- Overall build feels cheap
- Cable seems fragile
Bottomline:
- I can’t hear you over this wicked pair of cans.
Final Score: 16/20