(Review) Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 vs CX Plus: Closer than you think!
The Sennheiser MTW3 and CX Plus have so much in common that it can be hard to choose between the two if you're simply reading off the specs sheet. But don't worry, I'm here to help.
In this comparison we'll look at the call quality, noise cancelling capabilities and sound quality, so hopefully by the end, you will have a better idea of which of the two earbuds is suitable for your needs.
Call quality
I compared the two earbuds in both quiet and noisy conditions (loud, cafe noise and some wind noise), and in these rather extreme tests, the MTW3s are superior. My voice sounded smoother, and it was less robotic. The background noise was also cleaner and the wind noise cancelling was more effective. Again, this is a doomsday scenario, and the CX Plus works well enough under normal circumstances.
Noise cancelling
Under the same testing conditions, the MTW3s are quieter and especially effective in cancelling the low frequencies; it removes more rumble than the CX Plus can. So, if ANC is important to you, you might want to look at the MTW3s instead of the CX Plus. While they both sound quite transparent, the CX Plus has more background hiss compared to the MTW3. The background hiss on the MTW3 is barely audible. So if it’s a more ‘transparent’ transparency mode you want, you won’t go wrong with the MTW3s.
Sound quality
Good news: both sound great and it comes down to taste. I feel that the MTW3 has more vibrant vocals and you have a bit more volume and crispiness in that area. The CX Plus is a little more laid back and not as focused as the MTW3s. Both earbuds display a clean separation between bass and vocals, though the MTW3 is a little cleaner.
While the differences so far have been marginal, the sound profile is where the two earbuds start to differ noticeably. If you like your bass tight and heavy, then the MTW3s will be your pick. The bass sounds quite a bit more boosted and bass guitars, percussions, and bass drops do have more punch and gravity.
Caption: Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 (blue) vs CX Plus (red)
In contrast, the CX Plus has a more relaxed bass signature, which brings other benefits. For example, background details are less clouded and will stand out better in the background compared to the MTW3. I prefer the MTW3 cause of its more vibrant mid-range tuning.
Bluetooth Latency
With the automatic latency correction feature in modern phones, you’re not going to get any Bluetooth lag when watching videos on your mobile device. But, mobile games don’t usually provision for this so we'll use this as a measure of real-world latency. We tested for lag on both iOS and Android mobile devices and the numbers displayed reflect the earbuds' latency in milliseconds, after accounting for the phone’s hardware lag.
So both earbuds are pretty similar in terms of effective latency when playing mobile games; there is some, and you'll get a bit more lag when playing FPS games.
Conclusion
So to answer the burning question: should you just pay less and buy the CX Plus?
After all, they are very similar, spec for spec. Their battery life, aptX Adaptive support, and even the Smart Control app experience are almost identical for both, except you cannot fine-tune your transparency levels on the CX plus. In its place, the CX Plus has Sidetone, which lets you choose how much transparency you want when making phone calls, and you can turn off transparency on phone calls entirely. Surprisingly, this is something that you cannot do on the MTW3.
It's fair to say that the CX Plus is an MTW3 'lite'–a less expensive, more compact version of the MTW3. It may not perform as well in several areas, but some people may be willing to overlook that for a lower price.
But if you want the very best that Sennheiser has to offer and you’re willing to pay the premium for better performance, then spring for the MTW3. It has better ANC, better call quality and cleaner transparency. It also comes with stability fins to ensure that the earbuds stay snug in your ears, which is useful when you’re running. Sennheiser has also announced that MTW3 will receive an update to enable multipoint pairing but I wouldn’t recommend buying something for a feature that it doesn’t have yet. Plus, we don’t know how well it’s gonna work when it's finally enabled. But even without multipoint, these are still the best earbuds Sennheiser has to offer.
You can also check out how the MTW3s compare to Sony’s flagship noise cancelling earbuds, the WF-1000XM4. Or if you already have the MTW2, you can check out this side-by-side to see how the MTW2 compares to the MTW3.
You may also check the latest prices of these products through the Amazon links below:
Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 - https://amzn.to/3zQXTHf
Sennheiser CX Plus - https://amzn.to/3xeaiBX
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